Minn. Metrodome roof collapses in Midwest blizzardMINNEAPOLIS (AP) - The inflatable roof of the Minnesota Vikings' stadium collapsed Sunday and roads were closed throughout the upper Midwest as a storm that dumped nearly 2 feet of snow in some areas crawled across the region. A blizzard warning was in effect for parts of eastern Iowa, southeastern Wisconsin, northwestern Illinois, and northern Michigan, according to the National Weather Service. Surrounding areas including Chicago were under winter storm warnings.Social Security advocates fear payroll tax cutWASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama's plan to cut payroll taxes for a year would provide big savings for many workers, but makes Social Security advocates nervous that it could jeopardize the retirement program's finances. The plan is part of a package of tax cuts and extended unemployment benefits that Obama negotiated with Senate Republican leaders. It would cut workers' share of Social Security taxes by nearly one-third for 2011. Workers making $50,000 in wages would get a $1,000 tax cut; those making $100,000 would get a $2,000 tax cut.Officials condemn attack in SwedenSTOCKHOLM (AP) - Two blasts that shook a busy shopping street in central Stockholm were an act of terrorism, officials said Sunday. If confirmed as a suicide bombing, it would be the first such attack in the Nordic country. Police would not comment on a motive for the attack Saturday that killed the apparent bomber and wounded two other people. But a Swedish news agency said it received an e-mail threat just before the blast in which the writer claimed to have visited the Middle East and referred to Sweden's soldiers in Afghanistan and a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad that outraged the Muslim world.Even Dem foes of tax cut plan see it passing soonWASHINGTON (AP) - The White House expressed confidence Sunday that President Barack Obama's deal with Republicans will pass by year's end, averting a Jan. 1 increase in income taxes for nearly all Americans, even the highest earners. In a sign of fading resistance, a Democratic leader said the lame-duck House will try to make changes, but won't block the bill. Ahead of a test vote in the Senate on Monday, Obama adviser David Axelrod predicted the president's compromise deal would win out despite a tougher sell in the House. Majority Democrats, who lose control of the House to Republicans in January, voted last week not to allow it to reach the floor without changes to scale back relief for wealthy estates.Failure of 9/11 health bill could hurt NY clinicsNEW YORK (AP) - The network of health centers providing free medical tests and treatment to 58,000 people exposed to World Trade Center dust faces a less certain future if Congress doesn't pass legislation aimed at helping victims of 9/11's toxic legacy. Senate Republicans last week blocked action on a bill appropriating up to $3.2 billion for medical programs caring for people who fell ill after breathing in ash and pulverized building materials at ground zero.Would-be Haitian contractors miss out on aidIn a Port-au-Prince warehouse loaded with tarps, plywood, corrugated roofing, nails and other building supplies, company owner Patrick Brun says he had hoped to get contracts from the billions of dollars in international aid promised to Haiti. His 40-year-old company, Chabuma S.A., sells cement blocks, doors, sand bags and other materials for international companies. But what he wants is a more significant role in his country's recovery, which is why he says he keeps bidding - without success - for U.S. government contracts.Israel's leader does not want to share JerusalemJERUSALEM (AP) - Israel's leader on Sunday dismissed a call from a key government partner to share the holy city of Jerusalem with the Palestinians, a reminder of the obstacles facing already troubled peacemaking efforts. Conflicting claims to east Jerusalem lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The dispute over the area, home to sensitive Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites, has derailed past peace talks and spilled into violence. Palestinians claim the sector as the capital of their future state.Saturn's rings: Leftovers from a cosmic murder?WASHINGTON (AP) - One of the solar system's most evocative mysteries - the origin of Saturn's rings - may be a case of cosmic murder, new research suggests. The victim: an unnamed moon of Saturn that disappeared about 4.5 billion years ago.AP EXCLUSIVE: Pilot duped AMA with fake M.D. claimMILWAUKEE (AP) - He seemed like Superman, able to guide jumbo jets through perilous skies and tiny tubes through blocked arteries. As a cardiologist and United Airlines captain, William Hamman taught doctors and pilots ways to keep hearts and planes from crashing. He shared millions in grants, had university and hospital posts, and bragged of work for prestigious medical groups. An Associated Press story featured him leading a teamwork training session at an American College of Cardiology convention last spring.'I'm not a witch' picked as top quote of yearNEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - Christine O'Donnell's TV ad declaration during her U.S. Senate campaign topped this year's best quotes, according to a Yale University librarian. O'Donnell's quote is cited by Fred Shapiro, associate librarian at Yale Law School, who released his fifth annual list of the most notable quotations of the year. In the ad, O'Donnell was responding to reports of her revelations that she had dabbled in witchcraft years ago.Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Blog News
