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Virginia Republican Rep. Frank Wolf sent a strongly worded letter to Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld, questioning the firm "being on the payroll of the Chinese government" and lobbying on behalf of state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC). Unocal's directors now favor Chevron's offer. CNOOC has thus withdrawn its bid, but is reportedly looking to acquire other American oil companies. Mr. Wolf, who chairs the powerful Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations subcommittee, cited a Pentagon report warning that China's need for oil, gas and other energy resources "appears to be driving the country toward becoming an expansionist power." Mr. Wolf asked...

U.S.– China Trade Debate Filled With Questions  Imagine a country where factory  workers have no workplace safety,  labor or environmental protections  and are required to work 80 hour weeks  for no more than $110 per  month to produce goods for export.  Imagine a country which boldly  supplies missile and chemical  weapons technology to countries that  support or harbor terrorists.   Imagine a country that oversees a  network of espionage operations  against American companies.  Imagine a country which is plundering  a neighbor and wiping out its  religion-based culture.  Imagine a country which tortures  and imprisons Catholic bishops,  Protestant church leaders, Muslim...

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuela on Wednesday condemned as "meddling" and "a provocation" President Bush's meeting at the White House with a prominent opponent of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. In a move that strained already frayed relations, Bush met on Tuesday with Maria Corina Machado, a Venezuelan opposition activist who helped promote a recall referendum last year against left-winger Chavez. Chavez won and remains in office. The nationalist Venezuelan leader, a fierce critic of Bush's policies, has branded Machado a "traitor" for receiving U.S. Congress funding for her pro-referendum activities in the world's No. 5 oil exporter. "I think this...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Danny Diaz 202-863-8614Richmond, Virginia – RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman formally endorsed Jerry Kilgore for Governor of Virginia at a luncheon in Richmond this afternoon. Jerry Kilgore previously served as Virginia’s Attorney General after being elected in November 2001 with over 60% of the vote. Prior to his term as Attorney General, Kilgore served as Secretary of Public Safety for then-Governor, George Allen. “Jerry Kilgore is a proven leader with a clear and consistent record of serving the people of Virginia well,” Chairman Mehlman said. “There is no doubt in my mind that Jerry will be an...

WASHINGTON — It took George Washington (search) less time to win the Revolutionary War (search) than it has taken Rep. Roscoe Bartlett to win passage of a bill to make the government again call Presidents' Day by its legal name — Washington's Birthday. But the Maryland Republican is not giving up. Bartlett (search), who first tackled the issue in 1999, has reintroduced the Washington-Lincoln Recognition Act (search). It would require that all federal government officials and entities refer to the holiday exclusively as "Washington's Birthday," and require that the first president's name be used in any publication about the holiday...

Congressman pushes bill to honor Washington By I-Wei J. Chang, Capital News Service(KRT) WASHINGTON -- It took George Washington less time to win the Revolutionary War than it has taken Rep. Roscoe Bartlett to win passage of a bill to make the government again call Presidents' Day by its legal name -- Washington's Birthday. But the Maryland Republican is not giving up. Bartlett, who first tackled the issue in 1999, has reintroduced the Washington-Lincoln Recognition Act. It would require that all federal government officials and entities refer to the holiday exclusively as "Washington's Birthday," and require that the first president's...

Two top U.S. lawmakers demanded UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to take an immediate action to end violence in the Sudanese western region of Darfur or resign. A spokesman for the UN rejected the call by Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas and Representative Frank Wolf of Virginia, saying that Annan wasn’t in a position to force any action. The two lawmakers also criticized a UN report, released on Monday, for not recommending an action to end the fighting, claiming that the report was influenced by internal UN politics. "We cannot wait any longer for credible action on Darfur," Brownback said....

Gov. Mark R. Warner urged fellow Democrats at an Alexandria rally yesterday to "Turn Virginia blue!" on Tuesday as they prepared for a weekend of get-out-the-vote efforts in the Northern Virginia suburbs. "Every vote is going to count," Warner told supporters and local politicians at the soggy rally in Market Square. "What we see here today all over Virginia is incredible enthusiasm, record voter registration. Now it's down to crunch time. We just need to make sure we get out the vote." Republicans are planning their own rally in Northern Virginia today at 8:30 a.m. at an Interstate Van Lines...

10/21/2004 Tough choices await voters Nov. 2 in local, national races This week, The Times editorial board lays out the case for whom it is supporting in the local congressional and presidential races. We will not presume to change your mind or make it up for you. We offer our thoughts as another in the assault of opinions launched in this high-stakes election. Regardless of what is said here or what you think or write us about it, we feel passionate that everyone should get out and vote on Election Day. In the 11th Congressional District, we continue to...

The spread of street gangs in Virginia has prompted the federal government to give Gov. Mark Warner $3 million in nondiscretionary funds to fight the problem.'snip'Gang members have spread to other parts of the state from Northern Virginia, which is one of the main hubs on the East Coast for the largest and most violent Hispanic gang known as Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13.The latest FBI report concluded MS-13 has about 2,000 members in Northern Virginia. Fairfax County police have estimated that the region has a total of more than 4,000 gang members. The report also found gang activity in Fredericksburg,...

House sustains 'sanctuary' laws By Brian DeBose The House yesterday voted down an amendment to a Justice Department spending bill that would have forced local police officers to report illegal immigrants to federal authorities. Rep. Steve King, Iowa Republican, introduced the amendment to keep state and local governments from giving "sanctuary" to illegal aliens. Sanctuary laws typically created by cities and towns force local police officers not to cooperate with federal law enforcement to find and detain illegal aliens for deportation. "These so-called sanctuary policies wreak havoc on communities, especially in situations where illegal immigrants commit crimes and should be...

Dear Colleague: A humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Sudan and Congress must speak out. I have introduced H. Con. Res. 403 condemning the Government of the Republic of Sudan for its involvemnt in attacks against innocent civilians in the impoverished Darfur region of western Sudan. Raphael Lemkin in his book Axis Rule in Occupied Europe coined the word "genocide." Greek word "genos" (race), Latin word "cide" (killing). Genocide means "the deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group." It has been said the way we behave is really an indicator of what we truly believe, and belief...

U.S. Bars Iraq Contracts for Nations That Opposed War By DOUGLAS JEHL WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 — The Pentagon has barred French, German and Russian companies from competing for $18.6 billion in contracts for the reconstruction of Iraq, saying the step "is necessary for the protection of the essential security interests of the United States." The directive, which was issued by the deputy defense secretary, Paul D. Wolfowitz, represents perhaps the most substantive retaliation to date by the Bush administration against American allies who opposed its decision to go to war in Iraq. The administration had warned before the war...

HSLDA's E-lert Service: Homeschool Information, News, & Alerts delivered directly to your e-mail address.  Quick Menu Getting StartedIn Your StateInternationalIssues LibraryResearchSpeakersBookstoreE-lert ServiceAbout HSLDAJoining HSLDA    HSLDA Members    Members SiteRenew OnlineForms & ResourcesContact Your Staff HSLDA October 27, 2003 Congress sends letter to CBS 22 October 2003 Mr. Andrew Heyward President CBS News 524 West 57th Street New York, New York 10019 Dear Mr. Heyward: As members of Congress who either home school our own children or support the right of parents to homeschool, we were deeply offended by the recent "Eye on America" dealing with homeschooling. The October 13th...

<p>The House Appropriations Committee approved three more spending bills yesterday after Republicans beat back Democratic efforts to cut off faith-based organizations' access to federal funds.</p> <p>Rep. Chet Edwards, Texas Democrat, offered a hastily crafted amendment to the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education spending bill that would ensure that none of the funds appropriated in the bill would go to any group that "discriminates in job hiring based on religion."</p>

Nineteen years ago, a British television crew shot footage that shocked the world. The pictures of starving children, their bellies distended from hunger and their eyes lifeless from malnutrition, alerted the world to the tragic famine then unfolding in Ethiopia. The response was almost immediate. Musician Bob Geldof, previously known for a song about a schoolgirl who shoots her classmates, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his relief efforts. His "Live Aid" concerts were viewed by a huge worldwide audience. They raised millions of dollars to help eight million people in danger of starvation and signaled a determination...

Two Republican U.S. House members Wednesday demanded that the Bush administration be more aggressive in condemning human rights abuses in Cuba and that it provide information on prisoners to any delegation traveling to the communist nation. The hearing follows the recent convictions of 75 Cuban dissidents, who had been rounded up by Fidel Castro's government, given one-day trials and sentenced anywhere from six to 28 years for treason. Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque recently alleged that the U.S. had paid the dissidents to create unrest. ''These people receive money and live off it while in the service of a...

The Center for Science in the Public Interest has sent a letter to the head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, with copies to CSPI’s friends in Congress, complaining that NASCAR and anti-drug public service announcements don’t mix. CSPI singled out the use of driver Jimmy Spencer in PSA’s, since he is sponsored by Anheuser-Busch. But it also referred to NASCAR’s "nonstop" reminders of drinking: "Beer brand logos are omnipresent on NASCAR’s drivers’ uniforms, cars, infield equipment and kid-friendly promotional items," CSPI’s Alcohol Policies Project Director George Hacker wrote. Calling beer the "major drug problem" for young people,...

NBC is pulling back on its plan to air liquor advertising, the network said in a statement on Wednesday. For four months, the network had been running social-responsibility advertising related to drinking alcohol in preparation for accepting hard-liquor advertising, which it now says it won’t do. Some members of Congress had voiced their strong opposition to the idea-particularly Reps. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) – but no hearings had been held and no legislation had been introduced that would have prevented NBC from running the ads. A week ago, however, key members of both the House and Senate...