Doubts grow on Iraqi vote
More Top Picks Best Chelsea Boots For Girls
Maneuver by lawmakers likely to draw another veto
BAGHDAD– Hopes for a January election in Iraq faded Monday after Shiite and Kurdish legislators teamed up to vote for a new version of an election law that in effect takes seats away from Sunnis and is almost certain to draw another veto from the country’s Sunni vice president.
Parliament then adjourned for a holiday until Dec. 8, leaving in limbo the fate of the law that is needed if the crucial election is to go ahead by the end of January, as mandated by Iraq’s Constitution. The withdrawal of U.S. forces has been pegged to the timing of the poll, and a delay could jeopardize President Barack Obama’s promise to bring all combat troops home by August.
The head of Iraq’s election commission told The Associated Press that he doubted there was now enough time to hold the poll by January. “Most probably, it might be moved to February,” Faraj Haidari said.
Sunnis stormed out of the legislative session, leaving Shiite and Kurdish alliances to vote overwhelmingly for amendments that will take away seats from Sunni provinces and add them to Kurdish ones.
The amendments did not offer extra seats to Iraqi refugees, which include many Sunnis, and therefore did not address the complaint that prompted Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi to veto the law last week.
Kurds had subsequently threatened to boycott the poll because they didn’t like the way seats had been distributed by the election commission. They took advantage of the veto to recast the law in a way that would give the Kurds a greater portion of seats in an expanded Parliament than provided under the version passed last month.
— Liz Sly and Caesar Ahmed, Tribune Newspapers
Overcrowded conditions cited in mine disaster
HEGANG, China– Relatives of workers who were killed in an underground explosion mourn at the entrance of the Xinxing coal mine Monday. A government official said the mine where 104 died had too many workers underground in an effort to increase output. Relatives said they were shocked that such a blast could occur at one of China’s state-run mines, which the government has promoted as being safer than smaller, privately run concerns.
WORLD
Israeli, Hamas may be close to prisoner swap
JERUSALEM– Expectations of a swap of hundreds of jailed Palestinian militants for an Israeli soldier held by Hamas for more than three years soared Monday after some of the most promising signs of progress in years of negotiations.
Citing the sensitivity of indirect talks with its bitter enemy, Israel’s government imposed silence on its officials and unusually tight censorship on its news media to try to keep the details under wraps.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the militant group’s leadership in the Gaza Strip played down the likelihood of an imminent deal.
NATION
Probation in ACORN case
LAS VEGAS– A former Las Vegas supervisor for the political advocacy group ACORN was sentenced Monday to up to three years’ probation for his role in a plan to pay canvassers to register Nevada voters during last year’s presidential campaign.
Christopher Edwards pleaded guilty in August to two gross misdemeanor charges of conspiracy to commit the crime of compensation for registration of voters. He testified in September that ACORN canvassers making $8 per hour were paid bonuses of $5 per shift if they turned in 21 or more voter registration cards.
Edwards is expected to be a star witness at an April trial for ACORN and a former regional director, Amy Busefink.
Pregnancy centers must display no-abortion signs
BALTIMORE– Crisis pregnancy centers in Baltimore must display signs stating they do not provide abortions or birth control referrals under a measure approved by the City Council on Monday night and thought to be the first of its kind.
Council President Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, a Democrat who was lead sponsor of the initiative, called the measure a victory for women’s well-being.
She cited a study by an advocacy group indicating that women have been misled at pregnancy centers, which provide counseling, clothing and food for expectant mothers — but not abortions.
“It’s a step towards making sure that women have the information they need to make the right decision for their health and their future,” Rawlings-Blake said.
But abortion opponents say the bill unfairly targets centers that they say provide accurate information and needed assistance to poor women.
More Top Picks Alienware 16 Aurora Review
The bill, which passed on a 12-3 vote, awaits a decision by Mayor Sheila Dixon.
Plea in peeping case
LOS ANGELES — An Illinois man accused of secretly making nude videos of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews pleaded not guilty Monday to interstate stalking.
Michael Barrett, 48, is suspected of finding three hotels where Andrews was staying last year. He rented an adjacent room, altered the peephole and shot videos of Andrews, authorities said.
He is accused of uploading the videos to the Internet and trying to sell them to celebrity gossip site TMZ this year.
If convicted, Barrett could face up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
The charges were filed in Los Angeles because TMZ is based there.
Corrosion, drywall linked
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla–The federal government said Monday that it has found a “strong association” between problematic imported Chinese drywall and corrosion of pipes and wires, a conclusion that supports complaints by thousands of homeowners over the last year.
In its second report on the potentially defective building materials, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said its investigation also has found a “possible” link between health problems reported by homeowners and higher-than-normal levels of hydrogen sulfide gas emitted from the wallboard coupled with formaldehyde, which is commonly found in new houses.
THE NUMBER
7,783
hate crimes were reported to the FBI in 2008, according to data released Monday. Overall, the number of reported hate crime incidents increased about 2 percent from the year before. The figures show a nearly 11 percent increase in hate crime offenses based on sexual orientation, and a nearly 9 percent increase in hate crime offenses based on religion. The largest category, racially motivated hate crimes, fell less than 1 percent.The FBI cautioned that the increase might be due to more tracking. In 2008, 2,145 different agencies reported hate crime incidents, up from 2,025 the year before.
— From Tribune news services