The price of oil fell 2 percent Tuesday, extending a weeklong decline, as signs of global economic weakness raised concerns about energy demand.
World
Interpol calls for Iraq vice-president Hashemi's arrest
BAGHDAD/PARIS (Reuters) - Interpol called for the arrest of fugitive Iraqi Vice-President Tareq al-Hashemi at the request of Iraqi authorities on Tuesday on suspicion of planning attacks, a move likely to complicate attempts to defuse Iraq's political crisis. Hashemi, a Sunni Muslim politician with the Iraqiya bloc, fled Baghdad in December when the Shi'ite-led government accused him of running death squads, a dispute that risked upsetting a delicate power-sharing agreement. The vice-president, who is in Istanbul, has denied he was involved in murdering six judges and other officials. ...
Border Patrol chief unveils new plan for illegal immigration
Border Patrol Chief Michael Fisher said at a House Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing Tuesday that the country's 21,000 Border Patrol agents will refocus on information and intelligence gathering in the agency's new four-year strategy. The agency will also try to develop a better measurement for whether they are successfully keeping the border safe. Right now, [...]
Exclusive: China considers delay of key party congress: sources
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's ruling Communist Party is seriously considering a delay in its upcoming five-yearly congress by a few months amid internal debate over the size and makeup of its top decision-making body, sources said, as the party struggles to finalize a once-in-a-decade leadership change. The two most senior posts, of president and premier, are not considered in much doubt. But any delay in the congress, no matter the official reason, would likely fuel speculation of infighting over the remaining seats in the nine-member politburo standing committee which calls the shots in China. ...
U.S. to resume military training aimed at al Qaeda in Yemen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has resumed on-the-ground military training aimed at bolstering Yemen's fight against al Qaeda, the Pentagon said on Tuesday, following a suspension during a period of intense political upheaval. "We have begun to reintroduce small numbers of trainers into Yemen," Pentagon spokesman Captain John Kirby told reporters. Kirby said the trainers had begun to be sent back to Yemen "recently" but declined to give further details on when that occurred - or on the number or location of those trainers. ...
Senate Republicans block Democratic student loan bill
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked a White House-backed bill that would end a tax break for some private firms in order to fund an extension of low-interest rates for federal student loans. Republicans prefer to cover the $6 billion cost of a one-year renewal of the 3.4 percent loan rate by taking money from Obama's healthcare overhaul. A compromise is expected. A deal must be reached by July 1 to prevent the loan rate from doubling for more than 7 million students. The Senate vote was 52-45. Sixty yes votes were needed to move the legislation along. ...
Gas prices falling: Next stop $3 a gallon?
Mainstream media spent much of early 2012 selling consumers on the idea that $5 per gallon gas was inevitable. Not wanting to seem insensitive to genuinely cash-strapped consumers, pundits and politicos blamed Iran, energy policy and speculative "gambling" as the cause of the march towards all-time high prices at the pump.
THE RACE: Distractions hounding both Obama, Romney
President Barack Obama and Republican rival Mitt Romney should be pressing full-steam ahead to energize their respective supporters, consolidate gains and reach out to voting blocs where polls suggest weakness.
Salazar approves Utah gas wells
U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on Tuesday announced the approval of a major natural gas drilling project in Utah that the Obama administration says will support more than 4,000 jobs during its development while safeguarding critical wildlife habitat and air quality.
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