USA
The 11th hearing in the series by the commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks opened Tuesday in New York, less than two miles from the former World Trade Center site. The panel, which previously focused on federal-level decisions, shifted its attention to how local emergency workers responded and coordinated their efforts. Testimony from police and fire officials and a review of audio and video footage was scheduled as part of the search to figure out what went wrong and whether some deaths might have been avoided. Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) and his successor, Michael Bloomberg (R), were to testify. The commission, which is looking for ways to prevent future attacks, must submit its final report by July 26.
In anticipation of increased summer travel, the Transportation Security Administration announced plans to fine-tune security staffing needs at 445 commercial airports. Dallas-Fort Worth, Miami, Washington Dulles, and New York's JFK are among airports that will be assigned at least 100 more screeners, while airports in Pittsburgh, New Orleans, and Cleveland will lose screeners. The numbers are being adjusted to shorten the lines at security checkpoints.
The Food and Drug Administration ordered an in-house inquiry to determine how widespread were payments to scientists at the National Institutes of Health, a federal regulatory agency, by the biomedical industry. The inquiry occurs as congressional investigators examine millions of dollars of payments from biomedical companies that previously were shielded from disclosure.
Federal prosecutors took Greenpeace to trial Monday in Miami for "sailor mongering," a charge last brought in 1890. The environmental watchdog group faces probation and fines if found guility of illegally boarding a freighter carrying endangered Amazon mahogany. Six protesters who hung a banner on the ship in 2002 pleaded guilty and served short sentences. But 15 months later, the entire organization was indicted. Greenpeace has called the charge an act of political revenge for its criticism of Bush admininistration policies.
Actor Tony Randall, who died Tuesday in New York, was best known for his Emmy-winning portrayal of fastidious photographer Felix Unger in TV's version of "The Odd Couple." His multifacted career on stage, screen, and television began in New York in 1941. In recent years he appeared a record 70 times on David Letterman's late-night talk show.
