Gooding Public Library

Neil Barofsky, the special inspector general for the $700 billion financial rescue program, appeared on Capitol Hill to answer questions about a new report outlining the official mistakes that led to massive bonus payments for executives at the bailed-out insurer.

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Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) has sponsored a bill that would allow pet owners to deduct animal care expenses — up to $3,500 a year — from their taxes. He says the economy has forced people to give up their pets, and anything that puts cash back into Americans' hands is a good thing.

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For more than 20 years, southern Sudan was a war zone. But the conflict was not as devastating to the animals of Boma National Park as believed. The park is teeming with wildlife, raising hopes that it could attract eco-minded tourists and create badly needed local jobs. But the area is so remote that it would take a major investment to bring creature comforts to a land of prickly acacia trees, tall grass and cattails.

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Plummeting auto sales following the end of the government's popular Cash for Clunkers program dragged down retail sales by 1.5 percent last month, the Commerce Department reports. That's smaller than the 2.1 percent fall economists had expected.

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Despite hefty profits, the first of the big banks to report third-quarter earnings says its loan losses are still high and are expected to remain that way for the foreseeable future, a troubling sign for the economy.

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More than 20,000 people gathered in Korea for an enormous "blessing ceremony" that may be the 89-year-old Unification Church founder's last, while some 20,000 more joined simultaneous ceremonies in the U.S., Brazil, Australia and elsewhere.

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After months of debate and delay, the Senate Finance Committee passed a health care overhaul bill Tuesday. All 13 Democrats on the committee and one Republican, Olympia Snowe, voted in favor. Nine Republicans voted against. The finance committee bill has no public option, and although Democrats say they plan to add one when it's combined with other bills in committee, they may risk losing support from moderate Republicans like Snowe.

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Students in Iraq will open new textbooks this school year that reflect the enormous changes the country has been through and include historical events that were once forbidden topics. Many of the fawning references to the former dictator have also been excised.

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New York is the only state so far to require all workers in hospitals and clinics to get immunized against the flu. Advocates say it's a matter of patient safety, while opponents worry about the effectiveness and side effects. They also argue about the principle: They want control over what's injected into their bodies.

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In When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1960 to the Present, author Gail Collins chronicles the transformation of women in society. Many of today's career advances were created by market forces, she says.

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U.S. intelligence officials say Najibullah Zazi, the man arrested in September for allegedly plotting to blow up targets in New York, contacted one of Osama bin Laden's right-hand men.

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Amid the health care overhaul debate, one big question has been where to come up with the money to change the system. One idea that has been suggested is a tax on soda. Public health advocates say drinking soda is directly linked to obesity, which is partly responsible for skyrocketing health care costs.

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The former Bosnian Serb leader argued he cannot be tried at the U.N.'s Yugoslav war crimes tribunal because he was promised immunity by an American envoy. He faces trial on 11 charges including genocide for allegedly masterminding atrocities against Bosnia's Muslims and Croats during the country's 1992-95 war.

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The FBI has made another arrest in its yearlong investigation into a rash of disappearances from the Somali community in Minnesota. A 26-year-old medical technician from St. Paul was arrested on Friday and charged with making false statements to FBI officials.

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Recruiting goals were met for the first time in the history of the all-volunteer military. The Defense Department's head of personnel said that's partly because of spending on finding recruits, even as fewer civilian jobs were available due to the nation's economic problems. He also cited increases in military pay.

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A top-to-bottom remake of the U.S. health care system along the lines sought by President Barack Obama moved a step closer to reality Tuesday as the Senate Finance Committee approved a 10-year, $829 billion plan that would extend coverage to millions more Americans and seek to hold down spiraling health costs over the long term.

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Bloomberg LP is buying BusinessWeek magazine in a deal that brings together a financial news service specializing in rapid-fire updates with a print publication struggling to adapt to the Internet's information whirlwind. Terms were not disclosed.

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The Senate Finance Committee votes 14-9 to approve a sweeping remake of the country's health care system, setting up a historic debate on the Senate floor and moving a health care overhaul closer to reality than it has been for decades. Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine cast the lone Republican vote.

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