In the News - Feb. 27

US rejects new UN human rights council proposal - 27 Feb 2006 at 12:34pm - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United States on Monday called a compromise proposal for a new U.N. Human Rights Council unacceptable and said it would vote against it unless negotiations were reopened.


Govs. press Bush on Nat'l Guard strength - 27 Feb 2006 at 12:32pm - WASHINGTON -- President Bush thanked the nation's governors Monday for their support of National Guard troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, even as state leaders are warning Bush's budget plans will cut Guard strength and leave states less able to respond to homegrown emergencies.

Justices Won't Expand Death Penalty Review (AP) - 27 Feb 2006 at 10:59am - AP - The Supreme Court refused Monday to directly consider whether the drug combination used in executions across the country amounts to unconstitutional cruel punishment.

White House Rejects Special Counsel - 27 Feb 2006 at 8:58pm - AP - The White House on Monday rejected the call by more than a dozen House Democrats for a special counsel to investigate the Bush administration's eavesdropping program.


Paper sues gov't over surveillance records - 27 Feb 2006 at 10:39pm - NEW YORK -- The New York Times sued the Department of Defense on Monday, saying the government has refused to turn over records related to its domestic warrantless surveillance program.


Poll: Bush Ratings At All-Time Low - 27 Feb 2006 at 10:05pm - President Bush's approval rating fell to a new low in the latest CBS News poll, while pessimism about the Iraq war rose to a new high. The poll also finds overwhelming opposition to the deal allowing a Dubai-based firm to run six U.S. ports.


GOP Governors Say Bush Missteps Hurt Them - 27 Feb 2006 at 10:02pm - Republican Governors Say Bush Administration's Missteps Hurting GOP in Election Year


Postwar Iraq chaos blamed on poor planning - 27 Feb 2006 at 9:55pm - WASHINGTON -- Poor prewar planning left the United States without enough skilled workers to efficiently rebuild Iraq's economy and public works, according to a report issued Monday.

High Court to Rule on DeLay Redistricting - 27 Feb 2006 at 8:06pm - AP - In less than three years, a Republican-imposed redistricting of Texas' congressional districts strengthened the GOP grip on Congress, hastened former Majority Leader Tom DeLay's fall from power and triggered a partisan clash over the voting rights of blacks and Hispanics.


Judge OKs subpoenas in Libby case - 27 Feb 2006 at 3:41pm - The judge in the CIA leak case said Monday that lawyers on both sides in the perjury trial of former White House aide I. Lewis ?Scooter? Libby will be allowed to subpoena journalists and news organizations.