AP - Rep. John Murtha, the tall, gruff-mannered former Marine who became the de facto voice of veterans on Capitol Hill and later an outspoken and influential critic of the Iraq War, died Monday. He was 77. The Pennsylvania Democrat had been suffering from complications from gallbladder surgery. He died at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va., with his family at his bedside, the hospital said.
Reuters - President Barack Obama's call for a healthcare summit including both his fellow Democrats and Republicans sets the stage for a final push to get stalled legislation through Congress, but skeptical Republicans said on Monday the only solution is to start over.
AP - Toyota is recalling about 170,000 Prius hybrid cars in Japan for braking problems and will soon disclose its global plans for a fix as the automaker scrambles to repair damage to its reputation from a spate of safety problems.
AP - Iran pressed ahead Monday with plans that will increase its ability to make nuclear weapons as it formally informed the U.N. nuclear agency of its intention to enrich uranium to higher levels.
Reuters - Toyota Motor Corp said on Tuesday it would recall its flagship Prius hybrid in Japan for braking problems and that it had halted shipments of two other hybrid models to check for similar problems.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Il reiterated his country's pledge to achieve a denuclearization of the Korean peninsula when he met a senior Chinese envoy, Beijing's official news agency reported. "The sincerity of relevant parties to resume the six-party talks is very important," Kim said.
Authorities looking for the cause of an explosion that killed five people at a Middletown power plant under construction launched a criminal investigation, saying they could not rule out criminal negligence as the cause. The powerful explosion blew apart large swaths of the nearly completed 620-megawatt Kleen Energy plant Sunday.
Critics call the president's plan to hold a summit between Democrats and Republicans on Feb. 25 a purely political gambit designed to give the appearance of momentum for the health bill. Even supporters of the summit see room for common ground with Republicans on only a few narrow issues.
A Chinese-born engineer convicted in the United States' first economic espionage trial was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison for stealing sensitive information on the U.S. space program with the intent of passing it to China.
