EARLY EDITION

Obama Rails Against GOP Obstructionism
President Obama railed against Washington gridlock and Republican obstructionism in his weekly radio address, once again pointing to the military as providing the best example for public service. “Just two days ago, a senator from Utah promised to obstruct every single American I appoint to a judgeship or public service position — unless I fire the consumer watchdog I put in place to protect the American people from financial schemes or malpractice,” Obama said. On Thursday, Utah Sen. Mike Lee said he would retaliate against the president’s decision to appoint Richard Cordray as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in an unprecedented way during the winter break by blocking Senate consideration of judges and other nominations. Senate Republicans contend they were in recess so Mr. Cordray’s appointment was unconstitutional. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: Obama is an obstruction to the well-being of the nation.

Yemen's Saleh Heads For United States
President Ali Abdullah Saleh was heading to the United States on Saturday, Yemen's state news agency said, a week after leaving for Oman under a plan for him to step down to end a year of protests against his rule. In London, a foreign office official said Saleh's plane had stopped at a British airport en route to the United States. The state news agency said he had left the Omani capital Muscat, his home for the past week, to receive medical treatment. Saleh has transferred some powers to his deputy and enjoys immunity from prosecution under a deal meant to end increasing instability in Yemen. The deal also established a transitional government including the opposition and envisions restructuring Yemen's armed forces, key units of which are led by Saleh's relatives. Reuters

Economist Who Foresaw '08 Crash Warns Conflict With Iran Could Cause Global Recession
Economist Nouriel Roubini, nicknamed "Dr. Doom" for his gloomy predictions in the run-up to the financial meltdown four years ago, says the fallout from that crisis could last the rest of this decade. Roubini, widely acknowledged to have predicted the crash of 2008, sees tough times ahead for the global economy and is warning that without major policy changes things can still get much worse. He also warned that a conflict with Iran over its controversial nuclear program could lead to a global recession. Until Europe radically reforms itself and the U.S. gets serious about its own debt mountain, Roubini said, the world economy will continue to stumble along to the detriment of large chunks of the world's population who will continue to see their living standards under pressure, even if they have a job. MSNBC
VOA VIEW: Roubini made his credited forecast after the fact.

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Romney Makes Debatable Claims About Military
Campaigning in Florida's conservative Panhandle, Mitt Romney on Saturday trained his fire on President Obama's military record, particularly the size of the U.S. armed forces compared with the past. "Do you realize our Navy is now smaller than any time since 1917? Our Air Force is older and smaller than any time since it was founded in 1947," Romney said. "We have always, since the days of FDR, we've had the capacity to fight two wars at a time, not that we wanted to, but we wanted to have that kind of safety and capacity to defend ourselves. This president is changing that policy saying, 'Oh no, we'll only be able to fight one war at a time.'" CBS

Obama: ‘We Weren’t Sent Here To Wage Perpetual Political Campaigns’
After three days on the road selling his State of the Union message, President Obama is urging Congress to act on his proposals to stem the “corrosive influence of money in politics” and to give judicial and public service nominations “up-or-down” votes. As he traveled through Iowa, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Michigan this week, the president said he met people who believe in America but are skeptical that progress can be made in Washington. “Frankly, when you look at some of the things that go on in this town, who could blame them for being a little cynical?” Obama said in his weekly address. The president called out Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, for vowing to block any nominations he makes this year. Still fuming over Obama’s decision to sidestep the Senate and appoint Richard Cordray to lead the new consumer watchdog agency, Lee said the president should rescind his recess appointments. ABC

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Obama Says Congress Blocking His Government Nominees
President Barack Obama said members of Congress are blocking his nominations for political gain and tangling Washington in “gridlock” instead of dealing with important issues. In his weekly radio and Internet address released today, Obama said lawmakers should look to the “incredible example” set by the U.S. military and work together to achieve the goals outlined in his annual State of the Union remarks on Jan. 24, which included increasing U.S. manufacturing, creating jobs in clean energy and supporting domestic oil production. Members of the military “focus on the mission at hand” and are “not consumed with personal ambition,” Obama said, repeating a theme from his State of the Union speech. Bloomberg

Backyard Politics: Risks And Rewards For Gingrich
Newt Gingrich's promise to colonize the moon isn't pie-in-the-sky in Florida. It illustrates an adage: All politics is local. Fred Register is among Florida's voters _ Republicans and Democrats alike _ who know firsthand what deficit reduction can mean. The state's space industry lost several thousand jobs to NASA budget cuts. "If we give up on space, we might as well give up on everything," said Register, a 79-year-old a Republican who retired from the space program after five decades. No issue better illustrates the risks and rewards of backyard politics than Florida's space industry. Gingrich ignited the discussion by making a bold declaration at a packed rally last week in Cocoa, about 20 miles from the Kennedy Space Center. Las Vegas Sun

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D.C. Lobbyists Cut Ties With Egyptian Government As Raid Controversy Deepens
Egyptian protesters attend Friday prayers during a rally to mark the first anniversary of the 'Friday of Rage' in Tahrir Square, in Cairo, Egypt. Several Washington lobbyists announced Saturday that they are ending their contract with the Egyptian government, as the controversy deepens over raids conducted on the offices of American advocacy groups. Since the late December raids on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) based in the U.S. and other countries, the Egyptian government has intensified its crackdown. Most recently, the government has prevented several Americans, including the son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, from leaving the country. Fox News

Maker Recalls 2,200 Tubes Of Aveeno Baby Lotion
Johnson & Johnson announced it is voluntarily recalling a single lot of Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort Lotion after a test by the Food and Drug Administration found it contained more of a form of bacteria than specifications allow. "That test indicated that the lot exceeded the specifications for common bacteria, though extensive testing by an independent laboratory afterward did not show that specifications were exceeded," the company said in a news release. "However, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies Inc. has voluntarily initiated this recall out of an abundance of caution. This action is not being undertaken on the basis of adverse events and the potential for adverse health effects is remote." The lot number, embossed on the tube, is 0161LK. The product was distributed in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas, the company said. It urged consumers who would like a refund to call 877-298-2525. CNN

Romney Seeks To Knock Out Gingrich In Florida
Bolstered by positive poll numbers, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Saturday sought to vanquish rival Newt Gingrich in Florida with a biting new ad about ethics charges and a mocking tone about his debate complaints. Just days ahead of a pivotal primary race that could determine who has the momentum to win the Republican state-by-state nominating battle, Romney and Gingrich traveled around Florida in a final weekend pitch to undecided voters. Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts and off-and-on front-runner to take on Democratic President Barack Obama in the November 6 election, needs a victory on Tuesday to regain his footing after losing badly to Gingrich in the South Carolina primary vote last weekend. Reuters

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Alabama: Most Tornado-Prone State In 2011
The mention of tornadoes typically reminds people of the Great Plains. States like Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas have traditionally been called “tornado alley” because of the frequency and severity of twisters there. But you might be surprised to find out that Southern states have been seeing just as many tornadoes as the mid-section of our country recently and sometimes more. Alabama Governor Robert Bentley is working to rebuild parts of his state after it was slammed with raging tornadoes multiple times over the past year. In fact, 177 tornadoes hit Alabama in 2011 making it the state with the highest number of twisters, according to the National Weather Service. The South saw a large increase in tornadoes in 2011. Mississippi was right behind Alabama in second place with 169 tornadoes and North Carolina was fourth with 113. Fox News

Gingrich Vows To Go 'All The Way To The Convention'
With just three days to go until the Florida primary, Newt Gingrich told reporters Saturday he is in this presidential race for the long haul. “I will go all the way to the convention. I expect to win the nomination,” Gingrich told reporters following an event outside the PGA Museum. “You just had two national polls that show me ahead. Why don’t you ask Gov. Romney what he will do if he loses since he is behind in both national polls?” The former House speaker, who convincingly won the South Carolina primary, says he will get to the GOP convention in Tampa “state-by-state.” . MSNBC

College Presidents Wary Of Obama Cost-Control Plan
Fuzzy math, Illinois State University’s president called it. “Political theater of the worst sort,” said the University of Washington’s head. President Barack Obama’s new plan to force colleges and universities to contain tuition or face losing federal dollars is raising alarm among education leaders who worry about the threat of government overreach. Particularly sharp words came from the presidents of public universities; they’re already frustrated by increasing state budget cuts. Washington Times

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Sarah Palin Defends Newt Against "Cannibal" GOP
Sarah Palin hasn't jumped into the GOP race, but in her latest Facebook post the former running mate of John McCain and Tea Party icon stated that Newt Gingrich is being kneecapped by the Republican establishment. "We need a fair primary that is not prematurely cut short by the GOP establishment using Alinsky tactics to kneecap Governor Romney's chief rival," she wrote in her post titled "Cannibals in GOP Establishment Employ Tactics of the Left." The "Alinksy tactics" refer to Gingrich's the works of Saul Alinsky, a community organizer famous for his 1971 book "Rules for Radicals: A Pragmatic Primer for Realistic Radicals." In his victory speech following his win in the South Carolina primary, Gingrich described the centerpiece of his campaign as American exceptionalism versus the radicalism of Saul Alinsky, who is a proxy for President Obama in Gingrich's campaigning. CBS

Romney Says Gingrich Can’t ‘Re-Write History’ To Get Elected
Mitt Romney opened a new line of attack on Newt Gingrich in their battle for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, telling a crowd of hundreds gathered in a shipyard that the former speaker can’t “re-write history” in an attempt to get elected. “I’m running against Speaker Gingrich, for instance, a very nice fellow and he’s a historian, but that doesn’t give him the right to re-write history,” Romney said. “He was given the opportunity to lead our party,” said Romney, as a member of the crowd shouted out, “He failed!” “You’re right,” Romney answered. “He failed. “We allowed him to lead our party and some of us remember, oh yeah, the Contract With America, that was a good thing, we took over the house that was great news,” Romney said. “What happened four years later? Well, he was fined for ethics violations. He ultimately had to resign in disgrace. ABC

Bank Of Canada’s Carney Has ‘Concerns’ With Volcker Rule Draft
Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney said he’s concerned U.S. regulators’ recent efforts to prevent deposit-taking banks from trading with their own money could make markets less efficient. The latest draft of the so-called Volcker rule looks like it might prevent banks from buying securities in the course of conducting trades for clients, Carney said in an interview with Bloomberg Television’s Erik Schatzker at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “It is not clear the definition of ‘market making’ versus ‘proprietary trade,’” Carney said. “There appears to be a presumption that something is proprietary,” adding “we think that it should go in reverse.” Bloomberg

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Thousands Of Tunisians Denounce Islamist Extremism
More than 8,000 Tunisians marched Saturday through the capital denouncing violence committed by ultraconservative Islamist groups in recent months. Since the fall of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali's secular dictatorship in a popular uprising a year ago, small groups of ultraconservative Muslims known as Salafists have risen in Tunisia calling for greater piety, attacking unveiled women and secular intellectuals and occupying universities. Organized by two leftist opposition parties, the demonstration was one of the largest marches in the country since a moderate Islamist party swept elections last year. Not far away, several hundred Islamists held a counter-protest. Las Vegas Sun

Rubio: Obama 'Made Everything Worse'
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said Saturday President Barack Obama had inherited a huge national debt and struggling economy but made both worse while in office. In the weekly GOP media address, Rubio said Obama didn't talk much about accomplishments during the State of the Union address. "It was an opportunity for the president to talk about his accomplishments over the last three years and to lay out his plans for the year ahead. And he missed on both counts," Rubio said. "You didn't hear much talk about the success of his administration -- and that's because there isn't much." Rubio said the president "didn't talk about his record for one simple reason; he doesn't want you to know about it. But you do know about it, because you feel the failure of his leadership every single day of your life." UPI

Castro Proposes Cuban Term Limits
Cuban President Raul Castro convened the country's first "National Conference" in a half century this weekend to approve term limits for presidents. Under Castro's proposal, presidents would be able to serve no more than two five-year terms, Britain's The Daily Telegraph reported. It would be a major departure for Cuba, which was ruled by Fidel Castro from 1959 to 2008, when he was succeeded by his 80-year-old brother. "The reforms and changes that have been made by the Cuban government are not only remarkable but indeed stunning," Kirby Jones, a scholar at the University of Maryland, writes in an article in Latin America Advisor. Since becoming president, Castro also has made a stab at economic liberalization, moving thousands of employees from the state sector to become small-scale entrepreneurs. But he has been unwilling, so far, to privatize state enterprises. UPI

Iran: EU Companies To Suffer From Oil Embargo
European companies owed oil by Iran could lose out if Tehran imposes a ban on crude exports to the European Union next week, the head of Iran's state oil company said on Saturday. Iran's parliament is due to debate a bill on Sunday that would cut off oil supplies to the EU in a matter of days, in revenge for a decision last Monday by the 27 EU member states to stop importing crude from Iran as of July 1. Related: Analysis: Will the sanctions work?EU bans Iranian oil, Tehran responds with threats"Generally, the parties to incur damage from the EU's recent decision will be European companies with pending contracts with Iran," Ahmad Qalebani, head of the National Iranian Oil Co. told the ISNA news agency. Jerusalem Post

Syria: Arab Monitor Pullout Aims To Influence UN
Syria said the Arab League's suspension of its monitoring mission in the country was an attempt to influence the United Nations Security Council and increase pressure for foreign intervention, state television said on Saturday. "This will have a negative impact and put pressure on (Security Council) deliberations with the aim of calling for foreign intervention and encouraging armed groups to increase violence," a news flash on Syria Television said. Related: Arab League chief urges end to Syria crackdownYadlin: Syria protests could be good for Israel"Syria is still committed to the success of the Arab monitoring mission and to protecting the mission observers," the news flash said. Jerusalem Post

Greeks Reject German Plan For EU Budget Commissioner
Greek officials have reacted angrily to a leaked German proposal for an EU budget commissioner with veto powers over Greek taxes and spending. The Greek government said it must remain in control of its own budget. The European Commission says it wants to reinforce its monitoring of Greek finances, but Greece should retain sovereign control. Meanwhile, Greece and its private investors are close to a deal which will pave the way for a second bailout. Negotiators say a tentative agreement could be finalised next week. Greece must reach agreement in the next few days in order to receive the next tranche of funds from its first bailout. BBC

IMF Issues Austerity Warning
Inappropriate spending cuts could "strangle" growth prospects, the head of the IMF has warned. Austerity programmes must be tailored to each economy, Christine Lagarde said, and not be "across the board". The International Monetary Fund has been one of those stressing the need for countries to cut their debts, but some fear this could hit growth. The correct response to the eurozone debt crisis has been a major debate at World Economic Forum in Davos. "We are not suggesting there should be fiscal consolidation across the board," Ms Lagarde stressed. "Some countries have to go full-speed ahead to do this fiscal consolidation, but other countries have space and room. They should explore what to do... in order to help themselves. "It has to be tailor-made." BBC

Newt Gingrich Gets Behind Israel, But Fails To Impress Florida's Jewish Voters
Newt Gingrich threw it all out there: the contentious claim that the Palestinians are a made-up people, Iran threatening a second Holocaust, Israel as a beacon. The Republican Jewish audience lapped it up. But Gingrich, as grateful as he is for all the support he can get in Tuesday's primary election in Florida, was also courting a very different audience - one that is not Jewish and which worries many who are. Florida has a relatively large Jewish population, accounting for more than 6% of the state's electorate given that nine out of ten are registered to vote. A few hundred turned out to see Gingrich address the Republican Jewish Coalition in Boca Raton on Friday afternoon. Guardian

Mitt Romney Outspends Newt Gingrich On Ads Ahead Of Florida Primary
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is outspending his main rival Newt Gingrich by almost four to one in advertising in Florida, having spent a staggering $13.8m so far. ABC reported that Romney had spent $5.6m and his super-political action committees $8.2m. Gingrich and his super-PAC has so far spent only $3.9m. On television stations from Jacksonville in the north to Key West in the south, as well as radio stations, negative ads about Gingrich are near unavoidable, paid for either directly by the Romney campaign or by the super-PACs supporting him. The television spots, popping up regularly between ads for carpets, weather-resistant paint and holidays, focus on Gingrich's tempestuous years as House Speaker and ends with a picture of him with Obama, saying "If Newt wins, this guy (Obama) will be very happy." Guardian

Nicolas Sarkozy Shows Off His Human Side As Prospect Of Defeat Looms In French Presidential Election
They are not qualities normally associated with Nicolas Sarkozy: humility, self-awareness, contrition. Then again, the French leader is less than three months from a presidential election in which he is on track, according to all the opinion polls, to be beaten by his Socialist rival. The unexpected mea culpa expressed by the normally hyper confident president, in which he admitted personal and political mistakes, and vowed to quit politics altogether if defeated, was as shocking as it appeared stage-managed. The surprising 'je regrette beaucoup', which focused on the style rather than the substance of his five years in office, came during an official visit last week to the overseas territory of French Guyana to present the traditional new year greetings. Mr Sarkozy then took the unprecedented step of inviting 20 journalists to an "off the record" briefing. Telegraph

First Round Of Talks Ahead Of UN Sustainable Development Conference Ends
Delegates from United Nations agencies, Member States and various civil society have concluded three-days of deliberations on the draft outcome document of the UN conference on sustainable development, which will be held in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro in June. “It is encouraging that the zero draft is viewed as a starting point for negotiations,” said Sha Zukang, the Secretary-General of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), at the end of the discussions at UN Headquarterts yesterday. “We will need to keep up a brisk pace if we are to complete negotiations in a timely manner. We must present to the world leaders and, indeed, to the world's people, an outcome that will make a difference in our shared undertaking to achieve a sustainable future – a future we all want,” said Mr. Sha. UN News

Countries Adopt UN-Backed Declaration To Enhance Protection Of Marine Environment
Delegates from 65 countries attending a United Nations-backed conference in the Philippines have agreed to step up efforts to protect the world's oceans from land-based activities, stressing the marine environment's central role in the transition to a low-carbon, resource-efficient green economy. The Manila Declaration was adopted yesterday on the final day of the Global Conference on Land-Ocean Connections (GLOC), co-organized by the Government of the Philippines and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The four-day event brought together environment ministers, marine scientists, non-governmental organizations, representatives from financial institutions and other interested bodies, aiming to formulate new policies and actions to improve the sustainable management of oceans and coastal areas. UN News

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