'Sex And Taxes', The Hidden Agenda Of Our Elections

The cloak and dagger tale circulating on the Internet about a group of hackers who claim to have purloined old tax returns of GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney and say they will release them to whoever is first to pay their ransom suggests why a federal court case that absolved former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards of campaign finance crimes was wrongly decided.

During his 2008 campaign, Edwards relied on the largesse of two wealthy Democratic donors to keep his affair with campaign worker Rielle Hunter secret. Edwards' campaign did not report the donations, nor did it report the payments made to support Hunter, who was pregnant with Edwards's child at the time. Had the public learned of Edwards' affair, his candidacy would most certainly have been over. 

Justice Department lawyers argued that Edwards, in benefiting from huge undisclosed financial support and undisclosed expenditures, flouted campaign finance laws that limit the size of donations and restrict the uses of that money to campaign purposes. The jury disagreed (as did many campaign finance experts) and Edwards walked free.

Fast forward to the 2012 campaign, and a story almost as bizarre as l'affaire Edwards. An anonymous group claims that it broke into a Tennessee office of Pricewaterhouse Coopers, the accounting firm that prepares Mitt Romney's tax returns. The group further claims that they secured years of Romney's returns, and has offered to sell them to whomever can come up with $1 million in an Internet currency known as bitcoin. If no one antes up, the group says they will release the tax returns to the media.

Report: Romney's Tax Issues Resurface

Now, let's steal a few bases to make some assumptions: First, that the group has claimed to have legitimately stolen Romney's returns (by no means certain, given some of the inconsistencies in their story); second, that the Romney campaign believes release of the returns would damage the campaign. We need not assume that Romney hasn't paid taxes for ten years as Sen.

 Harry Reid famously and without substantiation claimed, or that they show Swiss bank accounts, Cayman Islands corporations, Netherlands Antilles trusts and the locations of jars of cash buried in the backyards of Romney's many homes -- it's enough for the Romney campaign to worry that discussion of his tax returns, his refusal to release them, their release by a third party and the inevitable vetting of them would distract from his message during a critical part of the campaign.

Though Romney's campaign certainly has enough money to pay the ransom, it's not clear that blackmail is a legitimate campaign expense, and in any case having a million-dollar expenditure in bitcoin currency show up on a campaign finance report could be an even more damaging story than having the returns released.

Century Fox News: Today What People Think About Mitt Romney

 The same disclosure would be required if the Republican National Committee or a Super PAC like Restore Our Future paid the ransom. But suppose a wealthy donor -- an Edward Conard (who tried to use an LLC to anonymously donate $1 million to Restore Our Future) or a Sheldon Adelson (who has devoted a small fortune to supporting Republican candidates) or the Koch Brothers -- decided to pay the ransom. For the sake of argument, let's also assume that they do so without telling the Romney campaign in advance, informing them only after their bitcoin transaction that the matter is taken care of.

Let's further suppose that, tax issue averted, Mitt Romney wins a narrow victory in November. How much access could that wealthy donor who paid the ransom expect? Not only had he helped the Romney campaign hide potentially damaging material that could have cost them the election, he would have in hand that material.

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 Imagine the leverage that kind of relationship between someone who, the North Carolina jury told us, is not a campaign donor and need not disclose the payments that benefited the candidate.

Of course the potential for leverage the other way exists too. Suppose a Democratic donor acquires the material, and quietly informs the Obama campaign of the fact. Suppose he has issues before the Securities and Exchange Commission or the Internal Revenue Service or is seeking federal loans for a pet solar project, and would be happy to release the material should his own issues get a little presidential attention.

It would be fair to regard all this as conspiracy mongering were it not for the Edwards precedent, in which a candidate benefited from backdoor conduits and a donor slush fund that aided his campaign -- with no disclosure.

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Joanna Krupa's Sexy Car Wash

Okay, maybe not your Ferrari, but the white one belonging to Joanna Krupa, that the hot-as-hell celebrity model was desperate to clean in a barely there bikini, allowing us the privilege of seeing her bend and stretch and suds down the Italian sportscar while we checked out Joanna's fine boot.

More: Joanna Krupa reveals a bit too much

Joanna has recently joined the cast of Real Housewives Miami, which I suppose is good news because we'll now have a steady stream of chances to see the super hot Polish-American princess, but bad news because now she'll be part of some soul-less empty public relations reality show machine that seems to turn troubled older women into insane drunken annoyances. But, let's hold out hope for Joanna. She's too hot to go to the dark side so easily.

Enjoy her Pics Below: 

Joanna krupa's Sexy Car Wash from CenturyFoxPost

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China's Vice President Xi Jinping Missing?

YANQING, China -- Communist Party member Guan Rong was among 100 government officials to gather in this rural district Tuesday and listen to a touring propaganda team praise the new leadership in Beijing.

"I was very moved" by the inspirational tales themed as "the party in our hearts," said Guan, 25.

"The party seeks to serve the masses ever better," she said.

However, recent scandals and the disappearance from public sight of the man who is supposed to inherit the presidency has rumors swirling that the Communist Party's once-a-decade leadership change may not go off as planned.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said Tuesday that he had no information about the status of the leader-in-waiting, Vice President Xi Jinping, who dropped from sight 11 days ago and has canceled a series of meetings with foreign visitors.

Century Fox Report: China's Xi Jinping cancels meeting with Hilliary Clinton

Xi, 59, has not appeared on state-run media during his absence and canceled a meeting last week with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Internet explanations for the absence range from a swimming injury to an ailment that paralyzed his face.

One China analyst blamed Xi's absence on senior leader Bo Xilai, who vanished from sight months ago and is being investigated for possible crimes. Bo's wife was recently convicted of murdering a British businessman, and his police chief was charged with defection.

The absence of Xi and He Guoqiang, another top leader, along with the lack of a resolution in Bo's case, "suggests that Xi and He are busy trying to figure out how to deal with Bo," said Andrew Nathan, a political scientist at Columbia University in New York City.

Nathan said the case of Bo, who has powerful allies and enemies in the Communist Party, must be resolved before the 18th Party Congress meets to select China's new leaders.

"China's leadership creates an instability of its own" through an opaque system that allows for the multiple Xi rumors, said David Zweig, a China politics expert at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

The Communist Party still strives to portray leaders as "healthy and robust," combined with a secretiveness that blocks all personal information, he said.

Wang Shuquan, a waiter in a noodle shop in Beijing's central Chaoyang district, speculated that Chinese leaders' health "may be a state secret" and besides, the common people "are not interested in serious political events."

"We are curious about our leaders' family and health condition, just like we follow some pop stars' daily lives, but in China, those things are not open to the public," said Wang, 23.

The Communist Party controls media outlets and pressures more independent voices to conform to its dictates. But it also tries to make propaganda fun, and that has been on display recently as it attempts to keep the country stable before the leadership transition.

GuanRong and husband Li Baoan were among 18 couples that married last month in amass wedding Yanqing party officials organized to celebrate the Congress.

In Yanqing's Shanghuayuan village, corn farmer Zhai Zhimin attended a dance competition for villages in honor of the Congress and saw a free opera.

"The singing was excellent. I am grateful to the Communist Party. Farmers' lives are gradually improving," said Zhai, 44.

The party "has always combined entertainment with political education," said Anne-Marie Brady, an expert on Chinese propaganda at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. From village opera to urban pop concerts, the party understands the Roman rulers' tactic of providing "bread and circuses," she said.

Today, party bosses blend traditional propaganda tactics from Chairman Mao Zedong's era with modern methods such as microblogging to target different audiences, Brady said.

"You can call it propaganda or public diplomacy. It's a very diverse and complex project to mold public opinion," she said.

The current propaganda drive delivers a two-pronged strategy "trying to get more adherence out in society, but a major effort, larger than before, is to keep the party faithful faithful," said Russell Moses, a Beijing-based political analyst.

The lack of a start date for the congress "indicates how wide-ranging and deep the discussions are," Moses said. "The congress will set the table for what sort of development path China takes for the foreseeable future."

Farmer Zhai can vote for village leaders, but she laughs at the idea of being allowed to vote for China's leaders. "We ordinary people don't understand politics at their elite level. I just hope the party chooses the right leader," he said

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Moody’s Investor Service Warns That U.S. May Face Debt Downgrade

WASHINGTON — Congressional leaders dug in their heels on Tuesday against any quick deal to resolve a looming fiscal disaster before the election, even as a major ratings agency warned that it would downgrade the government’s debt if no solution was found by year’s end.

Democratic leaders have warned their own members to tone down any discussion of a short-term resolution to the “fiscal cliff,” betting that Republican fears over the January deadline will drive them to the negotiating table shortly after the November election.

Speaker John A. Boehner, reacting to the downgrade notice from Moody’s Investor Service, said it underscored the Republican position that the nation’s precarious fiscal condition could be addressed only by cutting government spending.

“The threat to American jobs comes not from action on our debt, but from inaction on our debt,” he said. “The president and his economic advisers have consistently perpetuated the myth that downgrades are caused by efforts to force the government to stop spending money we don’t have.”

The Moody’s warning comes a year after its rival, Standard & Poor’s, downgraded the United States’ credit worthiness after the protracted stalemate over raising the nation’s statutory borrowing limit.

Like S&P, Moody’s emphasized political dysfunction more than soaring government debt. The agency said Washington must come to agreement to head off billions of dollars in simultaneous tax increases and spending cuts scheduled to begin in January — and to put the government on a sustainable fiscal trajectory. Only then would the United States keep its AAA rating.

“If those negotiations lead to specific policies that produce a stabilization and then downward trend in the ratio of federal debt to G.D.P. over the medium term, the rating will likely be affirmed and the outlook returned to stable,” Moody’s said in a statement. “If those negotiations fail to produce such policies, however, Moody’s would expect to lower the rating.”

If no agreement is reached, all of the Bush-era tax cuts will expire in January, just as more than $1 trillion in automatic military and domestic cuts begin slicing spending. Numerous economists have warned that the hit to the economy will almost surely send the nation back into recession.

Century Fox Post Report: SHOULD U.S LOOK TO CHINA FOR ECONOMIC ADVICE?

At the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, suggested that Congress move now on a long-term framework that sets a target for deficit reduction and establishes the proportion of spending cuts, entitlement changes and revenue increases to get there. If an agreement on a broad outline could be reached, Congress should then push back the automatic tax hikes and spending cuts for six months, provided that revenue increases and spending cuts be enacted to pay for the delay.

The idea landed with a thud. “It isn’t as if people are lining up to sign up for it,” Mr. Durbin said Tuesday.

Republicans have been pummeling Democrats on the presidential and Congressional campaign trails about the fiscal cliff.

“We continue to want to provide solutions and resolve the differences here in Washington,” Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia, the House majority leader, said Tuesday on CNBC. “All there’s been over the last couple years is a one-way street.”

Mitt Romney and his running mate, Paul D. Ryan, have suggested that the bipartisan deal last summer that set up the automatic cuts was President Obama’s idea. Mr. Boehner has accused the president of failing to lead on the issue.

Democrats deny that, pointing to statements from Mr. Boehner and Mr. Ryan praising the deal when it was struck. Both men voted for it.

So far, Democrats do not appear troubled by the attacks. As Republican warnings over military cuts and tax increases grow louder, Democrats see their leverage growing stronger.

“Republicans talk a big game on defense — they just don’t want to pay for it,” said Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee. “They want to increase defense spending, but they don’t want to ask people like Mitt Romney to pay one more dime in taxes.”

If no deal is struck by Jan. 1, Mr. Obama can present Congress a retroactive extension of only the middle-class tax cuts, take it or leave it, Mr. Van Hollen said.

Representative Peter Welch, Democrat of Vermont, said, “Revenues should be part of any plan, and Democrats should not cave on that.”

With just 11 legislative days remaining before the election, once-uncompromising Republicans in Congress do appear to be reassessing their positions.

Earlier this year, House conservatives demanded a cap on domestic spending for the coming fiscal year that would be $19 billion below the level set by last summer’s budget deal. Even Senate Republicans balked. On Thursday, the House is expected to pass a measure keeping the government functioning well into next year at the spending level House Republicans found unacceptable in March, $1.047 trillion.

“My conservative friends in the Senate have taken a position that says that a clean $1.047 number is digestible, so for us to not take that position seriously would be for us not to recognize the reality of Washington today,” said Representative Tim Scott of South Carolina, who leads the Tea Party-infused Republican freshmen.

But some Democrats are getting nervous about the game of chicken in Washington. Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, said the $109 billion in initial automatic spending cuts should be postponed for six months, then cut at least in half.

“I’m of the opinion that cutting haphazardly at a critical time in the economic progress of the nation is absolutely the wrong thing to do,” she said Tuesday

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Beginner's Guide For Jogging

If you’ve recently made up your mind with regards to taking up jogging as your work out of choice for burning calories (find out how many calories you can burn through jogging here.), it’s important that you prepare yourself with the right knowledge about this workout to ensure maximum output, convenience and less mistakes. Here are some pointers which you might find helpful in getting you geared up for this work out.


Warm Ups And Stretching Are The Key To Avoiding Injuries
It may not be a good idea to do any stretching exercises before you start jogging because your muscles will be cold and it can cause an injury when you pull at them, but what’s required is that you do a warm up activity at least for 5 minutes before you actually start jogging. Once you are done with jogging its pertinent that you spend at least 5 minutes stretching your body to ensure that you don’t cramp up..
The best warm up activity prior to jogging is brisk walking. Spend 5 minutes walking through the terrain at a brisk pace breathing deeply to get your lungs ready for the work out and getting your muscles warmed up for the activity.


The Right Form To Follow
There are a few contentions on what’s the right way to land your foot while jogging. In my personal experience, and through the observation of many long time joggers, I believe that it’s best to take shorter strides allowing your feet to land on the ‘middle’ portion of the sole moving to transferring weight onto the heel and finally the toe region.

 Some people, while jogging, take longer strides and land directly on the heel region, which can create more ‘impact’ because of lesser area of contact leading to a higher chance of injury and this movement also causes a braking effect in your stride causing more wear and tear not only to your shoe but to the muscles in your feet region.
Keep your body upright, without tensing up, while running and look straight ahead instead of bending down. Don’t stoop your shoulders, or your upper & lower back, as it causes more strain on your neck. Keep your arms relaxed, without clenching your fists, and allow for a smooth movement that goes in tune with your strides.



Breathing Style For Jogging
The right way to breathe is mostly what feels comfortable to you at your pace. Some say that it’s best to inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth, but it’s very difficult to keep this going at a higher pace or higher mileage – your body soon needs a high intake of air and your nose is not capable to delivering such a high dosage, so at higher paces it’s best to breathe in with your nose and mouth in combination to allow for a maximum intake of oxygen.

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Increasing Your Mileage, And Intensity
The first two or three weeks are for your body to adapt to the practice of jogging. During this time, just focus on getting your form right and getting your body acquainted. You can do a mile, or a mile and half, initially, for the first two weeks, while you get used to this work out. From the third or fourth week onwards you can start incrementing a mile every week or half a mile increment every 3 days.

Another aspect is to increase your intensity in the form of short sprints. A sprint, of high intensity, for one minute, would burn 50-60% more calories than a jog at a brisk pace for the same time. So by the fourth week, make sure you incorporate at least three or four segments of high intensity sprints, for one minute, in between your jogging span. You can increase the pace of your sprint as your body adapt to it, in a couple of weeks.


What Should You Wear For Jogging?
A good pair of ‘light weight’ running shoes is a must, so that you don’t injure your feet during this high impact workout. A low quality running shoe can give you a shoe bite and also create an internal injury owing to improper cushioning.

Women should invest in a good quality sports bra, as a mandatory requirement, to avoid injury to their back, while also ensuring a comfortable run. It also helps to wear some sports vest or trousers made explicitly to improve your running experience with synthetic fabric that wicks the sweat off your skin. In case you don’t feel like expending money on these accessories, just wear clothes that feel comfortable to you – like t-shirt and shorts or jogging tracks. 

More: Steps to a flat tummy in 7 days


Should I Eat Or Drink Before I Jog?
If you are jogging in the morning, just have a few ounces of water 30-45 minutes before the jog. Most people don’t feel hungry when they wake up, but if you do feel hungry you can have a light snack of fruits or fruit juice, an hour before jogging. It’s quite uncomfortable to jog with food digesting in your stomach, but since fruits usually just take 15 – 20 minutes to move out of the stomach they are the best food option prior to a jog.

Once you start running for more than 20 minutes, it’s best to have some water on the go. Carry a 500 ml plastic water bottle with you, and drink up a few ounces of water after the 20 minute interval. 


Take A Break One Day A Week
It’s suggested that you take a day off from your jogging routine once a week, basically jogging for 6 days a week. Initially you may even want to take two or three days off to allow your body to adapt to the rigor. It’s very important to allow the body to recuperate from the strain, and build strength in its bones and muscles, and a day or two off every week helps do that effectively. 
 Happy jogging! 

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Obama Discusses Iran Threat With Israel Amid Tensions

President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed Iran’s suspected atomic weapons program amid a rift between the two nations over how to confront the Iranian security threat.

The two leaders spoke by phone last night for an hour, the White House said. While providing no further details, the White House said in a statement Obama and Netanyahu “reaffirmed that they are united in their determination to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.”

Netanyahu declared earlier yesterday that the Obama administration has no “moral right” to keep Israel from attacking Iran as long as the U.S. doesn’t set “red lines” for Iran. His remarks reflect differences within his government about an Israeli attack on Iran and a bid to pressure Obama less than two months before the U.S. election. The call came after Israeli media reports, denied by the White House, that Netanyahu’s request to meet Obama later this month was snubbed.

“Strategically it’s not in either of their interests to show the world they are not on the same page,” said Aaron David Miller, a former State Department official who served under Democratic and Republican presidents.

In addition to strategic concerns, there are political implications for both leaders. The dispute hurts Netanyahu’s efforts to convince divided Israelis of the merits of a strike, Miller said in an interview. For Obama, locked in a tight race with Republican challenger Mitt Romney who has been questioning Obama’s commitment to Israel, the differences may affect his appeal with voters in battleground states.

“In a close election you don’t want to alienate anyone,” said Miller, who’s now at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, a Washington policy group.

Avoid Attack

Obama’s objective between now and the election is to avoid an Israeli attack, Miller said, “because war introduces uncertainties” that may include a doubling or tripling of oil prices, turmoil in European and American markets and public division over a discretionary war.

Miller said his experience suggests last night’s call was a “let’s put things back in the box” discussion and not a breakthrough session.

Republican Senators John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina expressed displeasure earlier yesterday with the White House’s disclosure that Obama doesn’t plan to meet Netanyahu later this month, when the Israeli leader visits New York for the annual United Nations General Assembly meeting.

“If these reports are true, the White House’s decision sends a troubling signal to our ally Israel about America’s commitment at this dangerous and challenging time, especially as Iran continues to work actively toward developing a nuclear weapons capability,” they said in a statement.

Century Fox reports: "Iran may strike U.S, if Israel attacks" says Hezbollah

No Meeting

White House National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said yesterday that Obama and Netanyahu wouldn’t be in New York at the same time, and that “contrary to previous press reports, there was never any request for a meeting” between Netanyahu and Obama.

The newspaper Haaretz was among media outlets in Israel that reported earlier that the White House rejected a request by Netanyahu for a meeting.

Romney and his campaign refrained from any immediate reaction because Netanyahu’s comments coincided with the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks on New York and Washington, and the candidates had pledged to set aside partisanship for a day.

The Republican nominee made no mention of the U.S.-Israeli dispute in a speech to National Guard members in Reno, Nevada. That may change as soon as today.

‘All Measures’

During a July trip to Israel, Romney said it is “right” for the U.S. to stand with Israel and use “any and all measures” to stop Iran from developing atomic capabilities. Throughout the campaign, Romney has portrayed Obama as insufficiently supportive of Israel.

Opinion polls show the majority of Americans favor a cautious approach to Iran.

A survey by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs found 70 percent of Americans oppose a unilateral strike against Iran while 59 percent don’t want the U.S. involved in a potential war between Israel and Iran. The survey of 1,877 adults, conducted May 25-June 8, has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.

While Iran is “an issue of concern” for voters, “I don’t think this is the focal point for most people,” said Dennis Ross, a former senior Middle East adviser to Obama and other U.S. presidents of both political parties.

“The people who don’t support the president will be quick to grab onto something like this,” Ross said. “Those who do will think his overall approach to this is still a sound one.”

Florida Factor

Netanyahu’s criticism is unlikely to be a determinative factor in the election because Jews aren’t single-issue voters, and most Jewish Democrats have supported Obama, Miller said.

Even so, he said, “In a close election, of course, anything can happen.”

Obama won in 2008 with 78 percent support from Jewish voters, according to a national exit poll, and he and his surrogates have said he has an unbreakable bond with Israel and a record of military and political support to prove it.

Florida is the biggest swing state with a large proportion of Jewish residents, and Obama held a 0.6 percentage point lead over Romney there, 47.3 percent to 46.7 percent, in an average of six polls conducted Aug. 13-Sept. 2 and compiled by the Real Clear Politics website.

Other battleground states where the Jewish vote may make a difference in a close race this year include Nevada, Ohio and Wisconsin.

‘Red Lines’

Netanyahu’s remarks came two days after Clinton said in a Bloomberg Radio interview that the U.S. is “not setting deadlines” on negotiations with Iran. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland later said it is “not useful” to set deadlines or “red lines.”

What Netanyahu wants is assurance that the U.S. will commit its own military forces to destroy Iran’s nuclear program if economic sanctions and diplomacy don’t have the desired effect, Miller said.

Netanyahu’s aim is unrealistic, Miller said in a telephone interview yesterday, and it “diminishes Israel’s credibility and undermines its deterrent capacity.”

Netanyahu also is trying to build public support in his own country in case Israel decides it must strike, said Emily Landau, director of the arms control and regional security program at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University. He and Defense Minister Ehud Barak “seem increasingly isolated in their support for this option as more and more top security figures come out against it,” she said.

Domestic Support

“Netanyahu may have a plan to build more domestic political support for an Iran action, but whatever is hitting the media and becoming part of the public debate is building up a case against that,” she said.

Gabi Ashkenazi, a former Israeli military chief of staff, said Israel shouldn’t jeopardize its ties with Washington. “I strongly recommend that we preserve our strong relationship with the United States. Our strong bond is not only imperative to us from a security perspective but also economically,” Ashkenazi said at a conference in Tel Aviv yesterday.

Even Defense Minister Barak, one of the most hawkish members of the Israeli security cabinet, yesterday stressed the importance of maintaining Israel’s ties with the U.S.

“Despite these differences, and the importance of maintaining Israel’s independence-of-action, we must also remember the significance of our partnership with America and do everything possible not to harm this,” the Defense Ministry quoted Barak as saying in a private forum.

Political Motive

Ross, now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, stopped short of ascribing a U.S. political motive to Netanyahu’s remarks.

“If there wasn’t an election right now, I think he’d be saying the same thing,” Ross said.

Ross said Netanyahu is concerned that, if Israel waits too long, it will lose its own capability to strike. He is trying to “motivate the rest of the world to act more seriously against Iran,” an approach that led to sanctions that otherwise might not be in place, Ross said.

While the disagreement between the U.S. and Israel should be discussed, “it’s better that they happen behind closed doors,” Ross said. “What you want is the focus to remain on Iran.”

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At Least 63 Dead In Pakistan Factory Blaze

KARACHI — At least 63 people were killed when a blaze engulfed a packed garment factory in Karachi, and dozens of others were hurt as they jumped out of windows to save their lives, officials said on Wednesday.

The evening blaze in the four-storey factory in Pakistan's largest city coincided with another at a shoe plant in Lahore on Tuesday that killed at least 21 people.

"We have recovered 63 bodies, including three found when we reached the basement of the building. I fear more bodies could be there," Karachi fire chief Ehtesham Salim told AFP.

The death toll in Karachi was revised sharply upwards after police earlier said the fire, which erupted late Tuesday, had killed nine workers.

Some shouting and sobbing relatives of trapped workers, desperate to get inside the building, scuffled with police during the night, an AFP photographer said.

Rescuers used arc lights to work through the night. A steady stream of bodies were stretchered out, covered by white sheets.

Abdus Salam, a doctor at Karachi's Civil Hospital, said 10 women were among the dead garment workers.

"The bodies are badly charred," Salam told AFP, adding that at least 65 other workers had suffered broken bones after jumping out of windows to escape the fire.

Similar News: 38 charred to death in Tamilnadu Sivakasi Factory Fire 

Firefighters on crane lifts reached through the gutted building's windows to rescue some trapped survivors, who were taken to local hospitals suffering from burns and smoke inhalation.

The blaze was still smouldering early on Wednesday.

Mohammad Saleem, 32, who broke a leg after jumping out of the second floor, said he and his colleagues were hard at work late on Tuesday when flames suddenly reached their section.

"It was terrible, suddenly the entire floor filled with fire and smoke and the heat was so intense that we rushed towards the windows, broke its steel grille and glass and jumped out," Saleem told AFP in hospital.

"I fell on the ground and it was extremely painful, I saw many people jumping out of windows and crying in pain for help," he said.

Around 150 employees were working at the time in one of the factory's three round-the-clock shifts, Saleem said.

Officials said the cause of the Karachi fire was not yet known but Rauf Siddiqi, the industry minister for Sindh province, said the factory owner was under investigation for negligence.

"We have ordered an inquiry into how the fire erupted and why proper emergency exits were not provided at the factory so that the workers could escape," Siddiqi said.

Earlier Tuesday, the blaze in Pakistan's second-largest city Lahore trapped dozens of workers in the shoe-making factory, killing 21 and injuring 14 others, local officials and medics said.

Tariq Zaman, a government official in Lahore, said the fire was caused by a faulty electricity generator.

Karamat Ali, a spokesman for the local government's emergency rescue team, said fire crews succeeded in bringing the blaze under control after several hours and rescue workers had evacuated all those trapped inside the factory.

Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf "expressed shock and grief over the loss of precious lives and directed the concerned authorities to provide best medical treatment to the injured", his office said after the Lahore fire.

The garment trade as a whole is vital to Pakistan's shaky economy.

According to central bank data, the textiles industry contributed to 7.4 percent of Pakistan's GDP in 2011 and employed 38 percent of the manufacturing sector workforce. It accounted for 55.6 percent of total exports.

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Narendra Modi: "We Want A Gutka-Free, Congress-Free Gujarat"

MEHSANA: Launching a month-long campaign in poll-bound Gujarat, chief minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday unleashed a barrage of criticism targeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chief Sonia Gandhi and the state Congress.

On a day when the comprehensive gutka-ban came into force in the state, Modi urged people to wipe out Congress in the state. "We should work towards "Congress-free Gujarat" on the lines of "gutka-free Gujarat" to wipe out "cancer", he said.

Signalling that he would fight the polls on the plank of "injustice meted out to Gujarat", Modi struck an aggressive tone to kick-start his 2012 month-long campaign through Swami Vivekananda Yuva Vikas Yatra from Becharaji in Mehsana, where Maruti is coming up with a car plant.

He also accused Congress of "misusing" the CBI to target him and also demanded that the Prime Minister face a SIT probe in the coal block allocation scam.

Seeking a fourth term in office, Modi also slammed the Congress for "attacking the constitutional authorities", accusing it of whipping up an atmosphere of anger against the government auditor CAG like it did against the Supreme Court in the 2G spectrum allocation case.

Century Fox Post Report: Supreme Court gives clean chit to Chidambaram in 2G case

"I have faced multiple probes, now let the Prime Minister face a SIT probe on coal block allocations," he said, adding "To corner me, they form an SIT whenever they want to."

"I appeal to him (Manmohan Singh) and Congress to come forward and have a competition in facing probes," Modi said adding, "Let us see who has more prowess in facing such probes."

Taking a swipe at Congress, the Chief Minister alleged that the opposition party was not alone in fighting the assembly polls, as the CBI was also with them.

He alleged that the Congress had a habit of targeting constitutional authorities by creating an atmosphere of anger against the institutions that did not toe its line.

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'Rehabilitation Only For People With Valid Documents In Assam': Bodo Leaders

On a day when AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi made a whirlwind tour of three violence-affected districts of Assam and touched four relief camps, Bodo leaders, including Bodo People’s Front chief Hagrama Mohilary, said that only those displaced people who had valid land documents would be rehabilitated.

Century Fox News: Assam Riots Worsen, Thousands Homeless and Many Dead

Rahul visited four camps, three having Muslims and one having Bodos. While he kept away from the media, Rahul chose to spend most of his time listening to the people who have been there for more than eight weeks now.

“We have told Rahul Gandhi that the state government and the BTC will rehabilitate in the first phase only those who have valid land documents. We are yet to decide about cases of those who do not have land documents but have documents to prove they are Indian citizens,” Mohilary said in Kokrajhar.

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The BPF chief, it may be recalled, has been complaining of the presence of “large number” of Bangladeshi infiltrators in Kokrajhar and other Bodoland Territorial Autonomous Districts.

“He mostly interacted with the inmates about food and healthcare. He asked the people how soon they could return to their respective villages,” said Agriculture Minister Nilamoni Sen Deka, who accompanied Rahul during his visit to Gambaribil camp in Kokrajhar, which has 2,000 Bodos. Camp inmates pressed Rahul for security in order to ensure their safe return to their respective villages.

The other camps that Rahul visited were in Lakhiganj High Madrasa (Dhubri), Kambelpur (Kokrajhar), Basugaon (Chirang) — all having Muslims.

Six hurt in blast

Six persons were injured, one of them seriously, in a grenade explosion in Bongaigaon town on Tuesday night. The police called it the handiwork of the anti-talk faction of the ULFA. The blast occurred at around 9 pm near the Chilarai Flyover. An ULFA cadre has been arrested. Bongaigaon is close to Chirang where Rahul Gandhi had visited a relief camp.

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U.S Missions Attacked In Cairo And Libya. One U.S Diplomat Dead

CAIRO/BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - Protesters in Egypt and Libya attacked U.S. diplomatic missions on Tuesday in a spasm of violence that led to the death of a State Department officer at the consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi after fierce clashes at the compound.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in a statement late on Tuesday, confirmed the death of the U.S. diplomat, who was not identified, and condemned the attack on the Benghazi consulate, after a day of mayhem in two countries that raised fresh questions about Washington's relations with the Arab world.

The violence in Benghazi followed protests in neighboring Egypt where protesters scaled the walls of the Cairo embassy and tore down the American flag and burned it during protests over what demonstrators said was a U.S. film that insulted the Prophet Mohammed.

On Tuesday, Egypt's prestigious Al-Azhar mosque and seat of Sunni learning condemned a symbolic "trial" of the Prophet organized by a U.S. group including Terry Jones, a Christian pastor who triggered riots in Afghanistan in 2010 by threatening to burn the Koran.

But it was not immediately clear whether it was the event sponsored by Jones, or another, possibly related, anti-Islam production, that prompted the melee at the U.S. Embassy in Egypt, and possibly the violence in Libya.

Whatever the cause, the events appeared to underscore how much the ground in the Middle East has shifted for Washington, which for decades had close ties with Arab dictators who could be counted on to muzzle dissent.

U.S. President Barack Obama's administration in recent weeks had appeared to overcome some of its initial caution following the election of an Islamist Egyptian president, Mohamed Mursi, offering his government desperately needed debt relief and backing for international loans.

In Libya, gunmen in Benghazi attacked the U.S. diplomatic compound on Tuesday evening, clashing with Libyan security forces, officials said.

Abdel-Monem Al-Hurr, spokesman for Libya's Supreme Security Committee, said, "There is a connection between this attack and the protests that have been happening in Cairo."

But a U.S. official in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he had no reason to believe the two incidents were linked.

Jones, the Christian pastor in Florida, said that on Tuesday's anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, he had released a video promoting a film that portrayed the Prophet in a "satirical" manner. Many Muslims consider any depiction of the Prophet offensive.

U.S. media, including The Wall Street Journal, reported that the film at issue, entitled "Innocence of Muslims," was produced by an Israeli-American real estate developer, but had been promoted by Jones.

In Cairo, among about 2,000 protesters gathered in the Egyptian capital was Ismail Mahmoud, who, like others, did not name the film that angered him, but called on Mursi, Egypt's first civilian president, to take action.

"This movie must be banned immediately and an apology should be made," said the 19-year-old Mahmoud, a member of the "ultras" soccer supporters who played a big role in the uprising that brought down Hosni Mubarak last year.

Once the U.S. flag was hauled down in Cairo, some protesters tore it up and displayed bits to television cameras. Others burned the remnants outside the fortress-like embassy building in central Cairo. But some protesters objected to the flag burning.

BENGHAZI CLASHES

In Benghazi, Reuters reporters on the scene could see looters raiding the empty U.S. consulate's compound, walking off with desks, chairs and washing machines.

Unknown gunmen were shooting at the buildings, while others threw handmade bombs into the compound, setting off small explosions. Small fires were burning around the compound.

Passersby entered the unsecured compound to take pictures with their mobile phones and watch the looting.

No security forces could be seen around the consulate and a previous blockade of the road leading to it had been dismantled.

"The Libyan security forces came under heavy fire and we were not prepared for the intensity of the attack," Hurr said.

Libya's interim government has struggled to impose its authority on a myriad of armed groups that have refused to lay down their weapons and often take the law into their own hands.

A number of security violations have rocked Benghazi, Libya's second biggest city and the cradle of last year's revolt that toppled Muammar Gaddafi.

The breaching of the U.S. Embassy walls in Cairo comes at a delicate time in U.S.-Egyptian relations, and as the United States appeared to be trying an intensified engagement with Mursi's government.

Last week, U.S. officials said they were close to a deal with Egypt's government for $1 billion in debt relief. Washington had also signaled its backing for a badly needed $4.8 billion loan that Egypt is seeking from the International Monetary Fund.

"I would urge you not to draw too many conclusions because we've also had some very positive developments in our relationship with Egypt," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

"One of the things about the new Egypt is that protest is possible," she said. "Obviously we all want to see peaceful protest, which is not what happened outside the U.S. mission, so we're trying to restore calm now."

Washington has a large mission in Egypt, partly because of a huge aid program that followed Egypt's signing of a peace treaty with Israel in 1979. The United States gives $1.3 billion to Egypt's military each year and offers the nation other aid.

Following the protest, Egypt's Foreign Ministry said it was committed to giving all embassies the protection they needed.

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