Bill Clinton On Mission In N. Korea; Iran Questions U.S. Hikers; Rockets Hit Kabul

Good morning.

It's "happy birthday, Mr. President" time — President Barack Obama is 48 today.

But it's a former president who's back atop the news at this hour. Bill Clinton is in Pyongyang, North Korea, to see if he can negotiate the release of two jailed American journalists.

Laura Ling and Euna Lee, reporters for former vice president Al Gore's California-based Current TV, were arrested along the North Korean-Chinese border in March. They've been sentenced by the North to 12 years in prison.

South Korea's Yonghap News Agency reports that "diplomatic sources" say Clinton "is expected to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-il later Tuesday and fly out of the country as early as Wednesday."

On Morning Edition, NPR's Anthony Kuhn reported that to win the reporters' freedom Clinton may need to acknowledge that they broke North Korean laws. And, Anthony says, the negotiations will inevitably get caught up in U.S.-North Korean politics:

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs issued this statement a short time ago:

"While this solely private mission to secure the release of two Americans is on the ground, we will have no comment. We do not want to jeopardize the success of former president Clinton's mission."

Meanwhile, former first lady and current Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is starting an 11-day trip to Africa. As NPR's Corey Flintoff reports, she goes there "with a list of difficult U.S. diplomatic aims, ranging from condemning war atrocities to improving trade ties."

As for other stories making headlines this morning, they include:

— BBC News — "Iran Questioning U.S. Tourist Trio": "Three Americans arrested after apparently straying into Iran are being questioned by police, Iranian state television has reported. 'We don't know whether they are tourists or not. We are questioning them,' said a local security official." The three have been identified as freelance journalist Shane Bauer, his girlfriend, Sarah Shourd, and a third companion, Joshua Fattal. Bauer, by the way, blogs here.

Related story on Morning Edition — There's No Real Border In That Region: Journalist Cesar Soriano, who visited northern Iraq last year for the 2009 edition of Lonely Planet's Middle East guide, tells guest host Linda Wertheimer about what it's like in the Kurdish region where the hikers apparently got lost:

(Full disclosure: Cesar is a former colleague of this blogger's. We both used to work for USA TODAY.)

— The Associated Press — "Rockets Strike Kabul In Rare Pre-election Attack": "A string of rockets slammed into Kabul at daybreak Tuesday in the first major attack on the relatively calm Afghan capital in the run-up to this month's presidential election, police and residents said. A suicide bomber also killed five people and wounded 18 in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday, and a provincial governor escaped injury in an attack on his convoy." The election is set for Aug. 20.

— The Washington Post — Virginia And New York Are Vying For 9/11 Trial Of KSM: "The U.S. attorney's offices in Alexandria and Manhattan are embroiled in intense competition over the opportunity to prosecute Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the self-proclaimed mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, and his co-conspirators, according to Justice Department and law enforcement sources."

Related story on Morning Edition — " 'Jihadi Pipeline' Stirs In Minneapolis":

— The Wall Street Journal — "White House Counsel's Job At Stake": "Obama administration officials are holding discussions that could result in White House counsel Gregory Craig leaving his post, following a rocky tenure, people familiar with the matter said. ... Mr. Craig didn't respond to questions about his job as White House counsel for this article."

— C-SPAN.org — "Senate Expected To Begin Floor Debate On Supreme Court Nominee": "Republican senators have asked for four days of debate on Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor, though Majority. Leader Reid, D-Nev., thinks two days is sufficient." The Senate opens for business at 10 a.m. ET. The proceedings will be webcast here.

— All Things Considered — "Critics Say 'Clunkers' Program Isn't Very Green": "The "cash for clunkers" program was designed to move new cars off the lots, and so far it's working. But it was also supposed to help the environment by replacing gas guzzlers with more fuel-efficient vehicles. Whether that's working is another story":