War, Economy, Politics Sour Views of Nation's Direction
By Dan Balz and Jon CohenWashington Post
One year out from the 2008 election, Americans are deeply pessimistic and eager for a change in direction from the agenda and priorities of President Bush, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.
Concern about the economy, the war in Iraq and growing dissatisfaction with the political environment in Washington all contribute to the lowest public assessment of the direction of the country in more than a decade. Just 24 percent think the nation is on the right track, and three-quarters said they want the next president to chart a course that is different than that pursued by Bush.
Overwhelmingly, Democrats want a new direction, but so do three-quarters of independents and even half of Republicans. Sixty percent of all Americans said they feel strongly that such a change is needed after two terms of the Bush presidency.
Dissatisfaction with the war in Iraq remains a primary drag on public opinion, and Americans are increasingly downcast about the state of the economy. More than six in 10 called the war not worth fighting, and nearly two-thirds gave the national economy negative marks. The outlook going forward is also bleak: About seven in 10 see a recession as likely over the next year.
The overall landscape tilts in the direction of the Democrats, but there is evidence in the new poll -- matched in conversations with political strategists in both parties and follow-up interviews with survey participants -- that the coming battle for the White House is shaping up to be another hard-fought, highly negative and closely decided contest.
At this point, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.), the Democratic front-runner, holds the edge in hypothetical match-ups with four of the top contenders for the Republican nomination. But against the two best-known GOP candidates, former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani and Sen. John McCain (Ariz.), her margins are far from comfortable. Not one of the leading candidates in either party has a favorable rating above 51 percent in the new poll.
And while Clinton finds herself atop all candidates in terms of strong favorability -- in the poll, 28 percent said they feel strongly favorable toward her -- she also outpaces any other candidate on strong unfavorables. More than a third, 35 percent, have strongly negative views of her, more than 10 points higher than any other contender.
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Edwards Raises Criticism of Clinton Over Iraq Plan
By JEFF ZELENY and MICHAEL COOPER
Published: November 5, 2007
IOWA CITY, Nov. 4 — As Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton collected the endorsement today from former Vice President Walter Mondale, one of her Democratic rivals intensified his criticism of her candidacy, saying she had not been forthcoming with voters who will open the nominating contest here in less than two months.
The rival, former Senator John Edwards, said he would draw new distinctions with Mrs. Clinton in a speech here on Monday, raising questions with other Democrats over Iraq and Iran.
“Senator Clinton is voting like a hawk in Washington, while talking like a dove in Iowa and New Hampshire,” Mr. Edwards plans to say, according to excerpts of a speech provided by his campaign. “We only need one mode from our president: tell-the-truth mode all the time.”
Mr. Edwards, of North Carolina, and Mrs. Clinton, of New York, campaigned across eastern Iowa on Sunday, exactly one year before Election Day 2008. At each of his stops, Mr. Edwards focused his attention on Mrs. Clinton and in the speech here on Monday he said he would outline a plan for Iran and call on her to present a specific plan for how she would end the war, including how many troops would remain in Iraq.
“With less than 60 days to the caucus, Senator Clinton has still not given specific answers to specific questions,” Mr. Edwards is to say, according to the excerpts. “How many troops will she withdraw, and when will she withdraw them?” _______________________________________
November 4, 2007
Clinton 'broadly supports' states' efforts to license illegals
CLINTON, Iowa (CNN) — Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York, Sunday sought to further clarify her position on New York Gov. Elliot Spitzer’s controversial plan to give driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants, a position which she said she’s already made clear on "a number of occasions."
The issue was brought front and center at Tuesday night’s Democratic debate. At the time Clinton said the plan "makes a lot of sense" but stopped short of endorsing it. Former Sen. John Edwards, D-North Carolina, claimed her answer was inconsistent and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, has since said that her answer to that question and others "left us wondering."
Asked by reporters Sunday why it’s taken so long for clarification Clinton admitted she "wasn’t as clear as [she] should have been" but added, "I broadly support what governors like Elliot Spitzer are trying to do.
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By Donald Greenlees and David Lague
Published: November 4, 2007
PetroChina expected to surpass Exxon Mobil as most valuable company
HONG KONG: When the state oil and natural gas company PetroChina makes its debut Monday on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, China's booming stock markets will be on the verge of another milestone. Soon after the Shanghai listing, analysts expect PetroChina to surpass the U.S. energy behemoth Exxon Mobil as the world's largest company by market value.
PetroChina shares, already traded in New York and Hong Kong, are expected to be seized on by a market awash with cash and investors eager for new opportunities. At the close of markets Friday, PetroChina was valued at $460 billion, making it the world's second-most-valuable company, worth about $26 billion less than Exxon Mobil.
I think we all need to learn to speak chinese!
On the other hand!
World's Coal Dependency Hits Environment
MICHAEL CASEY
TAIYUAN, China — It takes five to 10 days for the pollution from China's coal-fired plants to make its way to the United States, like a slow-moving storm.
It shows up as mercury in the bass and trout caught in Oregon's Willamette River. It increases cloud cover and raises ozone levels. And along the way, it contributes to acid rain in Japan and South Korea and health problems everywhere from Taiyuan to the United States.
This is the dark side of the world's growing use of coal.
Cheap and abundant, coal has become the fuel of choice in much of the world, powering economic booms in China and India that have lifted millions of people out of poverty. Worldwide demand is projected to rise by about 60 percent through 2030 to 6.9 billion tons a year, most of it going to electrical power plants
They look at polluted places like Taiyuan and say it's so polluted there so it doesn't matter if they have another five power plants," said Ramanan Laxminarayan, a senior fellow at Resources For the Future, an American think tank that found links between air pollution and rising hospital admissions in Taiyuan.
"I visited these power plants and there is no concept of pollution control," he said. "They sort of had a laugh and asked, 'Why would you expect us to install pollution control equipment?'"
China is home to 20 of the world's 30 most polluted cities, according to a World Bank report.
Health costs related to air pollution total $68 billion a year, nearly 4 percent of the country's economic output, the report said. And acid rain has contaminated a third of the country, Sheng Huaren, a senior Chinese parliamentary official, said last year. It is said to destroy some $4 billion worth of crops every year.
"What we are facing in China is enormous economic growth, and ... China is paying a price for it," said Henk Bekedam, the country representative for the World Health Organization. "Their growth is not sustainable from an environmental perspective. The good news is that they realize it. The bad news is they're dependent on coal as an energy source." _____________________________________
NOW IT IS A CONFRONTATION !
The confrontation with Iran
Experts: No evidence of Iranian nuclear weapons program
Of course we know that did not stop the bomb twins in Iraq!
WASHINGTON — Despite President Bush's claims that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons that could trigger "World War III," experts in and out of government say there's no conclusive evidence that Tehran has an active nuclear-weapons program.
Even his own administration appears divided about the immediacy of the threat. While Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney speak of an Iranian weapons program as a fact, Bush's point man on Iran, Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns, has attempted to ratchet down the rhetoric.
They lack definitive proof, but cite a great deal of circumstantial evidence. Bush's rhetoric seems hyperbolic compared with the measured statements by his senior aides and outside experts.
"I've told people that if you're interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them (Iran) from having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon," he said Oct. 17 at a news conference.
"Our country, and the entire international community, cannot stand by as a terror-supporting state fulfills its grandest ambitions," Cheney warned on Oct 23. "We will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon."
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