fultonnwillyy: February 2013

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Rosa Parks statue unveiled in US Capitol

President Obama and congressional leaders unveil a statue to honor civil rights leader Rosa Parks in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol.

By Erin McClam, Staff Writer, NBC News

More than half a century after she refused to give up her seat on an Alabama city bus, Rosa Parks has an immovable place in the U.S. Capitol ? the first black woman to be honored with a statue there.

President Barack Obama and congressional leaders from both parties said at an unveiling Wednesday that the depiction was fitting: Parks is shown seated, hands clasped in front of her, eyes fixed forward.

?Rosa Parks? singular act of disobedience launched a movement,? Obama said. ?The tired feet of those who walked the dusty roads of Montgomery helped a nation see that to which it had once been blind.?

On Dec. 1, 1955, Parks, then a 42-year-old seamstress, broke the law by refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger on a packed bus. Her arrest touched off a yearlong boycott of the bus system, a turning point in the civil rights movement. In 1956, the Supreme Court banned segregation on public transportation.

Parks died in October 2005, at age 92, and would have turned 100 this month.

On Wednesday, Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., and the highest-ranking black member of Congress, called her ?the first lady of civil rights, the mother of the movement, the saint of an endless struggle.?

The statue?s unveiling took place on a day when memories of the civil rights struggle were not far from mind in Washington. Across the street, with Clyburn watching, the Supreme Court heard arguments on whether provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 should stand. The act requires nine states, mostly in the South, to get federal permission to change voting rules.

Kevin Lamarque / Reuters

President Barack Obama and Speaker of the House John Boehner look at the statue of Rosa Parks after its unveiling in the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday.

The statue of Parks, 9 feet tall and in bronze, will be in Statuary Hall, where the House of Representatives met in the early 1800s. It is part of a collection of 100 in five locations in the Capitol.

Among the others in Statuary Hall are William Jennings Bryan and Daniel Webster. House Speaker John Boehner pointed out that the statue of Parks will be ?right in the gaze? of that of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy. He said her unassuming presence should inspire people to ?draw strength from stillness.?

Parks was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1999, but Rhea McCauley, a niece, told The Associated Press before the unveiling that this honor would be different.

?The medal, you could take it, put it on a mantel,? she said. ?But her being in the hall itself is permanent.?

More than 50 of Parks? relatives had planned to attend the ceremony, and two of them, a niece and a longtime friend, helped Obama and congressional leaders yank down the shroud that covered the statue.

The sculptor was Eugene Daub of San Pedro, Calif.

?She seemed to me a very ? not shy, but modest. A very modest woman, and I wanted that to come through,? he told NBC News. ?That she wasn?t ever looking for attention or celebrity, but she was just doing what she had to do.?

Obama said that Parks? story is a reminder that ?we so often spend our lives as if in a fog, accepting injustice, rationalizing inequity? ? like the bus driver, he said, but also like the other passengers.

?Rosa Parks tells us there?s always something we can do,? he said.

President Obama joined Congressional leaders today on Capitol Hill to unveil a new statue of Rosa Parks. Sculptor Eugene Daub told NBC News how he felt creating the likeness of one of the most definitive characters in American history.

This story was originally published on Wed Feb 27, 2013 9:44 AM EST

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/27/17117035-strength-from-stillness-rosa-parks-statue-unveiled-in-us-capitol

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Justice Department says wins $1 billion Dow Chemical tax shelter case

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Justice Department said on Wednesday it has won a $1 billion tax shelter case against Dow Chemical Co that involved a Swiss partnership, Wall Street financial giant Goldman Sachs and international law firm King & Spalding.

The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana "rejected two tax shelter transactions entered into by The Dow Chemical Company that purported to create approximately $1 billion in phony tax deductions," Justice said in a statement.

Chief Judge Brian Jackson also imposed penalties, the department said of the decision in the Baton Rouge court.

A Dow spokeswoman said in a statement that Dow sued the U.S. government for return of taxes paid for tax years 1993-2003.

"Dow paid all taxes at issue plus interest, but requested the U.S. District Court to agree that the taxes were wrongly assessed by the IRS," the spokeswoman said.

"Dow is disappointed by the trial court's decision ... we believe the opinion is not supported by the facts and applicable law. Dow is exploring all of its options, including appeal."

The Justice Department said the tax transactions were created by Goldman Sachs and King & Spalding and involved forming a partnership that Dow operated from its European headquarters in Switzerland.

Jackson wrote in his 74-page opinion that the government was correct to reject "the artificial tax benefits created by these schemes that were designed to exploit perceived weaknesses in the tax code and not designed for legitimate business reasons," according to the Justice Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of Justice's Tax Division said: "It is offensive to all taxpayers who pay their fair share when our largest corporations believe that they can claim hundreds of millions of dollars in tax deductions that are manufactured by abusive tax schemes."

Goldman Sachs could not immediately be reached for comment. A King Spalding spokesman declined to comment.

(Reporting by Patrick Temple-West in Washington, with Ernest Scheyder and Lauren LaCapra in New York; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/justice-department-says-wins-1-billion-dow-chemical-220347437--sector.html

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Simon Cowell launches online talent contest

FILE - Simon Cowell arrives at the "American Idol" finale in this file photo dated Wednesday, May 26, 2010, in Los Angeles, USA. The impresarios Cowell's Syco Entertainment company on Thursday Feb. 28, 2013, has launched a year-long YouTube channel global online talent contest called You Generation, looking for talent in all kinds of arenas including musicians, photographers, makeup artists, magicians and chefs, with auditions in a different category of talent every two weeks and a grand final after one year. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, FILE)

LONDON (AP) ? Simon Cowell has taken over television screens and radio airwaves around the world. Now he's taking aim at the Internet.

Cowell's Syco Entertainment empire and YouTube announced Thursday that they are launching "The You Generation," a global online talent contest that is seeking entries from people with "unconventional and original talents" ? from musicians and photographers to makeup artists, magicians and chefs.

Syco says the contest, which starts next month and is due to run for a year, will seek auditions in a different category of talent every two weeks. Entrants can upload their pieces on a dedicated YouTube channel, to be viewed by the public and judged by professionals associated with Syco.

There will be prizes ? exactly what they are has yet to be announced ? every fortnight and a grand prize at the end of the year.

Syco calls the initiative an experiment aimed at discovering new talent. It's the company's bid to tap the power of social media, which has launched millions of wannabe celebrities ? and some genuine stars, including Justin Bieber.

You Generation will be available in 15 languages and 26 countries around the world.

Syco is a joint venture between Sony Music and Cowell, the entertainment mogul who became a household name as an acerbic judge on TV talent shows. Syco's projects include the "X Factor" and "Got Talent" TV shows in the U.S. and Britain, and its music acts range from Susan Boyle to One Direction.

___

Online: www.youtube.com/yougeneration

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-02-28-Britain-Simon%20Cowell/id-3385d5213fa440cba856c67499bf369e

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AA's longest-serving flight attendant retires

Gilma Avalos , NBC Miami ? ? ? 22 hrs.

A retirement party was held for an American Airlines flight attendant Barbara Beckett Monday as she celebrated her 53-year career with the company.

"It's something that I grew up wanting to do,? said Beckett, who is based in Miami. ?When I was very young my parents took me to the airport and I saw the stewardesses get off the plane. And I thought that's what I want to do.?

Beckett donned the American Airlines uniform for one last trip ? a last hurrah from Miami International Airport to London?s Heathrow Airport and back. Her flight was set to leave at 8 p.m.

Beckett has worked 8,000 flights for American, traveling the globe and going to places like Hawaii, Japan and Argentina.

The longest-serving flight attendant on American?s staff, she graduated from training on July 29, 1960, and has worked for the airline ever since.

Beckett?s longtime partner, her colleagues and friends, and some passengers wished her well at the gate before her Heathrow flight. Beckett said the first thing she wants to do once she retires is travel ? but she and her partner joked that she will be grounded for a while before booking a trip to Hawaii.

More from NBC Miami:

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/travel/itineraries/american-airlines-longest-serving-flight-attendant-retires-after-53-years-1C8543813

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Corporations urge Supreme Court to embrace gay marriage

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than 200 businesses will urge the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to strike down a federal law that restricts the definition of marriage to heterosexual unions.

Lawyers representing the businesses said they would file a brief in the case.

Companies including Microsoft Corp, Google Inc, Starbucks Corp and Pfizer Inc are among those that joined the brief. Others included Aetna Inc, Amazon.com, Inc and Citigroup Inc.

Thomson Reuters Corp is another signatory. The Reuters news agency is part of Thomson Reuters.

The companies want the Supreme Court to strike down a key provision of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

Separately, lawyers representing another group of employers, including some of the same companies, had said already that they planned to file a brief on Thursday in a related case that questions a California law that bans gay marriage.

The two cases are to be argued before the Supreme Court on March 26 and 27.

In the brief filed on Wednesday, attorney Sabin Willett wrote that DOMA "requires that employers treat one employee differently from another, when each is married, and each marriage is equally lawful."

DOMA does not create any uniformity nationwide, Willett said, because 12 states in total either authorize same-sex marriage or recognize marriages that have been performed in other states.

That creates a burden for employers, particularly those who do business nationwide, he added.

Willett also wrote that the law forces companies to discriminate, sometimes in contravention of their own internal policies and local laws, when dealing with healthcare plans and other benefits.

"We must do all of this in states, counties and cities that prohibit workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and demand equal treatment of all married individuals," he added.

In briefs already filed in support of marriage being restricted to heterosexual unions, business interests have not been represented. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has not taken a stand on the issue.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Howard Goller and Cynthia Osterman)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/corporations-urge-supreme-court-embrace-gay-marriage-120150401.html

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Wednesday, February 27, 2013

2 Everest climbs put Nepalese woman in record book

KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) ? Nepalese mountaineer Chhurim entered the record book by scaling Mount Everest twice in the same climbing season. In fact, she did so a week apart.

Guinness World Records said she is the first woman to climb the world's highest mountain twice in the same season ? the brief window of good weather each year that allows climbers to reach the summit.

Nepal's Tourism Minister Posta Bahadur Bogati handed over the Guinness World Records certificate issued to 29-year-old Chhurim on Monday.

She scaled the 8,850-meter (29,035-foot) summit on May 12, 2012, descended to the base camp for a couple of days' rest and then scaled the peak again a week later on May 19.

Chhurim, who uses only one name like most Sherpas, said she is not ready to quit.

"Everest is the first of the highest mountains that I have climbed, but I will continue mountaineering and hope to scale more peaks," she said.

Chhurim said there are not many women mountaineers and only a few of them have records.

"The male mountaineers have set many records but women have fallen behind. It can be difficult for women because they are considered not as strong as men and face many problems like finding toilets," she said.

The Nepal Mountaineering Association said Everest has been climbed by nearly 4,000 people since New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay of Nepal did so in 1953. Women are a small number of them.

The extremely harsh weather conditions that batter the highest Himalayan peaks limit the climbing season to just a few weeks every year. Spring is the most popular season on Everest when hundreds of mountaineers attempt every year. The climbers generally reach the mountain in March or April, acclimatize to the higher elevation and low oxygen and train for climbing the snowy trail to the peak. The weather usually improves for a few days in May when they line up to the summit.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/2-everest-climbs-put-nepalese-woman-record-book-024537065.html

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Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Green Blog: On Our Radar: BP?s Gulf Spill Inquiry

BP?s internal investigation of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill examined the direct cause of a rig blowout but ignored decisions that managers made leading up to the accident, a witness testifies in federal court in New Orleans. The witness, an engineering professor at Berkeley, was testifying on behalf of the plaintiffs in civil litigation against the oil giant. [The Wall Street Journal]

Environmentalists fret about an M.I.T. professor?s possible candidacy for energy secretary, citing his ties to the natural gas industry and a study he authored suggesting that fracking risks are manageable. [The Washington Post]

Interpol plans a major effort to crack down on billions of dollars? worth of illegal fishing activity, calling it a threat to food security and ecosystems as well as a source of political instability and human rights violations. [The Guardian]

The head of Columbia University?s Earth Institute suggests that New York State explore a hydraulic fracturing demonstration project, given how intense the views are on both sides of the debate about whether drilling should be allowed. [The Huffington Post]

Another look at how the American military is seeking alternative energy sources even as Congress resists aggressive action. [Mother Jones]

Source: http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/26/on-our-radar-bps-internal-spill-inquiry/?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Landmark civil rights law faces critical Supreme Court test

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images, file

U.S. Supreme Court members (first row L-R) Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, Chief Justice John Roberts, Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy, Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, (back row L-R) Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, Associate Justice Samuel Alito and Associate Justice Elena Kagan.

By Pete Williams, NBC News Justice Correspondent

The U.S. Supreme Court this week will consider whether a landmark civil rights law, the Voting Rights Act, remains constitutionally valid, given the growth in the political power of minority voters and candidates.

Civil rights groups fear the court's conservatives are prepared to gut what the ACLU calls "the most important piece of civil rights legislation Congress has ever enacted."

The justices will hear oral arguments in the case Wednesday and rule sometime before the current court term ends in late June.

Passed by Congress in 1965 and renewed four times since then, most recently in 2006, a key provision of the law requires states with a history of discrimination at the polls to get federal permission before making any changes to their election procedures ? from congressional redistricting to changing the locations of polling places.

The law was at the core of last year's successful efforts to block strict voter photo ID laws in Texas and South Carolina and to prevent Texas from redrawing its legislative and congressional boundaries in a manner that challengers claimed would have discriminated against minority voters.

"The last election vividly showed that voter suppression and voting discrimination are not just problems of the past. They continue to undermine our democratic process," says the ACLU's Steve Shapiro.

The challenge to the law comes from Shelby County, Alabama, a mostly white suburb south of Birmingham.? It argues that the pre-clearance requirement ? which covers nine entire states and 66 counties or townships in seven others ? is unconstitutional.

The areas covered by the law, it says, include some localities that have made substantial reforms but leave out other parts of the country that have failed to root out discrimination at the polls.

"Florida has been forced into pre-clearance litigation to prove that reducing early voting from 14 days to 8 is not discriminatory, when states such as Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania have no early voting at all," says Bert Rein of Washington, DC, the lawyer for the county.

While the history of blatant discrimination at the polls justified renewing the law in the past, Shelby County says, Congress failed to marshal enough evidence in 2006 to justify extending it for another 25 years.? "At most, the 2006 legislative record shows scattered and limited interference with voting rights, a level plainly insufficient" to sustain the pre-clearance requirement, Rein says.

Since 1990, adds Alabama?s Attorney General, Luther Strange, African Americans in the state have registered and voted in larger percentages than in states outside the South.

?African Americans hold seats in the legislature at percentages that are roughly commensurate with Alabama?s 26 percent African-American population,? Strange says.

But the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund says the current map is a close enough fit to cover the areas of greatest concern.? "Congress is not a surgeon with a scalpel when it acts to legislate across the fivty states, but it can reasonably attack discrimination where it finds it," the group says.

If the law were struck down, civil rights groups fear the areas covered by the law would revert to their old habits.

Warns the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human rights, ?There is a significant risk of backsliding and a likelihood that millions of minority voters will face new barriers to the exercise of their most fundamental human right.?

President Obama expressed a similar sentiment in a radio interview last week. If covered jurisdictions no longer had to defend their electoral changes in advance, Obama said, civil rights groups would be forced to file lawsuits after voting changes were already in place.

?There are some parts of the country where obviously folks have been trying to make it harder for people to vote. So generally speaking, you?d see less protection before an election with respect to voting rights,? Mr. Obama said.

The Justice Department, which is defending the law before the Supreme Court, argues that the coverage formula is flexible, allowing local governments to bail out of the pre-clearance requirement if they can demonstrate they have not discriminated against minority voters for at least ten years.

During the past three decades, 38 bailouts have been granted, freeing 196 local jurisdictions of the preclearance requirement, the Justice Department says.? They include the first ever granted from parts of Alabama, Georgia, Texas, and Virginia, four of the states that are otherwise covered by the law.

Four years ago, the Supreme Court strongly suggested that several justices had doubts about its constitutionality, given recent electoral reforms. "Things have changed in the South," the court said in 2009.? "Blatantly discriminatory evasions of federal decrees are rare."

The court then went on to reject a constitutional challenge to the pre-clearance requirement, but it strongly suggested Congress should update the coverage formula.? Because, however, no changes have since made, the court may prepared to go the rest of the way this time.

Source: http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/26/17077448-landmark-civil-rights-law-faces-critical-supreme-court-test?lite

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Friends of JJ's Benefit in March will include food, music - KansasCity ...

The Kansas City arts, entertainment, music and food worlds will gather on March 5 and contribute to the Friends of JJ?s Benefit at the Uptown Theater. Proceeds will go to employees of JJ?s, the restaurant on the Country Club Plaza that was destroyed by an explosion and fire on Feb. 19.

More than 50 restaurants will serve food and beverages, and several Kansas City area bands and entertainers will perform, including the Late Night Callers, the Grisly Hand, Victor & Penny, David George and A Crooked Mile, Megan Birdsall, Missy Koonce and Ron Megee, Loaded Goat, Shellac Attack and DJ Rico.

?It?s pretty insane how many restaurants have stepped up and offered to help,? said Jim Ligon, a bartender at JJ?s and an organizer of the Friends of JJ?s group. ?I?d tell someone that we might have 400 people in VIP and they?d say, ?I can do that.? I?d have to tell them, ?Thank you , but I only need you to do part of that.? But that?s how it has gone. Everyone has been so generous.?

One person was killed in the explosion and fire; 15 others were injured, some critically or seriously. All were JJ?s employees. The benefit will also honor the memory of Megan Cramer, 46, a JJ?s server and the lone fatality.

?Megan really loved children and the arts,? Ligon said. ?She was a writer and a painter. She loved poetry. She was always reading a book. So we thought the best way to honor her was to start a foundation in her name that supports the arts.?

The event will be hosted by former Kansas City Chiefs receiver Eddie Kennison and Kelly Jones of Channel 5 (KCTV).

Tickets to the benefit will go on sale at 10 a.m. Wednesday through Ticketmaster, the Uptown Theater web site and at the theater?s box office at 3700 Broadway. General admission is $10; three VIP packages are available starting at $100. For more information, go to the Friends of JJ?s Facebook page.

Source: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/02/25/4086406/friends-of-jjs-benefit-will-include.html

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Monday, February 25, 2013

Five Best A/V Receivers

Five Best A/V Receivers A crucial and often overlooked part of your home entertainment setup is the humble receiver. It's responsible for organizing and funneling all of the audio and video from your Blu-ray player, game consoles, HTPC, and other devices to your TV and your speakers, but often it gets little attention. The best receivers have internet-capable features like streaming audio or video, a wealth of necessary ports for your devices, and won't break the bank at the same time. Here's a look at the top five, based on your nominations.

Earlier this week we asked you to let us know which A/V receivers offer the best features that you actually found useful: whether it's streaming capability, tons of ports, crisp and clear audio and video, compatibility with tons of devices, wireless, and of course, bang for the buck. You came in with tons of nominations, including specific models and general brands. Here's a look at your top five.

Five Best A/V Receivers

Onkyo TX-NR Series (TX-NR414, TX-NR616)

Onkyo's NR series of receivers have earned a lot of praise from a lot of people, not the least of which being our friends at The Wirecutter, who praised the TX-NR414 specifically as an excellent model with great features for the price. Many of you noted that you can't go wrong with the NR line, since they almost universally offer excellent sound quality (all THX certified), internet-enabled features like Pandora streaming and Airplay, and tons of inputs?more than many other manufacturers cram into their devices. Additionally, while Onkyo has been known to have issues with its HDMI controllers, many of you noted those issues seem to be resolved in the recent models and firmware updates. How much you drop on one varies, the TX-NR414 that The Wirecutter recommended retails for around $230, and can be found much cheaper when on sale (closer to $199,) and the equally popular TX-NR616 is closer to $650, but the high-end professional models can come in at thousands of dollars.

Five Best A/V Receivers

Marantz NR Series (NR1403, NR1603)

Marantz took home a number of nominations in the call for contenders thread, with some of you just noting "anything Marantz" is a good buy, and likely the kind of gear that will turn someone who doesn't care too much about audio and video quality into someone who does, thanks to the options, features, and bang-for-the-buck pricing of many Marantz models. Enthusiasts have fun tweaking, restoring, and retooling older 2230 models to suit modern entertainment centers, and first-time buyers can give models like the NR1603 a spin to get great features in a slim, space-saving and attractively designed unit. The NR1603 even packs Airplay and 7.2 channel audio into a small package, and retails at $650. If you're on a budget, the sub $400 NR1403 still has a lot to offer in an even smaller size. When you're ready to step up a level (and spend a good bit more money), check out the SR line, many of which sport internet-enabled features and AIrplay, along with support for 4K video (for those interested in futureproofing).)

Five Best A/V Receivers

Yamaha RX-V Series (RX-V473, RX-V673)

The Yamaha RX-V Series of receivers are both budget friendly and feature packed. Even at the top of the line, the RX-V773WA, comes in at $850 MSRP, far below the most expensive models of the other contenders. Still, it's the RX-V673 (approx $650) that many of you called out specifically, noting its 7.2 channel surround sound, streaming music features (Airplay, Pandora,Rhapsody,) reliability, customer support and warranty, and many of you called out the fact that Yamaha has an Android app to control its receivers with your phone, which is a nice touch. If you want to save a few more dollars, a few of you praised the RX-V473 (approx $450,) which drops a few features but keeps the core tech that makes for a solid receiver, like a wealth of inputs, USB connectivity for external devices and media players, Airplay, and even 4K pass-through in an affordable package.

Five Best A/V Receivers

Denon AVR Series (AVR-1713, AVR-1913)

Denon makes some incredible receivers, and many of you noted that you found yourself defecting to Denon after having bad experiences with other models?only to fall in love. Specifically, the Denon AVR-1713, a $450 (retail) model, delivers a wealth of streaming and internet-enabled features, including the ability to act as a media server that you can connect other devices to via Airplay (including the ability to play Airplay music in a separate zone at the same time, something rather unique to Denon's receivers), USB, or DLNA, or web-based sources like Pandora andSirius/XM. Denon's models also come with the Audyssey sound technology built in to help you optimize audio for your listening environment. Some of your dinged Denon for its video upscaling, but for the price, others noted that it couldn't be beat. If you need 7.1 channel audio and more features, step up to the $580 (retail) AVR-1913.

Five Best A/V Receivers

Emotiva Separate Components

Some of you noted that to really get the best, you should be buying separate components, not an all-in-one, all-around receiver to manage all of your audio and video components. Those of you who specified a brand or model called out Emotiva's amplifiers, preamps, and accessories that, when combined, can create a fierce (and fiercely expensive) home theater experience. If you're designing a home theater from the ground up and money is no object, buying components is a great way to go, but even used the process can get seriously expensive. Still, it's the only way to have absolute control over all of the media to and from your devices, and of all of the component vendors out there, Emotiva is a great bang for the buck. The company prides itself on offering your professional-level, "money is no object" sound without breaking your bank account to get it.

Now that you've seen the top five, it's time to put them to an all out vote and determine the best.

Honorable mentions this week go out to Pioneer's Elite Series, which fell collectively just shy of making the top five. Suffice to say there are a number of you who praise Pioneer for their build quality, features, and of course, the high media quality through the receiver when everything's all hooked up. Plus, Pioneer's receivers are often more affordable (but still feature packed) when compared to the competition.

Have something to say about one of the contenders? Want to make the case for your personal favorite, even if it wasn't included in the list? Remember, the top five are based on your most popular nominations from the call for contenders thread from earlier in the week. Don't just complain about the top five, let us know what your preferred alternative is?and make your case for it?in the discussions below.

The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. As with most Hive Five posts, if your favorite was left out, it's not because we hate it?it's because it didn't get the nominations required in the call for contenders post to make the top five. We understand it's a bit of a popularity contest, but if you have a favorite, we want to hear about it. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at tips+hivefive@lifehacker.com!

Photo by William Hook.

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/lPAemAxwrQ8/five-best-av-receivers

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Reports: U.S. Radar to Boost Missile Defense in Japan

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by Naharnet Newsdesk 24 February 2013, 05:20 W460

Tokyo and Washington plan to install a U.S. early-warning radar system at a coastal base near Kyoto to bolster defenses against the North Korean missile threat, reports said Sunday.

The X-band radar, capable of precisely tracking the trajectory of a ballistic missile, allows U.S. forces to launch intercept missiles from the ground and sea once a ballistic missile has been detected.

It will be the second X-band radar system to be installed in Japan after another was set up in northern Aomori prefecture.

The X-band radar system will be built in an Air Self-Defense Force base in Kyotango, northwest of Kyoto, on the coast of the Sea of Japan, or East Sea, Kyodo News and Jiji Press agencies reported, citing unnamed sources.

The location was picked as it was likely that a North Korean missile targeting Guam or Hawaii would fly over western or central parts of Japan, Kyodo said.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama confirmed in their meeting Friday in Washington that the two countries would work together on the radar installation, the reports said.

Source: http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/73141-reports-u-s-radar-to-boost-missile-defense-in-japan

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Oscars 2013 Backstage: Private Meet-Ups Revealed

MTV News' eyes on the inside share best behind-the-scenes moments.
By Brett White

Bradley Cooper at the 2013 Oscars
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1702534/backstage-oscars-academy-awards-2013.jhtml

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Sunday, February 24, 2013

13.02.24 00:00 , A Month Long MLK In Motion - Sunday February 24, 2013 @ DELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY

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Source: http://www.calendarwiz.com/calendars/popup.php?op=view&id=57212216&crd=wmdt

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Redford stumps for oil sands, Keystone XL pipeline in Washington

Alberta Premier Alison Redford says she?s open to tougher environmental regulations, but only if current policies fall short of her goals, and not as a trade-off to win U.S. approval of the Keystone XL pipeline.

?Our regulations are pretty tough,? Ms. Redford said Saturday in an interview, responding to a question about whether she would tighten scrutiny of the oil sands to appease skeptics in President Barack Obama?s administration.

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?I?m not going to start down that path. Part of the quid pro quo is we want people to understand what our record,? on environmental protection, the premier said. ?We think it?s important to be leaders and demonstrate some leadership and we?ve done that.?

Dozens of U.S. power brokers are receiving a version of that message this weekend in Washington. Ms. Redford and her environment minister, Diana McQueen, are in the American capital to hang around the margins of the winter meeting of the National Governors Association, which attracts the leaders of the 50 states and a countless number of officials, staffers and lobbyists with influence in the White House and on Capitol Hill.

Ms. Redford called her trip ?organic,? and said she wasn?t in Washington to advocate for any particular project. Ms. Redford said she met Saturday with Maine Governor Paul LePage to discuss her efforts ? with New Brunswick Premier David Alward ? to clear the way for a pipeline that would stretch east from the oil sands.

Yet the Alberta premier made no attempt to suggest that Keystone XL wasn?t the primary topic of conversation.

TransCanada Pipelines Ltd.?s proposal to ship Canadian heavy crude from northern Alberta to refineries in Texas must win the approval of the Obama administration. The president?s supporters in the environmental movement want the project blocked, arguing the energy-intensive transaction process used in the oil sands emits too much carbon. Mr. Obama temporarily stalled the pipeline last year, and is expected to make a final decision in the spring.

The fervent opposition to Alberta oil caught Canadian officials off guard.

Ms. Redford visited Washington within a few weeks of first becoming premier in October 2011. She says she soon learned that the old arguments in favour of Canadian oil ? a safe, friendly supplier; jobs, jobs and more jobs ? were no longer enough.

?We heard very quickly that they don?t want to hear anymore the security argument or the jobs argument. We get that,? Ms. Redford said, remarking on the response she got to Alberta?s traditional pitch. ?Really, this is about environmental stewardship and sustainable development of the oil sands. We were quite happy to talk about that, (but) that was a shift in the kinds of conversations that Alberta was having.?

The two Alberta politicians arrived in Washington a week after thousands of environmentalists rallied against the Keystone pipeline on the National Mall, a show of force that poses a political dilemma for Mr. Obama, who used his State of the Union speech to pledge a fresh assault on climate change. Tens of thousands of the people who helped elect him say he should start by refusing TransCanada?s request to build a pipeline across the border, and strike a blow against ?dirty oil.?

Ms. Redford is countering that message by insisting her government is as committed to fighting climate change as any in North America.

Following a separate meeting with the Washington Post?s environment reporter, Alberta?s premier and environment minister insisted their province gets too little credit for its green agenda. The province plans to set aside millions of hectares for conservation, including 1.2-million hectares that already has been put off-limits for exploitation in the oil-sands region. It has put limits on greenhouse gas emissions, and is one of the few jurisdictions in the world that has put a price ? $15 a tonne ? on carbon emissions that exceed provincial limits. Receipts from that penalty are used to stock a new technology fund.

?It?s a strong record,? Ms. Redford said. ?We?re ahead of a lot of places in the world, and people tend not to know that.?

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Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/redford-stumps-for-oil-sands-keystone-xl-pipeline-in-washington/article9007811/?cmpid=rss1

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Aviani two goals, Kichton three assists as the Chiefs down the Oil Kings

SPOKANE, Wash. - Mike Aviani scored twice and Brenden Kichton had three assists as the Spokane Chiefs downed the Edmonton Oil Kings 6-4 on Friday in Western Hockey League action.

Dylan Walchuk and Todd Fiddler had a goal and an assist each for the Chiefs (35-24-2), who won for the first time in three outings, while Liam Stewart and Mitch Holmberg had a goal apiece.

Cole Benson scored three times for the Oil Kings (43-14-5) and Martin Gernat had two assists.

Keegan Lowe also scored to round out Edmonton's offence.

Garret Hughson made 33 saves for the victory as Tristan Jarry took the loss after allowing two goals on 11 shots in 25 minutes of relief. Jarry replaced starter Laurent Brossoit after Brossoit gave up four goals on 18 shots.

Spokane went 3 for 5 on the power play while Edmonton scored once on six chances with the man advantage.

Source: http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=657055

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Thursday, February 21, 2013

89% Django Unchained

All Critics (228) | Top Critics (42) | Fresh (202) | Rotten (26)

Django Unchained is Tarantino's most complete movie yet. It is also his most vital. His storytelling talents match the heft of the tale.

Django Unchained has mislaid its melancholy, and its bitter wit, and become a raucous romp. It is a tribute to the spaghetti Western, cooked al dente, then cooked a while more, and finally sauced to death.

Genre-movie-mad writer-director Quentin Tarantino's foray into Western World is a pretty grave disappointment.

Wildly extravagant, ferociously violent, ludicrously lurid and outrageously entertaining, yet also, remarkably, very much about the pernicious lunacy of racism and, yes, slavery's singular horrors.

The players are in fine form. But the movie he's embroiled them all in is a hit-and-miss affair, at times an amusing reimagining of history, more often a blood-spattered bore.

Quentin Tarantino no longer makes movies; he makes trailers.

Tarantino is, in essence, a classicist who invests the bulk of his drama and tension in lengthy dialogue exchanges that are infinitely more compelling that his elongated sequences of cathartic violence.

Still wonderfully witty and violent sequences that only Tarantino could manage or dare.

This bloody, hilarious, shocking, and righteously angry film is the kind of great art and great trash [Tarantino] aspires to make.

...compulsively watchable for the majority of its (admittedly overlong) running time...

I had a good enough time to wish that it had been better.

Part-blaxploitation film, part-spaghetti Western and all-Tarantino, 'Django Unchained' comes charging at its audiences with guns a-blazin'. It's not quite up to par with 'Reservoir Dogs' or 'Pulp Fiction,' but it's still Tarantino - enough said.

Overlong, overblown and overly self-indulgent. But excess is what Tarantino does. And just as he won't put one word in his characters' mouths when he can have them utter 10; he won't dispatch a bad guy with one bullet when he can discharge a dozen.

It would seem that this film's irreverence isn't a case of didn't-try-can't-fail dismissiveness, but rather something more innocuous: it's simply the world interpreted through Tarantino's boisterous perspective.

The funniest western since Blazing Saddles, the bloodiest since The Wild Bunch and the most visually stylish since The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.

Guilty of almost every indulgence [Tarantino] has ever been accused of...but it's hard to hold it against him, when the results are this bloody good

Ultimately enjoyable, if a little underwhelming, if nothing else we can be grateful to Django Unchained for allowing the phrase "that's the worst thing since Quentin Tarantino's Australian accent".

Impolitic though it might be to suggest it, there's something extremely satisfying about the violence here-though, for my money, it resides less in seeing these racist thugs get their comeuppance, than in the director's staging of it.

it's fitting that one of the greatest American filmmakers of all time is using the western and blaxploitation genres to connect the enduring blemish on the American psyche - only to set loose a bad motherf*cker to set it right.

Thrilling, stylish, funny, brutal, superbly-acted, sharply written and wonderfully offensive.

Django Unchained is a joy. It's fun and foolish, unhinged and unapologetic.

Possibly Tarantino's most thoughtful and even political film to date.

Tarantino is starting to look more and more like an angry teenager in his bedroom going, "Wouldn't it be good if..."

Whereas there was savage beauty and irony in the '60-'70s violence of Penn, Peckinpah, and Leone, the coda of 'Django Unchained' is mere benumbing splatter.

It's a big, crazy, hugely entertaining, multilayered piece of filmmaking - a fierce but fiercely intelligent testament to Tarantino's frequently questioned filmmaking proclivities and certainly among the best films he's made.

Trazendo alguns dos melhores momentos da filmografia de Tarantino, ainda culmina em um cl?max longo e violento que certamente levar? os f?s do diretor a orgasmos de sangue.

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/django_unchained_2012/

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Vevo Quietly Redesigns Its Homepage To Streamline Search, Navigation, And Playlist Creation

Over the past few years, Vevo has been working hard to simplify the process by which users search for and discover new music videos on its site. With that in mind, the company released a small update to its homepage today, aimed at making it easier for users to check out new music videos and to search for those they know and love.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/Tv9nGg3pKTE/

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Nuclear monitors detected meteor explosion

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization

Seventeen infrasound stations in the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization's network detected the infrasonic waves from the meteor that broke up over Russia's Ural mountains on Friday.

By Leonard David
Space.com

A far-flung system of detectors that make up a Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty network made its largest ever detection when a meteor exploded over Russia?s Ural mountains last week.

The Vienna, Austria-based Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) runs the International Monitoring System made up of infrasound stations. Infrasound is low-frequency sound with a range of less than 10 Hertz. Humans cannot hear the low-frequency waves that were emitted by the meteor blast over Russia on Friday, but they were recorded by the CTBTO?s network of sensors as they traveled across continents.

When the space rock detonated, the blast was detected by 17 infrasound stations in the CTBTO?s network that track atomic blasts across Earth. The furthest station to record the sub-audible sound was some 9,320 miles (15,000 kilometers) away in Antarctica.

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization

This graphic depicts the sources of infrasound signals that can be detected by the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization's listening stations.

Huge infrasound event
Prior to the Russian meteor event, the largest infrasound event registered by 15 stations in the CTBTO?s network was the October 2009 meteor explosion (called a bolide) over Sulawesi, Indonesia. [See video of the intense meteor explosion]

In a CTBTO statement discussing the Russian bolide, Pierrick Mialle, an acoustic scientist for the group, said:? "We saw straight away that the event would be huge, in the same order as the Sulawesi event from 2009. The observations are some of the largest that CTBTO's infrasound stations have detected."

The Russian meteor blast picked up by the detectors is not a single explosion, Mialle said. Rather, it is burning, traveling faster than the speed of sound. "That's how we distinguish it from mining blasts or volcanic eruptions," he said.

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization

Visual representation of the infrasound waves and computer attributes by the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization's International Data Center, made from fireball data recorded by a CTBTO station in Kazakhstan.

Mialle said that scientists around the world will be using the CTBTO's data to better gauge the object's breakup and discern more about the object's final altitude, energy released and how the meteor disintegrated.

Micropressure changes
There are currently 45 infrasound stations in the CTBTO's network that measure micropressure changes in the atmosphere generated by infrasonic waves. Infrasound is one of the technologies used in the CTBTO?s network of sensors to monitor the globe for violations of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty that bans all nuclear explosions.

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization Infrasound station IS21, on Marquesas Islands, France.

Infrasound has been used as part of the CTBTO's tools to detect atomic blasts since April 2001 when the first station came online in Germany. Data from the stations is sent in near real time to Vienna, Austria, for analysis at the CTBTO?s headquarters. Both the raw and analyzed data are provided to all member states of the CTBTO.

CTBTO member states have spent $1 billion on setting up the CTBTO verification regime.

Just days before the meteor explosion over Russia, the CTBTO's seismic network detected a seismic event in North Korea. That event on Feb. 12 measured 4.9 in magnitude. Later that morning, North Korean officials announced that the country had conducted a nuclear test. The event was registered by 94 seismic stations and two infrasound stations in the CTBTO's network.

Leonard David has been reporting on the space industry for more than five decades. He is former director of research for the National Commission on Space and a past editor-in-chief of the National Space Society's Ad Astra and Space World magazines. He has written for Space.com since 1999.

Source: http://science.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/19/17020959-nuclear-monitors-detected-russia-meteor-explosion?lite

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Obama to apply fresh pressure on Republicans to avoid cuts (reuters)

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Wednesday, February 20, 2013

When it comes to genetic code, researchers prove optimum isn't always best

Feb. 18, 2013 ? Imagine two steel springs identical in look and composition but that perform differently because each was tempered at a different rate.

A team of researchers including a Texas A&M University molecular biologist has shown that concept -- that the speed of creation affects performance -- applies to how a protein they studied impacts an organism's circadian clock function. This discovery provides new insights into the significance of the genetic code for controlling the rates at which critically important proteins are synthesized, and could lead to better understanding of cancers and other diseases.

"Living organisms' inner clocks are like Swiss watches with precisely manufactured spring mechanisms," said Matthew Sachs, a professor in the Texas A&M Department of Biology. "For example, if you fast-temper a critical spring, the watch may be unable to keep time, as opposed to slow-tempering it. It's not just about the composition of the components, such as which alloy is used. It's about the manner in which the components are made. Our research says the genetic code is important for determining both composition and fabrication rate for a central component of the circadian clock, and that the fabrication rate also is critical. And that's essentially a discovery."

The research was selected for Advanced Online Publication (AOP) in the journal Nature.

The team, which is led by Yi Liu, a researcher in the Department of Physiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, was perplexed when it found a paradoxical result years ago: that optimizing the use of codons (a sequence of three nucleotides that form a unit of genetic code in a DNA or RNA molecule) specifying an essential biological clock component actually abolished the organism's circadian rhythms.

The group's research indicates that the protein in the fungal genus Neurospora they studied, frequency, performs better when the genetic code specifying it has non-optimal codon usage, as is normally found. However, when the genetic code is deliberately altered so that codon usage is optimized, clock function is lost. The reason for this is that non-optimal codon usage slows translation of the genetic code into protein, allotting the frequency protein the necessary time to achieve its optimal protein structure. The team's results also demonstrate that genetic codons do more than simply determine the amino acid sequence of a protein as previously thought: They also affect how much protein can be made as well as the functional quality of that protein.

"We found that less is more, in many cases," Liu said.

Because many genetic diseases are the result of improperly functioning proteins, Sachs says knowledge about how proteins are made and why they have impaired functions is critical to understanding almost all diseases.

"Understanding gene expression is crucial for understanding cancer and other diseases, because ultimately many of these processes involve either mutations of genes or altered expression of genes," said Sachs, who was asked by Liu to help on the research because of his translational expertise in Neurospora.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Texas A&M University.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Mian Zhou, Jinhu Guo, Joonseok Cha, Michael Chae, She Chen, Jose M. Barral, Matthew S. Sachs, Yi Liu. Non-optimal codon usage affects expression, structure and function of clock protein FRQ. Nature, 2013; DOI: 10.1038/nature11833

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/xMlp5uWaK2g/130219121457.htm

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'Deceptive Affection' May Actually Keep Relationships Going | Psych ...

By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on February 18, 2013

Deceptive Affection May Actually Keep Relationships Going Now that Valentine?s Day is over, the sobering reality is that the days that follow February 14 are associated with a spike in relationship breakups.

This behavior may be explained by a new study that suggests affectionate behavior is not all that is seems.

?Gestures such as hand-holding, kissing and cuddling could be indicators that your partner is mad at you,? said DePaul University?s Sean Horan, Ph.D., an assistant professor of relational communication.

In the study, Horan examined how and why deceptive affectionate behavior occurs. Deceptive affection means that an individual in a romantic relationship chooses to express affection he or she does not actually feel.

Remarkably, this behavior is relatively common. Horan and co-researcher Melanie Booth-Butterfield, Ph.D., discovered that non-married individuals expressed deceptive affection about three times a week to romantic partners.

?Couples use deceptive affection because they feel negatively about their partner and want to save face, avoid embarrassing their partner or sidestep a situation that may land them in hot water,? said Horan.

Examples of this kind of deception include lying about one?s own feelings or feelings about a partner and expressing affection instead of negative feelings, the researchers said.

One participant confessed she didn?t want to hug or cuddle her boyfriend because she was in a bad mood but did so anyway.

Another told his girlfriend he loved her to get off the phone faster so he could watch a basketball game. And when one woman?s boyfriend asked if she liked his new haircut, she lied and said she did, in order to spare his feelings.

Couples use verbal and non-verbal affection in hopes that a sweet caress or profession of love will mask their true feelings, according to the study.

Despite the harmful connotations, Horan argues this isn?t necessarily negative behavior.

?Using affection to lie appears to be a regular activity in romantic relationships that most people don?t seem to mind,? he said. ?In fact, deceptive affection might actually help maintain a relationship.?

The study is forthcoming the journal Communication Quarterly.

Source: DePaul University

APA Reference
Nauert PhD, R. (2013). ?Deceptive Affection? May Actually Keep Relationships Going. Psych Central. Retrieved on February 20, 2013, from http://psychcentral.com/news/2013/02/18/deceptive-affection-may-actually-keep-relationships-going/51720.html

Source: http://psychcentral.com/news/2013/02/18/deceptive-affection-may-actually-keep-relationships-going/51720.html

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After tiff, Obama calls GOP senators to talk immigration

After a public squabble over whether President Obama was in communication with Congress on immigration reform, Mr. Obama today called three key Republican senators to discuss the matter.

Mr. Obama called Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; John McCain, R-Ariz.; and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., the White House said in a statement, "to discuss their shared commitment to bipartisan, commonsense immigration reform and to commend the Senators for the bipartisan progress that continues to be made by the Gang of 8 on this important issue."

Graham, McCain and Rubio are three of the four Republican senators working with four Democratic senators to craft immigration reform legislation. Mr. Obama did not speak to the fourth Republican, Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., because he is traveling today, but the White House said the president looks forward to speaking with him in the near future.

The White House said the president's phone calls today "build on conversations that have taken place at the staff level."

In a White House briefing earlier today, senior administration officials said "Gang of 8" staff had met at least five times in recent weeks with the White House policy and legislative affairs staff. Rubio's office, however, disputed that claim.

"We've never discussed immigration policy with anyone from the White House," Rubio's spokesman Alex Conant said. "The Administration has sent some agency officials to brief staff at the bipartisan group meetings, but they've never asked for our input. (And, frankly, we've never asked for theirs.) We've never received a call or email from [Mr. Obama's chief domestic policy adviser] Cecilia Munoz or anyone else at the White House asking for our input as they draft their bill."

Republicans contend that if the Obama administration is serious about drafting its own immigration reform proposals, they should be seeking at least some input from the GOP.

Today's phone calls may have at least temporarily improved the White House's relationship with Congress. Conant said on Twitter today that "@MarcoRubio appreciated @BarackObama's call to discuss immigration tonight. Rubio said he feels good about ongoing negotiations in Senate."

Source: http://feeds.cbsnews.com/~r/CBSNewsGamecore/~3/1wzBicN-NOM/

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