(Reuters) ? The House of Representatives dealt a blow to childhood obesity warriors on Thursday by passing a bill that abandons proposals that threatened to end the reign of pizza and French fries on federally funded school lunch menus.
The scuttled changes, which would have stripped pizza's status as a vegetable and limited how often French fries could
be served, stemmed from a 2010 child nutrition law calling on schools to improve the nutritional quality of lunches served to almost 32 million U.S. school children.
The action is a win for the makers of frozen French fries and pizza and comes just weeks after the deep-pocketed food, beverage and restaurant industries successfully weakened government proposals for voluntary food marketing guidelines to children.
"It's an important victory," said Corey Henry, spokesman for the American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI). That trade association lobbied Congress on behalf of frozen pizza sellers like ConAgra Foods Inc and Schwan Food Co and French
fry makers McCain Foods Ltd and J.R. Simplot Co, the latter best known as a supplier to fast-food company McDonald's Corp.
"Our concern is that the standards would force companies in many respects to change their products in a way that would make them unpalatable to students," Henry said.
Other AFFI members include H.J. Heinz Co, General Mills Inc and Kraft Foods Inc.
The school lunch provisions were a small part of a mammoth bill that provides money for all parts of the federal government. The House sent the bill to the Senate for final Congressional approval.
"They started out with French fries and now they have moved on to pizza," said Jared Polis, Colorado Democrat, who lamented the government's subsidy of unhealthy diets through school meals. "Pizza alone (without side dishes) ... common sense, it's not a vegetable."
Calls to Minnesota-based Schwan and its external public relations firm and ConAgra were not returned.
Mark Dunn, AFFI's chairman and J.R. Simplot's main lobbyist, referred requests for comment to a company spokesman, who declined to respond.
PIZZA AS A VEGETABLE
Polis mentioned French fries in reference to a provision in the bill that would have blocked the government from limiting servings of white potatoes to one cup per week in meals served through the roughly $18 billion U.S. school meals program overseen by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In addition to potatoes, USDA also proposed limits on starchy vegetables including corn, green peas and lima beans, while requiring lunches to serve a wider variety of fruit and vegetables.
Another provision bars the USDA from changing the way it credits tomato paste, used in pizza. The change would have required pizza to have at least a half-cup of tomato paste to qualify as a vegetable serving. Current rules, which likely will remain in place, require just two tablespoons of tomato paste.
According to a USDA report from November 2007, pizza and French fries were among the most commonly consumed lunch foods by participants in the national school lunch program.
Sam Farr of California, the Democratic leader on the appropriations subcommittee in charge of the USDA, said the interference with USDA rule-writing was "wrong" and "shouldn't be done". Still, Farr supported passage of the overall bill.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Wednesday that U.S. school children would still see more fruit and vegetables, more grains, more low-fat milk and less salt and fat in meals despite the language in the spending bill.
"First of all, we can assure parents of school-age children (that) USDA will do everything it can" to improve the nutritional quality of school meals, as required by the 2010 child nutrition law.
Vilsack was speaking via teleconference from Hanoi during a U.S. trade trip.
Healthier school lunches are a cornerstone of First Lady Michelle Obama's campaign to end childhood obesity. Nearly one in three children in America is overweight or obese and the numbers are growing.
"Clearly more pizza and French fries in schools is not good for kids, but it's good for companies that make pizza and French fries," said Margo Wootan, nutrition policy director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a consumer group that advocates better food and nutrition policies.
Wootan said U.S. food makers trumpet products they say are healthy while at the same time lobbying against regulations aimed at improving the nutritional quality of their products.
"A year ago, I was walking the halls of Congress arm-in-arm with the food industry, fighting for healthier school lunches," Wootan said. "Today, we are on opposite sides, and I'm battling to keep them from weakening school nutrition standards and school marketing guidelines and other provisions."
(Editing by Martinne Geller)
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Following reports that Kutcher cheated, the actress announced the end of their marriage! See more celeb pairs who are back to going solo
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TORONTO ? Canada has stepped up its lobbying after the Obama administration delayed a decision on an oil pipeline critical to the country's economic future.
Canada's prime minister said he made it clear in a weekend meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama that Canada will step up its efforts to sell oil to Asia since the Obama administration delayed a decision on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.
Meanwhile, Alberta Premier Alison Redford, the leader of the Canadian province that has the world's third-largest reserves of oil, visited Washington on Monday and said she'll meet with U.S. Speaker of the House John Boehner and other officials to discuss the pipeline's future.
Last week, the U.S. State Department ordered that the pipeline be rerouted and subject to further environmental review, delaying a decision until 2013.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who met Obama on the sidelines of the APEC summit, said Canada will continue to push the U.S. to approve TransCanada's $7 billion Keystone XL project to the U.S. Gulf Coast.
The pipeline is critical to Canada which must have pipelines in place to export its growing oil sands production from northern Alberta, which has more than 170 billion barrels of proven reserves. Daily production of 1.5 million barrels from the oil sands is expected to increase to 3.7 million in 2025. Only Saudi Arabia and Venezuela have more reserves.
Harper said Obama told him the U.S. is continuing to examine the Keystone XL decision and that his government has not taken a final decision. The State Department wants the pipeline to avoid environmentally sensitive areas of Nebraska.
"This highlights why Canada must increase its efforts to ensure it can supply its energy outside the U.S. and into Asia in particular," Harper said. "Canada will step up its efforts in that regard and I communicated that clearly to the president."
Harper said he emphasized the pipeline would mean economic growth on both sides of the border. The prime minister previously characterized Obama's approval of the project as a "no-brainer" but at least one oil analyst said the project now only has a 50 percent chance of being approved.
TransCanada wants to build the pipeline to carry crude oil extracted from the oil sands in Alberta to the refinery hubs in Texas. The pipeline would carry an estimated 700,000 barrels of oil a day, doubling the capacity of an existing pipeline from Canada.
TransCanada and its supporters have said the project would create U.S. construction jobs, help lower gas prices and reduce dependence on Middle East oil. Opponents say it would bring "dirty oil" that requires huge amounts of energy to extract and could cause an ecological disaster in case of a spill.
The heavily contested project became a political trap for Obama, who risked angering environmental supporters ? and losing re-election contributions from some liberal donors ? if he approved it. The State Department had previously said it would have a decision by the end of the year.
Redford said she is still confident the pipeline will be approved.
"We believe it would bring tremendous economic benefit to our province and to the United States," she said.
Canadian Natural Resource Minister Joe Oliver spent last week in Asia touting Canada's oil industry and said China is "very eager" to get oil from Canada.
TransCanada rival Enbridge has proposed the Northern Gateway pipeline to the Pacific coast that would allow Canada to diversify its energy exports to China.
Harper has voiced support for the Gateway project but it is undergoing a regulatory review in Canada and it also faces fierce environmental and aboriginal opposition.
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Earlier today, my colleague Matt Burns wrote a post noting that most tablet makers may be largely failing because they've sold their soul to Android and are now just in the middle of a spec war, which no one can win. I'm gonna go one step further in that line of thinking: the spec is dead. There have been a few key stories from the past couple of weeks that highlight this new reality. Barnes & Noble unveiled the new Nook Tablet. Consumer Reports looked at the iPhone 4S. And the first reviews came in about the Kindle Fire.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/gkiR6ieyx2s/
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According to the BNA Money and Politics Report, "the Democratic and Republican parties have received $35.4 million -- about $17.7 million each -- in public funding to pay for next year's presidential nominating conventions, the Federal Election Commission announced Nov. 8."
It is more than ironic that at the same time Republican leaders in Congress are trying to kill the public financing system, the Republican party is happy to ask for and accept public funds to finance its own political activities.
If public financing is such a bad idea, the Republicans should not be requesting and accepting taxpayer dollars to finance their political activities.
If it is good idea to use public funds for Republican Party political activities, it is also a good idea to use public funds to finance presidential elections, as we have done for Republican and Democratic presidential candidates since 1976. Republican leaders should recognize this.
In fact, every Republican President and Republican presidential nominee has made use of the presidential public financing system from 1976 to 2008 to finance their run for the presidency.
Ronald Reagan, the gold standard for Republican conservatives, used the presidential public financing system twice to finance his successful runs for president in 1980 and 1984, and used the system a third time to finance his unsuccessful run for his party's nomination in 1976.
The presidential public financing system was established in 1974 and served the nation well for most of its existence, until it became outdated and in need of repair.
Legislation to repair the presidential system has been introduced in the House this year by Representatives David Price (D-NC) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) (HR414). At the same time, House Republican leaders have passed legislation this year in the House to kill the presidential public financing system.
Republican leaders appear to be very comfortable using public funds to pay for their own political activities. The Republican party has asked for and accepted public funds to finance its national convention in every presidential election year from 1976 to 2012.
Republican leaders also ought to recognize the great value to the country of using public funds to finance the most important election in our country, our presidential election.
As it stands now, the financing of the 2012 presidential election is going to be dominated by influence-seeking money -- by corporate spenders, big donors, bundlers, unlimited contributions and secret funds. This is a disaster for the American people and for our democracy and needs to be fixed for the future.
It is essential we repair the presidential public financing system in time for the 2016 presidential election. Presidential candidates should not be on the auction block and at the mercy of influence-seeking political money.
?
Follow Fred Wertheimer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/FredWertheimer
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/fred-wertheimer/republican-party-public-funds_b_1084581.html
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U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, right, and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk confer before the start of an APEC ministerial meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit Friday, Nov. 11, 2011, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/J. David Ake)
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, right, and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk confer before the start of an APEC ministerial meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit Friday, Nov. 11, 2011, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/J. David Ake)
Foreign and finance ministers and other officials pose with U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk, center left, and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, center right, for an official photo during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit Friday, Nov. 11, 2011, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/J. David Ake)
HONOLULU (AP) ? Leaders working to forge a Pacific free trade bloc plan to announce an outline for achieving that goal at an annual Asia-Pacific summit this weekend, one of many initiatives aimed at keeping growth on track and fending off recession.
U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk ended a meeting of regional trade ministers with praise for Japan's decision Friday to join negotiations on the free trade arrangement that is viewed by many in the region as a basic building block for an eventual free trade zone encompassing all of Asia and the Pacific Rim.
The so-called Trans-Pacific Partnership is intended to complement other efforts to promote freer trade, and that other countries can join if they are willing to meet the very high standards required, Kirk said.
At their summit, the leaders of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum will endorse a range of "meaningful steps which will strengthen regional economic integration and expand trade," he said.
Those include better food security, increased trade and investment in environmental products and services, better access to financing for small and medium-size companies, faster customs clearance and greater harmony in regulatory standards.
Such moves are intended to eliminate barriers and bottlenecks that could slow business at a time when the world economy most needs dynamism in the Asian-Pacific region to offset the malaise spreading from crisis-stricken Europe.
Japan has announced no timetable for joining the trans-Pacific free trade group, only its intention to join, a senior Japanese government official said Friday.
But the inclusion of the world's third-largest economy would vastly expand the reach of the trade pact, which now includes the smaller economies of Chile, New Zealand, Brunei and Singapore. The U.S., Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Peru are negotiating to join.
To participate, Japan will have to eliminate tariffs on imports from all member economies ? a reciprocal move that its major manufacturers say will improve access to foreign markets and help keep the country from falling behind regional trading rivals.
Japan's trade minister, Yukio Edano, who backed the decision to join, said his government was well aware of the challenges it will face. But he has argued that by delaying further, Tokyo would lose the opportunity to help shape the trading bloc from the start.
China, the world's second-biggest economy, has appeared tepid toward the plan, with an official saying in Beijing earlier this week that it might be "overly ambitious."
Asked its stance, Chen Deming, the trade minister, said China expected Japan to live up to earlier pledges to promote regional integration through various forms. Moves toward closer regional economic ties should be "open and transparent," he said.
"Up to now, we have not yet received any invitation. If one day we receive such an invitation we will seriously study it," Chen said.
Kirk emphasized that the trans-Pacific bloc is meant to be open, though it requires members to meet high standards for openness and free trade.
"You should not wait for an invitation," he said. "If they are willing meet the highest standard then any country is welcome to make the same decision the others have done."
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Republican presidential candidates Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speak during a Republican Presidential Debate at Oakland University in Auburn Hills, Mich., Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Republican presidential candidates Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, speak during a Republican Presidential Debate at Oakland University in Auburn Hills, Mich., Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Republican presidential candidate, Texas Gov. Rick Perry waves as he exits the David Letterman show, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011, in New York. (AP Photo/Louis Lanzano)
Republican presidential candidate Texas Gov. Rick Perry points his head as he speaks during a Republican Presidential Debate at Oakland University in Auburn Hills, Mich., Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011. At right is Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Republican presidential candidate, Texas Gov. Rick Perry is interviewed on "America Live" on the Fox News Channel in New York, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2011. Perry rearranged his schedule Thursday to try to mitigate a disastrous debate moment, in which he could not remember the third federal agency he has vowed to abolish. Perry canceled a Tennessee fundraiser to appear on several TV networks and the David Letterman show, pledging to stay in the race. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Rick Perry tried Thursday to convince the country he was in on the joke after his disastrous debate performance, but even his supporters worried aloud about damage to his already hobbling Republican presidential campaign.
Perry didn't try to defend his minute-long stammer that, unfortunately for him, was just about the only memorable part of the confrontation with his seven rivals. Instead, he spent the day in a flurry of media appearances trying to laugh about his embarrassing struggle to remember the third of three federal departments he wants to abolish.
He ended the Wednesday night episode with an abashed, grinning, "Oops." On Thursday, he agreed to go on David Letterman's "Late Show" and offer the Top Ten List.
The debate excerpt was replayed over and over on television, already labeled one of the worst such blunders ever.
"That's pretty brutal isn't it?" he said on Fox News, giving viewers an alternative Perry sound bite to compete with the video. "I stepped in it. I think some of it is still stuck on my feet."
He doesn't have much time to clean up. Less than eight weeks before the first nominating contests, GOP voters are looking for the best candidate to go head to head against President Barack Obama.
"It's something he needs to address pretty quickly," said uncommitted Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, an early primary state. But Graham said Perry has time and a key survival tool: money.
Perry reported some $15 million banked during his most recent fundraising period. His advisers say he has enough cash on hand to get through South Carolina.
If he isn't able to log some good results by that point, the third GOP state, he may be best remembered for a 54-second piece of campaign history.
Perry acknowledged it was a tough moment as he flailed. In the debate, he said he would eliminate three federal agencies, starting with Commerce and Education. He struggled to name the third, pointing to Energy only later in the debate. He squirmed while his opponents and the audience laughed and debate moderator John Harwood incredulously said, "You can't name the third one?"
"It wasn't even on the tip of my tongue," Perry said.
Perry has long acknowledged he's a poor debater but has held out hope for improvement.
"I hate debates," he said in Des Moines last week. "I used to hate spinning in aircrafts. ... Finally I did it, and I did it enough that I finally got pretty good at it. So hold on, maybe I'll get better at debates, too."
No one doubts he's a tough campaigner. He has never lost an election ? avoiding most debates in state races ? and is the longest serving governor of Texas. He has proven a charismatic campaigner in smaller settings common in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina ? three states that start the nominating process and states where he must do well.
Yet some Republicans, even prominent Perry supporters, are wondering whether the Texan can survive his latest misstep.
"As far as his character, I haven't wavered on that," state Rep. Peter Silva, a member of Perry's New Hampshire steering committee, said Thursday. But he added: "You can't say this is a good thing. He shot himself in the foot."
Others were even less generous.
"It's over for him," said Steve Schmidt, a Republican political strategist who ran Sen. John McCain's 2008 campaign.
In an interview on Thursday, Perry said the moment wouldn't force him from the race.
"Oh, shoot, no," Perry said. "This ain't a day for quitting nothing."
Still, on Capitol Hill, Perry's brain freeze was widely regarded as a grave development for his already struggling campaign.
Sen. James Inhofe, a Perry backer, spoke with colleagues and other Perry supporters to try to stop an exodus.
"He's a human being, he just proved that last night," the Oklahoman said. "Right now, he's joking around about it and it seems to be favorably received from a lot of people I've heard from."
Yet Inhofe was still cringing.
"It was very embarrassing to Rick Perry and to others who certainly supported him, and I'm sure that many of his Republican opponents are rejoicing," said the senator.
There was an informal straw poll at a debate-watching party hosted by a prominent New Hampshire conservative, Jennifer Horn, a recent Republican congressional candidate who previously backed former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty's now-abandoned bid.
Horn said that of about 40 Republicans at the party, only about four said they supported Perry before the debate began. That was cut in half after the debate.
"That's not a scientific sample. But that does show that people are influenced by what happens at these debates," Horn said. "That was highly unfortunate, especially for people in New Hampshire who know how strong he can be in person. It was difficult to watch."
___
Associated Press writers Kasie Hunt in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., and Steve Peoples in Washington contributed to this report.
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Football players experience repeated head trauma throughout their careers, which results in short and long-term effects to their cognitive function, physical and mental health. University of Missouri researchers are investigating how other lifestyle factors, including diet and exercise, impact the late-life health of former collision-sport athletes.
The researchers found that former football players experience more late-life cognitive difficulties and worse physical and mental health than other former athletes and non-athletes. In addition, former football players who consumed high-fat diets had greater cognitive difficulties with recalling information, orientation and engaging and applying ideas. Frequent, vigorous exercise was associated with higher physical and mental health ratings.
"While the negative effects of repeated collisions can't be completely reversed, this study suggests that former athletes can alter their lifestyle behaviors to change the progression of cognitive decline," said Pam Hinton, associate professor of nutrition and exercise physiology. "Even years after they're done playing sports, athletes can improve their diet and exercise habits to improve their mental and physical health."
In the study, Hinton compared former collision sport (football) players to former non-collision- sport athletes and non-athletes. Participants were given questionnaires to assess their cognitive, mental and physical health. The researchers examined how players' current lifestyle habits negatively or positively affected their collision-related health problems. Former football players who consumed more total and saturated fat and cholesterol reported more cognitive difficulties than those who consumed less fat and had better dietary habits.
"Football will always be around, so it's impossible to eliminate head injuries; however, we can identify ways to reduce the detrimental health effects of repeated head trauma," Hinton said. "It's important to educate athletes and people who work with athletes about the benefits of low-fat and balanced diets to help players improve their health both while playing sports and later in life. It's a simple, but not an easy thing to do."
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University of Missouri-Columbia: http://www.missouri.edu
Thanks to University of Missouri-Columbia for this article.
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ATLANTA ? The country's top nuclear safety regulator warned power companies against complacency Thursday and said the agency must push ahead with new rules prompted by a nuclear crisis in Japan while also resolving long-running issues involving fire protection and a new analysis of earthquake risks.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner Gregory Jaczko made the remarks at a meeting of industry leaders after what has been a turbulent year for the nuclear power sector. In March, damage from an earthquake and tsunami caused nuclear meltdowns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant in Japan. The facility was rocked by explosions and spewed radiation into the environment, causing widespread evacuations.
"The Fukushima accident is clearly one of the most significant events in the history of nuclear power," Jaczko said in prepared remarks. "It is critical that we take prompt, decisive and effective action to make the needed safety changes," he said.
Natural disasters have also recently struck nuclear plants in the United States, although none triggered a crisis.
The North Anna plant in Virginia shut down when an Aug. 23 earthquake caused peak ground movement about twice the level for which the plant was designed. No major damage has been identified. Jaczko told reporters that the NRC was close to deciding whether that plant can restart. He said he had not yet seen the final recommendations from the NRC staff and that he could not comment further.
Other U.S. reactors were threatened by flooding in the Midwest and contended with tornado damage in the Southeast.
Jaczko singled out four nuclear plants cited for safety trouble and added that the NRC has conducted more special inspections in the past year than at any time in recent memory.
"These developments, of course, are concerning for the specific plants involved, but we all should be on guard to the possibility that they could be indicative of broader issues for the industry," Jaczko said in his address to the Atlanta-based Institute of Nuclear Power Operations. His speech was closed to the public at the request of the trade group.
He also urged the nuclear power industry to resolve long-running issues over fire protection standards and added the agency will soon start work on an updated analysis of earthquake hazards for the central and eastern United States.
Jaczko told reporters that the NRC will make a decision in the coming months on whether to approve the latest design of Westinghouse Electric Co.'s AP1000 nuclear reactor. Once that reactor is approved, the commissioners could then decide whether to allow the Atlanta-based Southern Co. to build two AP1000 reactors at Plant Vogtle near Augusta. SCANA Corp. is also seeking permission to build two AP1000 reactors at Plant Summer in Jenkinsville, S.C.
If approved, those projects would become the first nuclear plants to win permission to build in a generation.
Following the disaster in Japan, Jaczko said he hopes the commission will examine whether to plan for wider evacuation zones outside nuclear plants in case of a crisis. Currently, power companies and government officials only drill for a 10-mile evacuation area. During the crisis at Fukushima Dai-ichi, the NRC recommended that Americans within 50 miles of the plant evacuate.
Jaczko said evacuating people in a 50-mile radius around the plant could be done when questioned on whether it was possible since it is not practiced.
"It certainly could be done better if it was exercised and planned," he said.
___
Ray Henry can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/rhenryAP.
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? State governments would be able to collect online sales taxes under a bill due to be introduced in the Senate on Wednesday, said sources familiar with the bill.
Supporters of the online sales tax collection requirement include Wal-Mart Stores Inc, Target Corp and other "big box" retailers who argue they are at a disadvantage against online-only competitors.
A bipartisan group of up to seven senators will introduce the bill, which is broader than similar legislation introduced in the Senate in July. The new bill will differ from a bill in the House of Representatives by affecting more small businesses under a lower exemption threshold, the sources said.
State and local governments support the upcoming bill even more than earlier measures.
Retailers have been exempted from collecting taxes on sales in states where they do not have a physical presence since a 1992 Supreme Court case -- before the advent of e-commerce.
Backers of the new bill say state and local governments will lose $24 billion in uncollected sales taxes in 2012 without the power to tax Web transactions. States have worked for more than a decade to streamline rules and get congressional approval to collect the taxes.
Backers hope the online tax bill will get swept up in bipartisan support for a bill that would eliminate the 3 percent withholding on payments to government contractors.
That bill already passed the House and is expected to pass in the Democrat-led Senate later this week.
Supporters hope the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, known as the "super committee," will add the sales tax proposal to its recommendations due later this month.
'LEVELS THE PLAYING FIELD'
The storefront retail industry "strongly stands by the legislation being introduced because it levels the playing field," said Danny Diaz, a spokesman for the Alliance for Main Street Fairness, which represents many large retail chain stores, such as Wal-Mart.
Opponents of the Senate legislation say it does not go far enough to protect small businesses. The bill is expected to include an exemption for businesses with less than $500,000 in annual sales.
That exemption for small businesses "is way too low," said Carl Szabo, policy counsel for NetChoice, which represents, AOL Inc, eBay Inc, Yahoo Inc and other Internet companies.
The House version has a $1 million exemption for small businesses that is still too low, Szabo said.
The small business exemption should be as high as $20 million, said Jonathan Johnson, president of Overstock.com Inc..
The "big box" retailers want the small business exemption "as low as possible" to keep "competitors from growing up and competing against them," Johnson said in an interview on Tuesday.
The federal legislation should spare businesses from lawsuits that might arise if they incorrectly collect the wrong amount of sales tax, Johnson said.
Additionally, businesses should get a small share of the tax revenue to cover their compliance costs, he said.
LAWMAKERS TAKE POSITIONS
Congress "shouldn't burden businesses with costs that should be borne by the state," he said. "If we are being asked to do the states' work for them, we should be compensated."
Republican sponsors are expected to be Senators Lamar Alexander, Mike Enzi, Roy Blunt and John Boozman.
Democrats backing it include Senators Richard Durbin, who sponsored similar legislation this summer, Tim Johnson and Jack Reed. The Obama administration is also expected to endorse this bill, a source said.
Other members of Congress are fighting against the bill. Last week, Senate Democrat Ron Wyden and Republican Kelly Ayotte introduced a resolution calling on Congress not to enact legislation that would authorize state governments to collect online sales taxes. A similar resolution was introduced in the House in February.
(Additional reporting by Nanette Byrnes; Editing by Gary Hill)
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BEIJING (Reuters) ? A Chinese official dubbed the "land granny" was executed after amassing 145 million yuan ($23 million) in bribes and illicit wealth, media reported on Thursday, offering a glimpse into the country's underground economy in land deals.
Luo Yaping was head of a land sub-bureau in a district of Fushun, a city in northeast China -- not an especially high position -- and yet she was able to use her power over land development and compensation to accumulate a fortune in bribes and embezzled compensation, the China News Service reported.
Luo, 50, was executed on Wednesday, the report said
"The media called her the 'land granny' because she looted 145 million yuan," said the report.
A leader of the ruling Communist Party's anti-corruption agency said Luo's crime involved "the lowest ranked official, the biggest amount, and the most evil means," the China News Service said.
China's leaders are struggling to tame both feverish property price rises and discontent over land grabs, and Luo's exploits illustrated the problems created by giving officials such a powerful grip over land transactions.
A recent survey found disputes over land acquisitions had reached a new peak driven by hectic development across China and was a leading cause of rural clashes, a Chinese news magazine reported late last month.
Between 2001 and 2007, officials said, Luo made 71 million yuan from bogus compensation accounts and illicit land deals, and accumulated another 44 million yuan in assets for which she could offer no legitimate explanation.
The report did not explain how officials arrived at the bigger estimate that Luo illegally amassed 145 million yuan.
When Luo was detained, she was carrying 50,000 yuan in her purse, as well as more than a dozen bank cards, one for an account holding 19 million yuan. Investigators also found a bank safe kept in her name which held accounts, cash and insurance policies worth 55.2 million yuan.
Luo also accumulated 22 properties in Fushun, a formerly rust-belt city where mine and factory closures have triggered protests in past years.
When Luo found anti-graft investigators were on her trail, she sent her daughter abroad and applied to emigrate to Canada, the China News Service said. She was arrested in 2008.
($1 = 6.340 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by Chris Buckley)
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MURRAY, Utah (AP) ? At 7-foot-6, former NBA center Shawn Bradley needs just about everything custom-made, from clothes and chairs to countertops and doorways.
Yet the Utah resident remains dumbfounded over why someone would steal a bike so large it is probably useless to anyone but him.
The bike has an 80 centimeter carbon fiber-aluminum frame ? about 50 percent larger than that for a normal-sized person. Trek never even included a serial number when it built the bicycle in 2006 because it is so unique.
The bicycle was taken Friday morning from a barn next to Bradley's home in Murray, Utah.
Bradley acknowledges it's just a bike and hardly the end of the world. But he says he's used it to shed 30 pounds of fat he put on after retiring in 2005.
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NEW YORK ? Leaving little to the imagination, a Chicago-area woman on Monday accused Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain of making a crude sexual advance more than a decade ago when she was seeking his help finding a job.
"Come clean," Sharon Bialek challenged Cain at a news conference in New York at which she described herself as "a face and a voice" to support other accusers who have so far remained anonymous.
Cain's campaign swiftly denied Bialek's account. "All allegations of harassment against Mr. Cain are completely false," it said in a written statement.
Even so, Bialek's nationally broadcast appearance on cable television marked a new and ? for Cain ? dangerous turn in a controversy that he has struggled for more than a week to shed. An upstart in the presidential race, Cain shot to the top of public opinion polls in recent weeks and emerged, however temporarily, as the main conservative challenger to Mitt Romney.
Accompanied by her prominent lawyer, Gloria Allred, Bialek accused Cain of making a sexual advance one night in mid-July 1997, when she had travelled to Washington to have dinner with him in hopes he could help her find work.
She said the two had finished dinner and were in a car for what she thought was a ride to an office building.
"Instead of going into the offices he suddenly reached over and he put his hand on my leg, under my skirt toward my genitals," she said.
"He also pushed my head toward his crotch," she added.
Bialek said she told her boyfriend, an unidentified pediatrician, as well as a longtime male friend about the episode.
None of Cain's other accusers has provided details as graphic as Bialek's account. But Joel Bennett, an attorney who represents one of them, said her details were "similar in nature" to what his client encountered.
Allred, a prominent sex discrimination attorney with Democratic ties, moved preemptively to blunt any attacks on Bialek's motives. She described her client as a registered Republican, a single mother and a woman with a long and successful work history.
She also said Bialek "could have attempted to sell her story but chose not to do so," and knew that by stepping forward, she would receive scrutiny.
Court records indicate Bialek had financial difficulties a decade ago when she filed for bankruptcy protection and reported $4,500 in unpaid rent and $13,000 in outstanding credit card bills.
Current property records show she owns a house on an acre of land in a Chicago suburb.
Some of Cain's allies immediately made a target of Allred, a Democratic campaign donor, rather than focusing any anger on Cain's accuser.
Georgia state Sen. Joshua McKoon, who has endorsed Cain, accused Allred of "carnival theatrics" fueled by a partisan agenda.
"Her involvement makes it clear that it's a political smear job orchestrated by those on the left because there is nothing more terrifying than Herman Cain as the Republican nominee," the Republican lawmaker said.
But Doug Heye, a political consultant who is unaligned in the GOP race, said Bialek's allegations "are different because they involve a name and specific details."
He said Allred's involvement "is going to make some people disbelieve the charges out of hand because of the side show she creates. But Herman Cain has to be clear and convincing in his response."
Even before Bialek stepped forward, presidential rival Jon Huntsman and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour had publicly urged Cain to address sexual harassment allegations in greater detail.
It wasn't clear he would.
After spending much of last week denying accusations, he told reporters who sought to question him Saturday night, "don't even go there."
Cain had an evening appearance scheduled on the Jimmy Kimmel show, his only public event of the day.
According to lawyer and client, Bialek was employed for parts of 1996 and 1997 at the Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association, an industry trade group that Cain headed at the time. She said she first met him at an organization convention, interacting with him several times over the course of a few days.
After she was fired from her job about a month later, she said her boyfriend told her, "Herman seems to think highly of you. Why don't you contact him?"
That led to a trip to Washington about a month later, where she recalled that Cain upgraded her hotel room to a suite, and made his unwanted sexual advance in the car.
She said she asked Cain what he was doing, and recalled he replied, "You said you want a job, right?"
Given her experience and those of other accusers, "I want you, Mr. Cain, to come clean," she said. "Just admit what you did. Admit you were inappropriate to people."
She added: "Mr. Cain, I implore you: Make this right so that you and the country can move forward and focus on the real issues at hand."
The denial from Cain's campaign was as unequivocal as the allegation.
"Just as the country finally begins to refocus on our crippling $15 trillion national debt and the unacceptably high unemployment rate, now activist celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred is bringing forth more false accusations against the character of Republican front-runner Herman Cain," it said.
"Mr. Cain has never harassed anyone."
Before Bialek stepped to the microphone, the allegations involved two women who had worked at the National Restaurant Association, both of whom filed sexual harassment complaints.
A third woman told The Associated Press last week that she considered filing a workplace complaint against Cain over what she deemed sexually suggestive remarks and gestures that included a private invitation to his corporate apartment.
A former pollster for the restaurant association has said he witnessed yet another episode involving a fourth woman.
Allred has represented several high-profile clients, including Amber Frey, a witness against convicted California killer Scott Peterson. Allred also represented a woman whom news reports accused of having an affair with golfer Tiger Woods.
"I consider sexual harassment the No. 1 problem in the workplace," she told the AP in an interview last week. "It denies equal opportunity in the workforce. If (women) don't protest it, they'll have to continue to suffer."
_____
Associated Press writers Philip Elliott in Washington and Shannon McCaffrey in Atlanta contributed to this story.
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Back in February, HP rolled out a new reclining design for its high-end all-in-one desktop PCs, the TouchSmart 9300 Elite (for businesses) and the TouchSmart 610 (for home users). Now that HP has decided that, yes, it think it will stay in the PC business for a while, the company has updated the consumer version of the all in one?not so much with more brawn or storage, but with 3D display capabilities. The new TouchSmart 620 features a 23-inch touchscreen display, but folks who want to strap on 3D glasses can enjoy 3D depth and entertainment in full HD (1080p) resolution.
As a computer, the TouchSmart 620 is much like the earlier TouchSmart 610: an Intel Core i5 2400 processor running at 3.1 GHz, along with a 1.5 TB 5400 rpm hard drive, a slot-loating Blu-ray player, 8 GB of RAM, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi and gigabit Ethernet, all under a 23-inch multitouch LED-backlit display with a 1,000:1 contrast ratio, 4ms response time, and 250 nit of brightness. The system also features Beats Audio and an integrated TV tuner that enables users to watch, pause, and rewind live TV, along with seven USB ports, a six-in-one memory card reader, IR blaster, remote control, mic and headphone ports, etc. The real new addition to the mix is an AMD Radeon HD 6670A graphics controller with 1 GB of video memory to handle 3D content. HP is also shipping the systems with CyberLink PowerDVD 10 software that can generated 3D effects from 2D video, and the system also comes with a 3D-capable webcam, so user can shoot 3D images of themselves?or whatever else is in front of their computer?and post them to sharing sites, thereby encouraging other people around the world to, um, wear 3D glasses.
HP says the TouchSmart 620 should be available November 15 with a starting price of $1,900 (with one pair of active shutter glasses); however, HP will initially be offering the system with a $300 instant rebate.
Folks looking for 3D without the computer can check out HP?s new 2311gt 3D display, offering 23 inches and 1,920 by 1080-pixel resolution, although it uses Film Patterned Retarder (FPR) technology to more-or-less align alternating rows of pixels with the left or right eye in a focused area about two to two-and-a-half feet from the display?generally, the technology isn?t as well-regarded as 3D sets that use active shutter glasses, but it does have the advantage of, well, not using shutter glasses. The 2311gt display should go on sale tomorrow for a suggested price of $299.
This article was originally posted on Digital Trends
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ROME ? Italy became the latest target in Europe's financial crisis Monday, as soaring borrowing rates intensified pressure on Premier Silvio Berlusconi to resign and let a new government reform the country's spendthrift ways.
Berlusconi batted away reports that he was considering stepping down in favor of early elections, saying they were "without foundation."
But the prospect of financial disaster was real because of Italy's huge debts and slow growth. Unlike Greece, Ireland and Portugal ? the three countries that Europe has already bailed out ? Italy's economy could be too large to rescue.
Investors want the government to quickly pass measures to boost growth and cut debt. But defections from Berlusconi's coalition government mean he no longer commands enough loyalty to pass the reforms.
Increasingly, Berlusconi is himself being seen as the problem.
If Berlusconi should resign or lose a confidence vote, President Giorgio Napolitano would decide whether to call early elections, or name a government of technocrats rather than politicians. The most widely discussed name to lead a technical government is Mario Monti, the former EU competition commissioner who once blocked General Electric's takeover of Honeywell.
The opposition center-left has long demanded the resignation of Berlusconi, citing sex scandals, criminal prosecutions and legislative priorities it says are aimed at protecting his own business interests rather than those of the country. However, it has failed to come up with a leader who can energize the base and create a credible program, leaving the opposition divided and rudderless.
The ultimate fear is that Italy cannot pay for its euro1.9 trillion ($2.6 trillion) debt and need international help. Europe would struggle with a bailout that large, meaning a default that could break up the 17-nation eurozone and drag down the global economy.
During a G-20 summit last week, Berlusconi had to ask the International Monetary Fund to monitor the country's reform efforts, a humiliating step for the eurozone's third-largest economy.
The yield on Italy's 10-year bonds jumped another 0.42 of a percentage point Monday to 6.67 percent, its highest level since the euro was established in 1999. That is drawing uncomfortably near the 7 percent threshold that forced both Ireland and Portugal to accept bailouts. As yields rise, governments must devote more of their national budgets simply to paying interest costs, creating a vicious circle of debt.
When traders thought early Monday that Berlusconi might resign, those borrowing rates eased. But later in the day, when it was clear the 75-year-old would not leave willingly, rates shot up again, reflecting market fears that he is not the leader who can turn Italy around.
"The leader and his country are in danger of taking the rest of Europe, if not the world, into economic hell," said Louise Cooper, markets analyst at BGC Partners.
Stocks worldwide recovered from big losses, while U.S. stock indexes edged lower Monday, gyrations driven by speculation over Berlusconi's future.
The European Central Bank said Monday that it stepped up its program to buy government bonds last week, spending euro9.5 billion ($13 billion). It has been buying bonds for weeks to keep a lid on borrowing costs to help prevent Italy and Spain from succumbing to the debt crisis.
Berlusconi had lunch Monday with his children and friends at his villa near Milan, sparking Italian news media to speculate he was devising an exit strategy. But the lunch is a long family tradition and his Facebook page said "the reports of my resignation are without foundation."
Public administration minister Renato Brunetta, a Berlusconi loyalist, acknowledged Monday that the government has a "numbers problem" in parliament and if a majority is lacking then "everybody goes home." Interior Minister Roberto Maroni agreed, adding "it is useless to persist."
James Walston, professor of political science at the American University of Rome, said Berlusconi's time is quickly running out, even though elections are not due until 2013.
"He could go tomorrow. He could go next week. The sort of pressure that he is under, coming from his own people, will make it sooner than later," he said.
But Berlusconi has remained defiant, insisting he still commands enough support in Parliament.
"I don't understand how rumors of my resignation are circulating," Berlusconi was quoted as saying Monday by Libero newspaper.
Only the loss of a confidence vote can force a government to resign. Opposition leader Pierluigi Bersani said lawmakers are planning exactly that. Political analysts say a vote could come as early as Tuesday, when parliament is expected to approve the state's balance sheets ? a routine measure that failed by one vote last month.
Other analysts say should Berlusconi step down, he would seek to have his right-hand man, Gianni Letta, named to succeed him as premier until early elections can be organized. It is not known whether the Italian president, Napolitano, would agree to that.
If the opposition doesn't call a vote of confidence this week in an effort to unseat him, Berlusconi has pledged to call one himself to prove his majority stands, possibly next week, on reforms and other stopgap measures to lower Italy's debt ? now near 120 percent of GDP ? and revive the dormant economy.
The reform measures include a plan to sell government assets ? expected to raise euro5 billion ($6.9 billion) a year for three years ? and tax breaks to reduce youth unemployment of 29 percent and to get women back into the work force in a country where just 48 percent of women have jobs. The legislation would also allow stores to stay open on Sundays and open up closed professions.
Berlusconi has also pledged to raise the retirement age to 67 for all to match European trends, despite the fierce resistance of his allies in the Northern League, on whom Berlusconi relies to govern. They have proven at times difficult allies, exerting a strong independent streak and challenging Berlusconi on key policies. The leader, Umberto Bossi, also has on several occasions expressed doubts about Berlusconi's ability to complete the current mandate.
The leader of Italy's largest labor confederation, meanwhile, predicted 2012 will be a "terrifying" year for the economy even if Berlusconi leaves power. CGIL leader Susanna Camusso also slammed Berlusconi's anti-crisis plan as containing virtually nothing to spark economic growth.
"I hope there will be (early elections), and that they will be soon for the good of the country," she told The Associated Press on Monday.
Mario Draghi, an Italian who just took over as European Central Bank president, said last week that since joining the euro, Italy has enjoyed unnaturally low interest rates for years because its monetary policy has been linked to that of stronger economies like Germany.
"For a long time spreads between sovereign bonds in the euro area were very narrow," he said. "They did not reflect the different realities of different countries."
In contrast, German borrowing costs hit a record low Monday, as investors fled to their bonds as a safe haven in Europe.
___
Associated Press writer Colleen Barry in Milan contributed to this report.
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