| McCain denies he misstated timing of Iraq surge
(AP) |
AP - Republican John McCain pushed back on Wednesday against Democratic criticism that he misstated when the troop buildup ordered by President Bush began, saying elements were put in place before Bush announced the strategy in early 2007.
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| Hurricane Dolly slams South Texas, but levees hold
(AP) |
AP - Hurricane Dolly barreled into South Texas on Wednesday, lashing the coast with winds up to 100 mph and dumping heavy rain that threatened to flood low-lying areas but spared levees along the heavily populated Rio Grande Valley.
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| House OKs rescue for homeowners, Freddie, Fannie
(AP) |
AP - Rescue legislation sailed through the House on Wednesday aimed at helping 400,000 strapped homeowners avoid foreclosure and preventing the collapse of troubled mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
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| Al-Qaida leaving Iraq for Afghanistan, says Iraqi ambassador
(AP) |
AP - Al-Qaida's foreign fighters who have for years bedeviled Iraq are increasingly going to Afghanistan to fight instead, the Iraqi ambassador to the United States said Wednesday.
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| Minimum wage increase is little help as costs soar
(AP) |
AP - About 2 million Americans get a raise Thursday as the federal minimum wage rises 70 cents. The bad news: Higher gas and food prices are swallowing it up, and some small businesses will pass the cost of the wage hike to consumers.
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| Calif. woman attacked by bear, drives self to help
(AP) |
AP - A woman walking her two dogs in a rural area of Southern California was attacked and severely injured by a bear, but managed to escape and drive herself to a nearby fire station.
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| Pittsburgh cancer center warns of cell phone risks
(AP) |
AP - The head of a prominent cancer research institute issued an unprecedented warning to his faculty and staff Wednesday: Limit cell phone use because of the possible risk of cancer.
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| Bale attends 'Dark Knight' premiere in Spain
(AP) |
AP - Christian Bale swept into Barcelona on Wednesday night to attend a glittering Spanish premiere of "The Dark Knight," appearing calm as he greeted fans a day after reports surfaced that his mother and sister had accused him of assault.
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| 'Pantyhose Bandit' causes sheer annoyance in Mass.
(AP) |
| AP - Dozens of pairs of pantyhose have been left near a Milford school bus stop ? causing sheer annoyance in the neighborhood. The pantyhose ? sometimes new, sometimes used ? has been left on Camp Street for more than two years. They're almost always black and queen sized. |
| AP Source: Goodell monitoring Favre situation
(AP) |
AP - NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is monitoring the ongoing rift between the Green Bay Packers and Brett Favre. A person with direct knowledge of Goodell's interest said the commissioner has spoken with Packers management several times recently as tensions mounted between the three-time MVP and his team.
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| House passes housing bill; Bush lifts veto threat
(Reuters) |
Reuters - The House of Representatives passed
a massive housing rescue bill on Wednesday while the White
House dropped a threat to veto it, paving the way for measures
aimed at shoring up the worst U.S. housing market since the
Great Depression.
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| McCain and Obama hit crunch time in hunt for No. 2
(Reuters) |
| Reuters - After months of secrecy and
intrigue, presidential rivals Barack Obama and John McCain are
almost ready to unveil the winners in the vice presidential
sweepstakes. |
| Hurricane Dolly hits South Texas, flooding feared
(Reuters) |
Reuters - Hurricane Dolly moved inland
after tearing into the south Texas coast on Wednesday with 95
mph (150 kph) winds, pouring torrential rain on the U.S.-Mexico
border area and threatening floods.
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| U.S. rejects outside probe of Canadian sent to Syria
(Reuters) |
| Reuters - U.S. Attorney General Michael
Mukasey said on Wednesday he had rejected a request from
lawmakers that an outside special counsel investigate the case
of a Canadian taken off a plane in New York and sent to Syria,
where he says he was tortured. |
| Pentagon plays down fears over Afghan violence
(Reuters) |
Reuters - The Pentagon on Wednesday sought to
play down the seriousness of growing violence in Afghanistan
but declined to say the United States and NATO were winning
their fight against Taliban insurgents.
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| Bloomberg, Gates pledge $375 million against tobacco
(Reuters) |
Reuters - New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and
Microsoft Corp co-founder Bill Gates pledged $375 million on
Wednesday to fight what they called a global tobacco epidemic.
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| Arctic's oil could meet world demand for 3 years
(Reuters) |
| Reuters - The Arctic Circle holds an estimated
90 billion barrels of recoverable oil, enough supply to meet
current world demand for almost three years, the U.S.
Geological Survey forecast on Wednesday. |
| Ahmadinejad says U.S. envoy showed Iran respect
(Reuters) |
Reuters - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on
Wednesday praised U.S. participation in last week's talks with
Tehran on its disputed nuclear program as "a positive step" and
said its arch foe had shown respect.
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| Ahmadinejad vows no Iran concessions in nuclear crisis
(AFP) |
AFP - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday vowed that Iran would not yield in the crisis over its nuclear drive but the White House warned again that it risks more sanctions if it fails to freeze sensitive nuclear work.
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| Karadzic to defend himself, mirroring Milosevic
(AFP) |
AFP - Bosnian Serb genocide suspect Radovan Karadzic is to defend himself before the UN war crimes court, his lawyer said Wednesday, raising memories of the trial of his late ally, Slobodan Milosevic.
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