USA
More controversy swirled around President Bush's disputed remark in his State of the Union address that Iraq tried to buy uranium from Nigeria. In TV appearances Sunday, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld and national security adviser Condoleezza Rice stressed that it was only a small part of a far broader case for war and was accurately attributed to British intelligence sources. But, they said, the comment shouldn't have appeared in the address. Some Democratic presidential contenders want more information. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts told CNN there are "enormous questions" about the quality of US intelligence and its use by the Bush administration. Rep. Richard Gephardt of Missouri called for a "full, complete, bipartisan inquiry."
Unrest in Iraq, Liberia, and Congo were among the issues as Bush met UN chief Kofi Annan in Washington. Both visited Africa last week, and Bush is considering whether to contribute US troops to an international peacekeeping force for Liberia, something Annan strongly supports. It wasn't clear whether a decision on the matter was imminent.
NAACP executive director Julian Bond hailed the recent US Supreme Court ruling that upheld the use of race as a factor in university admissions, at the group's annual convention in Miami Sunday. While the court rejected a point system at the University of Michigan, its overall decision "gave legal sanction to what we knew to be morally, socially, and educationally correct," Bond said. He criticized Bush and his brother, Gov. Jeb Bush (R) of Florida, for favoring race-neutral alternatives in school admissions.
The search for two missing children from Concord, N.H., focused on the Midwest, in what authorities are investigating as a possible homicide. Sarah and Philip Gehring were last seen with their father July 4. Manuel Gehring, now in custody in San Jose, Calif., is suspected of leaving their remains near Toledo, Ohio, an FBI agent said.
Last year was the safest on record for US commercial airlines, with no fatalities for the first time in 20 years, the National Transportation Safety Board said. Of 34 accidents, only one - the crash of a Federal Express cargo plane in Tallahassee, Fla. - was classified as "major." The results continue a trend of steadily improving safety but also coincide with a steep drop in air travel.
The annual American Solar Challenge, a 2,300-mile cross-country race, began in Chicago Sunday. The 20 entrants are expected to reach the finish line in Claremont, Calif., in about 10 days.
