The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com nW 17 2

Wednesday, September 17, 2008 - 3A

NEWS BRIEFS
NEW YORK
Fed keeps interest
rate steady, market
closes with gains
Wall Street ended another
tumultuous session with a sizable
gain yesterday, partly recover-
ing from its worst sell-off in years
after the Federal Reserve said it
was keeping interest rates steady.
The central bank soothed fears of
a worsening financial crisis even
as the market waited to learn the
fate of troubled insurer American
International Group Inc.
In a statement accompany-
ing its decision, the Fed noted the
growing strains in the financial
markets a day after the Dow Jones
industrialt plunged 504 pointn in
reaction to continuing turmoil in
" the financial sector. The Fed also
Wnoted the ongoing weakening of
the labor market. But it alasn ought
to give some reassurance by say-
ing it expected its policy moves to
foster moderate economic growth
over time.
The Fed has cut its target fed-
eral funds rate by 3.25 percentage
points to its current level of 2 per-
cent over the past year.
TBILISI, Georgia
Georgian leaders
say they have proof
Russia started war
In a bid to portray Russia as
the aggressor in last month's war,
Georgia has released recordings of
what it says are two intercepted cell
phone calls purporting to show that
Moscow invaded before Georgia's
offensive against South Ossetia.
* The recordings released yester-
day,ifauthentic,willnotcutthrough
the fog of the final hours when es-
calating tensions burst into war.
But President Mikhail Saakashvili
hopes they will help dispel a domi-
nant narrative that says his coun-
try was on the attack. He said they
prove Russian tanks and troops
entered South Ossetia many hours
before Georgia began its offensive
against separatist forces.
BAGHDAD
Petraeus hands over
top control in Iraq
Gen. David Petraeus, whose
strategy for countering the Iraq
insurgency is credited by many
with rescuing the country from all-
out civil war, stepped aside yester-
day as Gen. Ray Odierno took over
as the top American commander of
the conflict.
At a traditional change-of-com-
mand ceremony attended by top
Iraqi and American military and
civilian officials, Petraeus said that
Odierno's skills and experience
make him "the perfect man for the
job."
Petraeus said the insurgents and
militia extremists who have cre-
ated such chaos in Iraq over the
past five years are now weakened
but not yet fully defeated. He noted
that before he took the assignment

in February 2007 he had described
the situation as "hard but nothope-
lens."
ISLAMABAD
Pakistani army can
fire on U.S. troops
Pakistan's military has ordered
its forces to open fire if U.S. troops
launch another air or ground raid
across the Afghan border, an army
spokesmansaidyesterday.
The orders, which come in
response to a highly unusual Sept.
3 ground attack by U.S. comman-
dos, are certain to heighten tensions
between Washington and a key ally
against terrorism. Although the
ground attack was rare, there have
been repeated reports of U.S. drone
aircraft striking militant targets,
most recently on Sept.12.
- Compiled from
Daily wire reports
U,. DEAT HS
4,159
Number of American service
members who have died in the
war in Iraq, according to The
Associated Press. The following
deaths were identified yesterday:
Army Lt. Col. Ralph J. Mari-
no, 46, Houston, Pa.
Staff Sgt. Darris J. Dawson,
24, Pensacola, Fla.
Sgt. Wesley R. Durbin, 26,
Hurst, Texas

Alert for purse
theft cancelled

By SARA LYNNE THELEN
Daily StaffReporter
University Police cancelled
a crime alert yesterday after
investigators determined that a
purse-snatching incident never
happened.
The crime alert, issued after a
student reported her purse stolen
on Washington Heights near the
School of Public Health, was can-
celled Tuesday at 3:45 p.m.
"The investigators determined
that the incident didnotoccur," said
Diane Brown, the University Police

spokeswoman. "There is now an
investigation into the potential fil-
ing of a false police report."
Brown said she wouldn't com-
ment on the details of the investi-
gation because it's ongoing.
The student who reported the
incident first called the police Fri-
day at 7:30 a.m. She said a 6-foot-
tall black male with an "afro",
wearing a long-sleeved black shirt,
dark blue jeans and black shoes,
came up behind her and grabbed
her purse from her shoulder as she
walked near the School of Public
Health.

AP PHOTO
Marine One, with President Bush onboard, circles over the damage left behind by Hurricane Ike in Galveston, Texas, yesterday.
After Ike, recovery efforts
start along the exras coast
Officials try to force ties, but Yarbrough and other the situation White described.
officials said he didn't think that White said other distribution
those who stayed would hold. centers were also not getting sup-*
"I'm not Pollyana. I think we plies quickly enough and' most
off Galveston will find some," he said. were running out of ice.
Ike's death toll officially stood Bahamonde noted that workers
GALVESTON, Texas (AP) - at 47 yesterday, with most of the from several agencies are working
About 250 people who withstood deaths coming outside of Texas. at the distribution points.
Hurricane Ike on a coastal sliver of Authorities confirmed a total of White eased the city's curfew,
land will be forced off it so crews nine deaths in the Houston metro- now from midnight to 6 a.m., but
can begin the recovery effort, politan area, all from post-storm urged motorists to stay off the
authorities said yesterday, vowing debris-clearing work, house fires streets after dark. So far, about 100
to invoke emergency powers to or carbon monoxide poisoning by people have been cited for curfew
make it happen. generator use.. Dozens of others violations and 94 arrested for loot-
County Judge Jim Yarbrough, had been treated for carbon mon- ing, authorities said.
the top elected official in Galves- oxide poisoning, health officials Rhonda Clayburn, who lives in
ton County, said those who defied said. a trailer park in the Houston sub-
warnings that they would be killed The majority of Houston was urb of Klein, said she's been told
if they rode out the storm on the still without power late yesterday, her water service could take up to
Bolivar Peninsula are a "hardy with CenterPoint Energy project- six weeks to restore. Her family's
bunch" and there are some "old ing most would be without elec- been using an aquarium to flush
timers who aren't going to want to tricity for another week. Residents the toilet.
leave." again waited in line for hours on . "We have a lot of people in here.
The Texas attorney general's end at the 22 supply distribution It's going tq get nasty with no toi-
office is trying to figure out how centers set up in Houston to hand lets," she said. "How do we live
legally to force the holdouts to out food, water and ice. without a toilet for a month?"
leave, Yarbrough said. Local The mayor of the nation's Bahamonde said FEMA will
authorities are prepared to do fourth-largest city complained the begin paying for 30 days of hotel
whatever it takes to get residents Federal Emergency Management expenses for homeowners whose
to a safer place. Agency wasn't bringing in the sup- houses are uninhabitable. Infor-
The peninsula is too damaged plies fastenough. Mayor Bill White mation will be posted on the agen-
for residents to stay, and with no also asked that a federalsupervisor cy's Web site, and FEMA plans to
gas, no power and no running at a distribution center be fired for reimburse the hotels directly.
water, there is also concern about telling the drivers of two trucks - There were still long lines snak-
spread of disease, officials said. one filled with ice and other with ing out of gas stations across the
"I don't want to do it," Yar- food - to turn around. The super- city. White said some stations were
brough said. "I'm doing it because visor thought the site was stocked, still without power, renderingtheir
it's in their best interests." but it wasn't. pumps useless. Others had electric-
Authorities may never know if "That is not going to happen ity but were out of gas.
people who tried to weather the again," White said. Some residents are hoardinggas
storm were washed out to sea. So FEMA spokesman Marty Baha- leaving little for the people behind
far, there are no confirmed fatali- monde said he was not aware of them in line, White said.

Fed to give $85 billion
bailout to hurting AIG
WASHINGTON (AP) - In a bid "The President supports the
to save financial markets and econ- agreement announced this eve-
omy from further turmoil, the U.S. ning by the Federal Reserve," said
government agreed yesterday to White House spokesman Tony
provide an $85 billion emergency Fratto.-"These steps are taken in
loan to rescue the huge insurer the interest of promoting stability
AIG. in financial markets and limiting
The Federal Reserve said in a damage to the broader economy."
statement it determined that a dis- Treasury Secretary Henry Paul-
orderly failure of AIG could hurt son said the administration was
the already delicate financial mar- working closely with the Fed, the
kets and the economy. Securities and Exchange Commis-
It also could "lead to substantial- sion and other government regula-
ly higher borrowing costs, reduced tors to "enhance the stability and
household wealth and materially orderliness of our financial mar-
weaker economic performance," kets and minimize the disruption
the Fed said. to our economy."

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Campaign focus shifts
to economic problem's

GOLDEN, Colo. (AP) - John
McCain and Barack Obama traded
increasingly barbed insults along
with prescriptions for the ailing
economy yesterday as financial
fears shoved aside lipstick on pigs
and every other political issue in
a blink with just weeks left in the
long presidential campaign.
An ad by Democrat Obama
sneered: "How can John McCa-
in fix our economy if he doesn't
understand it's broken?"
Getting even more personal,
Republican McCain retorted:
"Sen. Obama saw'an economic
crisis, and he's found a political
opportunity. My friends, this is
not a time for political oppor-
tunism; this is a time for leader-
ship."
McCain conimented as he
and running mate Sarah Palin
addressed a rally late Tuesday in
Vienna, Ohio.
The verbal dueling showed the
importance both candidates put
on the issue of the economy as the

continuing financial meltdown on
Wall Street has driven all other
issues out of the news. Both cam-
paigns now believe the candidate
who manages to wrest control of
the issue and gain voters' confi-
dence could well be the next presi-
dent.
Earlier in the day, McCain
called for a crisis commission,
while Obama laughed that off as
"the oldest Washington stunt in
the book."
"This isn't 9/11," Obama told a
noisy crowd of more than 2,000
at the Colorado School of Mines,
dismissing the idea of a need for
study. "We know how we got into
this mess. What we need now is
leadershipthatgets us out. I'll pro-
vide it. John McCain won't."
McCain, campaigning in
Florida, promised reforms, too,
to expose and end the "reckless
conduct, corruption and unbri-
dled greed" that he said had
caused the financial crisis on
Wall Street."

Get' em while they're freshmen.
They won't be ripe for long.
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