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Obama, Clinton Split Tuesday Primaries in Indiana and N.C.

May 7, 2008 - 1:37am

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Barack Obama swept to a convincing victory in the North Carolina primary Tuesday night and declared he was closing in on the Democratic presidential nomination. Hillary Rodham Clinton eked out a win in Indiana as she struggled to halt her rival's march into history. "Tonight we stand less than 200 delegates away from securing the Democratic nomination for president of the United States," Obama told a raucous rally in Raleigh, N.C. — and left no doubt he intended to claim the prize. Clinton stepped before her own supporters not long afterward in Indianapolis. "Thanks to you, it's full speed on to the White House," she said, signaling her determination to fight on in a campaign already waged across more than 16 months and nearly all 50 states. ...Read More

Olympic Flame Carried Through a Quiet New Delhi

By The Associated Press

April 18, 2008 - 2:29am

NEW DELHI (AP) _ Authorities sealed off the center of their normally frenetic capital Thursday with 15,000 police to protect the Olympic torch relay from anti-China protesters who held their pro-Tibet demonstrations elsewhere in India. By the time the torchbearers had traversed the shortened New Delhi route of the round-the-world relay, protesters had come nowhere near the Olympic flame _ and only a few hundred selected guests had managed to see it at all. Security was among the tightest ever in central New Delhi, with rings of protection _ first, Chinese in blue tracksuits; then, Indians in red ones _ surrounding torchbearers as they jogged from the presidential palace to the India Gate monument, which commemorates India's dead in World War I. ...Read More

Oklahoma Sheriff Charged With Using Inmates as Sex Slaves

By The Associated Press

April 18, 2008 - 2:25am

ARAPAHO, Okla. (AP) _ Authorities have charged a western Oklahoma sheriff with coercing and bribing female inmates so he could use them in a sex-slave operation run out of his jail. Custer County Sheriff Mike Burgess resigned Wednesday just as state prosecutors filed 35 felony charges against him, including 14 counts of second-degree rape, seven counts of forcible oral sodomy and five counts of bribery by a public official. Burgess, the top officer in the county of 26,000 since 1994, appeared in court Wednesday was released after posting $50,000 bail. "We are stunned," Undersheriff Kenneth Tidwell said Thursday. ...Read More

Zimbabwe Opposition Offices Raided

By The Associated Press

April 4, 2008 - 1:27am

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Intruders ransacked offices of the main opposition party and police detained foreign journalists Thursday in an ominous sign that President Robert Mugabe might turn to intimidation and violence in trying to stave off an electoral threat to his 28-year rule. Earlier, Mugabe apparently launched his campaign for an expected run-off presidential ballot even before the official results of Saturday's election were announced, with state media portraying the opposition as divided and controlled by former colonial ruler Britain. ...Read More

Paterson Sworn In as 55th New York Governor

By The Associated Press

March 17, 2008 - 2:12pm

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — David Paterson was officially sworn in as New York's governor on Monday, becoming the state's first black chief executive and vowing to move past the prostitution scandal that has rocked the state Capitol. Paterson, who is legally blind, was interrupted at several times during his address with thunderous applause. Before he gave his inaugural address, lawmakers in attendance gave him a two-minute standing ovation and chanted his name: "David! David! David!" "This transition today is an historic message to the world: That we live by the same values that we profess, and we are a government of laws, not individuals," Paterson said. ...Read More

Wall St. Drops as Markets Digest Bear Stearns Buyout

By The Associated Press

March 17, 2008 - 2:10pm

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street fell in temperamental trading Monday as investors grappled with news of JPMorgan Chase & Co. buying the stricken Bear Stearns & Co. in a deal backed by the government. The Dow Jones industrials, down nearly 200 points in the early going, fluctuated into positive territory and then sank again by more than 150 points, while broader indexes were more than 2 percent. A buyout of Bear Stearns was certainly more appealing than the alternative: letting the investment bank collapse and causing huge losses for anyone linked to it. And some unprecedented moves by the Federal Reserve gave investors a bit of solace on what many predicted would be a day of precipitous losses in the stock market. ...Read More

Spitzer Resigns in Wake of Prostitution Scandal

By The Associated Press

March 12, 2008 - 12:19pm

Updated 8:22 p.m. NEW YORK (AP) — In a startlingly swift fall from grace, Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned Wednesday after getting caught in a call-girl scandal that made a mockery of his straight-arrow image and left him facing the prospect of criminal charges and perhaps disbarment. "I cannot allow my private failings to disrupt the people's work," Spitzer said, his weary-looking wife, Silda, standing at his side, again, as the corruption-fighting politician once known as Mr. Clean answered for his actions for the second time in three days....Read More

Neither Obama Nor Clinton Can Win Democratic Nomination Without Help From Superdelegates

By The Associated Press

March 6, 2008 - 8:19pm

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton won't catch Barack Obama in the race for Democratic delegates chosen in primaries and caucuses, even if she wins every remaining contest. But Obama cannot win the nomination with just his pledged primary and caucus delegates either, according to an analysis by The Associated Press. That sets the stage for a pitched battle for support among "superdelegates," the party and elected officials who automatically attend the convention and can support whomever they choose. Two months into the voting, Obama can claim the most delegates chosen by voters. Clinton can claim victories in most of the big states. What should a superdelegate do? Unsurprisingly, the two campaigns have different takes on that question. ...Read More

Gunman Kills Eight at Jewish Seminary in Jerusalem Before He is Slain

By The Associated Press

March 6, 2008 - 8:16pm

JERUSALEM (AP) — A gunman entered the library of a rabbinical seminary and opened fire on a crowded nighttime study session Thursday, killing eight people and wounding nine before he was slain, police and rescue workers said. It was the first major militant attack in Jerusalem in more than four years. Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip praised the operation in a statement, and thousands of Palestinians took to the streets of Gaza to celebrate. The day's violence, which also included a deadly ambush of an army patrol near Israel's border with Gaza, was likely to complicate attempts by Egypt to arrange a truce between Israel and Palestinian militants. The U.S. is backing the Egyptian effort. ...Read More

For First Time in U.S. History, More Than 1 in Every 100 Americans is Behind Bars

By The Associated Press

February 28, 2008 - 7:11pm

NEW YORK (AP) — For the first time in U.S. history, more than one of every 100 adults is in jail or prison, according to a new report documenting America's rank as the world's No. 1 incarcerator. It urges states to curtail corrections spending by placing fewer low-risk offenders behind bars. Using state-by-state data, the report says 2,319,258 Americans were in jail or prison at the start of 2008 — one out of every 99.1 adults. Whether per capita or in raw numbers, it's more than any other nation. ...Read More

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