Today's Political News...

Latest news on the Presidential Elections. 

· Saudis let thugs go.  Saudi commandos cut a deal to let Al Qaeda terrorists escape and stage-managed a dramatic "rescue" of dozens of hostages at a luxury housing complex, survivors and witnesses allege. 

· George Soros putting his fortune behind a new cause: Ousting Bush.  George Soros bet against the dollar and made "the killing of a lifetime." Then he bet against the pound and made a bigger one.  Now Soros, a storied financial and political speculator, says another of his bets is about to pay off: more than $15 million against President Bush. 

· Sen. Candidate Adds Joke Writer to Staff.  Roy Teicher made it big in the other Hollywood as a joke writer for "The Tonight Show," "Newhart," "Mork & Mindy" and other sitcoms and movies. Now in the city with the same name on the other coast, he's going after an audience that's a little different — Florida voters. 

· Boots made for backin' Bush.  Nancy Sinatra may wear boots made for walking, but she rode to the White House yesterday on the back of a motorcycle.  The daughter of Frank Sinatra was part of a delegation of Rolling Thunder officials and others who met President Bush near the South Portico of the White House. 

· Update: Kerry Gets Google-Bombed.  With the Democratic presidential nomination clinched, John Kerry was bound to get Google-bombed.  An effort by conservative bloggers has pushed the candidate's campaign website to the top of the result list when the word "waffles" is typed into Google. But Kerry's campaign is trying to capitalize on the prank. 

· Jerry Springer Named Democratic Delegate.  Ohio Democrats have chosen talk-show host Jerry Springer to be an at-large delegate for the Democratic National Convention in Boston. 

· Jobless bill fails by 1 vote.  The Senate rejected by a single vote Sen. Maria Cantwell's amendment to provide extended federal unemployment benefits to more than 1 million workers nationwide.  The only senator who missed the vote was Sen. John Kerry. 

· Kerry Cites McCain for Defense Chief.  Democratic challenger John Kerry said on Wednesday his first choice as defense secretary would be Republican Sen. John McCain as he criticized the Bush administration for failed policies in Iraq. 

· Congress Targets Cell Phone Cameras.  Some people are using cell phone cameras for nefarious purposes, such as taking pictures beneath women's skirts and posting them on the Internet. Lawmakers want to make taking such photos and other illicit uses of video technology a federal crime punishable by up to a year in jail. 

· Interest rate boost before election.  The Bush administration has been alerted that Chairman Alan Greenspan will guide the Federal Reserve Board to a small interest rate boost before the presidential election, and President Bush is reported to be satisfied. 

· Blast Kills Chechen President.  The Kremlin-backed president of Russia's warring Chechnya region and a top Russian general were killed Sunday when an explosion tore through a stadium in the Chechen capital where they were attending World War II observances, the republic's Interior Ministry said. 

· Big monorail fan might backtrack.  When officials from the Seattle Monorail Project pay homage to the monorail movement's grass-roots heritage, they're talking about citizens like Bobby Inshetski - Until he learned that the final plan calls for trains to pass less than 7 feet from the bay windows of his apartment. 

· Katherine Harris Forgets to Sign Ballot.  Rep. Katherine Harris, the former Florida secretary of state who oversaw the disputed 2000 presidential election, admits she's responsible for a vote going uncounted — her own. 

· Rumsfeld: Worst Still To Come.  Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld apologized to Iraqi prisoners abused by U.S. troops and warned that "a lot more photographs and videos" exist that could "make matters worse." 

· Taped campaign message phoned at 3 A.M.  Taped telephone message from political candidate to get out and vote can be annoying enough. Some residents of this Lake County community were even more annoyed when the calls came between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. Tuesday. 

· Bin Laden 'reward' to kill Bremer.  A statement attributed to Osama bin Laden today offered rewards in gold for the killing of top US and UN officials in Iraq. 

· Bush, Wife to Skip Daughters' Graduations.  President Bush and first lady Laura Bush will skip their twin daughters' college graduations later this month to avoid creating a distraction at the respective schools, the White House said Thursday. 

· Bush pauses to comfort teen.  In a moment largely unnoticed by the throngs of people in Lebanon, Ohio waiting for autographs from the president of the United States, George W. Bush stopped to hold a teenager's head close to his heart. 

· Bush to Go on Arab TV Over Prisoner Abuse.  Trying to contain an increasingly damaging controversy, President Bush planned two interviews with Arab television to underscore his aversion to photographs of naked detainees and gloating U.S. soldiers at a prison in Iraq. 

· Paula Jones' legacy debated 10 years later.  When Paula Jones sued Bill Clinton on May 6, 1994, alleging sexual harassment, she touched off a blizzard that made Monica Lewinsky a national figure and led to the first presidential impeachment since 1868. 

· Senate votes to guarantee overtime pay for all workers.  In an election-year snub of the Bush administration, the Republican-controlled Senate voted Tuesday to require that new Labor Department regulations guarantee the right to overtime pay for all workers who currently qualify. 

· Disney Forbidding Distribution of Film That Criticizes Bush  The Walt Disney Company is blocking its Miramax division from distributing a new documentary by Michael Moore that harshly criticizes President Bush, executives at both Disney and Miramax said. 

· U.S. Reveals Iraqi Prisoner Deaths as Scandal Grows.  Two Iraqi prisoners were murdered by Americans and 23 other deaths are being investigated in Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States revealed on Tuesday as the Bush administration tried to contain growing outrage over the abuse of Iraqi detainees. 

· Gore Launches Cable TV Network.  An investor group headed by former Vice President Al Gore said Tuesday it is buying a cable channel and launching a news network that will offer "irreverent and bold" programming for young adults. 

· Supreme Court Justice Attacked.  Supreme Court Justice David Souter suffered minor injuries when a group of young men assaulted him as he jogged on a city street, a court spokeswoman and DC Metropolitan Police said Saturday. 

· Berkshire's Buffett, Apple's Jobs Join Kerry Advisers.  Billionaire investor Warren Buffett and Apple Computer Inc. co-founder Steve Jobs are advising Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry on economic issues. 

· Sept. 11 Commission Hears Bush, Cheney.  President Bush defended his administration's efforts to stop terrorist strikes and assessed the nation's potential vulnerabilities to attack in an extraordinary meeting with the Sept. 11 commission, setting the stage for the panel to focus on reform proposals as it finishes its work. 

· House Passes Tax Cuts for Married Couples.  The bill, passed 323-95, would permanently change three parts of tax law that cause some married couples to pay higher taxes than they would as single individuals. 

· Clinton's Memoirs to Be Released in June.  The suspense is over, almost. Former President Clinton's memoirs will be published in late June, and promotion will begin a few weeks earlier with a speech at BookExpo America, the industry's annual convention. 

· Corps reopens investigation into controversial photo.  The Marine Corps is reopening its investigation into a controversial photo that shows a smiling Marine Lance Cpl. Ted J. Boudreaux Jr., posing with two Iraqi boys. All three have their thumbs up and, in the version that spurred the initial Marine Corps investigation, one of the boys holds a cardboard sign that appears to read “Lcpl Boudreaux killed my Dad, th[en] he knocked up my sister!” 

      » Was this the original photo?   

· Bush Calls for Ban on Broadband Taxes.  Tying high-tech innovation to prosperity, President Bush is using a speech in a swing state to address an election-year vulnerability: a sluggish job market that hasn't rebounded with the national economy. 

· Coors Under Fire for Kerry-KKK Quip.  The dispute started when The New York Times inadvertently published a photo of Republican Senate candidate Pete Coors above a story about a KKK member who murdered a black sharecropper. 

· Former NFL Great Pat Tillman Killed in Afghanistan.  'Gave up millions in the NFL to become Elite Army Ranger.'  Former NFL player Pat Tillman was killed in action while serving in the elite Army Rangers on duty in Afghanistan. 

· U.S. to allow Saddam's party into government.  The White House confirmed Thursday that the administration is moving to change a postwar policy that blocked members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party from Iraqi government and military positions. 

· Bush Administration Revising Overtime Eligibility.  Retreating under pressure, the Bush administration intends to revise a proposed overtime regulation to preserve eligibility for most white-collar workers making up to $100,000 a year as well as for police, firefighters and other first responders, Republican officials said. 

· Bin Laden Shows Resilience Despite U.S. Reassurances.  The nation's top counterterrorism and intelligence officials have reassured Congress repeatedly about the significantly diminished capabilities of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. 

· Time lists 'most influential' people.  Time Magazine has published its list of the 100 "World's Most Influential People," including President George W. Bush, which it called "a radical gambler." 

· Senator's Lost Credit Cards Used in Spree.  Someone charged more than $800 to Sen. Pete Domenici's credit cards last month after he lost his wallet during a visit to Albuquerque. 

· Stars Raise Cash for George Clooney's Dad.  Some of Hollywood's top draws, including Oscar winners Michael Douglas and Renee Zellweger, "Friends" cast member Courteney Cox Arquette and actress Drew Barrymore, are playing supporting roles in the candidacy of a Kentucky Democrat. 

· Millions Dodge Taxes — Legally.  Americans will file about 132 million tax returns this year and all will pay less in federal taxes due to three Bush tax cuts. But 44 million people will pay no federal taxes at all — that's the highest number in U.S. history and it translates to 33 percent of all tax filers. 

· NRA to Launch News Company.  The nation's gun lobby is creating an "NRA news" company that will produce a daily talk show for the Internet, buy a radio station and seek a television deal to spread its gun-rights message nationwide. 

· Air America Radio Is Dropped From Stations in 2 Big Markets.  Just two weeks after its maiden broadcast, Air America Radio, the liberal talk-radio network, was suddenly taken off the air yesterday by two stations in two of the major markets where it leases broadcast time - Los Angeles and Chicago. 

· Ad Draws Big Notice To Little Newspaper.  It's not often that The Gabber, a free, weekly, 13,000-circulation little Gulfport, Fl paper makes national news.  But when it accepted an ad from a group of local Democrats suggesting that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld should be killed - it gets a lot more attention than it wants. 

· Bush Says More Troops May Deploy to Iraq.  Giving no ground despite rising casualties, President Bush says more American troops may be heading for Iraq with authority to use decisive force in a mission that "may become more difficult before it is finished." 

· Sen. McCain's wife stable in hospital after stroke.  Cindy McCain, wife of Sen. John McCain, suffered a small stroke and was hospitalized in stable condition. 

· FBI Missed Chances, 9/11 Commission Says.  In a world "blinking red" with terrorist threats against the United States, the FBI missed a last-minute chance to detect a key al-Qaida cell and possibly disrupt the Sept. 11 attacks, the commission investigating the 2001 hijackings said Tuesday. 

· Gov't Calls Dolly Parton 'Living Legend'  Dolly Parton will receive "The Living Legend" award today from the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., a spokeswoman said. 

· Bushes report $822,126 in adjusted gross income.  President Bush reported $822,126 in adjusted gross income for last year, on which he paid $227,490 in federal income taxes - or about 28 percent, according to the president's federal returns released Tuesday by the White House. 

Is Clinton to blame for September 11?  As the September 11 Commission tries to get to the truth, it is evident there is plenty of blame to pass around.  Here's a take on how the strength of Al Qaeda grew during the Clinton Administration — at a time when Bill was pre-occupied with stained dresses and Cuban cigars. 

· Scalia apologizes for erasure of reporters' recordings.  Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has apologized for an incident last week in which a U.S. marshal erased reporters' recordings of a speech Scalia gave to high school students. 

· Coors to Yank TV Ads Featuring Chairman.  Coors Brewing Co. is yanking three televisions ads from the Colorado market that feature company chairman Peter Coors because he plans to run for the U.S. Senate. 

· The Paula Jones Story.  Paula Jones is hawking her autobiography, "I Said 'No!': A Case File of Sexual Harassment," in which our plucky heroine will warn fellow victims "what to expect if their harasser is a powerful man. 

· Theft of FBI files 'has makings of Kerry Watergate.'  It is believed that the burglars were seeking papers that link Senator Kerry - the Democratic presidential candidate - to a controversial meeting of anti-Vietnam War activists in the early 1970s, at which a proposal to assassinate US congressmen was discussed. 

· McCain on talk of run with Kerry: 'No, no and no.'  Trying to stamp out speculation that he might consider joining Democratic Sen. John Kerry's ticket, Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona insisted Sunday that he would not do so under any circumstances. 

· Sony Buys Movie Rights to Clarke's Book.  Former counterterrorism adviser Richard Clarke's best-selling book may soon be a movie. 

· White House releases bin Laden memo.  The White House declassified and released Saturday the daily intelligence briefing delivered to President Bush a month before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. 

· "No Silver Bullet."  Not surprisingly, Condoleezza Rice testified Thursday that no "silver bullet" could have prevented the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks but the national security adviser said President Bush from the beginning wanted to eliminate Al Qaeda. 

· Doonesbury Calls Condi "Brown Sugar."  In Wednesday's Doonesbury cartoon, Garry Trudeau closed his political cartoon on National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice's upcoming 9/11 testimony by saying "Careful Brown Sugar."  

· Kerry hires online chief from MoveOn.  John Kerry has hired an Internet-savvy Democrat to run his presidential campaign's online communications, a move that raises new questions about the link between his campaign and the independent groups that run TV ads on his behalf. 

· Government Licenses First Private Rocket.  The government announced Wednesday that it has issued the first license for a manned suborbital rocket, a step toward opening space flight to private individuals for the first time. 

· Doonesbury Calls Condi "Brown Sugar."  In Wednesday's Doonesbury cartoon, Garry Trudeau closed his political cartoon on National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice's upcoming 9/11 testimony by saying "Careful Brown Sugar."  

· Coors to run for Senate.  Brewery giant Pete Coors will enter Colorado's U.S. Senate race today, according to Gov. Bill Owens. The candidacy potentially gives Republicans a well-known and well-financed candidate to challenge Ken Salazar, the Democratic attorney general. 

· Cross-dressing photos don’t stop candidate.  A candidate for the Texas House rejected calls to withdraw from the race after photos of him in women’s clothing began circulating. 

· Hamburg Releases Only Convicted Sept. 11 Plotter.  A Hamburg court ordered the release Wednesday of the only Sept. 11 suspect ever convicted, his lawyers' offices said, following last month's overturning of a guilty verdict against him on charges of aiding the suicide pilots. 

· Political titles play an unusual role in this campaign.  Books, the oldest of the "old media," are pushing serious issues into the presidential campaign and will remain a powerful force in coming weeks. They're shoving aside cable news networks and flashy Web sites, the "new media" it was fashionable to think would dominate political reporting. 

· OPEC: Don't blame us.  Saudi Arabia on Sunday blamed record high U.S. gasoline prices on America's tough environmental laws and lack of refining capacity, and points out, as an example, a refinery in Springfield, Illinois cannot sell gasoline in the Chicago market because the fuel formulas are different. 

· Photo may have nudged Bush on Rice testimony.  A historical 1945 photograph may have helped persuade the White House to let national security adviser Condoleezza Rice testify before the independent panel investigating the September 11, 2001, attacks, a panel spokesman said. 

· Gore TV Deal Is Stalled At The 11th Hour; Major Investor Pulls Out.  The New York Observer says that the deal for former Vice President Al Gore and his business partner Joel Hyatt to acquire digital-cable channel Newsworld International has hit a major obstacle and may have fallen through in the 11th hour of negotiations. 

· Bush Signs 'Laci and Conner's Law.'  President Bush on Thursday signed into law a bill that would make it a separate crime to kill or harm an unborn child during an assault on the mother. 

· Where's The Muslim Outrage?  As the ghastly pictures from Fallujah flashed across the television screen, one of Salman Rushdie's most famous outbursts in recent years came to mind: "Where's the Muslim outrage?" 

· Senators want OPEC subjected to US antitrust laws.  Riled by soaring U.S. gasoline prices, a key senator Thursday resurrected the idea of making the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries subject to antitrust prosecution. 

· FCC leader to stay tuned to racy soaps.  Soap operas have become a potential target in the Federal Communications Commission's crackdown on broadcast indecency, according to a key official who said the programs might be too "steamy" for daytime television. 

· Rice to Address 9/11 Panel on April 8.  National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice will go before the federal panel reviewing the Sept. 11 attacks next Thursday. 

· House panel approves copyright bill.  House of Representatives panel has approved a sweeping new copyright bill that would boost penalties for peer-to-peer piracy and increase federal police powers against Internet copyright infringement. 

· Senate votes more money for child care in welfare bill.  The Senate on Tuesday voted an additional $6 billion for child care for welfare recipients and the working poor as part of a bill to renew the landmark 1996 welfare reform law. 

· Soros splashed with water and glue by young Ukrainians.  The U.S. billionaire and liberal philanthropist George Soros was splashed with water and glue in Ukraine's capital Kiev by two young Ukrainians who burst into a hall where he was addressing a human rights conference. 

· Calif. Schools Risking Millions in Aid.  Westminster school board trustee Judy Ahrens said the state Education Department policy promotes homosexuality, and she will not give in to what she called blackmail. "I'm calling their bluff," she said.  

· Al Gets Gore-TV.  Vice President Al Gore and business partner Joel Hyatt, an entrepreneur and Democratic fund-raiser, will close the deal to pay around $70 million to French-owned Vivendi Universal this week, making them the owners of the tiny digital-cable channel Newsworld International, moving Mr. Gore from politics to mini-media-moguldom. 

· Treasury Department Slips on Ladders.  It was the anecdote that politically seemed too good to be true. And it was. Treasury Secretary John Snow was set to say that "frivolous lawsuits" had caused the U.S. ladder industry to fold.  It turns out that 11 U.S. producers sell $850 million worth of ladders every year. 

· Florida Lawmakers Target Ambulance Chasers.  Ambulance-chasing ads have become a tried and true practice for some Florida lawyers trying to scare up business, but now local politicians say the commercials are insulting to the legal profession, and the messages ought to be strictly limited. 

· Politics at its best.  Maine's Governor Baldacci has signed a bill that not only makes it legal for golfers to drink beer on the course - it will also be allowed to be sold from golf carts. 

· Little Red Wagon Outsourced.  Radio Flyer Inc., maker of the little red wagon that has been symbolic of childhood for generations of American children, said it will keep its headquarters and distribution business in Chicago but decided the Chicago plant where the metal wagons are built is too expensive to maintain. With the plant closing later this year, Radio Flyer will lay off nearly half its 90 employees. 

· H.J. Heinz Co. Seeks to Disavow Kerry Connection.  H.J. Heinz Co. has launched an election-year campaign of its own, this one to distance the ketchup maker from what is shaping up to be an acrimonious presidential race. 

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