|
AP Top News at 7:57 a.m. EST
(AP Online Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Citigroup to help at-risk borrowers stay in homesNEW YORK (AP) _ Citigroup says it is imposing a moratorium on most foreclosures as part of a series of initiatives aimed at helping at-risk borrowers remain in their homes _ making Citi the latest big bank to announce sweeping efforts to try to curtail losses from souring mortgages. Citi said late Monday it won't initiate a foreclosure or complete a foreclosure sale on any eligible borrower who seeks to stay in a home if it is the borrower's principal residence, the homeowner is working in good faith with Citi and has sufficient income to make affordable mortgage payments.
Aides: Obama suggested more help for auto industryWASHINGTON (AP) _ President-elect Obama suggested to President Bush that struggling U.S. automakers need more federal help, aides to the Democrat say, in the first face-to-face meeting the pair had since Obama's election victory. Obama's aides said the president-elect on Monday discussed with Bush the need for urgent action. The Illinois senator's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, said only that the talks during Obama's first post-election victory to the White House were mostly "about the broad health of the industry" and were not just limited to any one of the three largest car makers.
Obama to mark Veterans Day with wreath-layingCHICAGO (AP) _ President-elect Obama planned to honor fallen troops Tuesday, taking a short break from his primary task of mapping out his administration to mark Veterans Day. The Democrat was slated to lay a wreath in Chicago, accompanied by Tammy Duckworth, a disabled Iraq war veteran and 2006 failed congressional candidate who now is the Illinois governor's veterans affairs director.
Moment of truth for Shiite party over pactBAGHDAD (AP) _ The fate of an agreement that would keep U.S. troops here for three more years rests with Iraq's largest Shiite party, which must choose between its two main partners: the United States and Iran. Most lawmakers are waiting for that party, the Supreme Islamic Iraq Council, to take a position on the agreement, which parliament must approve by the end of the year. Only then will smaller groups, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's own Shiite party, commit to the deal or oppose it.
Iraqis reopen major bridge in BaghdadBAGHDAD (AP) _ Hundreds of people joined Iraqi officials on Tuesday in reopening a major bridge linking Sunni and Shiite neighborhoods in Baghdad _ a further sign of improving security in the Iraqi capital. Still, the relative calm in Baghdad remains tenuous, and scattered attacks occur almost daily. A pair of roadside bombs exploded in quick succession in east Baghdad during the Tuesday morning rush hour, killing three people and wounding 14 others, police and hospital officials said.
Studies: Elderly fare well in open-heart surgeryNEW ORLEANS (AP) _ Eighty-year-olds with clogged arteries or leaky heart valves used to be sent home with a pat on the arm from their doctors and pills to try to ease their symptoms. Now more are getting open-heart surgery, with remarkable survival rates rivaling those of much younger people, new studies show. Years ago, physicians "were told we were pushing the envelope" to operate on a 70-year-old, said Dr. Vincent Bufalino, a cardiologist at Loyola University in Chicago. But today "we have elderly folks who are extremely viable, mentally quite sharp," who want to decide for themselves whether to take the risk, he said.
Jon Stewart, Lily Tomlin honor George CarlinWASHINGTON (AP) _ The late comedian George Carlin _ famous for those "Seven Words You Can Never Say on TV" _ was honored Monday with the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, the only award he saw as a legitimate comedy prize. Jon Stewart, Lily Tomlin, Joan Rivers and others saluted Carlin at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for inspiring their own comedy, and they took up his cause of pushing the boundaries of free speech.
'Leave It to Beaver' actor to show at the LouvreLOS ANGELES (AP) _ Eat your heart out, Eddie Haskell. Tony Dow, best known as the actor who portrayed The Beav's big brother, Wally, in the '50s TV series "Leave It to Beaver," will have one of his abstract sculptures on display at the Louvre. Several sculptors from the Karen Lynne Gallery _ including Dow _ will have their works shown at the historic art museum in Paris as part of the Societe Nationale des Beaux-Arts exhibition. "Having something shown at the Louvre is about as good as you can get," said Dow, who lives in Los Angeles, "especially when it's a juried show like this where there's a panel of judges who pick the pieces to be in the exhibition. I'm a little humbled by the whole thing but grateful nonetheless."
World's ugliest dog dies after battle with cancerGULFPORT, Fla. (AP) _ A one-eyed, three-legged dog that won the title of world's ugliest pooch this summer has died. The St. Petersburg Times in Florida reports that Gus, a Chinese crested dog, had cancer. He was 9. Gus was rescued from a bad home and went on to win the annual World's Ugliest Dog contest at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in northern California. Gus came from humble origins. According to the fair, his adopted family in Gulfport, Fla., rescued him after learning he was being kept in a crate inside someone's garage.
Warner leads Cardinals to 29-24 win over 49ersGLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) _ Kurt Warner's ageless arm and an improbable goal-line stand at the finish saved the Arizona Cardinals from an ugly loss on a national stage. The Cardinals stopped Michael Robinson up the middle from the 2-yard line as the game ended Monday night to preserve a 29-24 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Warner finished 32-of-42 for 328 yards and three touchdowns without an interception in Arizona's sixth consecutive home victory, fourth this season.
Copyright ? 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
[ Back To SIP Trunking Home's Homepage ]
|
