World/Nation Briefs May 10, 2011
Pakistan may have leaked CIA chief's name
ISLAMABAD - Suspicion rose Monday that Pakistan's intelligence service leaked the name of the CIA chief in Islamabad to local media in anger over the raid that killed Osama bin Laden - the second outing of an American covert operative here in six months.
The U.S. said it has no plans to pull the spy chief, but the incident is likely to exacerbate an already troubled relationship between the two countries a week after Navy SEALs in helicopters swooped down on bin Laden's compound without first telling the Pakistanis. The CIA and Pakistan's spy agency have long viewed each other with suspicion, which the death of the terror leader has laid bare.
The Pakistani military and intelligence services have suffered withering criticism at home for failing to stop the U.S. operation. Many Pakistanis view the raid as a violation of their sovereignty - even if they were pleased that bin Laden was killed.
U.S. officials have said they didn't tell Pakistanis in advance because they were worried someone might tip off bin Laden. American forces also used helicopters with radar-evading technology so the Pakistanis couldn't track them.
Gingrich will join White House race
ATLANTA - Newt Gingrich, the House speaker who led a national GOP resurgence in the 1990s before facing ethics questions and resigning, is running for president.
Gingrich's announcement, made on social networking websites Monday, came after months of public flirting with a bid. He enters a slow-to-form GOP presidential field that has left some Republicans craving more options as they search for a nominee strong enough to credibly challenge President Barack Obama.
The former Georgia congressman, well-known to most Republicans, brings to the race a years-in-the-making political machine with ties to early nominating states as well as a network of supporters and donors. But his personal baggage - he has acknowledged marital infidelity and has had two divorces - could hinder his chances of winning the party's presidential nomination more than a decade after leaving the House.
Boehner: Trillions in cuts needed if debt increases
WASHINGTON - The top Republican in Congress wants trillions of dollars in spending cuts as part of must-pass legislation allowing the federal government to continue borrowing to keep it operating and meeting obligations to investors.
House Speaker John Boehner also says that any legislation to raise the so-called debt limit beyond its current $14.3 trillion cap should be accompanied by spending cuts larger than the amount of the permitted increase in the debt.
The Ohio Republican was scheduled to make the comments in a speech Monday night to the New York Economic Club; excerpts were released after the markets closed. Boehner's comments come as investors and business groups have been seeking assurances that the GOP-controlled House will join with President Barack Obama and the Democratic-led Senate to enact the must-pass debt limit measure, which is needed to prevent a market-roiling, first-ever U.S. default on its obligations.
The government is headed toward a $1.6 trillion deficit this year requiring it to borrow more than $125 billion a month. It's unclear how much of a debt limit increase is coming, but it would take a record increase in the $2 trillion range to avoid a second vote before next year's elections.
Arizona appeals immigration law to Supreme Court
PHOENIX - Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer announced Monday she will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that put the most controversial parts of the state's immigration enforcement law on hold.
The planned appeal to the high court comes after Brewer lost an initial appeal April 11, when a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to reverse a lower court's order that prevented key parts of the law from being enforced.
Attorney General Tom Horne said going directly to the Supreme Court and skipping a possible second appeal to the 9th Circuit will save time in resolving the case, while Brewer said she is confident "Arizona will prevail in its fight to protect its citizens."
The state must file the appeal by a July 11 deadline, the two Republican elected officials said.
- The Associated Press