News Desk

• European Envoy: U.S. Democratic Effort in Iran Will Backfire
  

  The Bush administration's $75 million effort to promote democracy in Iran over the long run is likely to backfire, stiffening the resolve of the Islamic regime to hold on to power and landing democratic-minded activists in jail, a senior European diplomat tells U.S. News.

  In fact, says the official, who follows Iranian affairs, many would-be antiregime activists are now recoiling from getting involved with any group or meeting that could be seen as tainted by the ...

• Morning Buzz: Dec. 21, 2007
  

  A new USA Today/Gallup Poll out today shows Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in a statistical tie in New Hampshire. Both candidates were the picks of 32 percent of voters surveyed; John Edwards came in a distant third, at 18 percent. On the Republican side, John McCain is slowly chipping away at Mitt Romney's lead: Romney now leads McCain by only 7 points, 34 to 27 percent.

  At least 50 people were killed in Sherpao, Pakistan, today when a suicide bomber attacked a throng of worshipers at the home of former Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao. With hotly contested parliamentary elections in less than three weeks, Pakistani officials worry that the attack will further destabilize the country's fragile political situation.

  Demonstrators in New Orleans rallied outside City Hall yesterday to protest a vote by the City Council that will allow the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to tear down nearly 4,500 units of public housing. New Orleans police used stun guns and chemical spray to keep protesters from entering the building.

• Howard Dean: Economy to Be a Big Issue
  

  The Iraq war will remain a big issue across the country, but the economy will overtake it over the next few months as the voters' top concern, says Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

  "The economy is really alarming a lot of Americans," he says, noting that people are afraid of losing their homes and their jobs. In a year-end interview with U.S. News, he ...

• Morning Buzz: Dec. 20, 2007
  

  American forces discovered a torture center in the Diyala province in northern Iraq, the military announced today. The center, located next to a grave where 26 bodies were found, still had blood-spattered walls and a metal frame bed connected to an electrical shock system. Al Qaeda in Iraq is thought to be responsible.

  Cancer patients without medical insurance are nearly twice as likely to die within five years as those with coverage, a new study suggests. In addition, those without proper medical insurance often do not get the required cancer screenings, and by the time cancer is caught, the disease has already spread. This research is being published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians in partnership with the American Cancer Society. The society's president called for plugging the holes in the healthcare system.

  Recently, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has become the man to beat and beat up in the Republican presidential race. The former Baptist preacher who has topped the polls in Iowa is now taking heat from rivals for his record in Arkansas. Huckabee is being criticized by Fred Thompson and others because of a law he signed as governor that gave some methamphetamine offenders more credit for good behavior.

• RNC to Move Quickly Against Dem Pick
  

  The Republican National Committee under Chairman Mike Duncan is quietly making plans to zero in on the Democratic presidential nominee as soon as possible next year.

  GOP strategists have concluded that there's a good chance the Democrats will settle on their nominee in January. But the Republican situation is more muddied, and a nominee probably won't emerge ...

• Morning Buzz: Dec. 19, 2007
  

  The House will vote today on a spending bill that includes provisions for $70 billion in aid to support the war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. After months of wrangling between Democrats and the president, the bill is now expected to pass, dealing a year-ending blow to antiwar Democrats.

  An executive at a top private-equity firm yesterday bought one of the world's most important historical and legal documents. At a much anticipated Sotheby's auction, David Rubenstein, cofounder of the Carlyle Group, bid $21.3 million on a sealed, 710-year-old copy of the Magna Carta.

  Parts of Alaska were hit by a 7.2-magnitude earthquake yesterday, although there were no immediate reports of damage or injury. The quake's epicenter was about 125 miles west of the small town of Adak, in the notoriously volcanic Aleutian Islands.

• Huckabee Takes Hits as Poll Numbers Rise
  

  As his support increases in Iowa and elsewhere, Mike Huckabee is facing a growing torrent of criticism from those who want to deny him the Republican presidential nomination. Huckabee, for example, is now in the gunsights of several of his competitors:

  * Mitt Romney says Huckabee was wrong to criticize President Bush's policies in Iraq

  * Fred Thompson says Huckabee is really a liberal.

  * Antitax conservatives are attacking him ...

• Morning Buzz: Dec. 18, 2007
  

  About 300 Turkish soldiers crossed the border into Iraq last night and remain there hunting for Kurdish rebels.  At the same time, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made a surprise visit to Kirkuk, also in the Kurdish portion of northern Iraq.

  Late night TV's Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien have decided to come back on air without their joke writers, who have been on strike. The two NBC hosts will return January 2 with new episodes. O'Brien said he would continue to show his support for the writers. "Of course, my show will not be as good," he said in a statement. "In fact, in moments it may very well be terrible."

  The Commerce Department has issued a depressing new report showing that housing construction in November dropped to a 16-year low for new single-family homes. The report also shows that applications for new building permits are at their lowest levels since 1993.

  Two space station astronauts made history this morning by taking the 100th spacewalk from the orbiting station. Commander Peggy Whitson and Daniel Tan