LITTLE ROCK — QUOTE OF THE DAY “I would not support raising the debt ceiling because Congress has not adopted a credible process to restrain spending and eliminate red ink.”
Sen. Evan Bayh
of Indiana, the only Democrat not to back raising the ceiling on government debt Article,this page EMTs: Weren’t asked to see ill woman
NEW YORK - The emergency medical technicians accused of refusing to help a dying pregnant woman were never asked to examine her or told the extent of her condition, their lawyer said Thursday.
Attorney Douglas Rosenthal said in a statement that his clients were only asked to summon an ambulance on Dec.
9 when they were taking a break in a Brooklyn eatery. He said Jason Green and Melisa Jackson never saw Eutisha Rennix, who was in the back of the Au Bon Pain store, and that other employees didn’t seem overly concerned about her condition.
Witnesses have said the EMTs told workers to call 911, then left when they were asked to help the 25-year-old woman. Rennix, who also was the mother of a 3-year-old boy, died at a hospital shortly afterward. The cause of death has not been determined. Her baby did not survive the premature birth.
Green and Jackson have been suspended without pay.
Obamas’ yule remarks salute military
WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama offered Christmas wishes to the nation Thursday, including a special thanks for the U.S. military.
They urged Americans to help support military families this Christmas season.
In his weekly radio and Internet address, Obama said serving as commander in chief has been his greatest honor as president. He saluted the “selfless spirit” of those who serve and said he has been “humbled, profoundly” by those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
“So to all our men and women in uniform spending the holidays far from home - whether it’s at a base here in the states, a mess hall in Iraq or a remote outpost in Afghanistan - know that you are in our thoughts and our prayers,” the president said in a message released two days early because of Christmas. “And this holiday season - and every holiday season - know that we are doing everything in our power to make sure you can succeed in your missions and come home safe to your families.” Tug grounds on the Exxon Valdez reef
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A tugboat put in service to help prevent another oil spill disaster in Prince William Sound ran aground on the same reef as the Exxon Valdez did 20 years ago.
The Coast Guard said Thursday that the 136-foot tug with a crew of six aboard had just completed an ice survey and was heading back to port in Valdez when it grounded on Bligh Reef. The tug reported the grounding in a radio call at 6:15 p.m. Wednesday.
Two of the tug’s fuel tanks, which contained an estimated 33,500 gallons of diesel fuel, were damaged. Chief Petty Officer Dana Warr said some fuel remained in the tug’s two tanks, but the amount was not known. A barge was being delivered to the scene to prepare off-loading the remaining fuel.
The Coast Guard said Thursday that there was a fuel sheen about 3 miles long and 30 yards wide that had drifted away from the vessel. There was no sheen visible around the tug.
The tug, called the Pathfinder, is part of a ship escort system that was put in place after the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster, when the 987-foot tanker ran aground and spilled nearly 11 million gallons of crude oil into Prince William Sound.
Anger at government noted in standoff
WYTHEVILLE, Va. - A man accused of taking three people captive in a Virginia post office told them he was angry at the federal government because his son had died in Afghanistan and his beloved truck was about to repossessed, one of the captives said Thursday.
Suspect Warren “Gator” Taylor, 53, of Sullivan County, Tenn., was arraigned Thursday on kidnapping and other federal charges. The captives were released unharmed after about eight hours Wednesday and Taylor surrendered without incident.
On Thursday, Taylor apologized in federal court in Roanoke for getting “everybody out on Christmas.”
Captive Jimmy Oliver said Taylor told him he picked the small-town Wytheville post office at random. Oliver said the man told the captives his son had died in Afghanistan two months ago, though that could not be immediately confirmed. He also said he was dodging attempts to repossess his red pickup.
Front Section, Pages 4 on 12/25/2009