Senator Joseph Biden has sent a letter to both the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, demanding an inquiry into errors affecting more than 230,000 Social Security recipients and Medicare Part D beneficiaries.
The mistakes include an erroneous distribution of $50 million in Medicare Part D premium reimbursements to beneficiaries, as […]

Responding to comments in a speech made by Sec’y of Defense Donald Rumsfeld this week, Sen. Joe Biden commented, “Secretary Rumsfeld has reminded us again why he has no credibility and why it’s time to resign.”
Mr. Rumsfeld’s speech was delivered to an audience at the American Legion National Convention. In targeting the […]

Political columnist David Yepsen published “Biden Visit Shows He’s A Viable Candidate” in today’s Des Moines Register.

“Could 2008 be Biden’s year? Absolutely. The nomination in both parties is wide open, and few question his ability to be President. So now, at 63 and with 32 years in the U.S. Senate, […]

The White House announced that President Bush would revive the expired nominations of five controversial appeals court candidates. The move sets the stage for yet another election-year battle over the federal judiciary.
With just a few weeks to go before lawmakers break for their Fall campaigns, and with Democrats and even some Republicans objecting to the […]

“Peaceful nuclear energy is the right of the Iranian nation … and no one can stop it,” President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told reporters.

Iran was threatened with sanctions if they did not respond to a U.N. demand to halt enrichment of uranium by August 31.
The Int’l Atomic Energy Assn. has been looking into concerns that Iran’s official […]

From the Associated Press:
The Israeli army said Thursday that it has transferred control over a portion of the Israel-Lebanon border to Lebanese and international troops for the first time in two decades.
Control of a small area of the border near the town of Metulla is now in the hands of the Lebanese, the army […]

From The Chicago Sun-Times:
After 80 years, “Chief Illiniwek” will begin on Saturday what is likely to be his last year of dancing at University of Illinois football games, university sources said.
But after that, he will no longer be an official university symbol, the sources said.
The NCAA barred the school from hosting its postseason […]

From The New Orleans Times-Picayune:
At a recent meeting at Houston’s Texas Southern University, sponsored by non-profits the Jeremiah Group of New Orleans and The Metropolitan Organization of Houston, Hurricane Katrina evacuees met with New Orleans City Council-sponsored city planners — and espoused a mix of passion and pain, told through personal narratives of their […]

From The Associated Press:
Militants murdered an Islamic cleric and an Afghan refugee accused of spying for U.S. and Afghan authorities in northwestern Pakistan, an intelligence official said today.
The cleric was an Afghan identified as 45-year-old Noor Wali. The body of the Afghan refugee, identified as Hak Nawaz, was found in Darpakhel village, on […]

During the past 72 hours, several news articles about North Korea have been published at online media sites. (In addition, see UOS Blog # 168.)
Here are three news stories shown in date order, highlighting views from the Secretary of Defense, the Department of the Navy and a geological research center […]