The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, September 9, 2013 -- 3A NEWS BRIEFS DETROIT Rallies held over possible U.S. attack in Syria Opponents and supporters of U.S. military intervention in Syria have been holding rallies across Michigan. President Barack Obama is asking for Congress's support to attack Syria over what he says is the government's use of chemi- cal weapons to kill more than 1,400 people. Several dozen opponents of a U.S. attack marched through downtown Detroit for a rally Sunday at the waterfront Hart Plaza. About 30 people opposed to American military intervention turned out for a rally Saturday in Grand Rapids. On Friday, about 100 supporters of an American military response held a rally in the Detroit suburb of Birming- ham. WASHINGTON U.S. jobs data could drive Fed bond-buying move Signs of improvement in the U.S. economy emerged this week, and the jobs report the govern- ment will issue Friday will show whether that strength is fueling consistent hiring gains. The August employment report will be the most sig- nificant economic data to be released before the Federal Reserve meets Sept. 17-18. Many economists expect the Fed to decide then to slow its monthly bond purchases. Analysts predict a solid gain of 177,000 jobs for August, above total but just below the monthly average this year of 192,000. The unemployment rate is expected to remain 7.4 percent. MOSCOW Navalnyhas strong showing in Moscow mayoral race Opposition leader Alexei Navalny swept up far more votes than expected Sunday while fin- ishing second in Moscow's may- oral election, a pivotal contest that has energized Russia's small opposition in ways that could pose a risk to the Kremlin in the days and years ahead. Partial results released early Monday showed Navalny with about 27 percent of the vote, while the Kremlin-backed incumbent, Sergei Sobyanin, held a clear lead with about 52 percent. Exit polls, however, predicted Navalny would get as much as 32 percent. As the results only began to trickle out two hours after the polls closed, Navalny said he sus- pected the vote count was being manipulated. KABUL, Afghanistan NATO accused of killing Afghan civilians Afghan officials accused NATO of killing civilians in an airstrike that left at least 10 dead in the country's remote east, while the Taliban on Sunday staged a car bomb and gun attack outside an Afghan intelligence office, killing four soldiers and wounding more than 80 people. Meanwhile, the Afghan gov- ernment reacted angrily to a comment by an American envoy who said Afghanistan is already experiencing "a civil war." The airstrike and Taliban attack underscored the chronic insecurity in Afghanistan as U.S.-led foreign forces reduce their presence and hand over more responsibilities to Afghan troops. The car bombing occurred in Maidan Shahr, a city in eastern Wardak province just 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Kabul. -Compiled from Daily wire reports Obama touts world's economic progress at G-20 A Capitol Hill police officer watches as protesters hold signs reading "No Attack on Syria" during the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Tuesday on Capitol Hill in Washington. Assad's link to chemical weapons rem--ains unclear Wh ho WA Whit that dictat is res weap Barac a U.S Obam admix able, doubt Amer ers wc milita seeki "T1 And i that of s said publi to b strike Bash: "TI says I He sh McDc ian If has r ite House calls to and outside his country to step down. 4d Syrian regime Asked in another interview about doubt, McDonough was accountable direct: "No question in my mind." ASHINGTON (AP) - The The U.S., citing intelligence e House asserted Sunday reports, says the lethal nerve a "common-sense test" agent sarin was used in an tes the Syrian government Aug. 21 attack outside Damas- sponsible for a chemical cus, and that 1,429 people died, ons attack that President including 426 children. k Obama says demands The number is higher than . military response. But that, said Khalid Saleh, head ia's top aide says the of the press office at the anti- nistration lacks "irrefut- Assad Syrian Coalition who beyond-a-reasonable- was in Washington to lobby t evidence" that skeptical lawmakers to authorize the icans, including lawmak- strikes. Some of those involved 'ho will start voting on in the attacks later died in their ary action this week, are homes and opposition leaders ng. were weighing releasing a full his is not a court of law. list of names of the dead. ntelligence does not work But Britain-based Syrian way," White House chief Observatory for Human Rights, taff Denis McDonough which collects information during his five-network from a network of anti-govern- c relations blitz Sunday ment activists, says it has so far uild support for limited only been able to confirm 502 s against Syrian President dead. ar Assad. The actual tally of those he common-sense test killed by chemical weapons is he is responsible for this. scant compared to the sum of sould be held to account," all killed in the upheaval: more onough said of the Syr- than 100,000, according to the eader who for two years United Nations. esisted calls from inside In an interview Sunday, Assad told U.S. journalist Char- lie Rose there is not conclusive evidence about who is to blame for the chemical weapons attacks and again suggested the rebels were responsible. From Beirut, Rose described his interview, which is to be released Monday on the CBS morning program that Rose hosts, with the full interview airing later in the day on Rose's PBS program. Asked about Assad's claims there is no evidence he used the weapons, Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters in London: "The evidence speaks for itself." At the same time, Obama has planned his own public relations effort. He has sched- uled six network interviews on Monday and then a primetime speech to the nation from the White House on Tuesday, the eve of the first votes in Con- gress. Obama faces a tough audi- ence on Capitol Hill. A survey by The Associated Press shows that House members who are staking out positions are either opposed to or leaning against Obama's plan for a military strike by more than a 6-1 mar- gin. Leaders also discuss intelligence gathering, climate change ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) - Touting economic prog- ress at the Group of 20 summit, President Barack Obama said the nation's economic powers no longer face the threat of a finan- cial meltdown and can turn their attention to issues of tax evasion, job creation and climate change. "For the first time in three years, instead of an urgent dis- cussion to address the European financial crisis, we see a Europe that has emerged from reces- sion," Obama said Friday at a news conference wrapping up a three-day European trip that included the two-day G-20 meet- ingin St. Petersburg. Obama was dogged at the summit by revelations of spying by the National Security Agency and held private meetings with the presidents of Brazil and Mexico to assure them that his administration would work to resolve tensions over allegations that the NSA monitored their communications. After separate sessions with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Obama said he told both leaders that he takes the allegations of spying on their communications seriously and said he promised to address their concerns. "What we do is similar to what countries around the world do with their intelligence services," Obama said. "But what is true is that, you know, we are bigger. We have greater capabilities." He said he wants a review of intelligence efforts to determine the costs and benefits. "Just because we can get information doesn't necessarily always mean that we should," he said. Both Pena Nieto and Rousseff have expressed outrage over rev- elations that the NSA kept tabs on their communications. The spying was reported by Brazil's Globo TV, which cited 2012 docu- ments from NSA leaker Edward Snowden. Pena Nieto says it would constitute an illegal act. Speaking at her own press conference, Rousseff said Obama vowed to have a response for her government by Sept. 11. Rous- seff said her decision whether to make a scheduled state visit to the United States in October will depend on the "political condi- tions" set by Obama. Though the civil war in Syria and Obama's call for a military response to chemical weapons use there dominated much of the conversation, Obama said the 20 leaders also paid heed to a litany of issues such as helping foster growth in emerging economies, promoting infrastructure and fighting corruption. He said the nations agreed to continue with financial reforms and to address tax evasion and avoidance that he says undermines budgets and shifts the taxburden. The president spoke after the U.S. government reported that the unemployment rate had dropped to 7.3 percent,the lowest in nearly five years. But the jobs picture remained tepid. More Americans stopped looking for workandwere no longer counted as unemployed and the combined job creation in June, July and August amounted to the weak- est three-month stretch of job growth in a year. With a confrontation brew- ing with Congress over raising the nation's borrowing limit, Obama warned lawmakers that it shouldn't risk a U.S. default "over paying bills we've already racked up." He said he was determined that the world has confidence "in the full faith and credit of the United States." NAACP president to step down Michigan to seek investors to fund social programs Jealous instrumental in financial growth of organization WASHINGTON (AP) - NAACP President and CEO Ben- jamin Jealous, who is credited with boosting finances at the nation's largest civil rights orga- nization and helping to stabilize it, said Sunday that he plans to step down at the end of the year. The Baltimore-based Nation- al Association for the Advance- ment of Colored People said that its rosters of online activ- ists and donors have grown tre- mendously during his five-year tenure. Jealous was the group's youngest-ever leader when he was hired as its president at age 35 in 2008. In a written statement Sun- day, Jealous, now 40, said he plans to pursue teaching at a university and wants to spend time with his young family. "The NAACP has always been the largest civil rights organiza- tion in the streets, and today it is also the largest civil rights orga- nization online, on mobile and at the ballot box too," Jealous said. "I am proud to leave the associa- tion financially sound, sustain- able, focused, and more powerful than ever." Jealous plans to step down on Dec. 31. His departure planswere first reported by USA Today, which said he was in the first year of a three-year contract. Jealous told the newspaper he also plans to start a political action committee to raise money to elect diverse progressive candidates to public office, though not neces- sarily only Democrats. During President Barack Obama's first campaign, Jealous said he teamed with others to create a fundraising group that raised $10 million to help elect the first black president. Jealous is credited with improving the NAACP's financ- es and donor base over the past five years. In the year before Jealous arrived, the NAACP cut its national staff by a third. Also that year, former NAACP presi- dent Bruce Gordon abruptly resigned because of differences with the group's 64-member board. The group said its donors have increased from 16,000 people giving each year to more than 132,000 under his leadership. During Jealous's tenure, the NAACP also has embraced gay rights in a historic vote to endorse same-sex marriage in May 2012. "Civil marriage is a civil right and a matter of civil law," the group said, citing the 14th Amendment's equal pro- tection clause. Jealous told The Associated Press recently that a broader coali- tion is needed to fight the civil rightsbattlesofthe21stcentury. "Last century we needed law- yers; this century we need big, broad coalitions," he said. "When extremists decide to attack all our communities, they must hope that there will be infight- ing. But we have stood all for one and one for all. That is how we will win." An NAACP spokesman said Jealous was not available for an interview until a formal announcement on Monday. The Rev. Joseph Lowery, a civil rights leader and former president of the Southern Chris- tian Leadership Conference, said Jealous brought an intellectual quality and a level of integrity that won respect. "I'm sorry to see him resign, although I understand he has other plans. But, I think he was just getting into his stride," Low- ery said Sunday evening. "I think he brought a luster to the office that was quiet and dignified and effective, and I wish him well in his new work." The Rev. Al Sharpton said he felt "mixed emotions" about Jealous' announcement, which included sadness because Jeal- ous had led the organization so well. "Not only was he able to revive the NAACP and raise its budget to higher heights, he joined us in the streets in real civil rights activity on the ground," Sharp- ton said in a written statement. "From the 'suites to the streets,' he will be missed as head of the NAACP, but Iam sure he will not leave us in his contribution to the struggle." Jealous began his career as a community organizer in Harlem with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. He was suspended from Columbia University in New York City after organizing student protests and went on to work as a reporter for the Jackson Advocate newspaper in Mississippi. Jealous has led the NAACP to advocate against "stop-and- frisk" police tactics and stand- your-ground laws following the death of Florida teenager Tray- von Martin. He has also fought to abolish the death penalty at the state level, including in Mary- land. NAACP Chairman Roslyn Brock accepted Jealous' resigna- tion in the past week. She said the group would continue its fight to restore part of the Vot- ing Rights Act that was recently struck down by the Supreme Court, as well as work to boost its civic engagement efforts and ensure that black Americans are able to obtain health insurance under the nation's health care overhaul. Brock thanked Jealous for his service. "Under his leadership, the NAACP has built a highly com- petent staff that will carry our mission forward and meet the civil rights challenges of the 21st century," she said. "Our board, staff and volunteer lead- ers throughout the country deeply appreciate his sacrifice and will continue to implement our game-changing goals for the next half century." Pay-for-success contract funds Harvard-based initiative LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Michigan plans to enlist pri- vate investors to finance a public social program, becom- ing the latest state government to try an experimental "pay- for-success" approach in tack- ling persistent problems such as homelessness or criminal recidivism. The state will announce Monday that it is the seventh chosen through a national competition to receive techni- cal assistance from Harvard University for a social impact bond. Also known as pay-for-suc- cess contracts, social impact bonds work like this: Private investors - potentially a bank and a philanthropic foundation - put up money for a program with a specific goal. A contract is signed with a service pro- vider. If the goal is achieved, the government pays back the investors, with a profit. If not, the government pays nothing. "We believe it makes govern- ment delivery of services more accountable. If it's successful, we benefit. If for whatever rea- son the targets aren't met, tax- payers aren't on the hook for those dollars," said Joe Pavona, special adviser for public-pri- vate partnerships to Gov. Rick Snyder. The state will issue a request for information Monday to identify potential projects. Some possibilities men- tioned by Pavona include infant mortality, early child- hood development, homeless- ness and recidivism. But he said the Snyder administration could settle on something else depending on feedback from potential investors and service providers. The Harvard Kennedy School will send a full-time fel- low to Michigan for a year to help launch the initiative, with support from the Rockefeller Foundation and the Laura and John Arnold Foundation. After helping Massachusetts and New York become the first state governments to develop pay-for-success contracts using social impact bonds, Harvard held a competition to award assistance to other govern- ments. Six winners out of 28 appli-, cants were announced in June. The school added Michigan after finding more funding because it was among a hand- ful of other "really strong" applications, said Jeffrey Lieb- man, a public policy profes- sor at Harvard who directs the university's Social Impact Bond Technical Assistance Lab. He said the No. 1 criteria in choosing a state was the com- mitment of its leaders to follow through. "If we work with a state for a year to put together a project, we want them to actually do it," Liebman said. Social impact bonds began in Britain. The first U.S. gov- ernment to put one together was New York City, which announced a year ago that Goldman Sachs would invest almost $10 million in a city jail program to keep inmates ages 16-18 from reoffending.