Democratic procedural votes on extending Bush tax cuts fail in Senate

Washington (CNN) -- Two Senate procedural votes on Democratic measures to extend George W. Bush-era tax cuts for people who are not super wealthy failed on Saturday, preventing the measures from moving forward.

The votes sought to extend the Bush tax cuts for families making under $250,000 and $1 million, respectively.

Both votes garnered the support of 53 senators, but the Democrats needed 60 votes to end debate.

Despite the realization that neither would get the 60 votes to succeed, many Democrats said before the vote they wanted to get on-the-record in support of extending the lower rates to lower earners. They also want to contrast their ideas with Republican proposals to extend tax cuts for everyone, even those who are very wealthy.

"I think we want to lay it out there," Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said on Friday. "Who's for which approach on this? That's why we're doing it."

"There are no signs that millionaires are suffering in this economy. It's everybody below that," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California. "You have to stand up for what you believe and you have to vote on what you believe."

Both votes were on Democratic amendments and included extensions of other expiring tax programs as well as the extension of benefits for the long-time unemployed.

A Republican leadership aide dismissed the Democratic effort as "political show-votes."

Source : CNN

PayPal cuts WikiLeaks from money flow

BERLIN – The online payment service provider PayPal has cut off the account used by WikiLeaks to collect donations, serving another blow to the organization just as it was struggling to keep its website accessible after an American company stopped directing traffic to it.

PayPal said in a blog posting that the move was prompted by a violation of its policy, "which states that our payment service cannot be used for any activities that encourage, promote, facilitate or instruct others to engage in illegal activity."



The short notice was dated Friday, and a spokeswoman for PayPal Germany on Saturday declined to elaborate and referred to the official blog posting.

Donating money to WikiLeaks via PayPal on Saturday was not possible anymore, generating an error message saying "this recipient is currently unable to receive money."

PayPal is one of several ways WikiLeaks collects donations, and until now was probably the most secure and convenient way to support the organization.

The other options listed on WikiLeaks' website are through mail to an Australian post office box, through bank transfers to accounts in Switzerland, Germany or Iceland as well as through one "credit card processing partner" in Switzerland.

WikiLeaks' PayPal account redirects users to a German foundation which provides the organization with the money. The Wau Holland Foundation, named after a German hacker, confirmed Saturday in a Twitter message that their PayPal account had been taken down because of the "financial support to WikiLeaks."

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Source : Yahoo! News

Obama hails US troops' 'progress' in Afghanistan

President Barack Obama has told US troops in Afghanistan they are making crucial "progress" against insurgents.

During an unannounced visit to Bagram air base near Kabul, Mr Obama said: "Today we can be proud that there are fewer areas under Taliban control."

He also spoke to President Hamid Karzai for about 15 minutes by telephone.

The visit comes a year after Mr Obama ordered a troop "surge" in Afghanistan, but weeks after a Pentagon report found violence there at an all-time high.

The US president's national security team is to report on the new strategy later this month.

Mr Obama's trip to Afghanistan comes about one year after he announced at West Point Military Academy the US would strengthen combat troops in Afghanistan with 30,000 reinforcements.

'New phase'

Mr Obama flew to Bagram air base to thank US soldiers for their service during the American holiday season.

He said there would be "difficult days" ahead in their fight against the Taliban.

But he added: "You're achieving your objectives, you will succeed in your mission.

"We said we were going to break the Taliban's momentum. That's what you're doing."

He also said he was looking forward to "a new phase next year, the beginning of transition to Afghan responsibility".

Mr Obama had been due to meet President Karzai face-to-face during his brief visit to Afghanistan.

But bad weather prevented him from travelling to Kabul, forcing the two men to speak via telephone, the White House said.

There has been increasing tension between the US and its Afghan allies.

Mr Karzai has complained about American military tactics, and criticised the decision to start withdrawing US troops in July next year.

And a memo by a US diplomat revealed by the Wikileaks website described Mr Karzai as having a paranoid world view.

Mr Obama's decision to send 30,000 extra troops to Afghanistan was designed to lead to a handover of security duties to Afghan police and troops.

But in a report to Congress issued last month, the Pentagon said violence had reached an all-time high, with clashes up fourfold since 2007.

The report said progress had been "uneven", with only modest gains against the insurgents.

It is Mr Obama's second visit to Afghanistan as president - the first was in March.

Source : BBC News

Spanish air traffic controllers marched back to work as airports reopen - Telegraph

Spain declared a State of Alert in the wake of the walkout, which has paralysed Spanish air space and all airports, and then ordered the controllers back to work.

"I cannot talk to you properly now," an air traffic controller at Madrid's Barajas Airport told The Sunday Telegraph in a half whisper, his voice quavering on his mobile.
"There are civil guards here, with pistols. If we don't start work now, we will be arrested.
"The first flights should start at 3pm (2pm UK) and that should be for the whole of Spain. All my colleagues have been forced to return to work or face the consequences."
The air traffic controllers' return to work, and the subsequent reopening of Spanish airspace, means that flights will begin to depart again.
Airports across Spain were reopening, although it was not clear whether previously cancelled flights - all those by Easyjet, Ryanair and Iberia - would be able to depart.
Once the government had turned over management of Spain's air traffic control to the military last night, the controllers' union, USCA, faced very serious opposition.
And after the State of Alert, one level below a full emergency, was ratified by the cabinet at midday on Saturday the stage was set for rapid retaliation by the government against the illegal strikers who had paralysed all Spanish air space and airports since 5pm Friday.
Threatened with immediate imprisonment for sedition if they did not obey their new military commanders, and the show of force as in Madrid, the controllers capitulated.
It may take at least a week for air services to return for normal and for all stranded passengers to reach their destinations.
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the Spanish prime minister, described the wildcat strike by 2,400 air traffic controllers as "intolerable" and that the government could not accept "the blackmail of the public."
He said the elite controllers were using their position as "a work monopoly" to create "an unsustainable situation."
Air routes between Spain and the UK are the busiest in Europe, carrying over 35m passengers per year, and 20,000 Britons have been hit by the closure of Spanish air space.

Source: Telegraph

World leaders back Ouattara as Ivory Coast poll winner

World leaders have voiced their support for Ivory Coast opposition candidate Alassane Ouattara, saying he is the true winner of a presidential run-off.

Initial results giving Mr Ouattara victory were overturned by officials, who declared President Laurent Gbagbo winner. He is now due to be sworn in.

Prime Minister Guillaume Soro tendered his resignation, backing Mr Ouattara.

Mr Ouattara is also expected to be sworn in at a rival ceremony held in a compound guarded by UN peacekeepers.

The US, UN and France - the former colonial power - have urged Mr Gbagbo to accept defeat.

Sunday's presidential run-off was intended to reunify the world's largest cocoa producer after a civil war in 2002, but now could leave the nation with two rival presidents.

'Fraudulent' ballot

On Saturday, Mr Soro, a former rebel leader, offered Mr Ouattara the resignation of the government.

Mr Soro had earlier warned that overturning the results threatened to derail attempts to stabilise and reunify the country after the war.

On Thursday, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) declared that Mr Ouattara had won the 28 November run-off by 54.1% to 45.9%.

But after Mr Gbagbo and his supporters alleged the ballot had been fraudulent, the Constitutional Council overruled the Commission.

Chairman Paul Yao N'Dre said Mr Gbagbo had secured just over 51% of the vote.

Ivorian state media said Mr Gbagbo would be sworn in at a midday ceremony on Saturday.

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Source : BBC News

Stats tell a better story for Lakers as they end losing streak - latimes.com

Statistics don't tell the entire story, but they did reveal a lot about the Lakers during their four-game losing streak.

And just as bad as those stats were during that rough spell, the numbers the Lakers put up in a 113-80 victory over the hapless Sacramento Kings on Friday night at Staples Center were equally telling.

The performance allowed the Lakers to break their losing streak in which all the stats went against them.


The Lakers shot 56.6% from the field against the Kings and had 27 assists.

"We got a lot of stuff at the basket, a lot of stuff in the lane," Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said. "Assists are big indicators of how well the ball moves and how things go."

Still, Jackson acknowledged it was hard to judge his team's play against a Kings team that now has lost 12 of its last 13 games.

The Lakers didn't score more than 100 points in any of the losses, and that's not good for a team that is considered one of the NBA's most efficient, one that averaged 108.2 points a game before Friday night, the second-most in the NBA.

The Lakers were ranked 10th in the NBA in field-goal percentage, making 46.2% of their shots. During the losing streak, the Lakers never hit that mark, shooting better than 45% just once. In a loss to the Pacers, the Lakers made only 38.6% of their shots.

The Lakers were ranked second in the NBA in three-point shooting, making 34.6% of their long-range shots. During the losing streak, the Lakers never shot over 32%.

"We didn't shoot the ball very well and we didn't move the ball very well," Jackson said of his team's play during the losing streak. "We had poor second halves and end-of-game situations too."

The Lakers are also a team that uses the triangle offensive scheme. In that system, it's about ball movement, body movement and spacing.

They lacked much of that when they were losing.

The Lakers are ranked seventh in the NBA in assists, handing out 23.05 a game. During the losses, they never reached their average, getting a high of 21 assists against the Pacers and a low of 14 in a loss to Utah.

In three of the losses, the Lakers' opponent had more assists. In the other, both the Lakers and Memphis Grizzlies had 16 assists.

Kobe Bryant didn't shot well during the losing streak, going 43 for 103 (41.7%) from the field. He also took a season-high 33 shots in the loss to the Pacers, making only 14.

"A lot of it is if Kobe is the early offense and he can't make a play out of it and now he has to make a shot, then it takes away from a lot of our game," Jackson said. "So it's kind of like the Kobe system and the triangle system. The productivity has to be there for both of them if they are going to exist together, and that's really important."

Source : Los Angeles Times