The Republican Mystery
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701722.html
By Harold Meyerson
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A15
The truly astonishing thing about the latest scandals besetting the
Bush administration is that they stem from actions the administration
took after the November elections, when Democratic control of Congress
was a fait accompli.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' hour-long meeting on sacking
federal prosecutors took place after the election. The subsequent
sacking took place after the election. The videoconference between
leaders of the General Services Administration and Karl Rove's deputy
about how to help Republican candidates in 2008, according to people
who attended the meeting, took place Jan. 26 this year.
France's Agents of Change
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701719.html
By David Ignatius
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A15
PARIS -- When President Jacques Chirac bid farewell to politics this
month, he summed up what is known here as French "exceptionalism" by
insisting that "France is not a country like the rest."
Vive la difference, as the French like to say. But the presidential
election that will take place here over the next six weeks is likely
to move this country away from its exceptional perch and closer to the
global mean. Even the French people, who cherish their specialness
with a ferocity that is both endearing and deeply annoying, seem to
recognize that the rules of the game are changing.
Beyond the Subprime Debacle
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701721.html
By Robert J. Samuelson
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A15
Remember the bank panic of 1907? Probably not. But revisiting it is
one way to clarify the differences between the old financial order and
the new -- and the challenges posed to the new order by the subprime
mortgage mess. Higher defaults on these loans to weaker borrowers
raise a question: Is the new order better than the old? For the U.S.
economy, the stakes are huge.
Consider the financial upheaval. Since the early 1800s, banks had
dominated the system. People and businesses deposited their cash in
banks; then the banks made loans. Now, much money bypasses banks. In
1975, banks and savings and loan associations -- close cousins --
issued 73 percent of all home mortgages. By 2006, their share of the
$10 trillion mortgage market was 29 percent. Almost 60 percent had
been "securitized": bundled into bonds and sold to investors
(pensions, mutual funds, foreign investors).
Family Matters
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701720.html
By Ruth Marcus
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A15
Elizabeth Edwards won me over when she announced that she looked like
a bag lady.
It was a few weeks before the Iowa caucuses in 2004, and Edwards and I
were on the same flight from Des Moines to Washington. Edwards offered
that self-deprecating assessment when I admired the woolen shawl she
had wrapped around her.
Bush's Royal Trouble
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701761.html
Why Is King Abdullah Saying No to Dinner?
By Jim Hoagland
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A15
President Bush enjoys hosting formal state dinners about as much as
having a root canal. Or proposing tax increases. So his decision to
schedule a mid-April White House gala for Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah
signified the president's high regard for an Arab monarch who is also
a Bush family friend.
Now the White House ponders what Abdullah's sudden and sparsely
explained cancellation of the dinner signifies. Nothing good --
especially for Condoleezza Rice's most important Middle East
initiatives -- is the clearest available answer.
Where Are the IPOs?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701930.html
Wall Street worries that New York is no longer the center of the
financial universe.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A14
AT GEORGETOWN recently, Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson posed a
question to some of the most influential minds in American finance:
"Have we struck the right balance between investor protection and
market competitiveness?" The answer from many of the conference's
luminaries was no, reflecting Wall Street's current preoccupation: the
contention that American capital markets, especially those in New
York, are becoming less competitive. And the remedy, according to a
growing list of prominent business leaders, is to soften the Sarbanes-
Oxley regulations adopted after Enron Corp.'s collapse. Even so, in
coming months Mr. Paulson should advocate a cautious approach to
policymaking as pressure to loosen oversight increases.
Over the past couple of years, foreign companies have increasingly
offered stock on exchanges outside of New York. Others have delisted.
Many U.S. firms, meanwhile, have left the stock markets in favor of
private ownership. According to a growing body of critics, these
developments indicate that compliance with federal reporting
requirements has become too costly, forcing companies to look outside
the United States for capital.
Senate Backs Pullout Proposal
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032700463.html
Hagel Joins Democrats On War Funding Bill
By Shailagh Murray
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A01
Senate Democrats scored a surprise victory yesterday in their bid to
force President Bush to end the Iraq war, turning back a Republican
amendment that would have struck a troop withdrawal plan from
emergency military funding legislation.
The defection of a prominent Republican war critic, Sen. Chuck Hagel
of Nebraska, sealed the Democrats' win. Hagel, who opposed identical
withdrawal language two weeks ago, walked onto the Senate floor an
hour before the late-afternoon vote and announced that he would "not
support sustaining a flawed and failing policy," adding: "It's now
time for the Congress to step forward and establish responsible
boundaries and conditions for our continued military involvement in
Iraq."
An Ocean Of Promotion
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032702237_pf.html
For Spring Breakers, the Selling Never Stops
By Libby Copeland
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; A01
PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. -- The sand is white, the water is blue-green,
and the nation's college students are celebrating the proud rites of
spring as they always have, with Keystone Light and wet T-shirt
contests. What more could they possibly need?
More. So much more.
New Drive Afoot to Pass Equal Rights Amendment
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032702357_pf.html
By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; A01
Federal and state lawmakers have launched a new drive to pass the
Equal Rights Amendment, reviving a feminist goal that faltered a
quarter-century ago when the measure did not gain the approval of
three-quarters of the state legislatures.
The amendment, which came three states short of enactment in 1982, has
been introduced in five state legislatures since January. Yesterday,
House and Senate Democrats reintroduced the measure under a new name
-- the Women's Equality Amendment -- and vowed to bring it to a vote
in both chambers by the end of the session.
In Rio's Slums, Militias Fuel Violence They Seek to Quell
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032702337_pf.html
By Monte Reel
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; A01
RIO DE JANEIRO -- A decorated police officer was sitting behind the
wheel of his Toyota pickup truck here last month when a group of men
surrounded the vehicle and pumped more than 40 bullets into him.
Such execution-style killings are not unusual in a city where police
and gang members routinely battle for turf in the shantytowns, but
this one sent ripples through Rio. The slain officer, Felix dos Santos
Tostes, had been moonlighting as the leader of a militia unit -- one
of the well-armed groups that have multiplied throughout the city's
slums in recent months, complicating an urban conflict that has defied
solution for decades.
Failures at FBI Acknowledged
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032700471.html
Mueller Accepts Criticism, Proposes Alternative to Controversial
'Letters'
By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A03
Angry senators accused FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III yesterday of
management failures that resulted in the dispatch of hundreds of
national security letters and intelligence surveillance warrants
containing erroneous information, and Mueller said he accepted that
characterization.
Both Republicans and Democrats at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing
said the abuses have undermined the FBI's reputation and its authority
to continue using such letters and warrants under conditions that
Congress eased in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
The letters allow the FBI to request information from businesses
without a warrant, subpoena or judicial review.
Edwardses' News Brings Flood of Online Support
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701917_pf.html
By Matthew Mosk
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; A03
The emotional news conference Democrat John Edwards and his wife,
Elizabeth, held last week to share word that her cancer has returned
brought them an outpouring of more than 24,000 e-mails in 24 hours. It
also appears to have unleashed a torrent of online contributions to
his presidential campaign.
In the past five days, the campaign received more than 5,000 donations
totaling half a million dollars -- about 50 percent of the total it
raised online in the previous three months, according to postings on
ActBlue.com, the Web site that tracks Edwards's Internet fundraising.
Gonzales TV Appearance Sheds No Light on Firings
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032701920_pf.html
By Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; A05
Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales sat down for a television
interview this week in an attempt, he said, to "be more precise about
my involvement" in the firings of eight U.S. attorneys.
He said he had heard complaints about some prosecutors over the years
but "was not involved in the deliberations over whether or not United
States attorneys should resign." He approved the list of prosecutors
to be fired but let others choose them. He said he was certain that
"nothing improper happened" -- but vowed "swift and decisive action"
if any wrongdoing is found.
Infighting Fractures Russian Opposition
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032702279_pf.html
Kremlin's Democratic Foes Help Marginalize Themselves With Suspicions,
Old Feuds
By Peter Finn
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; A09
MOSCOW -- Russia's Republican Party, a small liberal grouping led by
parliamentary deputy Vladimir Ryzhkov, ceased to exist last Friday
after the country's Supreme Court upheld a decision by the Ministry of
Justice not to re-register the party.
"The decision was absolutely predictable," said Ryzhkov, 41, a four-
term deputy and lonely voice in parliament who has railed against the
Kremlin's centralization of power. "Independent politics no longer
exists. It's the Kremlin's decision who can participate in electoral
politics. And our courts just rubber-stamp these decisions."
Arab Summit Contoured by Regional Crises
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032702306.html
Fears Over Iraq, Lebanon, Iran Become Backdrop for Renewed Peace
Initiative
By Faiza Saleh Ambah
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A10
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, March 27 -- Arab heads of state began gathering
Tuesday to relaunch a five-year-old peace initiative that was
initially rejected by Israel, ignored by the United States and left
dormant by Arab leaders after it was introduced in 2002.
A changed Middle East -- marked by the violence in Iraq, the crisis in
Lebanon and Iran's ascendance -- is spurring renewed interest in the
plan, analysts said.
U.S. Is Open to a Deeper Iran Dialogue, Gates Says
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/27/AR2007032702224.html
By Ann Scott Tyson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 28, 2007; Page A12
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday that the U.S.
government is open to higher-level exchanges with Iran, and he called
talks this month in Baghdad that included Iranian, Syrian and U.S.
officials "a good start."
In his first domestic public speech since taking office in December,
Gates laid out a pragmatic approach to foreign policy -- one that
emphasizes using diplomacy to overcome disagreements with Turkey, Iran
and other nations regarding Iraq.
In Defense of Day Laborers
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/opinion/28wed1.html
One can oppose illegal immigration and still approve of hiring sites,
places where laborers can find shade, toilets and a safe place to
negotiate jobs with contractors and homeowners.
A Death Embellished
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/opinion/28wed2.html
A Congressional hearing may be needed to get an independent evaluation
of just who pulled the strings to sugar-coat Pat Tillman's death - a
terrible battlefield accident - as an instance of heroism under
hostile fire.
The Smithsonian Challenge
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/opinion/28wed3.html
As the Smithsonian's governing board begins to deliberate over
choosing a replacement for the ineffective Lawrence Small, we have
three suggestions.
Still Trying to House Katrina's Victims
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/opinion/28wed4.html
The victims of Hurricane Katrina should not have to keep paying the
price for the Bush administration's misplaced animosity toward low-
income housing.
Who Killed Fido? We All Did
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/opinion/28blum.html
By DEBORAH BLUM
Pesticide contamination of food occurs because we operate,
deliberately, in a world of poisons.
Spirits Are Angry. Bad Time to Bomb Their Volcano.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/world/asia/28indo.html?ref=world
By SETH MYDANS
In recent weeks, workers in Indonesia have been dropping hundreds of
giant concrete balls into the steaming vent known to scientists as
"the big hole."
fter Congo Vote, Neglect and Scandal Still Reign
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/world/africa/28congo.html?ref=world&pagewanted=all
By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN
Six months after a historic election, the fledging government is
struggling to put Congo back together.
New Works From China Command Attention
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/arts/artsspecial/28china.html?ref=asia
By BARBARA POLLACK
Museums around New York are coming to grips with the outpouring of
work from China that is shaking up the art world.
Tajik President Outlaws Slavic Endings on Names
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/world/asia/28tajikistan.html?ref=asia
By ILAN GREENBERG
The unusual decree is one of several that the leader implemented in an
effort to purge vestiges of the former Soviet rule.
With Local Figures on the Ballot, Others May Shun an Early Primary
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/nyregion/28primary.html?ref=us
By MICHAEL COOPER
Moving New York's presidential primary to Feb. 5 from March to ensure
that more candidates actively campaign in the state may have exactly
the opposite effect.
The Entourage Is Gone. The Jet Is Gone. But for the Ex-Speaker, the
Work Goes On.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/washington/28hastert.html?ref=politics
By MICHAEL LUO
Former Speaker J. Dennis Hastert is getting used to life among the
proletariat in the "People's House."
Earth's Climate Needs the Help of Incentives
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/business/28leonhardt.html?ref=washington
By DAVID LEONHARDT
Congress seems poised to pass a bill to deal with climate change, but
some ideas would do very little to change the situation.
Problems Still Hampering Veterans' Care, Senators Say
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/washington/28veterans.html?ref=washington
By IAN URBINA and RON NIXON
The Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense
continue to have problems collecting and sharing medical data,
hampering treatment for wounded soldiers, lawmakers said.
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