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2B – Daily News – Thursday, January 28, 2010 Obama declares 'I don't quit' WASHINGTON (AP) — Declaring ''I don't quit,''' an embattled President Barack Obama vowed in his first State of the Union address Wednesday night to make job growth his top- most priority and urged a divided Congress to boost the still-ailing economy with a new burst of stimulus spending. Despite sting- ing setbacks, he said he would not abandon ambitious plans for longer-term fixes to health care, energy, education and more. ''Change has not come fast enough,'' Obama acknowledged before a politician-packed House chamber and a TV audience of millions. ''As hard as it may be, as uncomfortable and contentious as the debates may be, it's time to get serious about fixing the prob- lems that are hampering our growth.'' Obama looked to change the conversation from how his presi- dency is stalling — over the messy health care debate, a limp- ing economy and the missteps that led to Christmas Day's bare- ly averted terrorist disaster — to how he is seizing the reins. He spoke to a nation gloomy over double-digit unemployment and federal deficits soaring to a record $1.4 trillion, and to fellow Democrats dispirited about the fallen standing of a president they hoped would carry them through this fall's midterm elections. With State of the Union mes- sages traditionally delivered at the end of January, Obama had one of the presidency's biggest platforms just a week after Republicans scored an upset takeover of a Senate seat in Mass- achusetts, prompting hand- wringing over his leadership. With the turnover erasing Democrats' Senate supermajority needed to pass most legislation, it also put a cloud over health care and the rest of Obama's agenda. A chief demand was for law- makers to press forward with his prized health care overhaul, which is in severe danger in Con- gress. ''Do not walk away from reform,'' he implored. ''Not now. Not when we are so close.'' Republicans applauded the president when he entered the chamber, and even craned their necks and welcomed Michelle Obama when she took her seat. But the warm feelings of biparti- sanship disappeared early. Democrats jumped to their feet and roared when Obama said he wanted to impose a new fee on banks, while Republicans sat stone-faced. Democrats stood and applauded when Obama mentioned the economic stimu- lus package passed last February. Republicans just stared. On national security, Obama proclaimed some success, saying that ''far more'' al-Qaida terror- ists were killed under his watch last year in the U.S.-led global fight than in 2008. Democrats vow to resurrect health care WASHINGTON (AP) — Giving up on overhauling the nation's health care system is not an option, the top House Democrat said Wednesday as lawmakers looked to President Barack Obama for guidance in his State of the Union address on how to revive the stalled leg- islation. Asked if Congress might aban- don a health care initiative beset with political and policy prob- lems, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D- Calif., responded: ''I don't see that as a possibility. We will have something.'' White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer told con- gressional staff that Obama will use Wednesday night's address to reiterate his commitment to an ambitious remake of the nation's health care system, similar to the call he issued last September after critics seized the momentum dur- ing a summer of angry town hall meetings. Although lawmakers don't expect to hear a specific prescrip- tion for how to move forward, Pfeiffer said the president would offer ''additional details'' on his health care goals. The speech comes as Democ- rats are struggling to find a way to advance health care legislation after the loss of a Massachusetts Senate seat last week cost them the 60-vote majority needed to deliver. Less than 1 cent of US quake aid dollar goes in cash to Haitian government PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Less than a penny of each dollar the U.S. is spending on earthquake relief in Haiti is going in the form of cash to the Haitian government, according to an Associated Press review of relief efforts. Two weeks after President Obama announced an initial $100 million for Haiti earthquake relief, U.S. government spending on the disaster has nearly quadrupled to $379 million, the U.S. Agency for International Development announced Wednesday. That's about $1.25 each from everyone in the United States. Each American dollar roughly breaks down like this: 42 cents for disaster assistance, 33 cents for U.S. military aid, nine cents for food, nine cents to transport the food, five cents for paying Haitian survivors for recovery efforts, just less than one cent to the Haitian government, and about half a cent to the Dominican Republic. The U.S. government money is part of close to $2 billion in relief aid flowing into Haiti — almost all of it managed by organizations other than the Haitian govern- ment, which has been struggling to re-establish its authority since the quake. On Wednesday, a defensive President Rene Preval acknowledged his country's repu- tation, but said aid money isn't lin- ing the pockets of government officials. ''There's a perception of cor- ruption, but I would like to tell the Haitian people that the Haitian government has not seen one penny of all the money that has been raised — millions are being made on the right, millions on the left, it's all going to the NGOs (nongovernmental organiza- tions)'' Preval said, speaking in Creole at a news conference. GOP leaders say Obama should use speech to change course WASHINGTON (AP) — Con- gressional Republicans say Presi- dent Barack Obama ought to do more than change his message when he delivers his State of the Union address Wednesday — he should also change the course of his presidency. House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, called Obama's proposal for a partial spending freeze a good start. But, he added, Obama should also abandon big spending proposals on health care, climate change and jobs. ''This isn't about a pivot in terms of his message,'' Boehner said. ''I think that most Americans know that actions speak louder than words.'' Republicans are feeling emboldened following a string of GOP victories at the polls, includ- ing a stunning win by Republican Scott Brown last week in the spe- cial Massachusetts Senate elec- tion. Since then, Obama has amped up his populist rhetoric and promised a renewed focus on job creation. ''We are looking to hear from this president, not just a change in message but, frankly, an admis- sion that the agenda being pursued is not one that brings us back to recovery,'' said House Republican Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia. Elizabeth, John Edwards split RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Eliz- abeth Edwards has separated from her husband, two-time presiden- tial candidate John Edwards, after a tumultuous three years in which the couple's marital troubles became tabloid fodder. Andrea Purse, a friend of Eliz- abeth Edwards, confirmed to The Associated Press on Wednesday that the 60-year-old mother of four has separated from her husband. North Carolina law requires cou- ples to be separated for a year before divorcing. ''Elizabeth is moving on with her life and wants to put this diffi- cult chapter behind her,'' a state- ment released by Purse said, refer- ring to unflattering details of her marriage and her husband's affair that are emerging from an upcom- ing tell-all book. The book is written by long- time Edwards aide Andrew Young, who initially claimed that he fathered a child with John Edwards' mistress in the weeks leading up to the crucial presiden- tial primaries. John Edwards publicly declared last week that he was the father of the child with Rielle Hunter, who worked as a videog- rapher before his second presiden- tial campaign in 2008. Toyota's sales halt a blow to reputation NEW YORK (AP) — Toyota's suspension of U.S. sales on an unprecedented scale to fix faulty gas pedals deals a blow to the automaker's reputation for quality and came amid intense pressure from the Obama administration. Toyota Motor Corp. announced late Tuesday it would halt sales of some of its top-selling models to fix gas pedals that could stick and cause unintended accel- eration. Last week, Toyota issued a recall for the same eight models affecting 2.3 million vehicles. Toyota is also suspending pro- duction at six North American car-assembly plants beginning the week of Feb. 1. It gave no date on when production could restart. The Obama administration said it pressed Toyota to protect consumers who own vehicles under recall and to stop building new cars with the problem. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told WGN Radio in Chicago that ''the reason Toyota decided to do the recall and to stop manufacturing was because we asked them to.'' Apple's iPad reveals a slick device, despite some flaws SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — After just an hour with an iPad, I came away with a preliminary verdict: Despite some flaws, this is one slick device. Steve Jobs intrigued me in his slow, showman-like presentation Wednesday when he said the $499-and-up iPad is ''so much more intimate than a laptop and so much more capable than a smart phone.'' The comparison to an iPhone makes sense, given the minimalist silver-and-black style of the iPad. The first thing I wanted to do when I held it was browse the Web and check out the iPad's on-screen keyboard. My favorite Web sites looked great on its crisp screen, which is 9.7 inches on the diago- nal — while the iPhone is just 3.5 inches. When you hold the iPad with the wider side down, in land- scape mode, it's nearly big enough for touch typing — an improve- ment over the way that the iPhone's cramped keyboard sometimes causes errors. As on the iPhone, the iPad's screen is extremely responsive to finger swipes and taps, which made it easy to scroll through Web sites like Facebook and select pho- tos and articles I wanted to read on news sites. It also seems like it would be a great way to read a book, curled up on my couch. The iPad comes with Apple's new iBook software, which opens up to reveal a realis- tic-looking wooden bookshelf stocked with all the titles in your e-book collection. Dinosaur from China shows first sign of color WASHINGTON (AP) — Sci- entists have for the first time con- firmed color in a dinosaur. Don't think purple Barney, but reddish- orange Conan O'Brien. The first solid proof of pigmentation has been spotted in the fossilized tail feathers of a smallish meat-eating dinosaur found in China and named Sinosauropteryx. The creature seems to have russet col- ored rings, according to a paper published online Wednesday in the journal Nature. That 125 million-year-old tail has the same internal cellular col- oring agents as the hair of a red- haired person, said study lead author Mike Benton, a professor of paleontology at the University of Bristol in England. And the same finding provides what some outside experts say is even more conclusive evidence that some dinosaurs had feathers, further linking them to birds. Benton and his colleagues did- n't actually see the reddish color itself. Using an electron micro- scope, they spotted the specific cellular signs of the color. An ear- lier study by another group of researchers and Benton's team found similar cellular color hints in prehistoric bird feathers. Drawings of dinosaurs show them in all sorts of hues, usually duller Earth tones such as brown and gray, but scientists have only speculated on their coloring. As their connection to birds came to light, so did the idea of brighter colors. But until now, there was no proof of any coloring. Before Benton's technique, which is likely to be copied with other dinosaur fossils, paleontol- ogists had to look to a dinosaur's anatomy to guess at colors, said famed dinosaur expert Paul Sereno at the University of Chicago. The color and the feath- ers were probably used for dis- play, like a peacock, he theorized. Sereno, who wasn't part of Ben- ton's team, called it a ''landmark paper'' that gives us ''a sneak peek at how they might have appeared when alive.'' Fed holds rates at record lows WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve pledged Wednesday to hold rates at record lows to nurture the economic recovery and lower unemploy- ment. But its decision drew a dis- sent from one member, signaling the Fed's challenge in deciding when to pull back stimulus money it pumped into the econo- my. The Fed's statement sketched a mixed picture of the economy. Pointing to weakness, it noted that bank lending is contracting. And it dropped a reference in its previous statement to an improv- ing housing market. But on the positive side, the Fed said business spending on equipment and software seems to be rising. And it said economic activity ''continues to strength- en.'' The Fed said it still expects to end a $1.25 trillion program aimed at driving down mortgage rates as scheduled on March 31. Yet it reiterated that it remains open to changing that timetable if necessary. Reports on home sales this week pointed to a still-fragile housing market. PETA proposes groundhog robot for festival PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — An animal rights group wants organizers of Pennsylvania's Groundhog Day festival to replace Punxsutawney Phil with a robotic stand-in. People for the Ethical Treat- ment of Animals says it's unfair to keep the animal in captivity and subject him to the huge crowds and bright lights that accompany tens of thousands of revelers each Feb. 2 in Punxsutawney, a tiny borough about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. PETA is suggesting the use of an animatronic model. But William Deeley, president of the Inner Circle of the Punx- sutawney Groundhog Club, says the animal is ''being treated better than the average child in Pennsyl- vania.'' The groundhog is kept in a climate-controlled environment and is inspected annually by the state Department of Agriculture. Deeley says PETA isn't inter- ested in Phil from Feb. 2 on, and is looking for publicity. Phone-tampering case: Prank or political spying? NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Was it an attempt at political espionage? Or just a third-rate prank? And was anyone else involved? In what some Democrats are calling the ''Louisiana Water- gate,'' four young conservative activists — one of them a known political prankster — were arrested this week and accused of trying to tamper with the tele- phones in Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu's New Orleans office. But two days after their arrest, neither the FBI nor federal pros- ecutors would say what the defendants were up to or whether they were part of some larger conspiracy. Authorities said two of the defendants posed as telephone repairmen in hard hats, fluores- cent vests and tool belts and asked to see the phones at Lan- drieu's office; one of them had a tiny camera in his helmet. A third man is alleged to have waited outside in a car with a listening device to pick up transmissions. The fourth, James O'Keefe, used his cell phone to try to capture video of the scene inside, author- ities said. Last year, O'Keefe, a 25-year- old self-described investigative journalist, posed as a pimp in the hidden-camera videos that embarrassed the community organizing group ACORN. Michael Madigan, O'Keefe's lawyer, said Wednesday that his client was not trying to wiretap or interfere with Landrieu's phones, but he would not explain why O'Keefe was there. He also would not say whether O'Keefe was working for someone or was on his own. ''The truth will come out,'' said Madigan, a Washington lawyer who represented Sen. Howard Baker, the Republican who famously asked during the Watergate investigation, ''What did the President know and when did he know it?'' The incident occurred a month after Landrieu announced her support for the Senate health care bill. As the vote neared, con- servatives complained they were unable to register protests at her offices because their calls were referred to voice mail boxes that often were full. ''We did hear that complaint, but absolutely at no time did Sen. Landrieu or her staff intentional- ly avoid phone calls related to health care or any other topic,'' Landrieu spokesman Aaron Saunders said Wednesday. WORLD BRIEFING