ECM WORLD WATCH: NATIONAL AND GLOBAL NEWS

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February 26, 2014 (San Diego’s East County ) --ECM World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

WORLD

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

U.S.

IRS: Renewables Companies May Be Double-Dipping Federal Subsidies (KCET)

Federally subsidized wind turbine and solar facility owners may be double-dipping federal subsidies, according to a report by a division of the Internal Revenue Service, and the taxing agency has no way of sorting out which companies may be doing so.

Obama to propose shift in wildfire funding (New York Times)

President Obama’s annual budget request to Congress will propose a significant change in how the government pays to fight wildfires, administration officials said, a move that they say reflects the ways in which climate change is increasing the risk for and cost of those fires.

Obama to drop less generous retiree payments from budget (McClatchy News)

Bowing to pressure from liberal groups and angry seniors, the Obama administration on Thursday dropped from its forthcoming proposed budget a plan to trim back cost-of-living adjustments for Social Security recipients.

 

Budget cuts to slash U.S. Army to smallest since before World War Two (Reuters)

 The Pentagon said on Monday it would shrink the U.S. Army to pre-World War Two levels, eliminate the popular A-10 aircraft and reduce military benefits in order to meet 2015 spending caps, setting up an election-year fight with the Congress over national defense priorities.

Native Americans prepare a “last stand” against Keystone XL (RawStory)

The only reason the northern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline wasn’t approved years ago is that activists, deeming it a vital proxy in the larger battle to keep the dirtiest fossil fuels in the ground, have applied relentless pressure on the Obama administration. But in the Great Plains, Native Americans have little confidence that the project can be stopped by traditional political activism. On Sunday, Rob Hotakainen reported for McClatchy that some tribal leaders are preparing to mount a “last stand” against the pipeline if the White House approves its construction.

Doctors' Offices Get Put On Hold Trying to Find Out Who's Insured (NPR)

 Verifying that a patient has paid for coverage under the Affordable Care Act can take hours. But if doctors' offices don't check, they can get stuck with the bill.

Supreme Court Opens Door To Easier Police Searches (NPR)

The justices ruled 6-3 that police can enter and search a home without a warrant, so long as just one of the residents consents, giving law enforcement more room to conduct warrantless searches.

Department of Homeland Security cancels national license-plate tracking plan (Washington Post)

- Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson on Wednesday ordered the cancellation of a plan by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to develop a national license-plate tracking system after privacy advocates raised concern about the initiative.

U.S. Government Will Back Loans For Nuclear Power (NPR)

The $6.5 billion in federal loan guarantees will help build the first new U.S. nuclear power plants in more than three decades. The announcement brought quick criticism from some environmentalists.

Nebraska court invalidates state's Keystone pipeline approval (Reuters)

 A Nebraska court on Wednesday invalidated the governor's decision to allow the Keystone XL pipeline to pass through the Midwestern state, casting new uncertainty over the controversial project to link Alberta's oil sands with refineries in Texas.http://reuters.us.feedsportal.com/c/35217/f/654201/s/374d288d/sc/1/mf.gifhttp://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Reuters/domesticNews/~4/HwnvLFSjgx8

Ranking cities from Miami to Boston to Wichita on inequality (Marketplace.org)

In a new report, All Cities Are Not Created Unequal, Berube compared levels of inequality in fifty large American cities. He found the gap between rich and poor is rising in large cities on the East and West Coasts, while cities in the South and West like Las Vegas, Mesa, and Fort Worth, are more equal, and retain more of what the middle class needs.

 

WORLD

Ukraine wants fugitive president to face Hague court (Reuters)

Ukraine's parliament voted on Tuesday to send fugitive President Viktor Yanukovich to the International Criminal Court, while his acting successor expressed concern about "signs of separatism" in Russian-speaking Crimea.

Is Putin pushing for a crackdown in Ukraine?(CS Monitor)

 The Kremlin has said that it will not intervene in Ukraine, but the escalating violence in Kiev may force their hand.

Uganda's anti-gay bill refocuses attention on US evangelical influence

A day after Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni signed into law a punitive bill that criminalizes homosexuality with life sentences and punishes efforts to raise or discuss gay issues, the influence of American evangelicals on the law is being raised.

Exclusive: Iraq signs deal to buy arms, ammunition from Iran - documents (Reuters)

Iran has signed a deal to sell Iraq arms and ammunition worth $195 million, according to documents seen by Reuters - a move that would break a U.N. embargo on weapons sales by Tehran.

Nigerian Islamists kill 59 pupils in boarding school attack (Reuters)

 Gunmen from Islamist group Boko Haram shot or burned to death 59 pupils in a boarding school in northeast Nigeria overnight, a hospital official and security forces said on Tuesday.

 Turkish protesters denounce Internet restrictions (UT San Diego)

Police in Istanbul have clashed with hundreds of protesters denouncing a new law that increases government controls over the Internet.

Pakistani Taliban say government must embrace Islamic law (Reuters)

T he Pakistani Taliban told the government there was no chance of peace in the country unless Pakistan changed its political and legal system and officially embraced Islamic law.

Somalia's al Shabaab say attack meant to get president 'dead or alive' (Reuters)

 Islamist militants said on Saturday their attack on the Somali president's compound, in which at least 11 people died, was an attempt to kill or abduct him.

 

 


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