Pentagon program to limit the threat of roadside bombs faces budget cut
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on December 11th, 2011 5:34 am by HL
Pentagon program to limit the threat of roadside bombs faces budget cut
Budget hawks may cut back a five-year-old Pentagon program aimed at curbing casualties from the crude roadside bombs known as IEDs, a leading threat to U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
The Senate Armed Services Committee has proposed trimming $265 million from the Pentagon’s $3.2 billion budget for the program. The Government Accountability Office and some think tanks have said it’s duplicative, raising questions about the long-term viability of the program.
Gingrich comes under attack in GOP debate
DES MOINES —Republican presidential front-runner Newt Gingrich came under sharp and repeated attack here Saturday night, accused by his rivals of being a career politician who has profited by being a Washington insider, a serial hypocrite who has often changed his views and a leader whose intemperate rhetoric can hurt the United States internationally.
Iowa ABC/Yahoo Republican debate: The live blog
If you’re like us, you’re spending your Saturday night at home. And glad to be there.
That’s because six Republican presidential candidates will take the debate stage at Drake University in Des Moines tonight at 9 p.m. for their thirteenth (!) debate of the 2012 race.
And, we’ll be live-blogging every minute of it! Never participated in one of our live-blogs before? It’s like watching the debate with your nerdiest (and biggest wise-cracking) friends.
An upbeat Romney pops in on Des Moines campaign staff
DES MOINES – Mitt Romney, peppy and even silly, popped up unannounced Saturday at his campaign headquarters here, where he rallied volunteers by telling light-hearted stories about his family and even offering to autograph his supporters’ bare arms.
“Just undo your shirt and we’ll sign your arm,” Romney joked.
Romney is a habitually upbeat presidential candidate, but he seemed particularly so Saturday, just hours before taking the stage at Drake University here for his first debate since former House speaker Newt Gingrich surged past him to a commanding lead in the polls.
On Friday night, following a few hours of debate preparation here with his top advisers, Romney said he relaxed by retiring to his hotel room with his wife, Ann, and their 35-year-old son, Josh. Romney told reporters they watched “The Help,” which he said he picked up at RedBox, and called the film about black maids in 1960s Mississippi “very powerful.”
Iowa Republican debate: Winners and losers
It’s all over but the spinning at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa where six Republican presidential candidates duked it out earlier this evening.
We live-blogged the debate but also managed to come up with some of the winners — and losers — from the night that was. Our picks are below. Have some of your own? The comments section awaits.
