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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid had an unusual form of praise for New York's junior senator, Kirsten Gillibrand, this morning at the fundraiser Mayor Bloomberg hosted for him at his townhouse - referring to her as "the hottest member" as she sat just a few feet away, according to three sources. The comment prompted Gillibrand to turn red, according to the sources, and created a bit of stir among the small crowd there. "It was pretty shocking when he said it," said one source familiar with the remark and the reaction. A Reid spokesman confirmed it happened, but also noted...

A founding member of ELO has been killed in a freak accident when a giant hay bale rolled out of a field and landed on his van. Cellist Mike Edwards died instantly when the 50-stone cylindrical bale careered down a slope, flipped 15ft over a hedge and smashed on to the roof of his van. Mr Edwards, 62, was known for unconventional cello playing including plucking the strings with an orange or grapefruit and his bizarre customs which became a major ingredient of ELO, the Electric Light Orchestra.

Candidate target of protest for his ties to Muslim extremist group CAIR PHILADELPHIA – Democratic nominee Joe Sestak would be "the most anti-Israel member" of the U.S. Senate, pro-Israel activists contended as the race for the Pennsylvania Senate seat erupted in controversy over the candidate's ties to a Muslim extremist group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR. Sestak is a second-term congressman representing the suburbs of Philadelphia who surprised political observers in the May primary election by defeating incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter, who had switched to the Democratic Party to avoid impending defeat as a Republican.

The ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee said Monday that he's studying options for investigating the Sestak affair if the administration does not responded to calls for an inquiry. Rep. Joe Sestak (D-Pa.) said Friday that former President Bill Clinton had conveyed an offer of an administration post if Sestak did not run against Sen. Arlen Specter for the Democratic Senate nomination. Sestak said he immediately brushed off the offer, and White House counsel Bob Bauer released a memo Friday saying "we have concluded that allegations of improper conduct rest on factual errors and lack a basis in the...

'The Nude' exhibit at downtown gallery to feature portraits and live, naked people ASHLAND — City Councilman Eric Navickas and his partner, Amy Godard, will hold a nude show at their downtown gallery in January in response to an attempt to ban nudity in the city. "The Nude" exhibit will feature traditional nude portraits and conceptual art involving live, naked people. "We feel that the nude ban is not only an attack on freedom of expression but also an attack on the human body itself," Navickas said. "We wanted to have a show to celebrate the nude body and differentiate...

SIERRA VISTA — A lot of lives were changed that day. Jennifer Wojtanowski’s was one of them. “You can watch 9-11 coverage on TV all you want, but until you are actually there, you have no idea what it’s really like,” Wojtanowski said of her experience at Ground Zero. “The smells, the sounds, the family members. It was just overwhelming.” As a 19-year-old who had just gone through her initial military training, Wojtanowski was assigned to the New York Army National Guard’s 42nd Infantry Division at the time of the attacks. Now, five years later, the 24-year-old vividly recalls the...

http://us.video.aol.com/video.index.adp?mode=2&guideContext=65.73&pmmsid=1704808 CNN's Ed Lavandera reports that a Dallas school board official wants people to pull their pants up. (Sept. 7)

6/28/2006 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- For the first time since its formation in 1954, members of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force are actively deployed to a combat zone. They are helping with humanitarian relief and reconstruction efforts in Iraq. "I feel the responsibility of this valuable work for the world and am proud to take part in this operation," said Col. Atsushi Nishino, commander of the JASDF Iraq Reconstruction Support Airlift Wing. "(Our mission is crucial) because reconstruction and stabilizing Iraq is important for global stability and peace, not only in the Middle East." Their primary mission here is...

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Montenegro on Wednesday became the 192nd member of the United Nations, a month after it ended its 88-year partnership with Serbia that completed the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. "I declare the Republic of Montenegro admitted to membership in the United Nations," U.N. General Assembly President Jan Eliasson announced after calling for approval by acclamation in the 191-nation body. General Assembly members then broke into applause as the Balkan country's president, Filip Vujanovic, Foreign Minister Miodrag Vlahovic and U.N. envoy Nebojsa Kaludjerovic were escorted to their new seats, next to the Mongolian delegation. "I am confident...

<p>An arsenal of exotic weapons - including a sniper rifle, a spear and a set of 8-inch metal claws - were seized from a 23-year-old Jersey City man after his worried father called cops. When South District cops responded to the Greenville home yesterday morning, they found the sniper rifle - with a powerful scope and a laser sight - as well as three Glock handguns and more than 1,200 rounds of ammunition, reports said. Among the bullets were illegal "hollow-point" rounds, police said. In addition to the spear and metal claws, cops found a number of savage-looking knives, including one that had blades coming out of each end of its carved wooden handle. The owner of the weapons lived with his father, his brother and two younger brothers, police said.</p>

AL ASAD, Iraq (April 14, 2006) -- From the mean streets of Brooklyn to the sandstorms of Iraq, one Marine knows that the choice he made, just a short time ago, may have been the difference between life or death. Lance Cpl. Mike A. Rivera, current operations clerk, Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron 3, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, was once involved with a notorious nationwide gang and was headed for a life that people only see in the movies, but with the help of his family and friends, this now motivated Marine is headed for a greater life. "I got involved...

'Al-Qa'eda member worked on Tube' By Duncan Gardham (Filed: 29/03/2006) An Al-Qa'eda cell wanted to launch a suicide-bomb attack in Britain using one of their members, who worked for London Underground, the Old Bailey heard yesterday. Omar Khyam, 24, his brother Shujah ud din Mahmood, 19, Jawad Akbar, 22, Nabeel Hussain, 20, and Waheed Mahmood, 34, all from Crawley, West Sussex, along with Anthony Garcia, 24, from Ilford, Essex and Salahuddin Amin, 31, from Luton, all deny conspiracy to cause explosions. Mohammed Babar, who has turned informant on the other members of the gang, said that the man intended for...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Dec. 14, 2005) -- From privates first class to sergeants major to lieutenant colonels, all Marines who saw the newly promoted sergeant walking through their work areas were quick to render the appropriate military courtesies. After all, Brandon Rasnick had accomplished what no one else in the 2nd Marine Division had, made the rank of sergeant in one day. It’s a success the Lehigh Acres, Fla., native did not tout as he made his rounds throughout the base. Rather, the Marines and sailors smiled and waved as the shortest noncommissioned officer they had ever...

By Sibel Utku Bila - Agence France-Presse ANKARA - Turkey hinted yesterday that it may shun the start of EU membership talks next week as political tensions rose over the country's place in Europe, leading Britain to warn of a «huge betrayal» if the door was slammed shut on Ankara. Raising the risk of a political showdown, the European Parliament issued a stern warning to Ankara to recognize Cyprus and acknowledge that the Ottomans committed «genocide» against Armenians during World War I, two highly sensitive issues that have already strained ties. The Parliament did, however, endorse the start of talks...

RICHMOND, Va. - A Sierra Club member staged a small protest Monday calling for the resignation of the environmental group's executive director, accusing him of accepting money from a donor in exchange for halting the group's discussion of immigration policy. James McDonald, a 60-year-old Springfield attorney, said Carl Pope accepted more than $100 million from California donor David Gelbaum in 2001 only after promising Gelbaum the club would stay out of the immigration debate. Pope and leaders of the venerable conservation group called McDonald's allegations ridiculous. A faction within the San Francisco-based Sierra Club has long urged a stronger stance...

Nobody was surprised that state Sen. Carole Migden voted in favor of her own cosmetics bill. The problem was that she did it in the wrong legislative house. Toward the end of Wednesday's floor session, Migden, a San Francisco Democrat, pushed the voting button of a GOP assemblyman who was temporarily away from his desk. Her action violated Assembly rules and drew an angry response from Republicans. "That behavior cannot be tolerated," said Assembly Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield. "It's unheard of on this floor, it's against the rules, and it cannot be tolerated." Migden, chairwoman of the powerful...

British Parliament member to face oil-for-food accusers From Phil Hirschkorn CNN Tuesday, May 17, 2005 Posted: 0746 GMT (1546 HKT) Galloway speaks to the media after arriving Monday at Dulles International Airport outside Washington. (CNN) -- British Parliament member George Galloway will face his accusers when he testifies Tuesday before a U.S. Senate panel probing the U.N. oil-for-food program in Iraq. Galloway is due to appear before the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which stated in a report last week that deposed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein granted him vouchers for 20 million barrels of...

Bill Hallin continues to be a straight shooter -- even at the age of 97. When he can get a ride from his Roseburg apartment out to the Roseburg Rod and Gun Club in Winchester, he shoots his Thompson Center Encore 6 mm benchrest pistol. At 100 yards, his three-shot grouping is usually one-quarter inch. When he shoots five times, he admits there might be one shot out to one-half inch. "I still shoot well enough," Hallin said with a smile. "Other people think I'm a good shot." Fred Dayton, a past president of the Rod and Gun Club who...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A Southern California water district board member who pleaded guilty to accepting a $25,000 bribe in exchange for voting to award a contract for financial services was sentenced to two years in prison. Tyrone Smith, 47, of Ladera Heights is one of about a dozen officials who had been convicted following a Federal Bureau of Investigation probe in to municipal corruption in Carson. U.S. District Judge Nora Manella on Monday rejected a defense request for six months of home detention. She said that granting such a sentence would send the wrong message to public officials who...

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - An escaped convict and violent gang member from California who was wanted in several states was arrested Wednesday after allegedly shooting a Ramsey County Sheriff's deputy. Yatau Her, 21, of Fresno, Calif., was in custody at Regions Hospital on Wednesday night. He was taken to the hospital with apparent chest pains after he was hit by a St. Paul police squad car while fleeing from authorities, officials said. Ramsey County Sheriff's Deputy Chris Tayson, 42, was shot Wednesday afternoon when he and another deputy confronted Her and two other suspects while on patrol. Tayson was...