Michael Rasmussen was dismissed by his team from the Tour de France today for lying about his whereabouts during training. Rasmussen?s dismissal followed the news that a second team had pulled out of the race because charges of doping.
The House Judiciary Committee voted to seek contempt citations over the aides? refusal to cooperate in an inquiry into the firing of federal prosecutors.
This time next year, more world attention will be directed at China than at any time in its 2,000-year history as a unified state, and more of us will be viewing Beijing on television than at any time since the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. At exactly 8:08 p.m. and 8 seconds on Aug. 8, 2008—guess what number is seen as lucky in Chinese culture—the opening ceremonies of the 29th Summer Olympic Games will commence at the new $400 million Beijing National Stadium. And a bit after that, some revered Chinese athlete—perhaps Houston Rockets center Yao Ming—will very likely climb the stairs at one end of the hypermodern "bird's nest" and ignite the Olympic caldron, creating a flaming symbol of the global sports spectacle and, perhaps, of the start of the "Chinese Century."
Suddenly, Americans feel vulnerable to China. Not on the battlefield but at the dinner table. The recent contamination incidents involving imported Chinese seafood, pet food, and even toothpaste have eroded Americans' confidence in the nation's food-safety defenses.
Realists insist the U.S. and China are slated for military conflict in the decades ahead. America cannot peacefully accommodate China's rise because it subverts our role as the world's lone superpower.
AP - House Democrats have drafted new Iraq legislation they hope will appeal to Republicans fed up with the war: Start withdrawing troops in two months but leave it up to President Bush to decide when to complete the pullout.
AP - A presidential commission on Wednesday urged broad changes to veterans' care that would boost benefits for family members helping the wounded, establish an easy-to-use Web site for medical records and overhaul the way disability pay is awarded.
AP - The House Judiciary Committee approved a contempt of Congress citation Wednesday against White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and one-time Counsel Harriet Miers, setting up a constitutional confrontation over the firings of federal prosecutors.
One of 23 people held hostage in Afghanistan by the Taliban has been killed. Provincial police chief Gen. Ali Shah Ahmadzai said the recovered body of a South Korean had "bullet holes from head to toe."
Justin Randall began to wonder if he had picked the wrong day to drive his convertible through downtown Dallas, Texas, on Wednesday, as debris rained down from an explosion at a facility that sells liquefied natural gas.
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