Federal Agencies Brace for Deep Cuts Post-'Cliff'

Dec 7, 2012 4:22pm Toby Jorrin/AFP/Getty ImagesWith the “fiscal cliff” quickly approaching, federal agencies are stepping up preparations for deep automatic budget cuts that will kick in Jan. 2 unless the White House and Congress can reach a deal.The Office of Management and Budget told ABC News that a memo went out to federal agencies earlier this week seeking “additional...

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Egypt struggle seen costing Mursi, even if he wins

CAIRO (Reuters) - The crisis unleashed by President Mohamed Mursi's bid to wrap up Egypt's transition on his own terms has eroded his nation's faith in their nascent democracy and will complicate the already unenviable task of government. His effort to drive through a constitution against the wishes of major sections of society, including a Christian minority, has damaged prospects for...

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Troubled UN climate talks enter final day

DOHA: UN talks seeking to halt the march of global warming enter their final day in Doha on Friday with key points still outstanding - extending the greenhouse gas-curbing Kyoto Protocol and funding for poor countries.Delegates are preparing for a long day and night of final haggling to find consensus on interim ways to rein in climate change and smooth the way to a new deal that must...

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Salwa Judum leader gunned down in Bastar

RAIPUR: Armed Maoists gunned down Chinnaram Gota, a leader of the controversial anti-naxalite movement 'Salwa Judum', and one of his body guards at village Kuprel in Farsegarh area in tribal Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh. Police said the incident took place when Chinnaram Gota, who had actively participated in the anti-naxalite movement which began in June 2005, went to his farm accompanied...

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Celebrations planned as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — Legal marijuana possession becomes a reality under Washington state law on Thursday, and some people planned to celebrate the new law by breaking it.Voters in Washington and Colorado last month made those the first states to decriminalize and regulate the recreational use of marijuana. Washington's law takes effect Thursday and allows adults to have up to an ounce of pot — but it bans...

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November Unemployment Falls to 7.7 Percent

The economy generated 146,000 new jobs in November and unemployment fell to 7.7 percent, better than economists expected, despite worries that superstorm Sandy and the looming fiscal cliff would dampen hiring.There are still 12 million people unemployed in the country, but the Labor Department said Sandy did not significantly affect jobs.Many economists had expected employers to...

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Egypt military orders rival crowds to quit palace area

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's Republican Guard ordered rival demonstrators to leave the area around the presidential palace in Cairo on Thursday after fierce overnight clashes that killed seven people. Islamist supporters of President Mohamed Mursi withdrew, but the opposition promised more protests there. The presidency announced that the Republican Guard, whose duties include...

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Employers urged to engage with foreign workers on grievance channels

SINGAPORE: Human resource experts say it is important for employers to engage with their foreign workers in light of the two labour disputes that have taken place in the past weeks. They said more can be done to ensure employees have and are aware of the right avenues to air their grievances.The two labour disputes involving foreign workers have been in the limelight.And it has been called...

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Narhari Modi nets prize catch as Narhari Amin joins BJP

AHMEDABAD: In a prize catch for BJP, Narhari Amin, a former Gujarat deputy chief minister, who recently quit the Congress after being denied ticket to contest the assembly elections, joined the state's ruling party on Thursday. Amin's entry into the BJP is expected to boost its prospects in the Saurashtra region where renegade saffron party leader and former chief minister Keshubhai Patel's newly...

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Celebrations planned as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — Legal marijuana possession becomes a reality under Washington state law on Thursday, and some people planned to celebrate the new law by breaking it.Voters in Washington and Colorado last month made those the first states to decriminalize and regulate the recreational use of marijuana. Washington's law takes effect Thursday and allows adults to have up to an ounce of pot — but it bans...

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