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| TOP STORIES |
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| Republicans seek to one-up Obama on foreign affairs |
| Republicans on Wednesday delivered a swift and bold response to President Obama’s exuberant State of the Union address by taking direct aim at the administration’s foreign policy authority.House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) invited Israel’s prime minister to address Congress next month on the danger posed by Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Read full article » |
| Kurds say they have ejected Islamic State militants from large area in northern Iraq |
| BAGHDAD – Kurdish forces claimed to have pushed back Islamic State militants from a 300-square-mile area of northern Iraq on Wednesday and said they cut one of the extremist group’s key supply lines to the occupied city of Mosul. Read full article » |
| The Catch-22 of federal leak cases |
| The CIA officers slipped in and out of the courtroom behind the cover of a retractable gray screen and testified using only their first names and last initials. They described clandestine meetings, suitcases full of cash and an obstinate Russian engineer who they hoped would help them derail Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Read full article » |
| How Saudi Arabia’s harsh legal punishments compare to the Islamic State’s |
| Following the lashing of blogger Raif Badawi and leaked footage that showed the public execution of a woman accused of beating her daughter, Saudi Arabia's harsh interpretation of sharia law and its use of capital punishment have come under international scrutiny. Read full article » |
| America’s best-selling cars and trucks are built on lies: The rise of fake engine noise |
| Stomp on the gas in a new Ford Mustang or F-150 and you’ll hear a meaty, throaty rumble — the same style of roar that Americans have associated with auto power and performance for decades.It’s a sham. The engine growl in some of America’s best-selling cars and trucks is actually a finely tuned bit of lip-syncing, boosted through special pipes or digitally faked altogether. And it’s driving car enthusiasts insane. Read full article » |
| New England Patriots, NFL embroiled in deflating controversy as Super Bowl looms |
| In 10 days, the New England Patriots will attempt to extend their dynastic run atop the National Football League. The Patriots’ offense, led by the grace of quarterback Tom Brady and the grim formulation of Coach Bill Belichick, will attempt to unseat the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, their defense spearheaded by Richard Sherman. Read full article » |
| NYU waited months to tell police that a student allegedly set fire to a bed with a girl in it |
| A New York University student set fire to the bed in his dorm room — where a 19-year-old woman was fast asleep and intoxicated, according to the New York Daily News. The attacker allegedly filmed this all on Snapchat, singing as the flames spread, the newspaper reported. Read full article » |
| Heroin addiction sent me to prison. White privilege got me out and to the Ivy League. |
| I was a senior at Cornell University when I was arrested for heroin possession. As an addict — a condition that began during a deep depression — I was muddling my way through classes and doing many things I would come to regret, including selling drugs to pay for my own habit. I even began dating a man with big-time drug connections that put me around large amounts of heroin. When police arrested me in 2010, I was carrying six ounces, an amount they valued at $50,000 — enough to put me in prison for up to 10 years. Cornell suspended me indefinitely and banned me from campus. I had descended from a Dean’s List student to a felon. Read full article » |
| Kassie Edwards reported her rape. But that was before the attention on U-Va. or Cosby. |
| Kassie Edwards reported her rape. It wasn’t much of a decision, really. She was attacked on Halloween 2008. Two months earlier, Edwards had transferred to Florida State University to be an African American studies major, with dreams of eventually working at one of the Smithsonian museums. Soon after arriving on campus, she was assigned a work-study job at the university library. Read full article » |
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| POLITICS |
| Smaller businesses getting little help from U.S. recovery, Hillary Clinton says in speech |
| WINNIPEG, Manitoba — The American economic recovery has not yet helped enough small- and medium-size businesses or boosted entrepreneurship nationwide, Hillary Rodham Clinton said here Wednesday, offering a preview of likely themes from her expected Democratic presidential campaign. Read full article » |
| Being a Bush, Clinton or Romney doesn’t hurt. In fact, it helps. |
| Another Bush running for president!? Another Clinton running!? And now Mitt Romney is going to run again too!?We hear your grumbling, but we have bad news for you: The fact that Bush is a Bush and Clinton is a Clinton probably makes it more likely you'll see them in the general election. And the same goes for Romney's repeat bid. Read full article » |
| Former lobbyist ran HUD policy office and championed looser regs while working for industry group |
| For three years, former lobbyist Deb Gross ran a key policy office within the Department of Housing and Urban Development while serving as deputy director of an advocacy group with a stake in the agency’s decisions. Read full article » |
| Obama’s claim that Iran’s nuclear program has been ‘halted’ and its nuclear stock pile ‘reduced’ |
| “Our diplomacy is at work with respect to Iran, where, for the first time in a decade, we’ve halted the progress of its nuclear program and reduced its stockpile of nuclear material.”—President Obama, State of the Union address, Jan. 20, 2015 Read full article » |
| OPINIONS |
| Republicans pulled a classic bait-and-switch with abortion bill |
| As President Obama prepared on Tuesday to lay out his economic agenda in his State of the Union address, House Republicans were moving ahead with an agenda of their own.Just two weeks into the new Congress, they voted Tuesday afternoon to bring to the House floor their current priority: a bill banning abortions after 20 weeks. The legislation, which doesn’t even grant exceptions to victims of rape unless they report it to police, was scheduled to be taken up Thursday — on the 42nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade and coinciding with the annual March for Life. Read full article » |
| Elizabeth Warren: Supreme Court housing decision could put our financial well-being at risk |
| The Supreme Court appears poised to continue its systematic assault on our core civil rights laws. After gutting the Voting Rights Act just two years ago, the court set its sights on our country’s fair housing laws when it heard oral arguments today in Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. The Inclusive Communities Project. As with the voting rights decision, a decision limiting the scope of the housing laws would ignore the will of Congress and undermine basic principles of racial equality. But there is even more at stake in the fair housing case, because the wrong decision would reduce economic opportunities for working families and raise the risk of another financial crisis. Read full article » |
| George Will: The harm incurred by a mushrooming welfare state |
| America’s national character will have to be changed if progressives are going to implement their agenda. So, changing social norms is the progressive agenda. To understand how far this has advanced, and how difficult it will be to reverse the inculcation of dependency, consider the data Nicholas Eberstadt deploys in National Affairs quarterly: Read full article » |
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| LOCAL |
| Metro ventilation systems scrutinized as Congress members are briefed on incident |
| A breakdown in radio communications and problems with ventilation in the subway tunnel and train involved in last week’s fatal Metro incident aggravated a crisis in which scores of passengers were stuck in smoke-filled rail cars for more than 30 minutes, members of Congress said Wednesday night. Read full article » |
| Under Pope Francis, American Catholics see the ‘pro-life’ label as broader than abortion |
| Nearly a year and a half after Pope Francis set off a firestorm by warning Catholics to stop “obsessing” about abortion, there are signs that they are following his advice — in a sense.This week, as tens of thousands of abortion opponents gather in Washington for Thursday’s March for Life — the world’s largest anti-abortion event — and many related side conferences and meetings, longtime activists say there are more groups seeking to pull into the “pro-life” brand topics ranging from the death penalty to human trafficking. Last weekend, the five dioceses in Southern California held their first “One Life” event, a march and fair timed to this week’s anniversary of Roe vs. Wade and highlighting not only abortion but homelessness, foster care and elderly rights. More than 10,000 people came to the event in Los Angeles. Read full article » |
| Hundreds of Indian portraits were lost in the great Smithsonian fire of 1865 |
| The weather had been unusually cold that winter, and the two workers rearranging the paintings in the unheated gallery at the Smithsonian Institution had installed a temporary stove to keep warm.The gallery was a fascinating place, with tall, arched windows. Lining the walls were hundreds of majestic portraits of Native Americans — Cherokee statesmen, Potawatomi warriors, Osage chieftains. Read full article » |
| Weather-related closings and delays in the D.C. area for Thursday, Jan. 22 |
| Following is a list of weather-related closings and delays for Thursday:Schools Read full article » |
| SPORTS |
| Durant, Westbrook lift Thunder past Wizards in overtime, 105-103 |
| For months, speculation of Kevin Durant’s potential homecoming has swirled, and it consumed Verizon Center on Wednesday night, generating an atmosphere unique to the Prince George native’s annual visit to face his hometown Washington Wizards. Read full article » |
| Late-game execution fails Wizards a second time against Thunder |
| For the second time in 19 days, the Washington Wizards kept up with the Oklahoma City Thunder, one of the league’s top teams when at full strength, and for the second time in 19 days, they fumbled the game away down the stretch. Read full article » |
| TV and radio listings: January 22 |
| NBA8 p.m. San Antonio at Chicago » TNT10:30 p.m. Brooklyn at Los Angeles Clippers » TNTMEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL6:30 p.m. South Florida at Temple » ESPNews Read full article » |
| Andrew Luck goes first in Pro Bowl draft, feels ‘deflated’ by loss to Patriots |
| Andrew Luck was the first pick in Wednesday’s Pro Bowl draft, not that anybody cares because of #DeflateGate. (Also, nobody really cares about the Pro Bowl to begin with.) But the Colts quarterback found a brilliant way to tie it all together, telling reporters after the draft that the AFC championship game loss to the Patriots left him feeling “deflated.” Read full article » |
| FEDERAL GOVERNMENT |
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| Supreme court upholds whistleblower protections in air marshal case |
| The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that an air marshal did not violate the law when he leaked information about agency plans that he thought could endanger the public.The court ruled 7 to 2 that Robert J. MacLean could seek protection under a federal whistleblower statute after the U.S. Marshals Service fired him for telling a reporter that the Transportation Security Administration planned to reduce its overnight trips for undercover marshals. Read full article » |
| Even seasoned lawmakers defy House floor rules, opt for YOLO attitude instead |
| When freshman Rep. Mike Bishop (R-Mich.) broke House decorum on swearing-in day and snapped two iPhone photos of the chamber floor, we gave him a pass. He is after all, new and eager, and the views from the House floor can be awe-inspiring. Read full article » |
| NATIONAL |
| What’s behind racial differences in restaurant tipping? |
| Within the U.S. restaurant industry, black customers are generally considered comparatively poor tippers. One recent survey of roughly 1,000 restaurant servers from across the nation found that 34 percent thought black diners were “very bad” tippers. An additional 36 percent thought black patrons were “below average” tippers. In contrast, 98 percent of those surveyed believed white customers were “average” or “above average” tippers. Read full article » |
| Thank God for ‘Gilmore Girls,’ and three other surprising things I learned as a new mom |
| My baby is three months old, generally accepted as the age when your baby stops being a newborn and starts being a baby. The implication is that your life is now easier. I won’t get into how untrue I have found that to be, that’s a story for another day. Today, let’s talk about what it’s like to have a newborn! It’s great. Read full article » |
| WORLD |
| France boosts counterterrorism force after deadly Paris attacks |
| PARIS — Two weeks after the worst attacks on French soil in decades, leaders here announced sweeping measures Wednesday to add more than 2,600 counterterrorism agents and sharply boost funding for intelligence gathering. Read full article » |
| Pakistani conservatives are up in arms about politician Imran Khan’s new wife. Here’s why. |
| TV networks across Pakistan scrambled to cover one of the biggest media events in recent weeks. No, it wasn't the outrage over the Charlie Hebdo cartoons, but the marriage of one of the country's most well-known politicians. Read full article » |
| Administration and lawmakers clash over Iran policy |
| A day after President Obama threatened to veto any sanctions bill against Iran, lawmakers on Wednesday clashed with top administration officials over U.S. strategy in nuclear talks with the Islamic republic and indicated that they would drive headlong toward tougher legislation. Read full article » |
| A drone crashes in the middle of a Capitol Hill hearing about drones |
| The debate about where aerial drones should be allowed is wide-ranging, but on Wednesday it included an unexpected site: a small, remote-control aircraft flew around a congressional hearing.The entire hearing was posted on the C-SPAN Web site, showing witnesses with the Federal Aviation Administration and NASA, among others, testifying before the House Science, Space and Technology Committee. But as The Verge notes, it was a presentation of a working Parrot Bebop drone by 3D Robotics that stole the show. Read full article » |
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| BUSINESS |
| It’s not hard to close the cash-rich split-off loophole |
| Tax reform is the hot topic these days — but changing corporate tax law is usually so complicated that everybody gives up in frustration and disgust. So let me offer a simple thing that Congress can do to close one loophole that was small and obscure for years but is threatening to go mainstream and suck billions of dollars out of our collective pockets. Read full article » |
| Proof that couples lie to each other about money all the time |
| Couples living under the same roof share bathrooms, bills, groceries, a bed. But when it comes to their wallets, some still prefer to think in terms of ‘his’ and ‘hers.’About 6 percent of Americans are hiding a bank account or credit card from their spouse or partner, according to a survey released Wednesday by CreditCards.com. If the survey was representative of the greater population, that would amount to roughly 7 million people lying to a significant other about money, says Matt Schulz, a senior industry analyst for CreditCards.com. Read full article » |
| Wal-Mart will cash your tax refund — in hopes that you’ll spend it there |
| For the majority of taxpayers, the tax refund is a bonus that seamlessly shows up in their bank account each spring.But Wal-Mart is giving another option to the minority of taxpayers who might otherwise wait for a check to hit their mailbox: pick up the refund, in cash, at any Wal-Mart store. Read full article » |
| TECHNOLOGY |
| Cory Booker’s introducing a bill to help cities build their own, public Internet services |
| Sen. Cory Booker is leaping into the political fight over whether to let cities build and operate their own Internet service.On Thursday, the New Jersey Democrat will introduce a bill that would help local towns set up public alternatives to big Internet providers such as Comcast or Verizon. It would amend the nation's signature telecom law — the Communications Act — to make it illegal for states to prohibit municipal broadband through new regulations or state legislation. Read full article » |
| Chris ‘moot’ Poole is leaving 4chan, the site he founded when he was 15 |
| The founder and only official employee of 4Chan announced Wednesday that he will be stepping down after 11 years.Chris Poole, better known as "moot," started the often controversial online message board when he was 15 years old and has been the site's only administrator ever since. The site is highly influential online, generating many of the memes and pranks that spread to the larger Internet -- notably that time some of its users tried to send Justin Bieber to North Korea. Read full article » |
| How should licensing work for commercial drone operators? A look at Britain’s solution. |
| Right now flying commercial drones in the United States is illegal, except for a handful of individuals who have received Federal Aviation Administration exemptions to shoot everything from movies to real estate videos. Read full article » |
| Your guide to Obama’s tech policy State of the Union |
| This year will be a contentious one for tech policy, as policymakers continue debating net neutrality, cybersecurity and limits on government surveillance. President Obama laid down his vision for the nation's future Tuesday in his State of the Union address — and although he didn't drop many bombshells, his remarks reflect a clear attempt to frame that discussion. Read full article » |
| LIFESTYLE |
| At 85, a D.C. jazzman is still boppin’ |
| Blue notes may no longer pour out of the clubs onto U Street, but on Sunday nights, you can find them spilling, inexplicably, from an old Irish inn steps from the C&O Canal.This is where, on a recent misty evening, Ted Efantis has come to blow. Read full article » |
| Je suis a mother in the age of terror |
| Many tears are shed in airports. I am crying because I’m sending my 20-year-old daughter off for a semester abroad in Paris—five hours after three terrorists were killed.I nearly canceled her flight. For three days I agonized as the horrific events occurred, from the Charlie Hebdo massacre to the nightmare of an ending that left hostages dead at a Jewish market. As an American, I grieved for senseless French, Muslim, and Jewish deaths. As a parent, I feared for my child’s safety in an increasingly frightening world. Read full article » |
| Carolyn Hax: Fiance’s comments on her untidiness might lead to messy future |
| Adapted from a recent online discussion. Dear Carolyn:I am happily engaged to a wonderful man. He is renovating a condo that we will move into this summer, so I have picked up his share of the household chores. Read full article » |
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