Entries

Iraqi Immigrant Gets 34 Years For Honor Killing

BBC News reports: An Iraqi immigrant has been sentenced more than 30 years in jail in the US state of Arizona for killing his 20-year-old daughter because she had become too Westernised. Jurors found Faleh Hassan Almaleki guilty of second-degree murder in connection to Noor Almaleki's …

Written by FrumForum News on Saturday April 16, 2011

State Debt: Washington's Next Budget Headache?

As Capitol Hill takes a breather from the budget battles, here’s an overview of the unresolved debates and still-mounting spending skirmishes. Congress may have finally approved the FY11 budget this week, but the next battles have already begun. The deficit debate awaits a proposed centrist …

Written by Steve Bell on Saturday April 16, 2011

WH: Obama Wants 'Clean' Debt Vote

The Hill reports : White House officials maintained Friday that the administration wants to see a "clean" increase to the federal debt limit, despite President Obama saying it will likely be paired with spending cuts. The administration has maintained for months that Congress should not …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011

FBI Shuts Down Online Poker Sites

The Hill reports : Executives at PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker have been charged with bank fraud and money laundering. The FBI shut down three of the largest poker websites Friday in what appears to be the largest crackdown on illegal online gambling to date. Eleven …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011

GOP Freshmen Rally Behind Ryan Budget

The GOP allied behind Ryan's budget Friday. Yet amongst freshmen members, many who voted for the Ryan plan were also expressed support for the more aggressive RSC plan. The Republican Conference rallied around Rep. Paul Ryan budget plan this afternoon and approved the framework for the 2012 fiscal …

Written by Tim Mak on Friday April 15, 2011

Syria Hit By Biggest Protests

Al Jazeera English reports : Syrian security forces have dispersed thousands of protesters marching towards central Damascus from the suburb of Douma, witnesses say. Haitham al-Maleh, an activist and lawyer, told Al Jazeera on Friday that protesters were close to Abasyeen Square when …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011

The Prowl: Sleeping Your Way to the Top

I know a lobbyist rumored to be sleeping her way to success. I'd never copy her, but my crush on a staffer has shown me how easily the lines of professionalism can blur. I have a crush on a Hill staffer. This is something I would never do anything about, as I’m still fairly enraptured by my nice …

Written by Vivian Darkbloom on Friday April 15, 2011

The Fat Diaries: Boot the Brown Bag Lunch Ban

A public school in Chicago has instituted a ban on lunches from home. But is dissing parents really the way to push healthy eating? If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding! How can you have any pudding, if you don't eat yer meat? - Pink Floyd, Another Brick in the Wall …

Written by Monica Marier on Friday April 15, 2011

Will Ayn Rand Strike Box Office Gold?

The big screen adaptation of Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged hits theaters today. But will viewers be turned off by the film's disconnect with real world events? Today’s April 15th, and it’s not just Tax Day (though technically this year Tax Day has been extended until April 18th) it’s also the day …

Written by Noah Kristula-Green on Friday April 15, 2011

Telly Davidson: Anchors Away!

With Katie Couric leaving CBS News, the era of the big name news anchor is coming to an end. But will anyone even miss it? Breaking news! This just in! Katie Couric is likely to leave the CBS Evening News after five years for a probable syndicated talk show (not unlike her CNN colleague, …

Written by Telly Davidson on Friday April 15, 2011

The War America Can't Forget

America's Civil War is the most analyzed in history. 150 years after it began, it still exerts a mystical hold on those who study it. It was 150 years ago in April, that the American Civil War began, and it was in April, four years later, that the war ended, with Confederate General Robert E. …

Written by Peter Worthington on Friday April 15, 2011

Can We Prevent Sports Blowouts?

Recently, a high school baseball game in Texas was halted by the mercy rule after one team went up 57-0. But is there a better way to prevent crushing, lopsided defeats? Earlier in this the cruelest month, a high school baseball team in Texas won a game 57-0. You read right – that’s baseball …

Written by Alan Hirsch on Friday April 15, 2011

Help! My Son Has a Roommate from Hell

Eddie hears from a reader whose son's roommate is bullying him to move out. Should he dig in his heels or just find new digs? Writing in the Globe and Mail , David Eddie hears from a reader whose son's roommate is bullying him to move out. The reader writes: My 23-year-old son has moved in …

Written by David Eddie on Friday April 15, 2011

Centrists' Deficit Numbers Don't Add Up

The Gang of Six's efforts to reach a budget deal deserve praise. But by using Obama's deficit commission report as a starting point, their plan may not be much good. The Senate Gang of Six's efforts to reach a budget deal deserve a lot of praise: by putting everything including defense, security …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Friday April 15, 2011

House Passes Ryan Budget Plan

The Washington Post reports : The House on Friday passed a Republican budget plan for 2012 aimed at privatizing Medicare and dramatically scaling back the size of the federal government. Voting along party lines, the House approved the $3.5 trillion GOP blueprint 235 to 193 after …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011

Qaddafi Forces Hit Civilian Areas

The New York Times reports: Military forces loyal to Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, who have surrounded this city and vowed to crush its anti-Qaddafi rebellion, have been firing into residential neighborhoods with heavy weapons, including cluster bombs that have been banned by much of the …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011

Protesters Interrupt House Budget Debate

The Hill reports : Protesters in the House gallery interrupted members eight times during closing debate on the FY 2012 budget resolution, closing out a hectic day as the House tried to pass a FY 2012 budget resolution. Several protesters interrupted by singing "The Star Spangled Banner, …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011

Rand's Rant Against Green Bulbs

At a Senate hearing this week, Rand Paul channeled Ayn Rand to launch an attack on energy efficiency standards. Are green light bulbs really such a threat? The Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee got a dose of libertarian wackiness at a recent mark-up hearing that was strikingly …

Written by David Jenkins on Friday April 15, 2011

GOP Alternative Budget Goes Down

The Hill reports : House lawmakers defeated a proposal by conservative Republicans to make deeper cuts to spending and tax rates than those proposed in the Republican budget, but only after last-minute maneuvering by Democrats on the House floor. In a chaotic scene characterized by …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011

SCOTUS May Fast-Track Health Bill Review

The Hill reports : The Supreme Court could decide as early as Friday whether to expedite a review of challenges to Democrats' healthcare reform law, though legal experts expect the high court will decline to get involved for now. Two federal judges have ruled the law's individual …

Written by FrumForum News on Friday April 15, 2011