Obama drafts in Geithner to crack budget impasse

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama has made Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner lead White House negotiator in budget talks with Congress aimed at averting the fiscal cliff, a report said Monday.The Wall Street Journal said Geithner was viewed on Capitol Hill as a straight-shooter who had a better chance of brokering a deal than Jacob Lew, Obama's former budget chief who has burnt his...

Read More..

LeT threatens to strike at Vaishno Devi

JAMMU: An email threatening to target the cave shrine of Vaishno Devi was purportedly sent by the banned terror outfit Lashker-e-Toiba to a hotelier in Katra to avenge the execution of 26/11 terror attack convict Ajmal Kasab, police said today. The email was received by A H Bhat, a hotelier of Devi Grand hotel, on November 24 threatening to target the shrine to avenge the hanging of Kasab, a...

Read More..

Bounce houses a party hit but kids' injuries soar

CHICAGO (AP) — They may be a big hit at kids' birthday parties, but inflatable bounce houses can be dangerous, with the number of injuries soaring in recent years, a nationwide study found.Kids often crowd into bounce houses, and jumping up and down can send other children flying into the air, too.The numbers suggest 30 U.S. children a day are treated in emergency rooms for broken bones, sprains,...

Read More..

President Obama Prepares for Cabinet Shuffle

Nov 26, 2012 6:45am Carolyn Kaster/AP PhotoAs President Obama prepares for his second term, preparations have begun for the traditional shuffling of the Cabinet.Top priority for the president: filling slots for those top officials heading — if not running — for the door: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner.To replace Clinton,...

Read More..

Egypt's Mursi to meet judges over power grab

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi negotiated with senior judges on Monday to try to defuse a crisis over his seizure of new powers which set off violent protests reminiscent of an uprising last year that led to the rise of his Islamist movement. The justice minister said he believed Mursi would agree with Egypt's highest judicial authority on its proposal to limit the...

Read More..

Portugal MPs to adopt unpopular austerity budget

LISBON: Portugal's parliament is due to adopt on Tuesday a massively unpopular 2013 budget that will make unprecedented austerity reforms in a bid to satisfy international creditors helping the country fight off economic collapse.Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho's centre-right government has a comfortable majority in parliament, virtually guaranteeing the budget will pass.But lawmakers...

Read More..

Mamata intolerant, wants only yes men: Katju

KOLKATA: Terming West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as "intolerant", Press Council of India chairman Markandey Katju Sunday said she only wants "yes men" around her. However, he praised her for feeling for the 'aam aadmi'. "I had praised her earlier...She has got the good quality of integrity. I think she feels for the aam aadmi," said Katju. "But she must realise that in democracy you...

Read More..

Badminton: Lee, Chen in Hong Kong Open men's final

HONG KONG: Lee Chong Wei will meet Chinese second seed Chen Long in the final of the Hong Kong Open after the Malaysian world number one breezed past Japan's Kenichi Tago on Saturday.The top-seed and Olympic silver medallist saw off sixth seeded Tago 21-19, 21-15 in 45 minutes, with the Malaysian smashing his way to the $350,000 Badminton World Federation Super Series tournament final.Lee...

Read More..

1,534 candidates in fray for phase one of Gujarat polls

AHMEDABAD: A total of 1,534 candidates have filed their nomination papers for the 87 constituencies in the first phase of Gujarat Assembly elections on December 13, the officials said. It was the last day today for filing nomination papers for the first phase of the polls. The scrutiny of nomination forms will take place on November 26. "We have received nomination forms of 1,534 candidates for...

Read More..

AP PHOTOS: Simple surgery heals blind Indonesians

PADANG SIDEMPUAN, Indonesia (AP) — They came from the remotest parts of Indonesia, taking crowded overnight ferries and riding for hours in cars or buses — all in the hope that a simple, and free, surgical procedure would restore their eyesight.Many patients were elderly and needed help to reach two hospitals in Sumatra where mass eye camps were held earlier this month by Nepalese surgeon Dr. Sanduk...

Read More..