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18.08.2007

Congressional probe promised for deadly mine

WASHINGTON - Congress will investigate and hold hearings on the Utah mine disaster, several key congressional leaders vowed Friday after a second tragedy at the Crandall Canyon mine brought rescue operations to a halt.
The chairwoman of the Senate subcommittee that oversees mine safety promised a congressional probe, as did the the head of the House Education and Labor Committee. Utah politicians also backed an investigation of what went wrong in the initial mine tunnel collapse and the subsequent rescue effort that claimed three lives Thursday night.
"We owe it to all those affected by this tragedy and to mine workers everywhere to find out why this accident occurred, and how future disasters can be prevented," said Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which has oversight of mine safety.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the chairwoman of HELP subcommittee on employment and workplace safety, said in "light of the tragic events" she promised to join with colleagues to "conduct a comprehensive investigation into the causes of this tragedy, the handling of the response, and the ways we can improve mine safety and rescue efforts across our nation."
Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., said the latest news was "extremely disturbing," and while his prayers are with the rescuers, their families and the trapped miners, the tragedy has again
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raised serious questions about mine safety and how to improve it.
"The Education and Labor Committee intends to answer those questions by investigating and convening hearings at the appropriate time," Miller said in a statement.
Neither member set any timetable for hearings, citing the still-ongoing rescue efforts. "Obviously, right now the only job that matters is the job of reaching the six trapped miners while limiting, as much as possible, the risk to rescuers," Miller said.
Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., who called for a suspension of any rescue effort until the safety of the responders could be assured, signaled support for a congressional investigation, saying that Washington must use this experience as a lesson on how to improve mine safety.
"I think this is a defining moment for the history of mining," Huntsman said during a news conference. "And we all expect to come out of this better and smarter and safer."
The last congressional hearings on a mine disaster emerged in 2006 out of the deaths of 12 miners at the Sago mine in West Virginia and resulted in the passage of the MINER Act.
That legislation was called the biggest improvement in mine safety regulations in some 30 years, and forced mine owners to continuously update emergency response plans, required two-way communications and electronic tracking equipment within three years and boosted penalties for flagrant violations.
But several members say the bill did not go far enough and are pushing additional measures in the House and Senate to beef up safety requirements. The Senate version speeds up the date by which mines must install improved underground communication systems and enhances penalties for a mine with a "pattern of violations."
While no member of Congress on Friday would say if the mine disaster might spur the legislation's passage it's likely to gain support following the Utah tragedy.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said the Mine Safety and Health Administration would "completely" investigate the tragedy and Congress should hold hearings, but he cautioned that any investigation needs to be put off until the miners are rescued.
"I know that many in Congress will want to get involved in this, and I'll support the efforts to make sure miners are as safe as possible," Hatch said. "But for the present time, we need to let the professionals do their job, with our support but without our interference."
tburr@sltrib.com
gehrke@sltrib.com who spoke at a news conference Friday in Huntington.


Bush offers condolences

WASHINGTON - President Bush called Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. on Friday about the Crandall Canyon mine disaster, the second call the president has made to Huntsman to express concern for the trapped miners and their families.
"The president spoke to Gov. Huntsman this afternoon to offer his support and condolences to all those affected by this tragedy and said he is keeping the miners, rescue workers and their families in his thoughts and prayers," said White House spokesman Trey Bohn.
Bush initially called shortly after the mine disaster hit last week to offer any federal help needed.

06.08.2007

Opposition in Lebanon declares win


BIKFAYA, LEBANON — In a probable blow to the Western-backed government, a key opposition leader Sunday declared victory in voting for a seat in parliament that was widely regarded as a proxy fight between the government and the pro-Syrian opposition.

Under guard by soldiers, tens of thousands of voters cast ballots in mountain villages northeast of the capital, where two civil war veterans and former allies were pitted against each other in a heated struggle for the Christian vote. After the opposition leader declared victory, the faction aligned with the government immediately claimed fraud but urged followers to remain calm.

Amin Gemayel, an ally of the government, was competing in the election for the seat of his dead son against a relatively unknown candidate, Kamil Khoury, who was backed by Michel Aoun, an ally of the Shiite-dominated opposition.

Pierre Gemayel, a young, popular Cabinet minister, was shot and killed late last year. His supporters believe Syria had a hand in his assassination, a charge denied by the government in Damascus.

Late Sunday evening, Khoury's camp announced it had won the seat. But official results were not expected until today.

"The big winner today is Syria," said Michael Young, an opinion editor at the Daily Star, a Lebanese newspaper. "At the end of the day, Gemayel did not win, and Aoun did not lose…. It's an ideal situation if Syria decides to impose its candidate" for president.

According to the Lebanese political system, the post of president is reserved for a Maronite Christian, and the vote was widely seen as a precursor to the upcoming election of a new president by parliament. President Emile Lahoud must step down by Nov. 23.

The race for the legislative seat highlighted deep divisions within the Christian community. Before the vote, Gemayel led an emotional campaign, telling voters that casting a ballot for him would be like casting a rose on his son's grave. Volunteers in his stronghold of Bikfaya handed out white roses to voters to commemorate the slain politician.

"Pierre Gemayel didn't die of a heart attack or in a car accident," said Eli Fares, the 36-year-old owner of La Vida, an electronics shop in Bikfaya. "Our heroes are all in the cemetery."

Like Fares, many Christians on both sides of the divide thought the election was a chance to reassert themselves on the political scene.

"This is a fight for our existence here as Christians in this area," Fares said.

Amin Gemayel, who heads the Falangist Party, served as Lebanon's president in the '80s during the nation's civil war, and appointed Aoun prime minister at the end of his term.

Although Aoun helped put an end to almost 30 years of Syrian domination, the 72-year-old former army commander upset the political balance last year by allying himself with Hezbollah, the Shiite group that is opposed to the predominantly Sunni government and supported by Syria and Iran.

"We have to think of being Lebanese first, then Christians, et cetera, second," said Joe Chebli, in explaining his vote for Khoury.

Despite the importance of the vote, there were few reports of violence. The Reuters news agency reported that two people were shot and wounded in clashes between supporters of rival political groups Sunday night.

In Bikfaya, supporters of Gemayel yelled out to an SUV full of Aoun supporters: "Go back to Daheer!" referring to the predominately Shiite suburbs of Beirut.

Prime Minister Fouad Siniora characterized the election as a peaceful response to a string of political assassinations. "Democracy in Lebanon will defeat terrorism," he said in a statement.

The Lebanese government has been paralyzed since a walkout by the opposition late last year.

In another election in Beirut, pro-government candidate Mohammed Amin Itani easily won a Sunni seat in parliament that came open when lawmaker Walid Eido was killed in a car bombing in June.

Iowa Republicans See Romney As Straw Poll Winner

With a week to go before the Iowa Republican Party's critical straw poll, an informal survey of Iowa Republican Party leaders, conducted by Real Clear Politics, shows high expectations for former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Those high expectations of local party leaders could be a huge benefit, if Romney meets them, or a painful negative should he fail. The numbers, and the expectations for all the candidates, show a race that could dramatically change on Saturday.

Of the 30 Republican officials - representing county parties around the state and the party's Central Committee - who responded to the survey via email, 93% picked Romney to win in Ames. Many saw his commitment to the state as indicative that he will prevail next Saturday; the same percentage said it was Romney whose campaign had the most visible presence in their locations.

Poll participants were asked to predict the top five finishers at the straw poll, and answers were ranked in order. A first place vote was worth five points, a second place vote was worth four points, et cetera, meaning 150 points was the maximum one candidate could achieve.
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Romney scored 144 points out of 150 possible. Colorado Congressman Tom Tancredo, who, according to an ABC/WP poll of Iowa voters, is the top choice of 5% of likely Iowa Republican caucus-goers, finished a distant second, with 59 points. Tancredo, though, led national front-runners Rudy Giuliani, who finished third with 55 points, and Fred Thompson, who finished sixth with 41 points. Neither Giuliani nor Thompson are actively participating in the straw poll.

Tancredo's second-place finish, if that lead holds on Saturday, would be a massive coup for a campaign driven largely by the congressman's views on illegal immigration and the war on terror. 20% of respondents, a slight plurality, said Tancredo had the most to gain at the poll, and that his performance would improve his standings in national polls. Aside from Romney, Tancredo was the only candidate to receive any first-place votes.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Texas Congressman Ron Paul, a libertarian in the truest sense of the word, did not receive a single vote in the poll. The lone anti-war voice on the GOP stage, Paul would be unlikely to earn support, or even notice, of people involved in Republican circles enough to be an elected board member.

The most intriguing subplot leading up to the poll on Saturday has been an increasingly bitter feud between two candidates vying for the religious vote. Kansas Senator Sam Brownback and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee have for weeks accused the other of dirty campaign tactics, the latest incident being an email a Huckabee supporter sent to two Brownback supporters urging them to drop the senator, a Catholic, in favor of the governor, a Baptist minister. When Brownback's campaign complained to the press, Huckabee's manager urged Brownback to "stop whining."

The two face an uncertain future after Saturday's vote. Both are low on money, and both are counting on a voting bloc that, if divided, could see its influence over the GOP nomination wane. Iowa is home to more evangelical Christians than any state, proportionally, outside the South, and with a united bloc, either Huckabee or Brownback could cause the front-runners trouble. Taking either candidate's best score on all 30 ballots, their 72 points easily trumps any candidate but Romney. Divided, Huckabee finishes fourth, with 52 points, while Brownback's 42 points come in fifth.

Former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson, who has said he will drop out if he does not perform well in Iowa, is not expected by Iowa's Republican elite to rise to the top. If Thompson does come in seventh, at 32 points and behind Fred Thompson, his campaign may come to a premature close.
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But it was not Thompson who most respondents said had the most to lose come Saturday. Instead, Arizona Senator John McCain, once the front-runner, and Romney are seen as the two risking the most come the weekend, with 30% naming each when asked. McCain, who announced he would not participate in the event mere hours after Giuliani did, is the victim of an Iowa Republican electorate still furious with him for ignoring them in 2000 and again this year, as well as for what they perceive as his less-than-complete conservatism. McCain, said one respondent representative of many in the survey, "is not a loyal Republican."

Romney, though, is the front-runner with a strong potential upside and the steepest possible downside. The candidates' performance at yesterday's debate, broadcast as a special edition of ABC's "This Week," showed that others recognized Romney's front-runner status in Iowa as well. Romney defended himself from charges from Brownback, who accused the Massachusetts governor of failing to be completely pro-life.

Seeking to boost their own support while cutting Romney down, other candidates "have hinged their efforts into trying to tear us down," said Romney spokesman Kevin Madden. "A lot of analysts will watch and see if anybody has a kamikaze mission, so to speak, that's going to effect us."

Though Romney is widely viewed as the candidate poised to walk away with the straw poll and thought of as the strongest organizationally in Iowa, there is a danger that many of the voters he busses in from around the state may not intend to follow through on voting for him. "People are known to show up at the straw poll with a ticket paid for by candidate A, yet they vote for candidate B," wrote one respondent, recalling businessman Steve Forbes' 1999 campaign. Forbes "bussed in a lot more people than he got votes from."
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The candidates with the greatest potential, according to most, are those in the so-called second tier, candidates without the money to compete directly with Romney or Giuliani. In Ames, it could be a good day for several contestants near the back of the pack. "They have the opportunity to show strong support from activists and potentially gather momentum in other states," said Sioux County Republican chairman Mark Lundberg.

Respondents to the poll differed on candidates they support, but their views on who the opposition will be come 2008 could hardly have been more unified. All but two predicted that New York Senator Hillary Clinton would be the Democratic nominee, though two believed it would be either her or Illinois Senator Barack Obama. One respondent declined to guess, while another predicted the Democratic winner would be either Delaware Senator Joe Biden or former North Carolina Senator John Edwards.
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Asked which candidate would be best able to defeat Clinton or whomever may be the eventual Democratic nominee, Iowa Republican leaders chose Giuliani, by a small 30% plurality, over Romney, who finished second with 23%.

As the straw poll draws near, pressure on candidates builds. Each campaign is operating at full speed to entice their voters to the polls. "We're working very hard every day making calls and trying to motivate our voters," said Brownback's Rob Wasinger. "We're putting an investment of staff and an investment of time there," said Jesse Benton, spokesman for Ron Paul.

Underscoring the importance of Ames, Benton responded to request for comment on his way to Iowa. Wasinger, Brownback's national campaign manager, has been in Ames since last week. They are but the first of what could be up to 40,000 visitors the sleepy college town hosts next week for what will be the most pivotal moment thus far in the Republican race.
Reid Wilson, an associate editor and writer for RealClearPolitics, formerly covered polls and polling for The Hotline, National Journal’s daily briefing on politics. Wilson’s work has appeared in National Journal, Hotline OnCall and the Arizona Capitol Times. He can be reached at

03.08.2007

First Alarm About Bridge Raised in 1990


MINNEAPOLIS -

It was 1990 when the federal government first issued an ominous label for the state's busiest bridge: "structurally deficient." In the ensuing years, inspectors found cracks and corrosion on the Interstate-35W bridge. They stepped up inspections from once every two years to every year, and made what they thought were the necessary repairs. They were convinced that the bridge had no safety issues at all.

Their actions have come under intense scrutiny since the 40-year-old bridge plummeted into the Mississippi River on Wednesday, killing at least four and injuring another 79.

Police said the death count would surely grow because bodies had been spotted in the fast-moving currents. As many as 30 people were still reported missing.

"We have a number of vehicles that are underneath big pieces of concrete, and we do know we have some people in those vehicles," Police Chief Tim Dolan said Thursday. "We know we do have more casualties at the scene."

The eight-lane I-35W bridge, which carried 141,000 vehicles a day, was in the midst of mostly resurfacing repairs when it buckled during the Wednesday evening rush hour.

Dozens of cars plummeted more than 60 feet into the Mississippi River, some falling on top of one another. A school bus sat on the angled concrete.

Among the missing is Sadiya Sahal, 23, and her 2-year-old daughter, Hanah Mohamed. Sahal, who is five months pregnant, left home at 5:15 p.m. with the toddler in the back seat. She called her family at 5:30 p.m. saying she was stuck in traffic on the bridge, according to Omar Jamal, a spokesman for the family. That was her last phone call.

"Her husband is destroyed. He's in shock," Jamal said.

Officials identified the dead as Sherry Engebretsen, 60, of suburban Shoreview; Julia Blackhawk, 32, of Savage; Patrick Holmes, 36, of Moundsview; and Artemio Trinidad-Mena, 29, of Minneapolis.

Ronald Engebretsen said he and his family were trying to come to grips with his wife's death. "She's a great person. She's a person of great conviction, great integrity, great honesty and great faith in her God," he said.

National Transportation Safety Board chairman Mark Rosenker said his investigators got two big breaks Thursday with a surveillance video showing the collapse and a computer program that would analyze how the bridge failed. Those two things would speed their work and allow them to do a smaller reconstruction of part of the bridge span, rather than the whole thing.

Despite the powerful images of devastation from the collapse, some believed the design of the bridge reduced the death toll.

Joseph Schofer, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northwestern University, said the bridge's underlying arch truss stopped heavy pieces of steel from falling onto vehicles when the cars plunged into the water.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty responded Thursday by ordering an immediate inspection of all bridges in the state with similar designs, but said the state was never warned that the I-35W bridge needed to be closed or immediately repaired.

"There was a view that the bridge was ultimately and eventually going to need to be replaced," he said. "But it appears from the information that we have available that a timeline for that was not immediate or imminent, but more in the future."

More than 70,000 bridges across the country are rated structurally deficient like the I-35W bridge, and engineers estimate repairing them all would take at least a generation and cost more than $188 billion.

"I think anybody who looks at the national picture, the national statistics and says that we don't have a problem would be naive or misleading the situation," Pawlenty said. "We have a major problem."

Authorities cautioned not to read too much into the "structurally deficient" tag. The designation means some portions of the bridge needed to be scheduled for repair or replacement. It wasn't a candidate for replacement until 2020.

The collapsed bridge is one of 1,160 bridges in that category, which amounts to 8 percent of bridges in the state. Nationally, about 12 percent of bridges are labeled "structurally deficient."

During the 1990s, inspections found fatigue cracks and corrosion in the steel around the bridge's joints. Those problems were repaired. Starting in 1993, the bridge was inspected annually instead of every other year.

State bridge engineer Dan Dorgan said the bearings could not have been repaired without jacking up the entire deck of the bridge. Because the bearings were not sliding, inspectors concluded the corrosion was not a major issue.

After a study raised concern about cracks, the state was given two alternatives: Add steel plates to reinforce critical parts or conduct a thorough inspection of certain areas to see if there were additional cracks. They chose the inspection route, beginning that examination in May.

"We thought we had done all we could," Dorgan told reporters near the mangled remains of the span. "Obviously something went terribly wrong."

The collapsed bridge's last full inspection was completed June 15, 2006. The report shows previous inspectors' notations of fatigue cracks in the spans approaching the river, including one four feet long that was reinforced with bolted plates.

Although concern was raised about cracks, some experts theorized it's no coincidence the collapse happened when workers and heavy equipment were on the bridge. The construction work involved resurfacing and maintenance on guardrails and lights, among other repairs.

"I would be stunned if this didn't have something to do with the construction project," said David Schulz, director of the Infrastructure Technology Institute at Northwestern University. "I think it's a major factor."

Associated Press writers Seth Borenstein, Brian Bakst, Ryan Foley and Jon Krawczynski contributed to this report.

US marine guilty of Iraq murder

A US marine has been convicted of murdering an Iraqi man after an attempt to locate and execute an alleged insurgent went disastrously wrong.

A US court martial heard that Sgt Lawrence Hutchins and the squad he led hatched a plan to kidnap and kill a suspected militant in Hamdania, west of Baghdad, in April last year.

When they could not find him, they instead kidnapped another man, believed to be Hashim Ibrahim Awad, a father of 11, from a neighbouring house, dragged him to a hole and shot him, prosecutors told the court martial.

Squad members tried to cover up the murder by planting a shovel and an AK-47 by the man's body to make it look like he was an insurgent planting a bomb.

Hutchins, 23, faces a possible life sentence after being convicted of murder, conspiracy to murder, making a false official statement and larceny. He was acquitted of kidnapping, assault and housebreaking.

He had also been charged with premeditated murder but the military jury dismissed the premeditation element from the verdict.

Hutchins stood rigidly and stared straight ahead in the courtroom as the verdict was read out. His wife sobbed silently with her head bowed.

Several witnesses testified that the plot was born out of frustration after suspected insurgents kept evading prosecution.

Lawyers for Hutchins argued that he participated in the plot because his own officers had set a poor leadership example and had given approval for marines to use violence in capturing and interrogating suspected insurgents.

Another squad member, Cpl Marshall Magincalda, 24, was convicted of conspiracy to murder, larceny and house breaking and could also receive a life sentence. He was acquitted of premeditated murder and kidnapping.

A military psychiatrist said Magincalda developed post-traumatic stress disorder and severe depression as a result of combat.

"He was essentially a broken shell," Jennifer Morse told the court. "This was a young man who was gone, who was clearly haunted by his memories."

All eight members of the squad were initially charged with murder and kidnapping.

Four lower-ranking marines and a navy corpsman agreed deals with prosecutors in exchange for their testimony and received sentences ranging from one to eight years in prison.

A jury last month acquitted another corporal of murder but convicted him of conspiracy to commit murder and kidnapping.

Prosecutors had identified the victim as Mr Awad, 52, a 52-year-old retired policeman. However, he is now referred to in court papers as an "unknown Iraqi male" after defence lawyers said authorities could not conclusively establish the victim's identity.