Governors oppose switch to federal control of Guard
Washington – The nation’s governors, protesting what they call an unprecedented shift in authority from the states to the federal government, will urge Congress today to block legislation that would allow the president to take control of National Guard forces in the event of a natural disaster or threat to homeland security.
In a sharply worded letter that will be transmitted to Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress this morning, the governors ask that a House-Senate conference committee remove a provision included in the House-passed version of the National Defense Authorization Act giving the president such authority.
“This provision was drafted without consultation or input from governors and represents an unprecedented shift in authority from governors as commanders and chief of the Guard to the federal government,” the governors state in the letter.
As of Sunday, 51 governors, including some from U.S. territories, had signed the letter, a sign of broad bipartisan support that underscored the depth of opposition among state executives to encroachments by Washington on their powers.
The governors discovered the provision two weeks ago, and the effort to have it removed from the defense bill began at last week’s National Governors Association summer meeting in Charleston, S.C.
CAMARILLO, Calif.
At $3.025, gas prices hit new national high
Nationwide gas prices hit yet another record in the past three weeks, rising just over 1 cent to nearly $3.03 per gallon, according to a survey released Sunday.
The national average for self- serve regular unleaded stood at $3.025 a gallon Friday, up 1.06 cents since July 21, according to the Lundberg Survey of 7,000 gas stations across the country. The price exceeds the previous high of $3.015 set in July, analyst Trilby Lundberg said.
A gallon of midgrade gasoline averaged around $3.13, and premium averaged $3.23. Nationwide, the lowest price for regular was $2.82 a gallon in Charleston, S.C., while the highest – $3.29 a gallon – was in Chicago.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa.
Shipping sugar, flour turns into police case
A woman who sent flour and sugar through the mail set off a major hazardous-materials response when one of her packages leaked, police said.
About 80 police officers and firefighters were sent to the State College post office Saturday because of what appeared to be a menacing powder.
The woman told police she was transferring from Penn State to a school in Chicago and was trying to save money by not replacing her flour and sugar.
The woman will not be charged, and her name was not released.
“Her story checked out,” police Cpl. Tom Dann said. “She seemed to be sincerely sorry she didn’t package it properly and one of the packages broke.”
CRAWFORD, Texas
Bush leaves Texas, but protesters remain
Anti-war demonstrators said Sunday they hope the end of President Bush’s ranch vacation doesn’t hurt attendance at their protest during the rest of the summer.
They urged opponents of the war in Iraq to come to the 5-acre campsite purchased last month by Cindy Sheehan, who resumed her protest a week ago.
Sheehan’s first trek to Crawford one year ago during Bush’s monthlong vacation turned into a 26-day vigil that drew more than 10,000 people and spurred counterprotests by Bush supporters.
A few hundred war opponents returned at Thanksgiving, when Bush was at his ranch, and again in April, the president’s first Easter away from Crawford.
On Sunday, about 100 protesters were camped on Sheehan’s land, about 7 miles from the ranch.
Bush arrived at his ranch Aug. 3 and returned to Washington on Sunday as previously scheduled, his shortest summer vacation yet.
KABUL, Afghanistan
Officials hope to stop attacks on schools
Fighting in Afghanistan left at least 25 insurgents and five Afghan security forces dead, officials said Sunday. Defying the spike in violence, Afghan officials announced plans to thwart attacks on schools.
In eastern Paktika province, along the Pakistan border, insurgents attacked an Afghan army post Sunday. Five soldiers and at least 18 militants died, the U.S.-led coalition said. Six Afghan soldiers were hurt, three seriously. Coalition soldiers embedded with the Afghan troops said they suffered no casualties.
In the southern Helmand province, police on Saturday killed six Taliban militants and wounded four, said Ghulam Rasool, the district police chief. The clash continued Sunday and three officers were wounded, he said.
In the capital, Education Minister Mohammed Hareef Atmaf announced the school safety plan, noting that insurgents burned 144 schools and killed 41 students and teachers in the past year to discredit the government’s ability to build a future for Afghanistan.
The top U.S. general in Afghanistan, Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, signed a deal with Atmaf to provide $300,000 to help rally communities to protect schools.
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia
Bird-flu case leads to monitoring village
A Cambodian village where 1,200 ducks dropped dead in a new outbreak of bird flu will be closely monitored for 30 days to prevent the disease from spreading, an official said Sunday.
Animal health officials will continue collecting samples from poultry in the village and a 2-mile radius around it to test for bird flu, said Kao Phal, director of the Agriculture Ministry’s animal health department.
He said another 400 ducks were killed by health authorities, part of the 1,600 on the small village farm where the outbreak began.
The ministry on Saturday confirmed the outbreak of H5N1 virus among ducks in the village 30 miles southeast of the capital.
