Debt ceiling bill becomes law, averting default
WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Tuesday to raise the government’s debt ceiling and cut trillions of dollars from its spending, concluding a long and fractious partisan battle just hours before the government’s borrowing authority was set to run out.
Trial of deposed Egyptian leader may alter region
CAIRO — The headlines of newspapers on sale in a subway station once named Mubarak, and now renamed Martyr’s, captured the moment Tuesday that could prove one of the most remarkable in modern Arab history: “The pharaoh in the cage of the accused.”
US worries about AAA, a rare rating in business
Hanging over the debt ceiling negotiations in Washington has been the threat of the U.S. losing its AAA credit rating, a coveted measure of the federal government’s financial strength. But in corporate America, the top rating long ago became an anachronism.
Shorts (right)
WASHINGTON — The success of Tea Party-backed lawmakers in defining the terms of the debt debate in Washington has further cemented the party’s identity as part of a conservative movement insistent on deep spending cuts, lower taxes and smaller government.
Shorts (left)
DENVER — Here is one measure of the nation’s lingering economic trouble and the political anxiety festering in state capitals over jobs and angry voters: 500.
US seeks more pressure on Syria, but options are limited
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is facing intensifying calls to punish Syria more forcefully for its bloody crackdown of protests, but officials say that without broader international support they have few options to increase pressure on President Bashar Assad’s government.
Rainstorms usher in cooler temps
After a passing low pressure system brought thunderstorms and torrential downpours to our area yesterday evening, a cooler air mass is now settling over the region. The cold front with which yesterday’s storms were associated has brought an end to the uncomfortably hot temperatures of the past few days. Instead, a more pleasant weather pattern will be in place for the remainder of the week, with overnight lows in the mid 60s, and afternoon highs in the mid to upper 70s. Skies will be mostly sunny, and an afternoon seabreeze will keep things from getting too hot.
Heat wave and fasting add to woes of Iraqis
BAGHDAD — Iraqis still live in a nation where bombings are a nearly daily occurrence, government paralysis is routine and corruption is de rigueur.
Shorts (right)
Meetings between lawyers and staff for the NFL and its players resumed Tuesday, with lawyers drafting language for a potential deal on certain issues. Among those present were people who are concerned with drug testing and how free agency would work.
China acknowledges spill from northeastern oil rig
BEIJING — Oil that spewed from an offshore drilling rig in northeastern China for two weeks last month has spread over 320 square miles, government officials acknowledged Tuesday, amid uproar over why it took so long for fishermen, local residents and environmental groups to be informed of the spill.
Finance minister in Greece moves from crisis to crisis
ATHENS, Greece — As he approached the end of another 16-hour workday, Evangelos Venizelos had one question on his mind: Will Europe come up with the money that Greece so desperately needs? As the new Greek finance minister, Venizelos is the man in charge of steering a nearly bankrupt economy back on track — and, perhaps, preventing another global financial crisis.
Big business leaves the deficit to the politicians
WASHINGTON — If you want to understand why cutting the deficit is so hard, you can’t do much better than to look at the Business Roundtable.
Shorts (left)
Netflix said Tuesday that it would begin offering its streaming movie and television service in Central America, South America and the Caribbean this year, a major expansion of the company’s geographic footprint.
Romney questioned on critique of economy under Obama
HAMPTON, N.H. — For much of this year, Mitt Romney has laid low, seeking to reap the benefits of being the presumed front-runner in the race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination (strong fundraising, positive polling) without suffering the downsides (intensive media scrutiny, endless shelling from rivals).
Summer in Boston; floods and droughts elsewhere
After a hot Fourth of July that allowed hundreds of thousands of spectators to watch fireworks along the Charles River without fear of rain or cold, it looks as though summer has arrived in full force in Boston. Even with a cold front passing through the region on Wednesday night, daytime temperatures should not drop below the 70s.
US to prosecute Somali terrorism suspect in civilian court
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration announced Tuesday that it would prosecute in civilian court a Somali accused of ties to two Islamist militant groups. The decision to fly the man to New York for trial, after interrogating him for months aboard a U.S. naval vessel, is likely to reignite debate about the detention and prosecution of terrorism suspects.
Citigroup breach raises questions about industry’s security
Citigroup’s revelation that hackers stole personal information from more than 200,000 credit card holders makes it one of the largest direct attacks on a major bank.
Defense nominee Panetta demurs on Afghanistan drawdown
WASHINGTON — Leon E. Panetta, President Barack Obama’s nominee to be secretary of defense, deflected persistent questions Thursday about one of the most pressing issues at the Pentagon, the scope of the American troop withdrawals from Afghanistan next month.
Shorts (right)
KARBEYAZ, Turkey — Security forces loyal to President Bashar Assad of Syria converged in the country’s restive northwest Thursday as hundreds of residents fled across the border into Turkey, heightening fears of a budding refugee crisis and a widening crackdown on dissent.
$1 billion in aid pledged to Libyan rebels
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — The nations intervening in Libya pledged as much as $1 billion in support for the opposition there on Thursday as senior officials continued to predict that the collapse of Moammar Gadhafi’s government could be imminent.