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ByEricTalmadge The Associated Press PYONGYANG, NORTH KOREA Two American tourists charged with "anti-state" crimes in North Korea said Friday they expect to be tried soon and pleaded for help from the U.S. govern- ment to secure their release from what they say could be long prison terms. In their first appearance since being detained more than three months ago, Mat- thew Todd Miller and Jef- frey Edward Fowle told a lo- cal AP Television News crew that they were in good health and were being treated well. They also said they were al- lowed to take daily walks. The brief meeting was con- ducted under the condition that the specific location not be disclosed. Fowle said he fears his situation will get much worse once he goes on trial. "The horizon for me is pretty dark," he said. "I don't know what the worst- case scenario would be, but I need help to extricate my- self from this situation. I ask the government for help in that regards." It was not clear whether they were speaking on their own initiative, or if their comments were coerced. The TV crew was permit- ted to ask them questions. North Korea says the two committed hostile acts which violated their sta- tus as tourists. It has an- nounced that authorities are preparing to bring them before a court, but has not yet specified what they did that was considered hos- tile or illegal, or what kind of punishment they might face. The date of the trial has not been announced. Ri Tong II, a North Ko- rean diplomat, declined to answer questions about the Americans at a news con- ference Friday at the United Nations. But when pressed in a follow-up question he said their cases were "legal issues" and they had "vio- lated our law." Fowle arrived in North Korea on April 29. He is sus- pected of leaving a Bible in a nightclub in the northern port city of Chongjin, but a spokesman for Fowle's family said the 56-year- old from Mi- a misburg, Ohio, was not on a mission for his church. Fowle works in a city streets de- pa r tment . He has a wife and three chil- dren, ages 9, 10, and 12. "The win- dow is clos- ing on that process. It will be coming relatively soon, maybe within a month," Fowle said of his trial. "I'm anxious to get home, I'm sure all of us are." Fowle also produced a letter he said he had writ- ten summarizing his expe- rience in North Korea. Less is known about Miller, or about what spe- cific crime he allegedly committed. North Korea's state- run media have said the 24-year-old entered the country April 10 with a tourist visa, but tore it up at the airport and shouted that he wanted to seek asy- lum. A large number of Western tourists visited Pyongyang in April to run in the annual Pyongyang Marathon or attend related events. Miller came at that time, but tour organizers say he was not planning to join the marathon. "I expect soon I will be going to trial for my crime and be sent to prison," Miller said. "I have been requesting help from the American government, but have received no reply." The attorney for Fowle's family said Friday his wife hadn't seen the video, but had read news reports about his comments. "I can tell you that she is very upset, as you can imag- ine," said attorney Timothy Tepe. He said he and the family were still gather- ing information and likely would have a statement on Monday. North Korea has also been holding another American, Kenneth Bae, since November 2012. Bae, a Korean-American missionary who turned 46 on Friday, told a Japan-based pro-North Korean news or- ganization earlier this week that he felt "abandoned" by the U.S. government. He is serving a sentence of 15 years of hard labor for what North Korea has claimed were hostile acts against the state. However, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said Thursday the agency is in regular con- tact with Bae's family. Last summer, authori- ties moved Bae from a work camp to a hospital because of failing health and weight loss. He was sent back to the work camp earlier this year, only to be taken again to a hospital less than two months later. His family says he suffers from diabe- tes, an enlarged heart, liver problems and back pain. Bae's sister, Terri Chung, said in a statement Thurs- day it was the first word the family has had of Bae since April. "After months of si- lence, it is devastating to hear Kenneth talk about 'feeling abandoned by the United States government,'" she said. "Although we ac- knowledge and appreciate all the efforts the U.S. State Department has been mak- ing behind the scenes to se- cure Kenneth's release, the fact remains that after al- most two years, Kenneth still remains imprisoned in North Korea." WORLD Two Americans detained in North Korea seek help from the US Miller Fowle By Pete Yost The Associated Press WASHINGTON The Justice Department asked a full federal appeals court Fri- day to take up a case that has endangered subsidies helping millions of low- and middle-income people to af- ford their health care premi- ums under Obamacare. Last week, a divided three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir- cuit said financial aid can be provided only in states that have set up their own insur- ance markets, or exchanges. To date, 16 states have set up their own exchanges. Thirty-four states have opted to have the federal government establish ex- changes on their behalf. Two judges nominated by Republican presidents formed the majority over a dissent from a Democratic appointee. In an appeals court fil- ing Friday, the Justice De- partment said that if last week's ruling is ultimately sustained, the decision will impose a severe hard- ship on millions of people who are receiving tax cred- its through federally facili- tated exchanges. The Justice Department said the disruption threat- ened by the panel majority's "erroneous interpretation" presents a question of ex- ceptional importance war- ranting consideration by the full court. A majority would have to agree to the Justice Department's request. The department also noted that a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Rich- mond unanimously came to the opposite conclusion last week, ruling that the In- ternal Revenue Service cor- rectly interpreted the will of Congress when it issued reg- ulations allowing health in- surance tax credits for con- sumers in all 50 states. In the case in Washing- ton, the judges' decision precluded the IRS from pro- viding tax credits to people in the 34 states that allowed the federal government to establish exchanges. In challenging the rea- soning of the opinion from last week, the Justice De- partment said a provision of the Affordable Care Act requires the state and fed- erally facilitated exchanges to report information to the IRS for use in administering tax credits. The department pointed out that there be no reason to apply the report- ing requirement to federal exchanges if the tax credits were available only on state- operated exchanges. ACA Justice Department seeks appeal in health care overhaul case By Donna Cassata The Associated Press WASHINGTON House Re- publicans pushed legisla- tion on Friday that could clear the way for even- tual deportation of more than 500,000 immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as kids and could address the surge of immigrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. Yet President Barack Obama said they made a bad bill worse and prom- ised to veto the measure if it reaches his desk. Obama called it "the most extreme and unworkable versions of a bill that they already know is going nowhere" and said he would have to act unilaterally to deal with the border crisis. After more than a year of inaction on the contentious issue of immigration, House GOP leaders were optimis- tic about securing tea party and other conservative sup- port for two bills that Re- publicans can highlight when they return home to voters during Congress' five-week summer break. Votes were expected late Friday. House Republicans were still making last-minute changes to the bills on Fri- day, a day after leaders were forced to abandon a sched- uled vote in the face of tea party opposition. It was an embarrassment for the new leadership team and left them cajoling reluctant lawmakers on Friday. "We're in very good shape," said Rep. Kevin Mc- Carthy, R-Calif., the new majority leader. The gridlock on the bor- der crisis reflected the past 18 months of a divided, dys- functional Congress that has little legislation to show for its days in Washington but plenty of abysmal pub- lic approval numbers. The Senate passed a com- prehensive immigration bill more than a year ago that would create a pathway for citizenship for the 11.5 mil- lion immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, tighten border security and estab- lish new visa and enforce- ment programs. The mea- sure has languished in the House despite calls from national Republicans, busi- ness groups, religious orga- nizations and labor for law- makers to act. The revised, $694 million border security bill would provide $35 million for the National Guard and clar- ify a provision on quickly returning unaccompanied minors from Central Amer- ica to their home countries. Obama had requested $3.7 billion to handle the tens of thousands flooding into the United States. To appeal to hard-core immigration foes, Republi- cans also toughened a com- panion bill targeting the De- ferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which President Barack Obama implemented in 2012 and Republicans blame for the flood of immigrants now. The bill states that the president cannot renew or expand the program, ef- fectively paving the way for deportation of children brought to the U.S. illegally, according to several House Republicans. "Overall there is a dis- trust of the president," said Rep. Blake Farenthold, R- Texas. "There's a concern about giving him wiggle room, and if you give him money, he'll do what he wants to with it." Two of the fiercest immi- gration opponents — Reps. Steve King, R-Iowa, and Mi- chele Bachmann, R-Minn. — said they were enthusias- tically on board after meet- ing with leadership Thurs- day night. The conserva- tive group Heritage Action urged members to back the bill, saying it essentially freezes the program by de- nying it federal dollars. "We got to yes," Bach- mann said. "This is a tre- mendous accomplishment " Even if the House passes the border bill, Obama's re- quest for more money to deal with the crisis will go unanswered. The Senate blocked its version of a bor- der security bill, and there are no plans to work out any compromise before Con- gress returns in September. Emerging from a closed- door GOP meeting, Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., rejected the notion that it was a pointless exercise since the Senate won't act. "It'll be the template for what needs to be done and also it might slow the pres- ident down," Mica told re- porters. The border crisis has changed the political dy- namic, with polls showing support for immigration overhaul dropping. Moder- ate House Republicans were intent on returning home with a vote on the border crisis three months before midterm elections. "The American people expect us to do our jobs," said moderate GOP Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylva- nia. "We have both a border and humanitarian crisis to deal with, and they expect us to take action now." The Senate blocked a $3.5 billion border package that also included money for Western wildfires and Israel, with Republicans and two Democrats — Lou- isiana's Mary Landrieu and Joe Manchin of West Vir- ginia — opposed. Oppo- nents argued that the bill amounted to a blank check for Obama with no policy changes. WASHINGTON Ho us e GO P we ig hs t ou gh n ew i mmi gr at io n bi ll s J.SCOTTAPPLEWHITE—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Speaker of the House John Boehner of Ohio arrives for a meeting of the Republican Conference on Capitol Hill in Washington on Tuesday. 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