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Boy in Spiderman pajamas scoots along Ill. highway (AP)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 15:40:20 GMT
AP - Clad in Spiderman pajamas, a 5-year-old southern Illinois boy on a scooter had someplace to be. And he apparently wasn't going to let busy highways stand in his way. Authorities said Jackson County sheriff's deputies picked up the boy and his Razor-type scooter about 2 a.m. Wednesday along Old Illinois 13 in Murphysboro after fielding two 911 calls about the child's trek.
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Report: US must deal with homegrown terror problem (AP)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 16:49:06 GMT
AP - The U.S. was slow to take seriously the threat posed by homegrown radicals and the government has failed to put systems in place to deal with the growing phenomenon, according to a new report compiled by the former heads of the Sept. 11 Commission.
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China aims for next moon orbit shot this year (Reuters)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 03:12:56 GMT

Reuters - China will launch its second lunar exploration probe by the end of 2010, boosting the country's effort to rise as a space power eventually capable of landing on the moon, official media said Friday.

Saints march to win over Vikings in NFL opener (Reuters)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 05:22:46 GMT

Reuters - The New Orleans Saints celebrated last season's Super Bowl championship then launched the defense of their crown with a rousing 14-9 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday to open a new NFL season.

85 prisoners escape jail on Mexico-U.S. border (Reuters)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 21:44:41 GMT

Reuters - Eighty-five prisoners escaped from a jail near the U.S. border on Friday, authorities and media said, the latest prison break underscoring the challenges Mexico faces as it battles powerful drug cartels.

Social media inflames news cycle of Quran burning (AP)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 20:14:20 GMT

AP - The swelling story of a tiny Florida church's plan to burn copies of the Quran is raising questions of news judgment not only for the media, but for Web users and readers, too.

Obama: Voter anger could hurt Dems in elections (AP)
Date/Time: Sat, 11 Sep 2010 01:24:16 GMT

AP - Facing big Democratic losses in November, President Barack Obama blamed Republicans and election-year politics Friday for thwarting his efforts to do more to spur a listless national economy. He challenged Congress to quit squabbling and quickly approve "what we all agree on" — a reprieve for expiring tax cuts for the middle class.

Democrats Break With Obama on Bush Tax Cuts (The Atlantic Wire)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 15:22:46 GMT
The Atlantic Wire - President Obama has been vocal in his opposition to rolling back the Bush-era tax cuts for families making more than $250,000. But as his party's position in the polls continues to worsen and the economy remains stagnant, a number of high-profile Democrats, including Senators Jim Webb and Evan Bayh, are breaking with the president and voicing their support for extending the cuts. Is this a political year stunt, or are congressional Democrats really ready to force Obama's hand?Showdown Coming? Democrats in Congress see the moment as a chance to distance themselves from an increasingly unpopular administration, says Reuters's Kim Dixon. It's particularly important for moderate Democrats who must appeal to "constituencies that sometimes look more like Republicans." Obama's plan isn't drawing much support from the rank-and-file. "Most public displays of support [for ending the tax cuts] have come from the Democratic leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives," writes Dixon.Curious Fight The Washington Post's Greg Sargent believes Democratic opposition to Obama's plan is misguided. "Amid a sea of bad polling news, here is an issue where the public is clearly on Dems' side," writes Sargent. Punting, Sargent believes, would just be bad politics. "This, of all things, is not an issue where Dems should conclude in advance -- as they often do -- that once Republicans go on the attack, it's game over and Dems can't possibly win the argument." Breaking Ranks Those pushing for an extension of the benefits received an unexpected endorsement this week from Peter Orszag, Obama's former White House budget director. "In the face of the dueling deficits, the best approach is a compromise," Orszag wrote Wednesday in his new New York Times column. "Extend the tax cuts for two years and then end them altogether." At the very least, an extension would save the president some of his political capital. "The beauty of extending the tax cuts for only two years," Orszag noted, "is that canceling them doesn’t require an affirmative vote."Impact Overstated? Time's Michael Crowley argues the political impact of breaking with Obama on taxes will be negligible for vulnerable Democrats. While the majority of Americans were in favor of the original cuts in 2001, Crowley notes that was an era of "very different budgetary and economic circumstances." Democrats trying to use the issue for political gain in 2010 could find it has "limited impact" with voters in November.
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First Medal of Honor for a living Afghan war vet (AP)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 21:40:52 GMT

AP - A 25-year-old soldier from Iowa who exposed himself to enemy gunfire to try to save two fellow soldiers will become the first living service member from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to receive the Medal of Honor, the White House announced Friday.

Roger Ebert to appear on movie review show (AP)
Date/Time: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 21:20:17 GMT
AP - Film critic Roger Ebert, who lost his ability to speak and eat after cancer surgeries, said Friday that he is returning to television on a movie review show that he is producing for public television.
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