Headlines

Politics

• Obama Racking Up Endorsements As Officials Fear Protracted Battle
• Clinton Campaign Reportedly Stopped Paying Bills

US

• CIA Director: Al-Qa’ida Safe Haven A “Clear And Present Danger”
• Gore To Launch $300 Million Warming Publicity Campaign
• Study: Two Top Cholesterol Drugs Don’t Work
• More Highway Shootings In LA Bring Total To Five
• Unemployment, Inflation Drive Record Number Of Americans Receiving Food Stamps
• Fetus Found On Continental Plane
• Man Kills Kids In Hotel Room, Calls To Tell Front Desk 

International

• Mobile Phones May Overtake Smoking And Asbestos In Cancer Deaths
• Iraq Shia-Shia Ceasefire After An Embarrassing Week-Long Standoff
• Three Years Later, Israel Makes Good On Pledge To Close 50 Palestinian Checkpoints
• North Korea To “Reduce South Korea To Ashes”
• China Steps Up Olympic Flame Security Over Tibet Protests
• Merkel Becomes First Major Leader To Announce Olympics Boycott
• US Demands To See Swiss Iran Contract Over Sanctions
• Vatican: Muslims Now Outnumber Catholics For The First Time
• Early Zimbabwe Results Show Opposition Win, Talk Of Government Vote Rigging

Business & Economics

• Proposed Rules To Cement Revolution In World’s Financial System
• Lehman Sues Over $350 Million Tokyo Fraud
• US Markets Resilient While World’s Tank
• Absolut Acquisition: Stoli Distributor Acquires Absolut Parent

Quote of the Day

“Just relax” – President Clinton, to the increasing number of officials calling for Hillary to drop out of the Democrat nomination race. 

Video of the Day

Bush booed as he throws out the first pitch at the Washington National’s new stadium.

Politics

Obama Racking Up Endorsements As Officials Fear Protracted Battle

With fear spreading among Democrat officials that a bloody battle lasting until August’s convention will threaten the party’s chances in the general election, momentum seems to be building in Obama’s favor as endorsers are increasingly lining up behind him. Clinton has pledged to stay in the race and hopes to beat Obama by winning convincingly in the remaining primaries and convincing the superdelegates that she’s best positioned to beat McCain. Neither candidate can win the nomination without the superdelegates at this point since the race is so close and Florida and Michigan’s delegates have been tossed out for breaking the party’s primary scheduling rules, and Obama is expected to end up with more pledged delegates.

Clinton Campaign Reportedly Stopped Paying Bills

Reports are bubbling out of the events industry around the country that Clinton’s cash-strapped campaign has stopped paying bills in order to conserve cash for the expensive air-war against the cash-flush Obama.

US 

CIA Director: Al-Qa’ida Safe Haven A “Clear And Present Danger”

CIA Director General Mike Hayden called the lawless region between Pakistan and Afghanistan a “clear and present danger” to the US, saying al-Qa’ida has been able to establish a safe haven there and that a future attack on the US would likely originate in the region. 

Gore To Launch $300 Million Warming Publicity Campaign

Al Gore will launch on Wednesday a $300 million campaign to change the public’s attitudes towards global warming, collaborating with broad cast that includes shows such as American Idol, The Daily Show, the Today Show, Larry King, and personalities that include Al Sharpton, Nancy Pelosi, Newt Gingrich, Pat Robertson, and the Dixie Chicks.

Study: Two Top Cholesterol Drugs Don’t Work

The results of a two-year study looking at the efficacy of cholesterol drugs Vytorin and Zetia - heavily-advertised drugs with worldwide sales of $5 billion - were released yesterday, with two independent medical panels saying the data show the drugs do not work and perhaps even accelerate the buildup of plaque in arteries. The panels recommended using statins, which are cheaper and proven to be effective.

More Highway Shootings In LA Bring Total To Five

Two more shootings in Los Angeles on Sunday brought to five the total number of shootings to occur on Southern California highways. One incident was a non-fatal case of road rage, while the second victim was shot in the head and caused a major crash. None of the incidents are believed to be related. Two teenagers in Virginia were arrested last week on suspicion of being behind a series of shootings targeting freeway traffic. 

Unemployment, Inflation Drive Record Number Of Americans Receiving Food Stamps

Rising unemployment and soaring food costs have driven the number of Americans - to hit nearly 30 million this year - receiving food stamps to the highest levels since the inception of the program in the 60s. The program will cost $36 billion this year, up $2 billion from last year. 

Fetus Found On Continental Plane

A dead fetus was found by a cleaning crew in the bathroom of a Continental Airlines jet that arrived in Houston from New York yesterday. 

Man Kills Kids In Hotel Room, Calls To Tell Front Desk

A man killed his three children in a Baltimore hotel room and then called the front desk, announcing what he had just done and threatening to hurt himself. 

International

Australia 

Mobile Phones May Overtake Smoking And Asbestos In Cancer Deaths

A world-renowned cancer expert announced his finding that beginning in about a decade, brain tumors caused by mobile phone radiation could overtake smoking and asbestos as a leading cause of cancer deaths. European governments have issued warnings to their citizen, advising them to minimize their use of mobile handsets.

Middle East 

Iraq Shia-Shia Ceasefire After An Embarrassing Week-Long Standoff

The week-long battle-turned-standoff between US-backed Iraqi troops and militia loyal to radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr was halted on Sunday after Sadr called on his Mahdi Army to stand down but not hand over weapons after an agreement was reached with the government. The episode proved to be an embarrassment for the government and somewhat of a resurgence for the diminished Sadr - it was the first time the Shia-controlled government directly took on the Shia militias, and Sadr’s forces managed to hold off government troops for a week, despite pledges from Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to fight until a “military victory”. Maliki is said to have depleted much of his political capital in the conflict, having granted major concessions to Sadr, who negotiated the agreement from Iran, where he has been for the past half-year, hiding from US forces and receiving advanced theological training. The fighting had spread to Baghdad after Mahdi Army launched the offensive last week in Basra, the country’s southern oil capital, in response to the government’s crackdown on the militia.

Three Years Later, Israel Makes Good On Pledge To Close 50 Palestinian Checkpoints

Israel announced Sunday that it will be closing 50 West Bank checkpoints (out of a total of nearly 600 in Gaza and West Bank) and upgrading others for faster processing of Palestinian travelers, making good on a 2005 promise, despite putting up 30 new ones just since the regional conference hosted by the Bush Administration late last year in Annapolis. The agreement also includes commitments from the Palestinian government to take on more responsibility for securing borders with Israel against would-be terrorists. The announcement came as Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice is in the region on her 14th trip there in just over a year.

Asia 

North Korea To “Reduce South Korea To Ashes”

North Korea threatened to reduce South Korea to “ashes” in a preemptive strike, in its continuing harsh response to the new South Korean government’s tougher stance against the North, which includes cutting off billions in aid until its nuclear weapons program is completely dismantled. A few weeks ago the North expelled the South Koreans working at a joint industrial park set up as a step towards reconciliation.

China Steps Up Olympic Flame Security Over Tibet Protests

China’s government has stepped up police presence in Beijing as the Olympic flame arrived on Sunday from Greece and is set to begin it’s round-the-world relay. The torch ceremonies have become a platform for pro-Tibet protesters, who are using the Games’ attention to promote the Tibet cause. Tibet is a country that has been brutally occupied by China since it invaded in 1951. Over the weekend the Dalai Lama repeated his assertion that China is pursuing “cultural genocide” in Tibet by forcing ethnic Chinese migration into the country.

Europe 

Merkel Becomes First Major Leader To Announce Olympics Boycott

On Sunday German Chancellor Angela Merkel became the first major world leader to announce that she will boycott attending the Olympics to protest China’s wretched human rights record and recent brutal crackdown on Tibet protesters, with reports of hundreds kill and imprisoned. The presidents of Poland and the Czech Republic announced their boycott on Thursday, with the entire EU discussing the possibility at the EU’s annual summit. President Bush and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown both announced they will attend the Games.

US Demands To See Swiss Iran Contract Over Sanctions

The US is demanding to see a Swiss natural gas contract signed with Iran to determine whether it violated US sanctions on Iran. The US policy is to freeze US-based assets and sever business with countries and firms that conduct business with certain Iranian firms and people associated with the country’s nuclear weapons program. The tension is significant since Switzerland has represented US interests in Tehran and Cuba since the US cut off diplomatic relations with the nations.

Vatican: Muslims Now Outnumber Catholics For The First Time

The Vatican announced on Sunday that for the first time, the number of Muslims in the world (about 1.3 billion) exceeds the number of Catholics (about 1.1 billion). Overall, Christianity claims about one-third of the world’s population, with 2 billion followers.

Africa 

Early Zimbabwe Results Show Opposition Win, Talk Of Government Vote Rigging

A delay in reporting the results of Zimbabwe’s Saturday elections is leading to speculation that President Mugabe’s government is rigging the vote. The first official results released show a close race, but the opposition party has claimed a resounding victory (with 67% of the vote) based on preliminary, unofficial data. An opposition win would mean major reform for the country that has suffered under a harsh Mugabe dictatorship that destroyed the country’s economy, with annual inflation running at 100,000%.

Business & Economics 

Proposed Rules To Cement Revolution In World’s Financial SystemAfter the Federal Reserve effectively revolutionized the world financial system over a week ago, the Bush Administration has proposed new regulations that codifying the biggest changes since the Great Depression. The changes focus on consolidating and streamlining regulatory roles, formally making the Fed the lender of last resort for investment houses, and extending the government’s regulatory oversight to include hedge funds, private equity firms, and investment banks. The Fed was established after the Great Depression to ensure the stability and liquidity of commercial banks, and the Fed’s move to help rescue Bear Stearns and lend to Wall Street investment banks over the past several weeks have extended the Fed’s de facto role to effectively cover the entire financial system.

Lehman Sues Over $350 Million Tokyo Fraud

Lehman Brothers is suing in a Tokyo court over what it says is a $350 million case of fraud. A Japanese trading company allegedly forged documents and used an impostor to secure the funding  

US Markets Resilient While World’s Tank

In a rare bit of good economic news, despite the global financial crisis being sparked by the US economy, US stock markets have fared much better than their counterparts around the world. “The Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen 7.9% this year, while the benchmark indexes in Germany, France and Japan have dropped at least double that amount. India is down almost 20%, and China has tumbled 32%. The performance of global markets so far this year is ‘a textbook case of the U.S. being the relatively defensive market.’”

Absolut Acquisition: Stoli Distributor Acquires Absolut Parent

Pernod Ricard, the Paris-based liquor company that distributes Stolichnaya outside of Russia, agreed to buy Vin & Spirit, the Swedish company that makes Absolut vodka, for $8.9 billion.