The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Wednesday, April 1, 2009 - 3A The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Wednesday, April 1, 2009 - 3A NEWSBRIEFS * DETROIT GM, Chrysler race against time to avoid bankruptcy He doesn't know exactly what the Obama administration wants himtocut;but Fritz Henderson, the new CEO of General Motors Corp., isn't waiting around to find out. Cut deeper. Work harder. Move faster. That's how he described the ailing automaker's urgent effort to meet a June 1 deadline to fix its debt-ridden balance sheet, cut bil- lions in costs and take other steps to transform itself into a profitable entity. It's the same government- imposed race that Chrysler LLC is running, only GM's smaller neigh- bor has to cover more distance in * half the time. The Auburn Hills, Mich., auto- maker must make the same cuts as GM, and sign up Fiat Group SpA as a partner, all in 30 days. Fiat's CEO jetted to Detroit for intense negoti- ations, but if Chrysler doesn't meet the deadline, it's almost certainly destined for the auction house. DETROIT Detroit schools settle with former chief The Detroit Public Schools has settled a lawsuit with a former superintendent who claimed he . was wrongfully fired. Emergency financial manager Robert Bobb says in a release that the district has settled with Wil- liam Coleman III for an undisclosed amount. Coleman was replaced in 2007 by former Superintendent Connie Calloway, now on adminis- trative leave. Coleman alleged he was fired after asking federal authorities to investigate financial irregularities. CAMPPENDLETON, Calif. Trial begins for Marine involved in Iraq killings case A court-martial began yesterday fns a.R4 Mine accused of killing an unarmed captive in Iraq in a case officials knew nothing about until the defendant sought a Secret Ser- vice job and was asked about the most serious crime he had ever committed. An attorney for Sgt. Ryan Weem- er told the jury that prosecutors cannot prove their case because they have no body, no forensic evi- dence and no relatives complain- ing of alost loved one. Prosecutors, however, played recorded inter- views in which Weemer said he gnd other Marines shot a total of four Bpen in Fallujah in November 2004 after their squad suffered its first fatality. Weemer, 26, of Hindsboro, Ill., is accused of the unpremeditated murder of one man and dereliction of duty. His former squad leader was acquitted of related charges in federal court and another squad member has yet to face court-mar- tial. The case came to light long after the battle. COLUMBUS, Ohio. JIonda offers worker buyouts, cuts pay in North America HondaMotorCo. isofferingvol- untary buyouts, cutting workers' pay and imposing 13 non-produc- tion days at its North American plants to reduce its output this summer by 62,000 vehicles. Honda spokesman Ron Lietzke said Tuesday that the buyouts will be offered at most of the Japanese automaker's facilities in the North America, where it employs 35,600 people. Sweetened retirement packages are also being offered, he said. Overall compensation will be reduced for its North Ameri- can employees, with top execu- tives experiencing the biggest cuts, Lietzke said. He would not say how much salaries would be reduced. Bonuses will be greatly reduced or eliminated, but pay rates for production and hourly workers will not be affected, Lietzke said. "There is a continuing need to reduce our inventory," Lietzke said. "Regardless of job title or level within our organization, each Honda associate will share the responsibility of doing what we must do tq remain competitive." - Compiled from Daily wire reports Taliban chief: Next targets will be in U.S. Benjamin Netanyahu, right, struck a conciliatory tone as he took office yesterday, promising to seek a "permanent arrange- ment" with the Palestinians and "full peace" with the entire Arab and Muslim world. New IsraelI leader seeks peace with Arabs, Musli*ms Netanyahu hesitant to embrace the idea of Palestinian statehood JERUSALEM (AP) - Benjamin Netanyahu, taking office as Israel's new leader yesterday, promised to seek "full peace" with the Arab and Muslim world, but refused to utter the words the world was waiting to hear: "Palestinian state." The well-spoken, U.S.-educated hawk took pains to portray himself as a pragmatist, telling a packed parliament that Israel does not want to rule the Palestinians. "Under the permanent status agreement, the Palestinians will have all the authority to rule them- selves," Netanyahu said in com- ments that appeared to hark back to a decades-old notion that peace could be achieved through limited Palestinian autonomy. His words drew a sharp reac- tion from Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat. "I want to say to Mr. Netanyahu that the only way the Palestinians can rule themselves, by themselves, is through ending the Israeli occupation that began in 1967 and establishing an indepen- dent Palestinian state," Erekat said. Netanyahu's refusal to embrace the idea of Palestinian statehood could put him at odds with the Obama administration and much of the rest of the world. So could his decision to appoint ultranational- ist politician Avigdor Lieberman as foreign minister. In recent days, however, Netan- yahu has moved to soften his image, welcomingthe centrist Labor party into an otherwise markedly right- wing coalition and announcing that he supports peace talks with the Palestinians. The 59-year-old politician - the son of a prominent historian and the brother of a war hero who died commanding the daring 1976 hos- tage rescue at Entebbe, Uganda - is returning to the premiership a decade after being forced from it amid a string of failures. In his speech before parliament Tuesday, Netanyahu praised Islam- ic culture as "great and rich," and said Israel and moderate Arab states could find common ground fighting radical Islam and what he called the extremist regime in Tehran. "Israel has always, and today more than ever, striven to reach full peace with the entire Arab and Muslim world," he said. A senior Netanyahu aide appeared to suggest his boss would accept the much hailed two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the next few weeks, per- haps ahead of a planned trip to the United States. The aide, speaking on condition of anonymity so as not to pre-empt any announcementsaidNetanyahu will say something that will "take this issue off the table" and avoid confrontation with the world. If he does, Netanyahu would join the ranks of hard-line Israeli lead- ers such as Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon, who changed their minds about giving up land and ended up making far-reaching con- cessions. However, so far there is no indi- cation that Netanyahu's latest con- ciliatory statements are anything more than words designed to curry favor with the West. He has not retracted his promise to press ahead with construction in West Bank settlements to make room for settlers' growing families. And his new government includes many ministers opposed to territorial compromise, includ- ing a housing minister from an ultra-Orthodox Jewish party that sees giving up land as a betrayal of God's will. Pakistani terrorist wants revenge for U.S. missile attacks ISLAMABAD (AP) - Pakistan's Taliban chief claimed responsibili- ty yesterday for a deadly assault on a police academysayinghe wanted to retaliate for U.S. missile attacks on the militant bases on the border with Afghanistan. Baitullah Mehsud, who hasa $5 million bounty on his head from the United States, also vowed to "amaze everyone in the world" with an attack on Washington or even the White House. The FBI, however, said he had made similar threats previously and there was no indication of any- thing imminent. Mehsud, who gave a flurry of media interviews yesterday, has no record of actually striking targets abroad although he is suspected of being behind a 10-man cell arrested in Barcelona in January 2008 for plottingsuicide attacks in Spain. Pakistan's former government and the CIA consider him the prime suspect behind the Decem- ber 2007 killing of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. And Pak- istani officials accuse him of har- boring foreign fighters, including' Central Asians linked to al-Qaida, and of training suicide bombers. But analysts doubt that Taliban fighters carried off Monday's raid on the Lahore academy on their own, saying the group is likely working more closely than ever with militants based far from the Afghan frontier. It's a constellation that includes al-Qaida, presenting a formidable challenge to the U.S. as it increases its troop presence in the region, not to mention nuclear-armed Pakistan's own stability. Mehsud told The Associated Press that the academy and other recent attacks were revenge for stepped-up American missile strikes into Pakistan's border bad- lands. "Soon we will launch an attack in Washington that will amaze everyone in the world," Mehsud said in a telephone interview with an Associated Press reporter. He offered few details, though in a separate recorded conversation with local Dewa radio station, he said the White House was a target. FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said the bureau was not aware of any imminent or specific threat to the U.S., despite what the Paki- stani Taliban leader said. "He has made similar threats to the U.S. in the past," said Kolko. State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid said he had not seen any reports of Mehsud's com- ments but that he would "take the threat under consideration." The ruthless attack on Lahore's outskirts Monday left at least 12 people dead, including seven police, and sparked an eight-hour standoff with security forces that ended when black-clad commandos stormed the compound. Some of the gunmen blew themselves up. The siege-style approach using heavily armed militants came just weeks after the deadly ambush of Sri Lanka's visiting cricket team in the heart of Lahore. Both attacks were reminiscent of November's siege of Mumbai, India - also blamed on Pakistani militants. Pistachio recall could change safety standards HHS nominee admits error, pays $7,000 in back taxes Sebelius the latest of many Obama appointees with unpaid taxes WASHINGTON (AP) - Health and Human Services nominee Kathleen Sebelius recently cor- rected three years of tax returns and paid more than $7,000 in back taxes after finding "unin- tentional errors" - the latest tax troubles for an Obama adminis- tration nominee. The Kansas governor explained the changes to senators in a letter dated yesterday, that the admin- istration released. She said they involved charitable contributions, the sale of a home and business expenses. Sebeliussaidshe filed the amend- ed returns as soon as the errors were discovered by an accountant she hired to scrub her taxes in preparation for her confirmation hearings. She and her husband, Gary, a federal magistrate judge in Kansas, paid a total of $7,040 in back taxes and $878 in interest to amend returns from 2005-2007. Several Obama administra- tion nominees have run into tax troubles, notably the president's first nominee for HHS secretary, former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle. He withdrew from consideration while apologizing for failing to pay $140,000 in taxes and interest. Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., quickly issued a statement supporting Sebelius. "Congress is going to need a strong partner at the Department of Health and Human Services to achieve comprehensive health reform this year, and we have that partner in Gov. Sebelius," Baucus said. "There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Gov. Sebelius has the political experience, determi- nation, and bipartisan work ethic to get the job done with Congress this year. She's the right person for the job." There was no comment from the White House. Sebelius is to appear Thursday before Baucus' committee, which will vote on sending her nomina- tion to the full Senate. Sebelius testified Tuesday before the Sen- ate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee before the tax issue became public, getting a friendly reception. Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, the top Republican on the Finance Committee, said through a spokes- woman that he is reserving judg- ment until the vetting process, including the nomination hearing, is completed. InherlettertoBaucusandGrass- ley, Sebelius wrote that the accoun- tant discovered these errors: -Charitable contributions over $250 are supposed to include an acknowledgment letter from the charity in order for a deduction to be taken. Out of 49 charitable contributions made, three letters couldn't be found. -Sebelius and her husband took deductions for mortgage interest that they weren't entitled to. The couple sold their home in 2006 for less than what they owed on the mortgage. They continued to make payments on the mortgage, including interest. But since they no longer owned the home they weren't entitled to take deductions for the interest. Officials sayit could take weeks to find all tainted products TERRA BELLA, Calif. (AP) - It could take weeks before health officials know exactly which pis- tachio products may be tainted with salmonella, but they've already issued a sweeping warn- ing to avoid eating the nuts or foods containing them. The move appears to indicate a shift in how the government handles food safety issues - from waiting until contaminated foods surface one-by-one and risking that more people fall ill to jump- ing on the problem right away, even if the message is vague. Officials wouldn't say if the approach was in response to any perceived mishandling of the massive peanut recall that started last year, only that they're trying to keep people from getting sick as new details surface about the California plant at the center of the pistachio scare. "What's different here is that we are being very proactive and are putting out a broad message withthegoal oftryingtominimize the likelihood of consumer expo- sure," said Dr. David Acheson, FDA's assistant commissioner for food safety. "The only logical advice to consumers is to say 'OK consumers, put pistachios on hold while we work this out. We don't want you exposed, we don't want you getting salmonella."' Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, the pres- ident's new acting commissioner who started Monday, made it clear staff needed to move quick- ly, Acheson said. The agency announced Mon- day that Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella Inc., the second- largest pistachio processor in the nation, recalled more than 2 million pounds of its roasted pistachios. Suspect nuts were shipped as far away as Norway and Mexico, Acheson said yesterday. One week after authorities first learned of the problem, they still had little idea what products were at risk, he said. As federal health inspectors take swabs inside the plant to try to identify a salmonella source, a whole range of products from nut bars to ice cream and cake mixes remain in limbo on grocery shelves. Company officials said yester- day they suspected their roasted pistachios may have been contam- inated by salmonella-tainted raw nuts they were processed with at the hulking facility. Roasting is supposed to kill the bacteria in nuts.