• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
Download
 
WASHINGTON — PresidentObama’s national security teamis moving to reframe its warstrategy by emphasizing thecampaign against Al Qaeda inPakistan while arguing that theTaliban in Afghanistan does notpose a direct threat to the UnitedStates, officials said Wednesday.As Obama met with advisersfor three hours to discuss Paki-stan, the White House said he hasnot decided whether to approvea proposed troop buildup in Af-ghanistan. But the shift in think-ing outlined by administrationofficials suggests that the presi-dent has been presented with anapproach that would not requireall of the additional troops thathis commanding general in theregion has requested.It remains unclear whethereveryone in the war cabinet fullyaccepts this view. While VicePresident Joseph R. Biden Jr.has argued for months againstincreasing troops in Afghanistanbecause Pakistan was the great-er priority, Secretary of State Hil-lary Rodham Clinton and DefenseSecretary Robert M. Gates haveboth warned that the Talibanremain linked to Al Qaeda andwould give its fighters safe havenagain if it regained control of allor large parts of Afghanistan,making it a mistake to think ofthem as separate problems.Obama’s commander there,Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, hasargued that success demands asubstantial expansion of the U.S.presence — up to 40,000 moretroops. Any decision that pro-vides less will expose the presi-dent to criticism, especially fromRepublicans, that his policy is aprescription for failure.The White House appears to betrying to prepare the ground tocounter that by focusing atten-tion on recent successes againstQaeda cells in Pakistan. The ap-proach amounts to an alterna-tive to the analysis presentedby McChrystal. If, as the WhiteHouse has increasingly assertedin recent weeks, it has improvedthe ability of the United States toreduce the threat from Al Qaeda,then the war in Afghanistan isless central to U.S. security.In reviewing McChrystal’s re-quest, the White House is rethink-ing what was, just six months ago,a strategy that viewed Pakistanand Afghanistan as a single inte-grated problem, according to sev-eral administration officials andoutsiders who have spoken withthem. Now the discussions in theWhite House Situation Room arefocusing on related but separatestrategies for fighting Al Qaedaand the Taliban.An official said that the admin-istration has begun to define theTaliban as an indigenous groupthat does not express ambitionsof attacking the United States.“When the two are aligned, it’smainly on the tactical front,” theofficial said, noting that Al Qaedahas fewer than 100 fighters in Af-ghanistan.Officials argued that the Tali-ban cannot be wholly removedfrom Afghanistan because itis too ingrained in the country.Forces often described as Tali-ban are an amalgamation of mili-tants that includes local warlordslike Gulbuddin Hekmatyar andthe Haqqani network or othersdriven by local grievances ratherthan jihadist ideology.
PETER BAKERand ERIC SCHMITT 
WASHINGTON — First, de-pose a president. Second, hire alobbyist.In the months since soldiersousted the Honduran president,Manuel Zelaya, the de factogovernment and its supportershave resisted demands from theUnited States that he be restoredto power. Arguing that the left-leaning Zelaya posed a threat totheir country’s fragile democra-cy by attempting to illegally ex-tend his time in office, they havemade their case in Washington inthe customary way: by starting ahigh-profile lobbying campaign.The campaign has had the ef-fect of forcing the administrationto send mixed signals about itsposition to the de facto govern-ment, which reads them as signsof encouragement. It also has de-layed two key State Departmentappointments in the region.Costing at least $400,000 so far,according to lobbying registra-tion records, the campaign hasinvolved law firms and publicrelations agencies with closeties to Secretary of State HillaryRodham Clinton and Sen. JohnMcCain.It has also drawn support fromseveral former high-rankingofficials who were responsiblefor setting U.S. policy in CentralAmerica in the 1980s and ’90s,when the region was struggling tobreak with the military dictator-ships and guerrilla insurgenciesthat defined the cold war.Two decades later, those of-ficials — including Otto Reich,Roger Noriega and Daniel W.Fisk — view Honduras as theprincipal battleground in a proxyfight with Cuba and Venezuela,which they characterize as athreat to stability in the regionin language similar to that onceused to describe the designs of theSoviet Union.The de facto government hasalso mobilized the support of Re-publican legislators, led by Sen.James DeMint of South Carolina.They are holding up two State De-partment appointments —assis-tant secretary of state for West-ern Hemisphere affairs and am-bassador to Brazil — as a way ofpressing the administration to liftsanctions against the country.Chris Sabatini, the editor ofAmericas Quarterly, a policyjournal, said that to placate itsopponents in Congress, and getits nominations approved, theState Department has sent back-channel messages to legislatorsexpressing its support for Zelayain equivocal terms.
GINGER THOMPSON and RON NIXON 
 Leader Ousted, Honduras Hires U.S. Lobbyists
Obama Considers Shift in War Strategy 
 c 
WASHINGTON — The SenateFinance Committee legislationto revamp the health care sys-tem would provide coverage to29 million uninsured Americansbut would still pare future federaldeficits by slowing the growth ofspending on medical care, thenonpartisan Congressional Bud-get Office said Wednesday.The much-anticipated costanalysis showed the bill meetingPresident Obama’s main require-ments, including his demand thathealth legislation not add “onedime to the deficit.” Indeed, thebudget office said, the bill wouldreduce deficits by a total of $81billion in the decade starting nextyear.The report clears the way forthe Finance Committee chair-man, Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont.,to push for a panel vote within thenext few days, and sets the stagefor Democrats to take legislationto the floor for debate by the fullSenate this month.Despite the expansion of cover-age at a cost of $829 billion over10 years, the budget office said 25million people — about one-thirdof them illegal immigrants —would still be uninsured in 2019.In all, it said, the proportion ofnonelderly Americans with in-surance would rise over the 10years to 94 percent, from 83 per-cent today.Republicans, who are opposedto the legislation, minimized thesignificance of the cost analysis.They suggested that the “real”bill would be written secretlyby Democratic leaders as theycombine the Finance Committeemeasure with a version approvedby the Senate health committeein July.But Democrats rejoiced. Sev-eral wavering Democrats andSen. Olympia J. Snowe, R-Maine,had said they would be influencedby the budget office report. 
ROBERT PEAR andDAVID M. HERSZENHORN 
g g g c y
FROM THE PAGES OF 
Thursday,OcTOber 8, 2009 
Minigt in Nw yok 
Nine pages © 2009 The New York Times Visit The Times on the Web:
www.ntim.om 
 
MANILA — More than a weekafter Typhoon Ketsana devas-tated the Philippines, followedby a second damaging storm,large areas of Manila and near-by provinces remain flooded,and survivors — some gatheredin evacuation centers and othersmarooned in their homes — facea host of other problems, includ-ing disease and ruined crops.The high floodwaters and un-collected debris, especially inhard-to-reach areas, have re-sulted in higher numbers of ill-nesses such as diarrhea, skindiseases, coughs and colds, gov-ernment and relief officials say.The presence of mosquitoes andthe spread of the diseases theycarry, such as dengue fever andmalaria, has also become a seri-ous concern.While efforts are under way toalleviate the suffering of survi-vors, supplies and money for re-lief operations are disappearingfast, prompting the United Na-tions to appeal to other countriesfor help, saying that the Philip-pines needs an additional $101million to cope with the disaster.The food supply is also underthreat. Ketsana and the secondtyphoon, Parma, destroyed $128million worth of crops, mostlyrice, and the government hassaid it will have to import morerice to replenish stocks for nextyear.The two storms killed morethan 300 people and damaged anestimated $57 million worth ofproperty and infrastructure inaddition to the damage to agri-culture, according to the Nation-al Disaster Coordinating Council.In addition, many workers havebeen kept away from their jobs,according to Ibon Foundation,a nonprofit economic researchgroup.The disaster “could causelasting poverty and severe dif-ficulties” for those affected, par-ticularly the poor, the foundationsaid.For the moment, the govern-ment and aid organizations arefocusing on distributing reliefgoods — food, water, medicine,clothing — before tackling theclearing of debris and the rebuild-ing of infrastructure and homes.The Metropolitan Manila Devel-opment Authority said it wouldtake at least two months to cleanthe capital of tons of debris.But funds are in short supply.The World Food Program,the U.N. agency, estimates thatit alone would need $26 millionmore for its relief operations.Stephen Anderson, its countrydirector for the Philippines, saidit might be tougher now to getfunds because of recent disastersin other countries like Indonesia,Vietnam and Samoa. “The donorcommunity is stretched,” he said.
CARLOS H. CONDE
 Floodwaters Bring Disease in Philippines
Three scientists who showedhow the information encoded onstrands of DNA is translated intothe thousands of proteins thatmake up living matter will sharethe 2009 Nobel Prize for Chemis-try, the Swedish Academy of Sci-ences said Wednesday.The trio are Venkatraman Ra-makrishnan of the M.R.C. Labo-ratory of Molecular Biology inCambridge, England; Thomas A.Steitz of Yale University; and AdaE. Yonath of the Weizmann Insti-tute of Science in Rehovot, Israel.Each will get a third of the prize,worth $1.4 million.Working independently andusing, among other things, the X-rays generated by powerful par-ticle accelerators and prodigiouscomputer calculations, the threewinners and their colleagues suc-ceeded in mapping the locationsof the hundreds of thousands ofatoms in the giant molecular com-plexes inside cells known as ribo-somes. The Swedish academy saidthe three were being honored “forhaving showed what the ribosomelooks like and how it functions atthe atomic level.”The work, scientists said, hashad important medical implica-tions. Some antibiotics work bygumming up the ribosomes of bac-teria, allowing those bacteria to bestopped at no danger to their host.The ribosome research is beingused to develop new antibiotics.Ramakrishnan was born in Chi-dambaram, India, in 1952 and ob-tained his Ph.D. at Ohio Universi-ty. He holds U.S. citizenship. Steitzwas born in Milwaukee in 1940 andgot his Ph.D. from Harvard.Yonath was born in Jerusalemin 1939, earned her Ph.D. at theWeizmann Institute of Science andhas worked in Israel her whole life.Yonath is the fourth woman to winthe chemistry prize, said ThomasLane, president of the AmericanChemical Society.Lane said it reflected “a tremen-dous change in the demographicsof the field.” More than 50 percentof chemistry degrees are nowearned by women, he said.
DENNIS OVERBYE
 3 Share Chemistry Prize for Ribosome Research
ROME — Italy’s highest courtoverturned a law on Wednesdaygranting Prime Minister SilvioBerlusconi immunity from pros-ecution, in a ruling that reopenscorruption trials against him.After deliberating for two daysin a tense political climate, theConstitutional Court ruled thatthe law — which grants the na-tion’s four highest office holdersimmunity from prosecution whilein office — violated a clause in theConstitution granting citizensequality under the law.The practical consequences ofthe ruling are unclear. Berlusco-ni, 73, has successfully fended offprosecutors for years.But it comes as a deep blow at adifficult time. It opens a new frontagainst the embattled prime min-ister, who is already defendinghimself against sex scandals thathave tarnished his internationalimage and attacks from withinhis own center-right coalition.“This is the most difficult dayfor Berlusconi since he enteredpolitical life,” said Stefano Folli,a political columnist for the finan-cial daily Il Sole 24 Ore. “The gov-ernment won’t fall over this, butas prime minister he is weakerthan he has ever been.”In televised remarks, a defiantBerlusconi said he would “forgeon” and serve out his mandate un-til 2013.
RACHEL DONADIO
 Italian Court Rejects Immunity for Prime Minister 
in brief
Gueilla LeadeFeed i Jailbeak
Machine gun-firing militantson motorbikes attacked a pris-on in Colombia on Wednesday,freeing a guerrilla commanderwho was accused of kidnappingtwo U.S. journalists. One guardwas killed and another woundedin the midday raid at the prisonin the northeastern city of Arau-ca, which ended with the rebelchief, Gustavo Anibal Giraldo,fleeing on the back of a motor-cycle, the authorities said.
(AP)
Fightig Al QaedaI Afgha Piss
In an effort to combat AlQaeda’s growing influence andpresence in Afghanistan’s pris-ons, the Pentagon is creating anew military task force to over-see an overhaul of the deten-tion operations there. The De-fense Department named ViceAdm. Robert S. Harward, a for-mer Navy Seal commander inAfghanistan who is now deputycommander of the military’sJoint Forces Command, to leadthe task force.
(NYT)
Egypt Cuts TiesWith the Luve
Egypt said Wednesday thatits antiquities department hadsevered ties with the Louvremuseum, because it had refusedto return what the Egyptianssay are stolen artifacts: re-liefs chipped from the walls of atomb. The decision means thatno archaeological expeditionsconnected to the Louvre will beallowed to work in Egypt.
(AP)
Pakista Amy Upset
The Pakistani Army ex-pressed anger at the terms ofa $1.5 billion U.S. aid package,saying it interfered with Paki-stan’s security, a posture thatset it at loggerheads with thegovernment. The section of thelegislation that has outragedthe army says the secretary ofstate must report to Congressevery six months on whetherthe government is exercising“effective civilian control overthe military.”
(NYT)
InTErnATIonAL
 
Thursday, OcTOber 8, 2009
2
 
in brief
Fme Aget PleadsI Taffickig Case
Richard P. Cramer, 56, a for-mer high-ranking federal agent,pleaded not guilty on Wednes-day to drug trafficking chargesthat included accusations thathe gave intelligence to Mexicancartel members. Cramer, whoserved with Immigration andCustoms Enforcement on theArizona border and in Guadala-jara, Mexico, was arrested lastmonth at his home near Tucson.According to the complaint, hesearched U.S. and California da-tabases to see if drug traffick-ing organization members wereinformants for U.S. law enforce-ment. The case is being prose-cuted in Miami.
(NYT)
Paets Seteced
A Wisconsin couple has beensentenced for failing to seekmedical attention for their illdaughter. The parents, Dale andLeilani Neumann, were orderedon Tuesday to serve 30 days injail each year for the next sixyears, and 10 years on proba-tion. The Neumanns, who live inWeston, were convicted of sec-ond-degree reckless homicide.Their daughter, Madeline, 11,died from untreated diabetes onMarch 23, 2008. When she couldno longer walk or talk, her par-ents prayed for her recovery in-stead of taking her to a doctor,the authorities said.
(NYT)
Detaiee Measue
Congressional leaders havedecided to allow detainees im-prisoned at Guantánamo Bay tobe brought to the United Statesto face trials, legislative aidessaid. The compromise wouldforbid the administration fromreleasing detainees in the Unit-ed States.
(NYT)
nmiee Blcked
M. Patricia Smith, PresidentObama’s nominee to be the La-bor Department’s top enforce-ment official, won approvalfrom a Senate panel but imme-diately encountered a roadblockwhen Sen. Michael B. Enzi, R-Wyo., said he would put a holdon the nomination.
(NYT)
Irving Penn, one of the 20thcentury’s most prolific and influ-ential photographers of fashionand the famous, whose signatureblend of classical elegance andcool minimalism was recogniz-able to magazine readers andmuseumgoers worldwide, died onWednesday at his home in Man-hattan. He was 92.Penn’s talent for picturing hissubjects with clarity and econo-my earned him the admirationof Vogue readers during his longassociation with that magazine,beginning in 1943. It also broughthim recognition in the art world;his photographs have been exhib-ited in museums and galleriesand are prized by collectors.His career at Vogue spanneda number of transformations infashion and its depiction, but hisstyle remained constant. Imbuedwith calm and decorum, his pho-tographs often seemed intent ondefying fashion. His models andportrait subjects were neverseen leaping or running or turn-ing themselves into blurs. Evenmembers of the Hells Angels,photographed in San Franciscoin 1967, were transformed withinthe quieting frame of his studiocamera into the graphic equiva-lent of a Greek frieze.Instead of spontaneity, Pennprovided the illusion of a séance,his gaze precisely describing theprofile of a Balenciaga coat orof a Moroccan djellaba in a waythat could almost mesmerize theviewer. Nothing escaped the edg-es of his photographs unless hecommanded it. His subjects wereusually shown whole, apparentlyenjoying a splendid isolation fromthe real world.He was probably most famousfor photographing Parisian fash-ion models and the world’s greatcultural figures, but he seemedequally at home photographingPeruvian peasants or bunionpads. Merry A. Foresta, whohelped organize a 1990 retrospec-tive of his work, wrote that hispictures exhibited “the controlof an art director fused with theprocess of an artist.”Irving Penn was born June 16,1917, in Plainfield, N.J. His fa-ther, Harry, was a watchmakerand his mother, Sonia, a nurse.As a student at the PennsylvaniaMuseum School of Industrial Artin Philadelphia from 1934 to 1938,Penn studied drawing, paintingand graphic and industrial de-sign. His most influential teacherwas the Russian émigré AlexeyBrodovitch, the art director atHarper’s Bazaar.Penn’s marriage to Lisa Fon-ssagrives, a leading model andartist, lasted 42 years, endingwith her death at the age of 80 in1992. Penn’s photographs of hercaptured a slim woman of loftysophistication and radiant goodhealth and set the aesthetic stan-dard for the fashion photographyof the 1940s and ’50s.
ANDY GRUNDBERG
 Fashion Photographer Irving Penn Dies at 92 
While concern over the spreadof the H1N1 virus sweeps thecountry, epidemiologists in NewYork and a few other cities thatwere awash in swine flu lastspring are detecting very littleevidence of a resurgence.Although flu season will notpeak until the weather gets cold,in New York, which was the na-tion’s hardest hit city, officialssay that flu activity is no higherthan it normally is at this time ofyear and that school attendanceis normal.Last week, Dr. Anne Schuchat,the director of immunization atthe federal Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention, said,“Most states do have quite a lot ofdisease right now, and that’s un-usual for this time of year.”But public health officials saythere appears to be a pattern ofareas that had big outbreaks inthe spring, like New York, Bos-ton and Philadelphia, seeing lessswine flu now.New York City health officialsnow believe that while only 10percent to 20 percent of NewYorkers were reported ill withflu last spring, as many as 20 per-cent to 40 percent may have beenexposed to the disease and devel-oped immunity that has prevent-ed it from spreading.Although it is too early to besure, they said, the high level ofimmunity may mean that thesecond wave of swine flu infectionends up being far less extensivethan expected.Officials say the conflictingdata show the delicate balancepublic health officials are walk-ing with swine flu. So far it hasturned out to be less deadly than itseemed when a pattern of deathswas reported in Mexico.At the same time, officials fearthat it could take a turn for theworse, and they want to maintaina high level of alertness withoutcrying wolf too many times.
ANEMONA HARTOCOLLISand DONALD G. MCNEIL Jr.
 Areas Hit Hard by Flu in Spring See Little Now
HELENA, Mont. — InteriorSecretary Ken Salazar saidWednesday that he was proposingto create seven new wild-horsepreserves, including one in theEast and one in the Midwest, toaddress the problem of a growingpopulation crowding the Westernrange.The program, which also ap-plies to wild burros, would expandthe use of contraceptives andwould geld more herds on publiclands in the West, Salazar said.The seven new preserves wouldaccommodate 25,000 non-repro-ducing horses. The preserves’size and sites have yet to be deter-mined, and the program is sub-ject to Congressional approval.A spokesman for Salazar put theexpense of creating the two pre-serves in the East and the Mid-west alone at some $96 million.The goal is to reduce not onlythe 37,000 free roaming horsesand burros in the West but alsothe 32,000 housed in corrals,where they must be fed and caredfor at government expense. “Thearid Western lands simply cannotsupport a population this largewithout significant damage,”Salazar said.Officials said that the new pro-gram would not involve euthana-sia or slaughter of horses, neitherof which is permitted now. 
JIM ROBBINS
7 New Preserves Envisioned to Manage Wild Horses
nATIonAL
 
Thursday, OcTOber 8, 2009
3
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...