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Wednesday, January 09, 2013

The Two-Way

AIG Will Not Join Lawsuit Over Its Federal Bailout

Manhattan: The headquarters of American International Group Inc. (AIG).

January 9, 2013 With the economy on the brink of disaster, American taxpayers bailed out the insurance giant. Now, its former CEO is leading a lawsuit that claims shareholders didn't get fair compensation. But the threat of a public backlash may have kept AIG from joining the suit.

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The Two-Way

Talk Of Delaying Brennan Nomination 'Unfortunate,' White House Says

John Brennan, President Obama's nominee to be the next CIA director.

January 9, 2013 Republican senators have said they may try to hold up John Brennan's nomination to be CIA director until they hear more about the attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi and more about his views on "enhanced interrogation."

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Around the Nation

NRA Vows To Stop Tucson From Destroying Guns

Guns are piled inside a crate outside a police station in Tucson, Ariz., on Tuesday during a buyback. Tuesday marked the second anniversary of when a gunman opened fire on former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords as she met with constituents in 2011, killing six people and leaving 12 others injured.

January 9, 2013 The Arizona city's gun buyback program is being challenged by the National Rifle Association. The gun rights group says it is illegal under the state's law to destroy the guns, and warned the city it will sue. Tucson officials say they are not violating the law.

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It's All Politics

Lobbying Battle Over Hagel Under Way Before Obama's Nod

Former U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., speaks at the White House on Monday after President Obama nominated him to replace Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.

January 9, 2013 The fight over the former GOP senator's nomination to be the next defense secretary might be bigger than any other Cabinet nomination in recent history. Chuck Hagel's friends and foes are preparing for modern combat on TV and the Internet.

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Law

Can Police Force Drunken Driving Suspects To Take Blood Tests?

A photographic screen hangs in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, which is undergoing renovations. On Wednesday, the justices will hear arguments in a case that asks whether police without a warrant can administer a blood test to a suspected drunken driver.

January 9, 2013 The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments Wednesday in a case testing whether police must get a warrant before forcing a driver to have his blood drawn. Missouri, backed by the Obama administration, argues that time is of the essence when alcohol is dissipating in a person's bloodstream.

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Education

Elite Colleges Struggle To Recruit Smart, Low-Income Kids

Top schools like Harvard, seen here in 2000, often offer scholarships and other financial incentives, but they are finding it hard to increase the socioeconomic diversity on campus.

January 9, 2013 Top schools often offer scholarships that not only include free tuition, but also free room and board for top students from poor families. Each year, however, colleges are confronted with a paradox: No matter how many incentives they provide, enrollment of highly talented, low-income student barely seems to budge.

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Education

Promoting Hinduism? Parents Demand Removal Of School Yoga Class

Third-graders at Olivenhain Pioneer Elementary School in Encinitas, Calif., perform chair pose with instructor Kristen McCloskey last month.

January 9, 2013 KPBSEncinitas, Calif., is celebrated by many as the yoga mecca of America. But when the spiritual discipline was recently incorporated in a local school, a group of parents quickly likened it to religious indoctrination. They worry the new model will be exported to schools across the country.

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Asia

Become A Successful Chinese Bureaucrat, In 5 Easy Steps

Former civil servant Wang Xiaofang is the author of 13 books on "bureaucracy literature," including The Civil Servant's Notebook, which recently was translated into English.

January 9, 2013 Tales of Machiavellian office politics are all the rage in China, where "bureaucracy lit" is flying off bookstore shelves. The books are read as both entertainment and as how-to guides for aspiring civil servants. Pioneers of the genre offer a path to success in China's corridors of power.

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Sweetness And Light

Steroid Accusations Likely To Bench Baseball Hall Of Fame Candidates

Former Detroit Tigers pitcher Jack Morris throws out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 3 of the American League Championship Series between the Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees on Oct. 16. Morris is a candidate for the National Baseball Hall of Fame this year.

January 9, 2013 Frank Deford bats around the impact of allegations of drug use by some players and laments that debating who should be in the Hall of Fame isn't as fun as it was in the past.

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Tuesday, January 08, 2013

It's All Politics

House Gears Up For Immigration Battle

Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., the new House Judiciary Committee chairman, is a former immigration attorney who has taken a hard line against Democratic proposals.

January 8, 2013 The Republican leadership has installed immigration hawks to chair the House Judiciary Committee and a subcommittee that would be charged with drafting immigration bills. And a veteran Democrat has left another coveted committee to join the judiciary panel and help push through possible changes.

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The Two-Way

Venezuela's Chavez To Miss His Inauguration

January 8, 2013 The announcement by the government confirms suspicions the president's illness will keep him in Cuba past Thursday when he was scheduled to be sworn in. Chavez underwent his fourth cancer-related surgery in Cuba last month.

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Shots - Health News

In Canada, Gonorrhea Defeats Another Antibiotic

In the U.S., doctors no longer have the option of treating gonorrhea with a pill. Instead, they are advised to use an injectable antibiotic, which is still effective against the bacteria.

January 8, 2013 Superstrains of gonorrhea, which are resistant to all antibiotics, have cropped up in Europe and Asia. Now Canadian doctors report the first failure in North America of the usual antibiotic for gonorrhea, leaving just one drug left to fight the sexually transmitted germ.

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The Two-Way

Fuel Leak At Logan Airport Adds To Trouble For Boeing 787 Dreamliner

A Japan Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner jet aircraft is surrounded by emergency vehicles while parked at a Terminal E gate at Logan International Airport in Boston on Monday. A small electrical fire filled the cabin of the JAL aircraft with smoke about 15 minutes after it landed in Boston.

January 8, 2013 A fuel leak Tuesday on a Tokyo-bound Japan Airlines flight forced the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft to cancel takeoff and return to the gate at Boston's Logan International Airport. It was the second incident involving a Dreamliner in two days after a small fire on a 787 on Monday.

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The Salt

College Students With Food Allergies Make Legal Gains

A recent settlement between a university and the Justice Department may encourage institutions to better accommodate students with food allergies.

January 8, 2013 Congress expanded the scope of the Americans With Disabilities Act a few years ago to include food allergies. Now the Justice Department is making institutions accommodate students by providing "safe" food and special meal plans.

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The Two-Way

NRA Accepts Biden's Invitation To Meet

Vice President Biden.

January 8, 2013 The National Rifle Association says it is sending a representative to hear what the vice president's task force on gun issues has to say. The organization has made clear, though, that it opposes changes to gun laws if they restrict Americans' ability to buy firearms.

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