Akin parses stand on pet projects in Senate bid

In this Sept. 25, 2012, photo, Missouri Republican Senate candidate, Rep. Todd Akin, R-Mo., speaks during a news conference at the start of a statewide bus tour in St. Louis. Akin has backed millions of dollars of earmarks in recent years. He even proudly defended an earmark for military armor during a TV ad in his Republican Senate primary. Now Akin has aligned himself with a group that wants to ban earmarks. And the membership of the Senate Conservatives Fund has pledged $290,000 to help finance his campaign against Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill. Akin denies he has flip-flopped and rejects any assertion of a quid pro quo for campaign cash. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

In this Sept. 25, 2012, photo, Missouri Republican Senate candidate, Rep. Todd Akin, R-Mo., speaks during a news conference at the start of a statewide bus tour in St. Louis. Akin has backed millions of dollars of earmarks in recent years. He even proudly defended an earmark for military armor during a TV ad in his Republican Senate primary. Now Akin has aligned himself with a group that wants to ban earmarks. And the membership of the Senate Conservatives Fund has pledged $290,000 to help finance his campaign against Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill. Akin denies he has flip-flopped and rejects any assertion of a quid pro quo for campaign cash. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) ? Missouri Rep. Todd Akin has backed almost $100 million for pet projects in recent years, including money for home-state military programs and local highway work. During his Republican Senate primary this summer, Akin even aired a television ad proudly defending his effort to bring home federal dollars for production of military armor in his district.

Now Akin has aligned himself with a group that wants to ban these so-called earmarks, and the membership of the Senate Conservatives Fund has pledged $290,000 to help replenish the Republican's cash-strapped campaign against Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill.

Akin denies that it's a policy reversal and rejects any assertion of a quid pro quo for campaign cash. Five weeks to Election Day, the Republican is struggling to put back the pieces of his bid after his widely criticized statement that women have a biological defense against pregnancy in cases of "legitimate rape." McCaskill, who has been hammering Akin in television ads over that remark, now has a new line of criticism on federal spending.

McCaskill asserts that Akin's apparent evolution on earmarks undercuts the very essence of his campaign image as a "principled conservative" who stands firm for his beliefs.

"He defended (earmarks) as a constitutional principle, and then as soon as someone said there will be money for your campaign if you say you are no longer for earmarks, he said, 'OK,'" McCaskill, a vocal opponent of earmarks, told The Associated Press. Akin "tried to have it both ways, which is about as unprincipled as you can get."

Akin has remained competitive with McCaskill thanks largely to small-dollar donors and conservative Republicans who accepted his apology for the "legitimate rape" comment. They rallied to his cause when party leaders pulled their financial backing and tried to force him to quit the race. But Akin needs a steady stream of cash to continuing airing his campaign message through Election Day, and the backing of the Senate Conservatives Fund marked his most significant financial commitment since his rape remark.

Akin insists there was no twisting or contorting to land the important endorsement of the formidable political action committee founded by conservative Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C.

"I can tell you what I'm for or what I'm against, and as it turned out, that's pretty consistent ? or almost exactly consistent ? with where a lot of the Senate conservatives are," Akin said.

Senate rules define an earmark ? or a "congressionally directed spending item," as it's officially termed ? as a provision included in a bill at the request of a lawmaker that directs money to a specific entity, state or congressional district without going through a formula-driven or competitive award process. Earmarks now are banned in the Republican-controlled House, Senate Republicans have voted not to use them and a number of Democrats oppose them, most notably McCaskill.

But from the 2008 to 2010 fiscal years, Akin was involved in securing $99 million of earmarks, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan watchdog group in Washington which tracks earmarks. In 2010, the last year in which the House used earmarks in appropriations bills, Akin teamed up with then-Sen. Kit Bond on a variety of spending requests.

Akin said he draws a distinction between spending allotments for such things as road projects that originate in a committee and work their way through the legislative process and special items that get added at the last moment in a joint House and Senate conference committee ? leaving no time for most members to review them or attempt to strip them from the bill.

"Everybody's got different definitions" for earmarks, Akin added. "But my commonsense is you don't want people doing quid for quo kinds of things, and I don't do that."

When defining an earmark, Taxpayers for Common Sense draws no distinctions regarding the purpose of a project or the point at which it was added in the legislative process.

Akin said he supports some limitations on the ability of lawmakers to direct money to pet projects ? but only to a certain point.

"Don't take the definition so broadly that the members of Congress don't have any input into the budget process," he said.

McCaskill calls such assertions "complete balderdash," arguing that Congress can still exercise financial oversight without earmarks. McCaskill has teamed up with DeMint to push for a ban on earmarks.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-10-01-Missouri%20Senate-Pet%20Projects/id-efba5b4e4b234b01b935ddf23d418a55

apple live blog ohio primary cell phone jammer g8 summit netanyahu aipac vanessa minnillo

Japan chemical plant blast threatens diaper supply: report

TOKYO: An explosion at a large Japanese chemical plant has sparked fears of a global shortage of disposable diapers, said a report Sunday.

A tank at chemical producer Nippon Shokubai's factory in Himeji city, Hyogo prefecture, exploded Saturday, killing a firefighter and injuring 35 other emergency service workers who responded to a callout, the fire service said.

The company has a 20-percent global share of superabsorbent polymer, which is used in the production of diapers, according to the Sankei Shimbun daily.

The newspaper reorted that if the operation of the factory is suspended for a long time, it could affect production of disposable diapers.

The company produces 320,000 tonnes of superabsorbent polymer at the Himeji plant annually.

Nippon Shokubai had planned to boost its production to meet the growing demand for disposable diapers in China, the paper said.

Source: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/International/2012/Sep-30/189652-japan-chemical-plant-blast-threatens-diaper-supply-report.ashx

ricky gervais golden globes epidermolysis bullosa miss wisconsin law abiding citizen golden globes 2012 miss america lana del rey saturday night live

Bergeron's late TD lifts No. 12 Texas 41-36

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) -- The reasons to doubt David Ash continue to vanish as he keeps finding ways to lead No. 12 Texas to victory.

Ash threw three touchdown passes to Jaxon Shipley and set up Joe Bergeron's 2-yard touchdown run with 29 seconds left in the Longhorns' 41-36 victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday night.

Ash led Texas (4-0, 1-0 Big 12) on a 75-yard scoring drive after the Cowboys (2-2, 0-1) took the lead on Quinn Sharp's 24-yard field goal with 2:34 to play.

Ash connected with tight end D.J. Grant for a 29-yard pick up on fourth-and-6 to keep the drive going, and Mike Davis outleaped Justin Gilbert on a 32-yard deep ball to set up Bergeron's winning touchdown.

"He will not be under any more pressure than this, and he couldn't have done this this time last year," said coach Mack Brown, who moved to 7-0 in Stillwater. "He has really grown up. He is the leader of this football team."

J.W. Walsh started in place of injured Oklahoma State quarterback Wes Lunt and threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns.

Joseph Randle added a career-high 199 yards rushing and two touchdowns for the Cowboys, who hung a banner marking last season's Big 12 championship in the east end zone but started their defense of it by coming up short in a wild fourth quarter that featured four lead changes.

The Longhorns had lost at home to OSU each of the past two seasons. Last season, Ash was making his first career start and threw for only 139 yards with two interceptions and no touchdowns in a 38-26 loss.

"That game really haunted me because as a first start, it wasn't the first start that you wanted to have," said Ash, who finished with 304 yards passing and threw his first interception of the season.

"This game kind of means a lot."

D.J. Monroe added a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown as the Longhorns improved to 23-4 in a series in which they have rallied from 28-, 19- and 21-point deficits just since 2004. This was another difficult one for Oklahoma State to take.

Randle lunged in from 2 yards out to put Oklahoma State up 33-28 early in the fourth, only for Texas' potent running game to come alive next. Bergeron also capped that 75-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, as the Longhorns picked up 65 yards on seven carries while moving down the field.

After the ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, Oklahoma State needed just three plays to bolt to the Texas 13. But then that drive stalled, with three straight 2-yard runs - two by third-stringer Desmond Roland and then one by Randle, who was pulled out for a breather - and the Cowboys settled for Sharp's field goal.

"Coaches will have second thoughts about plays that were called. ... We have to be able to make those plays and get that stop," Gundy said.

Bergeron's scoring run was reviewed on instant replay after Oklahoma State safety Daytawion Lowe came out of the pile with the ball in the end zone, but officials upheld the call on the field.

"They made a play at the end and they happened to make a play when the clock ran out," Gundy said. "Give them credit."

Settling into his starter's role after splitting time with Case McCoy last season, Ash also threw scoring passes of 44 and 20 yards to Shipley in the first half before the pair hooked up for a 7-yard TD on a fade pass in the third quarter to make it 28-20.

"It's something we haven't been able to do in the last couple years, win a tough game like this on the road," Brown said.

The Longhorns had a losing record in Big 12 play each of the past two seasons after winning the conference championship in 2009.

"The only thing that was important for us tonight was to win," Brown said. "We needed to go on the road, we needed to win against a team that had beaten us twice in a row, we needed to win against a team that had won more games than anybody in the Big 12 the last two years and we needed to win at a place where they hadn't lost for the last two years."

Texas had only 29 yards on its first 22 rushing attempts but gained 106 on its last 20 tries during crunch time. Oklahoma State ran for 275 yards but couldn't punch it in its last time in the red zone.

"It comes down to just your will," said Bergeron, who had 48 yards on 15 carries. "It's not the play, it's the player. It comes down to just how you play, not the scheme. It's just how bad you want it. At the end of it, I felt like we just wanted it more."

Walsh threw a 20-yard TD pass to John Goodlett in the third quarter and a 44-yarder to former high-school teammate Josh Stewart in the first half.

"When the coaches draw plays up, we've got to execute them as best we can," Walsh said. "When we do, we're successful. And when we don't, we're not. I think as a whole we played really well tonight."

Source: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FBC_T25_TEXAS_OKLAHOMA_ST?SITE=TXCOL&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

pineda john edwards heart condition mena suvari joyful noise one life to live jeff fisher van der sloot

Service: South Africa

We have a number of links in South Africa and next October one of our key projects will be based at Umzingisi School in Port Elizabeth. The Stanley boys have forged strong links with this community over a number of years and we are now opening up the opportunity for all doing Junior Social Apprentice. Umzingisi is a school of sporting excellence so getting actively involved is a must. There will also be a number of projects running in local townships and schools including work at a soup kitchen.

The challenge will be in coaching, teaching and leadership and to develop an understanding of new cultures. Planning to be done will include sourcing flights, finding out about activities, risk assessments and significant fundraising. Costs will be in the region of ?1500 per pupil; however, this will be dependent on securing flights early. Fundraising target will be to secure 30-40 long term sponsors per group each willing to make a regular charitable donation.?

Source: http://intranet.wellingtoncollege.org.uk/service/jnr-social-apprentice/south-africa

mike wallace mike wallace chicago cubs split pea soup recipe the client list yahoo.com/mail baylor

Donald Fehr, NHL Commissioner Bettman meet again

NEW YORK (AP) ? The best that can be said about back-to-back days of negotiations between the NHL and the locked out players' association is that the sides are still talking and making more plans to meet yet again.

While core economic issues still weren't on the agenda Saturday when the opposing groups got together again at the NHL office, dialogue continued on secondary topics that will ultimately go toward forming a new collective bargaining agreement.

NHL Players' Association head Donald Fehr and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman held a second round of private talks Saturday in an effort to move closer to an agreement that would end the ongoing lockout.

While negotiating teams from the union and the league discussed definitions of what makes up hockey-related revenue ? the pool of money the sides are trying to figure out how to split up ? Fehr and Bettman talked about the differences that are keeping the sides apart.

"I spent a few minutes with Gary talking about the overall situation, and we agreed to keep in touch," Fehr said Saturday. "I am sure we will talk again (Sunday). I don't know whether will meet again (Sunday). That remains to be seen.

"I am not going to talk about the specifics, but in general we're trying to discuss how do we find a way to make an agreement. How do we bridge the gap on the major issues that are between us."

The sides met for about four hours before finishing Saturday, and they agreed to meet again on Sunday. The agenda likely will include discussions on health and safety issues ? a topic that made up a chunk of Friday's talks ? and miscellaneous legal things, such as grievances, game tickets and other topics.

Clarifications as to what will fall under the umbrella of hockey-related revenue going forward in the next agreement dominated discussions Saturday. No concrete resolutions were made, and the topic could be revisited on Sunday.

"I am not sure if we have identified discrepancies," NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said. "I think the nature of what we were trying to do today was to create certainty on interpretations we've had over seven years of this CBA operation.

"These meetings are necessary but they have been described as the underbrush, and certainly they aren't the main issues that need to be tackled to get a deal."

The sides talked for a second straight day on matters separate from the core economic issues that ultimately will have to be hammered out. In the recently expired collective bargaining agreement between the league and the union, the players received a 57 percent share of hockey-related revenue.

The NHL wants to cut the number down to under 50 percent in the new deal. The league imposed a lockout on Sept. 16, when the previous agreement ran out, and the sides didn't meet again until Friday.

"Their position on the big stuff has been that a major move consists of changing the players' share from a reduction of 24 percent to 17 1/2 percent," Fehr said. "Our initial proposal made a move in their direction. We have amplified that by giving them several different ideas to consider about how to lengthen the agreement to how to be more in line with what they wanted."

Fehr said discussing what exactly makes up hockey-related revenue is significant, because that will determine how much money is there to be divided.

"Today was mainly on HRR issues: definitions, clarifications and so forth," NHL Players' Association special counsel Steve Fehr said. "We had a frank exchange of views. We each expressed our positions in terms of some potential changes and how we thought the current agreement was working."

He wasn't ready to call Saturday's meeting a reason for optimism yet.

"It's a positive thing that we are talking when we weren't talking for some time," he said. "We could be talking about other things, so I'm not sure I'd go there.

"We're continuing the dialogue. It's very much an up-and-down process, so it's hard to say. It's good that we're talking and we're going to talk again tomorrow, hopefully for quite a while."

Some progress was made on Friday on secondary issues related to player safety and drug testing, areas that weren't expected to be contentious. The league and union held two sessions then that totaled about five hours and included an initial meeting between Bettman and Fehr.

At least they got back to talking ? which hadn't happened since a few days before the NHL locked out its players.

All of the issues, big and small, must be ironed out before hockey can get out of the board room and back on the ice. So while the divisive topics still need to be tackled, the smaller ones have to be worked on, too.

The sides still aren't moving closer to a compromise while they talk about other issues.

And that is where the frustration lies. The NHL is waiting for the players' association to make a counterproposal to one the league made in the previous bargaining session more than two weeks ago.

The NHL contends it has stated its position and needs the players' association to make what the league would consider a meaningful counter.

"The whole process is a bit complicated when you're trying to define revenue streams and what should be in and what should be out (of hockey-related revenue)," Steve Fehr said. "It's a bit complicated between the fact that their most recent economic offer says they will go back to the current definitions, yet they are seeking some changes or clarifications in what the current definitions are."

Monetary issues are not expected to come up for discussion in this round of talks. Neither side has indicated it is prepared to make a new offer now regarding how to split up the more than $3 billion annual pot of hockey-related revenue.

Saturday's talks came two days after the league canceled the remaining preseason games. The regular season is scheduled to start on Oct. 11.

If a deal isn't reached soon, regular-season games will be in danger of being lost. The NHL canceled the entire 2004-05 season because of a lockout that eventually led to the collective bargaining agreement that expired this month.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/donald-fehr-nhl-commissioner-bettman-meet-again-183215265--nhl.html

ryan reynolds Star Trek: The Original Series Carlton Morgan Freeman Dead Stand Up to Cancer earthquake peyton manning

Kids get a jump on Halloween at Ragamuffin Parade

Debbie Egan-Chin/New York Daily News

Anna Cruz, 2, dances with her cousin Xavier Curcio,3, at the 46th annual Ragamuffin Parade.

Goblins, ghouls, bumblebees and even Supergirl were on hand Saturday for the annual Ragamuffin Parade in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

Hundreds of kids, from tots to teens, marched down 3rd Ave. during the pre-Halloween bash.

And when it comes to costumes, the more unique, the better. Six creative kids won bikes this year for their Halloween garb.

vcavaliere@nydailynews.com

Source: http://feeds.nydailynews.com/~r/nydnrss/sports/basketball/nets/~3/82FEIHOB05s/brooklyn-kids-a-jump-halloween-ragamuffin-parade-article-1.1171098

detroit tigers st louis weather guinea bissau google stock google stock gawker hayden panettiere

Droopys Alfie and Holdem Maldini strong in the Heat ... - Bettor.com

Droopys Alfie and Holdem Maldini strong in the Heat & Combustion LTD Trophy ? Division A ?

The Grade OR Heat & Combustion LTD Trophy ? Division A has brought together six talented hounds among whom, Droopys Alfie and Holdem Maldini take the lead due to their recent impressive performance at the open level. The four other contestants for the ?200 prize money are Express Champ, Barnish Booth, Forest Dot and Razldazl Houdini.

The last three open outings of the two-year-old black hound, Holdem Maldini, have resulted in a second score followed by an impressive back-to-back.

The dark hound settled second in the Upton Song Puppy Trophy on 9^th September, 2012 at Coventry over 485 metres. The C. Weatherall trained missed the winner?s crown by the margin of 2 ? lengths, while the race was won by, Change Of Shift, in 29.40 seconds.

The two-year-old then pepped up in the Claydon Racing Puppy Trophy on 16^th September, 2012 at Coventry over 485 metres. He broke free from the sixth gate, settled into an early pace, took lead from the third position, drew wide and concluded the race in 29.52 seconds.

Racing through the wire after 1 ? lengths was, Longwood Mojito.

Sustaining the winning composure had Droopys Maldini?s son winning the Villa Park Puppy Stakes on 21^st September, 2012 at Perry Barr over 480 metres. This time he leashed out of the fourth trap.

The initial speed coupled with the early lead had him nailing down the race in 28.29 seconds. His lead of good 6 ? lengths had Coomlogane Black following right in the tracks.

The 5 to 1 entry will race from the extreme end of the track in black and white.

The B. Denby trained, 3 to 1 shot for the race, Droopys Alfie, has been struggling to bring in a status quo in the rankings which have been fluctuating since quite a while now. The white, blue and brindle dog won the Linacre Standard ? Division A on 23^rd September, 2012 at Coventry over 485 metres.

Taking flight from the third box, the three-year-old completed the track distance in 30.02 seconds by setting into an early pace and taking on to the command from the third position.

He will race in red tonight.

The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent bettor.com?s official editorial policy.

?

Source: http://blogs.bettor.com/Droopys-Alfie-and-Holdem-Maldini-strong-in-the-Heat-amp-Combustion-LTD-Trophy-Division-A-a191246

tu pac hologram shuttle pippa middleton space shuttle discovery spacex tupac hologram tupac back