Voice of America
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has nominated federal appeals court judge Sonia Sotomayor to replace retiring Justice David Souter on the United States Supreme Court. The president chose a woman who, if confirmed, will become the first justice of Hispanic descent.
The president says he made his pick for a lifetime appointment to the [...]

Voice of America
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she stands by her statement that the CIA misled Congress in a 2002 briefing for key lawmakers on the use of harsh interrogation methods on suspected terrorists.
Pelosi’s allegation that the CIA was not truthful when it briefed key lawmakers in September 2002 about interrogation methods [...]

NEW YORK — The government acknowledged it made a mistake after “an airliner and supersonic fighter jet zoomed past the lower Manhattan skyline,” as The Associated Press reported.
The boneheaded decision sparked worries of a 9-11 repeat.
“Last week, I approved a mission over New York. I take responsibility for that decision,” said Louis Caldera, director of [...]

ATLANTA – Upwards of 15,000 to 20,000 people gathered today at the state capitol to protest high taxes, out of control federal government spending and a number of other issues. The Atlanta “Tea Party” was one of at least 700 such peaceful protests nationwide.
U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, R-Ga., told the crowd that of the many [...]

AUSTIN — Gov. Rick Perry joined state Rep. Brandon Creighton and sponsors of House Concurrent Resolution (HCR) 50 in support of states’ rights under the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
“I believe that our federal government has become oppressive in its size, its intrusion into the lives of our citizens, and its interference with the [...]

By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service
QUANTICO, Va., April 13, 2009 – The U.S. military’s rescue of a kidnapped American ship captain yesterday was “textbook,” but the issue of piracy is likely to worsen in the absence of a systemic solution, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today.
Off the Somali coast yesterday, U.S. special operations [...]

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, April 9, 2009 – Pirates still hold the captain of the Maersk Alabama on the waters off Somalia, but the Navy destroyer USS Bainbridge has arrived on the scene, a Defense Department spokesman said today.
“There’s intense interest in this, and I appreciate that, but I must ask that you [...]

By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, April 9, 2009 – The safe return of the American maritime captain being held captive by pirates off the coast of Somalia is of primary importance, senior U.S. officials said here today at the annual Australia-U.S. Ministerial.
Following ministerial discussions on Afghanistan, U.S. engagement in Asia and other topics, [...]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Justice is planning to drop charges against Ted Stevens.
“In connection with the post-trial litigation in United States v. Theodore F. Stevens, the Department of Justice has conducted a review of the case, including an examination of the extent of the disclosures provided to the defendant,” attorney General Eric Holder [...]

JUNEAU, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin submitted her federal economic stimulus appropriation bill to legislators today to provide jobs and needed infrastructure improvements in Alaska under the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act.
Palin is accepting just 55 percent of the available stimulus funds, all for capital projects. This amount includes the funds the state accepted last [...]