Articles of Interest on the current issues
June 1, 2009
Cheney: No link between Saddam Hussein, 9/11
· Ex-VP backs Bush administration invasion of Iraq, says Hussein supported terror
· He says it's essential to understand "policies that worked" in protecting United States
· Cheney says Guantanamo Bay detention center is needed amid war on terrorism
· He reiterates his call to declassify documents detailing interrogations of detainees
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Former Vice President Dick Cheney said Monday that he does not believe Saddam Hussein was involved in the planning or execution of the September 11, 2001, attacks.
He strongly defended the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq, however, arguing that Hussein's previous support for known terrorists was a serious danger after 9/11.
Cheney, in an appearance at the National Press Club, also said he is intent on speaking out in defense of the Bush administration's national security record because "a clear understanding of policies that worked [in protecting the United States] is essential."
"I do not believe and have never seen any evidence to confirm that [Hussein] was involved in 9/11. We had that reporting for a while, [but] eventually it turned out not to be true," Cheney conceded.
May 30, 2009
2 Democrats Spearheading Health Bill Are Split
By ROBERT PEAR
WASHINGTON - A significant split has developed between the two Democratic senators leading efforts to remake the nation's health care system. They disagree over the contours of a public health insurance plan, the most explosive issue in the debate.
One of the senators, Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, reasserting himself after months of treatment for brain cancer, made clear this week that he favored a robust public health care plan, a government-sponsored entity that would compete with private insurers.
As a starting point for his bill, Mr. Kennedy favors a public plan that looks like Medicare, the government-run program for older Americans created in 1965, when he was a young senator.
By contrast, Senator Max Baucus, the Montana Democrat who is chairman of the Finance Committee, has been working for months with the panel's senior Republican, Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, in the hope of forging a bipartisan bill, which would probably play down the option of a public plan.
Mr. Grassley opposes creation of a new government insurance program and says "we cannot afford the public health plan we have already," referring to Medicare.
President Obama has championed a public plan, saying it would help "keep the private sector honest," though he has indicated he will be flexible on the details.