Germany Leader Opposes Full Debt Sharing In Eurozone Crisis

Committee nears final vote on immigration bill Associated Press Copyright 2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 2:53 pm, Tuesday, May 21, 2013 WASHINGTON (AP) — Far-reaching immigration legislation neared a final committee vote on Tuesday as the White House and Democratic supporters pressed the panel's chairman to delay a showdown over the rights of gay spouses until a debate in the full Senate. Firms where foreign labor accounts for at least 15 percent of the skilled work force would be subjected to tighter conditions than companies less dependent on H-IB visa holders. [] a student at UCLA, he has achieved legal status as a result of administration policy that permits individuals brought to the United States as children to legalize. Two people familiar with the deliberations said the White House had suggested to Leahy that it would be best to put the controversy aside until the bill goes before the full Senate, and congressional officials said similar pleas had come from Democratic senators. Most recently, he was the sole opponent of an amendment that passed 17-1 on Monday to make a third drunk driving conviction a deportable offense for immigrants in some instances. [] a vote on the proposal could create political difficulty for Democrats on the committee who support gay rights and are also members of the Gang of Eight, including Schumer and Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois.

Life's a beach for lucky dogs free to run on sand Associated Press Copyright 2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 2:55 pm, Tuesday, May 21, 2013 "Off-leash dog beaches are a canine's dream come true," said Lisa Porter, owner of Pet Hotels of America, a travel website that lists thousands of beaches and parks where dogs are allowed on leash or can run free. Beaches where unleashed dogs are allowed complete freedom are typically fenced, offer drinking water and showers for dogs, bags to pick up dog feces and trash cans. Critics say letting beaches go to the dogs threatens species such as shore birds, jeopardizes the safety of visitors, ruins the experience for beachgoers and can pollute water and sand with poop and urine. When Carol Kearney first adopted Buddy, an abused 70-pound, 2-year-old Staffordshire terrier mix, he was afraid of noises and terrified of water. [] Live Oak Beach in Santa Cruz County was known as a "don't ask, don't tell" beach until recently, said Ingrid Wander, who let Asia, her chocolate Labrador retriever, run free.

FBI ID's Benghazi suspects — but no arrests yet Associated Press Copyright 2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 2:50 pm, Tuesday, May 21, 2013 [] the investigation has been slowed by the reduced U.S. intelligence presence in the region since the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks, and by the limited ability to assist by Libya's post-revolutionary law enforcement and intelligence agencies, which are still in their infancy since the overthrow of dictator Col. Moammar Gadhafi. The preference is toward a process in which most are apprehended and tried by the countries where they are living or arrested by the U.S. with the host country's cooperation and tried in the U.S. criminal justice system. A senior administration official said the FBI has identified a number of individuals that it believes have information or may have been involved, and is considering options to bring those responsible to justice. The attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans weeks before President Barack Obama's re-election. [] Republicans in Congress have condemned the administration's handling of the situation, criticizing the level of embassy security, questioning the talking points provided to U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice for her public appearances to explain the attack and suggesting the White House tried to play down the incident to minimize its effect on the president's campaign. In those emails, administration officials agreed to remove from the talking points all mentions of terror groups such as Ansar al-Shariah or al-Qaida, because the intelligence pointing to those groups' involvement was still unclear and because some officials didn't want to give Congress ammunition to criticize the administration. FBI investigators are hoping for more evidence, such as other video of the attack that might show the suspects in the act of setting the fires that ultimately killed the ambassador and his communications specialist, or firing the mortars hours later at the CIA base where the surviving diplomats took shelter — or a Libyan witness willing to testify against the suspects in a U.S. courtroom. In this case, the Egyptian government detained Egyptian Islamic Jihad member Muhammad Jamal Abu Ahmad for possible links to the attack, but it remains unclear if U.S. intelligence officers were ever allowed to question him. [] the U.S. could send a military team to grab the men, and take them to an offsite location such as a U.S. naval ship — the same way al-Qaida suspect Ahmed Warsame was seized by special operations personnel in 2011 in Somalia.

4 falcon chicks living on NY-NJ bridge are banded Associated Press Copyright 2013 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Updated 3:02 pm, Tuesday, May 21, 2013 NEW YORK (AP) — Four peregrine falcon chicks roosting high above the Hudson River on the George Washington Bridge were pronounced healthy Tuesday and fitted with tracking bands to help biologists keep tabs on them. The chicks' parents are among some 20 peregrine falcon pairs that live in New York City, favoring bridges and tall buildings where they can easily spot their prey. "If it gets into trouble we know exactly which nest to bring it back to," Nadareski said as he banded one of the squirmy youngsters. Because peregrine falcons don't build nests but lay their eggs on a flat surface, officials with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey started protecting the eggs several years ago by building nesting boxes on the George Washington and the other bridges the authority operates.

President recommends UA schools opt out of gun law (AP) — The president of the University of Arkansas system is recommending its 11 campuses opt out of a law allowing faculty and staff to carry concealed handguns on campus. A measure signed into law earlier this year leaves the decision on concealed handguns by faculty and staff up to the institutions of higher education.