by Frank James
A quick guided tour of some of the morning’s most important or interesting (or both) Washington-related stories.
President Bush cited past U.S. wars, particularly Vietnam, to urge continued support for American military involvement in Iraq although critics said the president was misapplying the lessons of the U.S. long and sad conflict in Southeast Asia.
Iraqi militias have seized control of many parts of their nation’s electrical grid, increasing the difficulties for the U.S. and Iraqi governments as they try to modernize the electrical infrastructure and raise the amount of electricity flowing to Iraqis.
Gen. George Casey, who President Bush removed earlier this year from direct oversight of the Iraq War, effectively making him the scapegoat, is being vindicated as the White House embraces his strategy of withdrawing some U.S. units while training Iraqis to take their places.
The Bush Administration is poised to issue a new rule that would expand the controversial practice of mountaintop mining in which the tops of mountains are blown off to expose the coal, creating vast amounts of waste in the valleys below. In a move to calm the roiling financial segment of the nation’s economy, Bank of America acquired a $2 billion stake in Countrywide Financial, the nation’s largest mortgage lender, which has been hammered by the credit crunch resulting from the subprime mortgage crisis.
The Bush Administration intends to screen employees of non-government organizations that receive money from the U.S. AID to make sure they aren’t on associated with known terrorist groups or individuals.
Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential candidate, is having difficulty reconciling his positions on abortion, recently saying on one occasion that he’d allow individual states to maintain legal abortion after saying he’d seek a nationwide abortion ban.
The credit squeeze caused by problems in the sub-prime mortgage market has led to a flight of capital from money-market funds, adding to the credit crunch since many of these funds invest in the commercial paper corporations sell to obtain cash for operating and expansion purposes.
More Top Picks Best Wifi Baby Monitors For Twins
Even as Congress has moved to stop lawmakers from accepting lobbyist-paid travel, executive branch officials are taking trips paid for by companies or trade groups with business before federal regulatory agencies.
A senior Republican on the House immigration subcommittee said is President Bush is serious about cracking down on employers who hire illegal immigrants he should start with his own federal government which has hired thousands of unauthorized workers.