Abiblog: October 2011

Capitol Hill's Dysfunction Long in the Making - Fox News

How did it get this bad on Capitol Hill?

Why does Congress barely function today?

The legislative branch of the world's most powerful nation is now widely scorned as it lurches from one near-catastrophe to the next, even on supposedly routine matters such as setting an annual budget and keeping government offices open.

Congress is accustomed to fierce debate, of course. But veteran lawmakers and scholars use words such as "unprecedented" to describe the current level of dysfunction and paralysis. The latest Gallup poll found a record-high lack of faith in Congress.

There's no single culprit, it seems. Rather, long-accumulating trends have reached a critical mass, in the way a light snowfall can trigger an avalanche because so many earlier snows have piled atop each other.

At the core of this gridlock is a steadily growing partisanship. Couple that with a rising distaste for compromise by avid voters. Unswerving conservatives and liberals dominate the two parties' nominating processes, electing lawmakers who pledge never to stray from their ideologies.

Instead of a two-party system, American government has become a battle between warring tribes, says Mickey Edwards, a former Republican congressman from Oklahoma who has taught at several universities. When House and Senate leaders set out their goals and strategies, he said in an interview, "it comes down to the party first," with the public's welfare lagging behind.

The parties have driven all but a few centrists from their ranks. House districts are ever more sharply liberal or conservative because both parties collude in gerrymandering to protect incumbents and because mobile Americans like to live among like-minded people.

For many Republicans, the biggest threat to re-election is from their party's right flank. For Democrats, the danger is being insufficiently liberal.

"The problem in a nutshell is that most members are more worried about their primary election than the general election," said former Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., now a campaign strategist. "They ask themselves, 'Why should I go out and be the next Bob Bennett or Mike Castle?' So they become very averse to compromise."

Bennett, a three-term Utah senator, and Castle, a former Delaware congressman, were veteran GOP lawmakers who unexpectedly lost Senate nominations last year to tea party activists who had denounced them for occasionally working with Democrats.

Some Washington insiders thought the downgrade of the nation's credit-worthiness, which followed last summer's bitter battle over the government's borrowing limit, might shock congressional leaders into ending their brinksmanship. But just days ago, a relatively minor disagreement over disaster aid money brought new threats of a government shutdown. Also, many lawmakers are deeply pessimistic that a special bipartisan committee can develop a viable plan this fall for sharply reducing the deficit.

Interviews with current and former lawmakers, congressional scholars and others point to several events that have tangled up Congress that lawmakers barely can keep the government's lights on, let alone tackle big problems such as illegal immigration and soaring health costs. They include:

—political realignment. Years ago, Southern conservative Democrats often worked with GOP lawmakers, and "Rockefeller Republicans" joined forces with moderate and liberal Democrats. Now, except for black enclaves, the South is overwhelmingly Republican. Liberal Republicans hardly exist, and even "moderate" Republicans face intense criticism from tea partyers and others.

—The 1994 Republican revolution. The GOP ended four decades of House minority status when Newt Gingrich of Georgia led an insurgency that would change Congress' way of doing business.

"He greatly increased the party-versus-party polarization," Edwards said. Republicans saw their mission as "less to be a lawmaker than to be a champion of the Republican cause, constantly at war, defeating Democrats."

When Democrats regained the majority for four years starting in 2007, they did not bring back the days of letting the minority party offer alternative bills. In fact, the House minority now plays a vastly diminished role, and both parties spend huge energies trying to gain or hold the majority.

—Cultural shifts. Unlike two and three decades ago, most lawmakers now keep their families back home, and many spend as little time in Washington as possible. They rarely socialize or talk politics across party lines, further discouraging compromise.

The media world has been reshaped by a decline in traditional, straight-news outlets and the rise of opinionated blogs, cable TV shows and talk radio. Republicans "live in mortal fear of Rush Limbaugh outing anyone" for being insufficiently conservative, said Rep. David Price, D-N.C., a former Duke University political science professor.

Rep. Jim Cooper, D-Tenn., in one of several essays on Congress' decline, writes that "Fox and MSNBC ... certainly inflamed partisanship." Social media, he says, has "popularized nonfact-based reality."

Changes occurred in the Senate too. The powerful filibuster tool was used sparingly throughout most of the 20th century. But both parties now routinely employ it, enabling the minority to block almost any bill if its members stick together.

—Money's role in polarization. New laws and tactics have steered millions of campaign dollars to interest groups on the far left and far right, and they spend it to defeat candidates they oppose.

"The voters bear some blame," said Davis, the congressman-turned-strategist, noting recent elections in which the greatest energies were on the edges, not the middle.

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California's counties brace for an influx of inmates - Los Angeles Times

Gov. Jerry Brown talks with reporters after speaking at the Alliance of California Law Enforcement's legislative day in Sacramento. With the governor are Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin, left, and Long Beach Chief of Police Jim McDonnell. (Rich Pedroncelli, Associated Press / April 6, 2011)

Local officials across California are bracing to manage more parolees and nonviolent felons as a new law goes into effect Saturday requiring them to take on what had long been a state responsibility.

The change is a result of budget pressures and a U.S. Supreme Court decision that required the state to lower its prison population by 30,000 inmates due to overcrowding.

Under the new law, prisoners who commit nonviolent and non-sex-related crimes, such as low-level drug offenders or thieves, will be kept in county jails instead of going to state facilities. And, when released, those prisoners will be left for county probation officials to monitor.

Los Angeles County supervisors have bemoaned the change, saying it could lead to a surge in crime and lawsuits. Money for the added work will be provided by the state but only for nine months, although Gov. Jerry Brown and others are calling for a guaranteed source of funding in the future.

"It is actually a reckless and pathetic shirking of the state's responsibility to its citizens," Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich said in a statement.

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley has also criticized the plan because he believes it will increase crime and lead judges to impose shorter sentences for criminals because they know the county already has overcrowded jails.

The county will not experience a large increase in prisoners or parolees at first. There will be about 600 new inmates at the end of October, according to estimates from state officials. County probation officials say they could have up to 120 new parolees to oversee by Monday in addition to their 50,000 other clients.

But those numbers should increase steadily. Four years from now, county sheriffs could have to find space for more than 8,300 new inmates each year, according to state officials, although some of those could be sent to drug rehabilitation centers or put under house arrest.

The county's Probation Department could eventually have up to 9,000 additional cases and may hire up to 50 more employees to deal with the new parolees, according to Reaver Bingham, a deputy probation chief.

Some officials say the parolees may have a better chance to be rehabilitated under county care because they will be from this area and have access to drug treatment and programs offered by faith-based and community groups.

"If we do the work and involve the community, I firmly believe that we can make a significant difference," said Ralph Miller, president of the Los Angeles County Deputy Probation Officers Union.

Brown has defended the move, saying at a Thursday news conference that it was "the most viable way to comply" with the Supreme Court's order.

Local police officials at the press conference also endorsed the proposal, albeit somewhat tentatively. They stressed the crucial need to guarantee the state would permanently pay counties and municipalities the added costs. to house prisoners that used to be sent to state prisons.

"Three words: state constitutional amendment," said Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin.

But Pazin, president of the California State Sheriffs' Assn., supported the plan.

"There's some naysayers out there. I say to them this is a golden opportunity to fix what's been broken for decades," he said of a state corrections system that has seen as high as 70% of paroled inmates commit more crimes and return to prison.

At the Thursday press conference, Brown did not promise the transition would be seamless.

"There'll be bumps along the road," he predicted.

jason.song@latimes.com

shane.goldmacher@latimes.com

Times staff writers Jack Dolan and Robert Faturechi contributed to this report.

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Foreign Office changes Kenya travel advice - BBC News

1 October 2011 Last updated at 20:49 GMT map

The Foreign Office has changed its travel advice for Britons visiting coastal areas of Kenya, following two attacks on western tourists.

It now warns against all but essential travel to coastal areas within 150km (93 miles) of the Somali border instead of the previous 60km limit.

Last month, gunmen killed Briton David Tebbutt and kidnapped his wife Judith in in Kiwayu. She was taken to Somalia.

On Saturday, a French woman was taken by gunmen from the island of Manda.

The Foreign Office advice states: "We now advise against all but essential travel to within 150km (previously 60km) of the Kenya-Somalia border, including along the coast strip north of Pate Island towards Somali waters.

"Both attacks were on beach-front properties, with two Westerners kidnapped and one murdered. Beach-front accommodation in that area and boats off the coast are vulnerable.

"The advice is kept under constant review in the light of the situation on the ground."

The Somali government said Mrs Tebbutt, 56, from Hertfordshire, had been taken across the border into Somalia by Islamist insurgent group al-Shaba. It said it was doing everything in its power to gain her release.

The French woman was kidnapped by an armed gang on Kenya's northern resort island of Manda and taken to Somalia, Kenyan officials said.

The disabled woman, 66, was attacked at her bungalow at Ras Kitau. Kenya's government said it believed the abductors were al-Shabab militants.

Somalia has been racked by fighting between various militias for two decades, so weapons are widely available and there are many armed groups who could be responsible.

Correspondents say al-Shabab has not previously seized foreigners far from its own territory, while the numerous pirate gangs normally kidnap ships and their crew for ransom rather than operating on land.

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Troy Davis mourned as a martyr by 1000 in Ga. - Boston Globe

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SAVANNAH, Ga.—Sent to death row 20 years ago as a convicted cop killer, Troy Davis was celebrated as "martyr and foot soldier" Saturday by more than 1,000 people who packed the pews at his funeral and pledged to keep fighting the death penalty.

Family, activists and supporters who spent years trying to persuade judges and Georgia prison officials that Davis was innocent were unable to prevent his execution Sept. 21. But the crowd that filled Savannah's Jonesville Baptist Church on Saturday seemed less interested in pausing in remorse than showing a resolve to capitalize on the worldwide attention Davis' case brought to capital punishment in the U.S.

Benjamin Todd Jealous, national president of the NAACP, brought the crowd to its feet in a chant of "I am Troy Davis" -- the slogan supporters used to paint Davis as an everyman forced to face the executioner by a faulty justice system. Jealous noted that Davis professed his innocence even in his final words.

"Troy's last words that night were he told us to keep fighting until his name is cleared in Georgia," Jealous said. "But most important, keep fighting until the death penalty is abolished and this can never be done to anyone else."

After four years of extraordinary appeals, every court that examined Davis' case ultimately upheld his conviction and death sentence for the 1989 slaying of Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail, who was shot twice while trying to help a homeless man being attacked outside a bus station. MacPhail's family and prosecutors say they're still confident Davis was guilty.

Regardless, questions raised by Davis and his lawyers garnered support from thousands worldwide, including dignitaries such as former President Jimmy Carter and Pope Benedict XVI. The night Davis was executed, protests were held from Georgia to Washington, from Paris to Ghana.

During a call-and-response litany at the funeral, the congregation chanted in unison: "We pray to the Lord for our souls and the soul of Troy Davis, martyr and foot soldier."

"He transformed a prison sentence into a pulpit," the Rev. Raphael Warnock, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, said in his eulogy Saturday. "He turned death row into a sanctuary."

Other than expressions of outrage at Davis' execution, there was little doom and gloom at his funeral. Warnock's congregation at Ebenezer, the church where Martin Luther King Jr. once preached, helped raise money for the 3 1/2 hour service, which carried more than a hint of celebrity sheen.

Davis' closed casket was piled with a spray of blue and white flowers -- a color scheme decoded by a close friend who mentioned his love of the Dallas Cowboys. Attendees each got a glossy, 22-page program filled with a scrapbook's worth of photos, many of Davis in his white prison garb posing with family members during weekend visits.

A song by the Billboard-charting gospel singer Dietrick Haddon got the crowd so excited that ushers walked the aisles stopping people from taking video and photos with their cell phones.

And the comedian and activist Dick Gregory, who joined the others in an impassioned call to end the death penalty, first brought people to their feet in laughter.

Gregory said he needed to apologize to Davis' family after the way he handled a recent phone call from a bill collector. "He said, `Are you Dick Gregory?' And I said, `I am Troy Davis!'"

Davis' nephew, 17-year-old DeJaun Davis-Correia, was the only family member to speak during the service.

He recalled Davis, the uncle who had been in prison his entire life, spending long hours with him on the phone helping with homework, particularly math. Davis-Correia, whose mother is Davis' older sister, said the family always knew when he had tests in school because Davis wrote them all down on his calendar, the same calendar he filled with the birthdays of all his friends and supporters. And he said his uncle would have wanted a note of celebration at his funeral.

"You really shouldn't be sad all the time, you should be happy and be positive," Davis-Correia said. "That's the attitude my uncle instilled in me."

Amnesty International, which worked for years to exonerate Davis, urged its supporters worldwide to remember him Saturday by wearing black armbands and "I am Troy Davis."

The advocacy group's U.S. director, Larry Cox, spoke from the dais behind Davis' casket Saturday urging those who fought to spare his life not to give up until America ends its use of the death penalty.

"If you thought you saw us fighting to save Troy Davis, now that we've been inspired by Troy Davis, you ain't seen nothing yet," Cox said.

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Obama urges Congress to 'pass this jobs bill' in radio address - Los Angeles Times

Obama urges Congress to 'pass this jobs bill' in radio address - latimes.com jQuery = $; //rename $ function xd.configure({ 'https://latimes.signon.trb.com':{ sender : 'https://latimes.signon.trb.com/registration/xd/xd_sender.htm', receiver : '/hive/common/includes/xd_receiver.html' } }); carnival.init({"hostname":"https://latimes.signon.trb.com","apiKey":"","product":"lanews", "xd":"1", "activateMessages":"true", "ssorNavBackgroundColor":"#000000", "ssorModalTextColor":"", "skipNewsletters":"0" , "captchaType" : "reCaptcha" }); var _sf_startpt = (new Date()).getTime(); div.thumbnail span.credit { font-weight: normal !important;}div.article div.articlerail ul li.relatedTitle, div.storygallery div.storyGalleryRail ul li.relatedTitle { font-size: 12px !important;} Subscribe/Manage Account Place Ad LAT Store Jobs Cars Real Estate Rentals Classifieds Custom Publishing latimes.com

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In the News: Eagle Rock Music Festival Anwar Awlaki Conrad Murray Andy Rooney '50/50' /*OVERWRITES*/.adv_search { background-color: #fff; }#adv_search { background-color: #eee; }#adv_search .adv_search_head,#adv_help .adv_search_head { background-color: #000; }#search_overlay { background-color: #eee; }#search-results ul.advTabs { background-color: #000; }#search-results ul.advTabs li a { background-color: #000; }#search-results ul.advTabs li.advCurrTab a { background-color: #fff; color: #000; }div.panelTab { background: url("/images/adv_search/adv_panel_bg.png") no-repeat; }#adv_keywords_head { background-color: #000; }#adv_results .clearfix {display:block;} Advanced Search Advanced Search X include all of these words: include any of these words: include this exact phrase: exclude: Select a date range this week past 30 days past 3 months past year Create a custom date range From: To: Obama urges Congress to 'pass this jobs bill' in radio address

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Reporting from Washington— Against a backdrop of bleak prospects in Congress, President Obama's jobs bill was the focus of his weekly radio address Saturday, and he used real-life examples of struggling Americans and urged, as he has for three weeks, "Pass this jobs bill."

Obama unveiled the American Jobs Act before a joint session of Congress on Sept. 8, but it has garnered little public support on Capitol Hill. Even some leading Democrats are pessimistic about its current prospects.

On Saturday, the president reiterated that some Republican members of Congress have said they agree with parts of the bill and said it's time for them to tell him what their proposals are. "And if they're opposed to this jobs bill, I'd like to know what exactly they're against," he continued. "Are they against putting teachers and police officers and firefighters back on the job? Are they against hiring construction workers to rebuild our roads and bridges and schools? Are they against giving tax cuts to virtually every American worker and small business in America?"

Obama singled out people including Kim Faber, who, with her husband, owns a carpet business in New Jersey. "We hang in by a shoestring," she wrote him, saying her husband worried about the prospects of bounced checks and uses a home loan to ensure they are covered.

She added: "It breaks my husband's heart when he has to let people go. Pass the bill!"

In a Republican response, a first-term House member from Virginia, Morgan Griffith, renewed the GOP's call to ease government regulations and said they had become "full-blown barriers to job creation."

"Of course, we all recognize the need for reasonable regulations to protect the public," he said. "There are good regulations, for instance, that ensure public safety and protect our environment. But there are also unnecessary and unreasonable regulations that hurt jobs in some of our nation's most critical industries."

Griffith, who represents the southwestern corner of Virginia, said House Republicans next week will take up rules affecting cement makers and boilers. With respect to boilers, he said a Dallas-based chemical manufacturer, Celanese, may scale back or close a plant employing hundreds in his district if the boiler regulations advanced. Copyright © 2011, Los Angeles Times

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At town hall, Perry doubles down on climate skepticism

Obama administration challenges decision on Alabama immigration law

Comments (16)Add / View comments | Discussion FAQ PopsBents at 1:36 PM October 01, 2011

Dear Leader Cahirman Maobama:

Let me give you a clue. Crap in one hand and wish in the other for your jobs bill to make its way through Congress. Every single person in the country know which of your hands will fill up first except for you.

ScootWalker at 1:35 PM October 01, 2011

Congress Should End Its Vacation, Focus on Jobs

simont at 1:18 PM October 01, 2011

no democrat wants to go near that jobs bill. its dead on arrival. food stamps barry just wanted something to stir up class warfare again. the best thing he can do for this country is finish up his term and then don't run! worst president since jimmy carter, from what I hear I was only 5 when jimmy was president.

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$59 for chiropractic consultation, adjustment, detox foot bath & 30 min massage (reg. $250) Most Viewed Most Emailed Latest News National roundup: Arkansas upsets Texas A&M, 42-38 10/01/2011, 1:06 p.m. 1,000 mourn executed inmate Troy Davis in Ga. 10/01/2011, 11:03 a.m. Plane flies into Ferris wheel in Australia 10/01/2011, 10:35 a.m. Obama urges Congress to 'pass this jobs bill' in radio address 10/01/2011, 10:26 a.m. School stabbing suspect allegedly triggers bomb scare at hospital 10/01/2011, 9:56 a.m. California's counties brace for an influx of inmates 10/01/2011, 12:00 a.m. Amid poverty, Chinese officials splurge on lavish vanity projects 10/01/2011, 12:00 a.m. Rabbit control keeps Long Beach City College volunteers hopping 10/01/2011, 12:00 a.m. West Hollywood Library's new edition 10/01/2011, 12:00 a.m. As gold prices soar, Bodie is thrust from the past 10/01/2011, 12:00 a.m. USC vs. Arizona: Live updates from the Coliseum - The Fabulous Forum 10/01/2011, 12:20 p.m. San Diego police officer killed in off-duty traffic accident - L.A. Now 10/01/2011, 1:09 p.m. National roundup: Texas A&M retakes lead over Arkansas, 38-35 - L.A. Times - Sports 10/01/2011, 12:25 p.m. Jazz review: Esperanza Spalding at the Orpheum Theater - Culture Monster 10/01/2011, 1:06 p.m. USC vs. Arizona: Live updates from the Coliseum - L.A. Times - Sports 10/01/2011, 12:55 p.m. h2.headline a { display: block; } h3.headline a { display: block; } .twtr-hyperlink, .twtr-user{ color:#8B0412; font-weight:bold; font-size: 11px; }.twtr-tweet-text { font-size: 13px; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",Times,serif; }.twtr-ft { display: none; }a:hover {text-decoration:none;}p.tw-widget-footer {font-size:11px; margin-top:15px;}

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U.S. issues travel alert after Awlaki death - Reuters

Anwar al-Awlaki, a U.S.-born cleric linked to al Qaeda's Yemen-based wing, gives a religious lecture in an unknown location in this still image taken from video released by Intelwire.com on September 30, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Intelwire.com

WASHINGTON | Sat Oct 1, 2011 4:10pm EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The State Department issued a worldwide travel alert on Saturday warning of the possibility of anti-American attacks in response to the killing of two top al Qaeda members.

The warning came a day after U.S. officials said Anwar al-Awlaki, identified as "chief of external operations" for al Qaeda's Yemen branch, was killed in an attack by missiles fired from multiple CIA drones in Yemen.

"The death of Awlaki, in the near term, could provide motivation for anti-American attacks worldwide from individuals or groups seeking to retaliate against U.S. citizens or interests because of this action," the State Department said.

The drone strike also killed Samir Khan, an American who served as editor of a glossy magazine used as a propaganda and recruitment tool by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

(Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe; Editing by Doina Chiacu)

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Plane hits Ferris wheel in Australia - msnbc.com

CANBERRA, Australia — An ultra-light plane crashed into a Ferris wheel at a rural festival in eastern Australia on Saturday, trapping two children on the ride and two adults in the aircraft for hours. There were no serious injuries.

PhotoBlog: Ultra-light plane crashes into Ferris wheel

The Cheetah S200 carrying two men did not topple the Ferris wheel when it hit the frame near the top on the first morning of an annual three-day festival at Old Bar, a coastal village 220 miles (350 kilometers) north of Sydney, New South Wales Rural Fire Service spokesman Ben Shepherd said.

Two children — a 9-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl — were trapped in a carriage at the top of the wheel near the wrecked plane for 90 minutes, police said.

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The 52-year-old pilot and his 32-year-old passenger were trapped inside the mangled aircraft more than 30 feet above ground for almost three hours, police said.

Shepherd said rescuers used a crane to free the four.

"Thankfully, everyone was taken down and were able to walk away from it," Shepherd said.

The pilot, Paul Cox, said he did not see the Ferris wheel before his plane hit it.

"The next thing I knew, I was stopped inside the Ferris wheel," he said. "I had no idea for a few minutes and I was just hoping no one got hurt."

Witnesses said the Ferris wheel was full of children minutes before the crash. But because of impending rain, only five had dared to take the final ride, said a festival organizer, who gave his name only as Terry.

"The kids were fantastic," said Brett Campbell, a paramedic at the scene. "They were so calm and so well-behaved and very brave. And so were the two gentlemen in the plane. They were just the best patients we could ever hope for, and the best thing about it, no one really had any injuries."

Fizal Meah, a witness, said one of the children in a carriage below the area of impact was struck by debris and was left distraught but uninjured.

"Because the rain was stopping and starting, stopping and starting, it was almost empty," Meah said.

Local resident Gary Jones said his 9-year-old twin sons were among the last to ride the Ferris wheel before the crash.

"It was a hell of a shock," Jones said.

Police and air safety investigators were at the scene Saturday.

The plane had just taken off from a nearby airstrip when it crashed, Meah said.

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Haqqani network senior commander captured - CNN

A U.S. military helicopter flies over the Paktiya province of Afghanistan in July.Haji Mali Khan is the senior leader in Afghanistan for the Haqqani networkHe was captured on Tuesday, but it took a few days to verify his identityThe Haqqani network is blamed for recent attacks

(CNN) -- The senior Haqqani network leader in Afghanistan, Haji Mali Khan, was captured during a joint NATO-Afghan forces operation, the International Security Assistance Force said Saturday.

Khan was captured Tuesday in Jani Khel district, in Paktiya province, ISAF said.

"This is the arrest of a leading figure of the Haqqani clan," ISAF spokesman Gen. Carsten Jacobson said. "It is a considerable blow against the Haqqani network."

The Haqqani insurgent network is widely regarded as one of the most effective militant groups in Afghanistan. Western intelligence officials believe the Haqqanis were involved in the assassination this month of Burhanuddin Rabbani, the chairman of Afghanistan's High Peace Council, and a June attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul.

The group has not yet been labeled a terrorist group, but the United States is close to adding it to its terror list. U.S. officials say they are in the final formal review of that process.

Khan is the uncle of Siraj and Badruddin Haqqani -- the brothers who lead the network -- and worked directly under Siraj, managing bases and overseeing operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan, ISAF said.

Although he was arrested Tuesday, his capture was not announced until Saturday because it took a few days to confirm his identity, NATO spokesman Lt. Col. Jimmie Cummings said.

Khan moved forces from Pakistan to Afghanistan to conduct terrorist activity, ISAF said.

According to ISAF, Khan in the past year established a militant camp in Paktiya province, transferred money to insurgents and help them acquire supplies.

He was heavily armed, but surrendered without incident, ISAF said.

"Haji Mali Khan is a very important member of the Haqqani network. He was an active fighter for the group but also he was helping (Siraj) Haqqani in his administrate work," said Muhammad Amin, a former member of Afghanistan's security council and an influential leader in the region. "Whenever Siraj would be busy or away, Mali Khan would attend the meetings for (him). I think it is quite significant that he has been arrested and for sure Mali Khan has lots of information."

The Haqqani network was founded by Siraj Haqqani's father with Pakistani backing to fight against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. Still today, the group is believed to maintain ties with Pakistan's military intelligence, the ISI.

Many of the Haqqani targets have an Indian connection, signs of that association with the ISI.

The links between the ISI and Haqqanis is "very well known," former joint chiefs chairman Adm. Mike Mullen, who retired Friday, told CNN's Fareed Zakaria.

"I have argued for the need to sever this link," he said, adding that the discussion was not a new one for U.S. officials.

The United States has offered a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Siraj Haqqani.

The U.K. Foreign Office praised the capture of Khan.

"As a senior commander within the Haqqani network, his removal from the battlefield will deal a major blow to one of the most dangerous terrorist networks operating in Afghanistan," said Alistair Burt, foreign office minister for Middle East affairs.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh, Tim Lister and journalist Ruhullah Khapalwak contributed to this report.

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Occupy Seattle protests against corporate America - The Seattle Times

For Libby Smith, 65, it was the frustration that her political involvement didn't seem to influence anyone.

For Andrew Tuttle, 23, it was the homeless family living in the bus stop near his Wallingford house.

Garth Donald, 27, was inspired by protests in the Middle East where young people sparked revolutions through protest.

The 50-or-so individuals who turned out for an Occupy Seattle protest against corporate control of government had different motivations but agreed that taking to the streets was necessary to change the country.

The local protest at Westlake Park Saturday morning was one of dozens echoing across the country in response to weeks-long protests in New York City by a youth movement called Occupy Wall Street.

Like those in New York, Seattle protesters were largely young. A few wore dollar bills taped across their mouths.

Those who helped organize the protest said it drew all kinds of people who want more control over their own government.

"It's amazing the diversity and the singular voice that we have," said Albert Postema, of Snohomish.

He and his daughter traveled to New York to participate in protests there, and he helped bring the cause back to Seattle. On Saturday, he wore a noose around his neck, taping and un-taping a dollar-bill across his face as needed so he could arrange the protesters into a circle.

"Banks got bailed out, you got sold out!" they chanted.

Jon Ramer, 53, said he wanted to show protesters on Wall Street that they aren't alone, though their protests are most visible.

"A lot of people feel as if we've lost a legitimate way to govern ourselves," he said.

Older people in the group said they wanted to show that it was more than just a young person's movement.

Smith has been politically involved for years, she said, but the last time she joined a protest was during the Vietnam War.

"I just feel powerless," she said. "I vote. I'm active. But nothing seems to be changing."

Emily Heffter: 206-464-8246 or eheffter@seattletimes.com

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Amtrak train, truck collide in northern California - Reuters

OAKLAND, Calif | Sat Oct 1, 2011 3:18pm EDT

OAKLAND, Calif (Reuters) - An Amtrak passenger train and a farm truck collided Friday evening at a northern California rail crossing, and nearly 40 passengers were taken to hospitals for treatment of minor injuries, an Amtrak spokeswoman said on Saturday.

All of the injured were released without being hospitalized, spokeswoman Vernae Graham said, adding that the train later completed its run from Oakland to Bakersfield with a majority of the original passengers on board.

The train, carrying a total of 191 passengers and crew, collided with the truck at about 7:15 p.m. local time at a crossing near Antioch, about 30 miles northeast of Oakland, Graham said.

The front-leading cab car, damaged in the crash, was removed to a side track and replaced with a freight locomotive brought in to pull the train for the remainder of its trip, Graham said.

She said the crossing where the incident occurred was a private one marked by a railroad crossing sign, but it was not equipped with warning lights or gates.

There was no immediate official word on the fate of the truck driver, but Graham said she understood the driver suffered relatively minor injuries.

(Reporting by Laird Harrison and Steve Gorman; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Jerry Norton)

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Michael Jackson's bodyguard says drugs stowed away - San Francisco Chronicle

Pool / Getty Images

Prosecutor David Walgren holds a bottle of the anesthetic propofol as he questions Alberto Alvarez, one of Michael Jackson's bodyguards, during the trial.

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Census count finds decreasing white population in 15 states - Washington Post

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Census count finds decreasing white population in 15 states

Text SizePrintE-mailReprints By Carol Morello,

Non-Hispanic whites are a dwindling share of the U.S. population, with their numbers dropping in the Northeast and Midwest and growing only modestly in the South and West, the Census Bureau said Thursday.

Whites declined in 15 states, almost all in the industrial and farming states from Massachusetts to Pennsylvania, and from Kansas to Ohio. They also declined in California and three Southern states, including Maryland.

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Changing neighborhoods:?Neighborhoods such as Bloomingdale in Northwest Washington and eastern Capitol Hill were once home to large majorities of African Americans, but their racial makeup has undergone a radical shift.