USA
Having completed a trip to South and Central America, President Bush arrived Monday at his Texas ranch, where he'll spend the Thanksgiving holiday. En route from a summit of 21 Pacific Rim leaders in Chile, Bush stopped in Cartagena, Colombia, where a security web of warplanes, ships, and 15,000 troops provided tight security. He used the visit to praise President Alvaro Uribe for the headway made by his plan to crack down on that country's notorious drug trade with massive aerial fumigation of coca - the main ingredient in cocaine - and a military buildup against communist insurgents.
A California superior court dealt a blow to the mayoral write-in candidacy in San Diego of Donna Frye Monday in an election that's still not in the books, The Los Angeles Times reported. A judge refused to order that write-in ballots be counted if an empty oval to the left of the candidate's name was not darkened. Frye, a city councillor who entered the race at the last minute, finished second to incumbent Dick Murphy (R) in unofficial results. She had 34 percent of the vote; Murphy 34.5 percent. The final tally must be certified by Nov. 30.
An estimated 37.2 million Americans anticipate traveling 50 miles or more from home over the four-day Thanksgiving holiday weekend, a survey by the AAA reported. Of these, 82 percent said they plan to drive, despite a federal Energy Department report that gasoline prices will be at an all-time Thanksgiving high of $1.948 for a gallon for unleaded regular.
About 2,000 demonstrators arrested during last summer's Republican National Convention in New York were rounded up without cause, an attorney who filed a federal lawsuit in their behalf said Monday. The suit seeks unspecified damages.
Beginning in 2006, people will be able to access the first of 30 million digitized newspaper pages on their home and work computers as part of a joint effort of the National Endowment of the Humanities and the Library of Congress that was announced Monday. Currently, the only way to view old papers is on microfilm reels at the Library of Congress, regional libraries, and newspaper offices.
Eleven more National Guard teams will be created to assist local authorities in responding to potential attacks involving weapons of mass destruction, the Pentagon announced Monday. This will bring the total to 55 teams - one for each state and US territory.
