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Monday, November 27, 2006

The Lowdown on Higher Education

By Paul Crocetti | Monday, November 27, 2006, 05:17 PM

The United States is facing a “crisis” in higher education, according to a report released Monday by the National Conference of State Legislatures.

“The U.S. is no longer the best in the world,” said Texas state representative Geanie W. Morrison, a member of the Blue Ribbon Commission, the group of 12 state legislators that produced the report. “Other countries outperform the U.S. because of the emphasis they put on higher education.”

Morrison, the chair of the Higher Education Committee, noted that the Texas state constitution guarantees an education for students, but only up through high school.

The report, the culmination of two years of work, makes the case that it is up to the states to better higher education and outlines 15 recommendations for state legislators.

They include setting long-term goals for higher education, understanding each state’s demographic trends and rethinking funding. The group doesn’t exactly request more money, but asks for a better direction of funds.

“We have to increase grants and aid,” Morrison said.

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Justice Probing Its Role in Eavesdropping Program

By Rebecca Carr | Monday, November 27, 2006, 02:38 PM

The Justice Department’s inspector general has opened a “program review” into the agency’s role in creating President Bush’s domestic eavesdropping program.

Inspector General Glenn A. Fine told Reps. Maurice Hinchey, D-N.Y., and Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., in a letter sent Monday that he is reviewing the agency’s involvement in the program.

Fine wrote that he had formally asked Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Oct. 20 for additional security clearances for his staff to conduct a program review. Gonzales sent his request to the White House, which approves all security clearances relating to the program, the letter said.

“Last week, I received word that the request for clearances for the (Office of Inspector General) to conduct this review would be granted,” Fine wrote. “As a result, the OIG has opened this program review, and I wanted to inform you of the review.”

Hinchey said, “After trying to get DOJ to conduct an investigation of the NSA’s warrantless spy program, I am very pleased to learn that the agency’s inspector general is finally opening an investigation that we were made to believe would never happen.”

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Special Delivery

By Rick McKay | Monday, November 27, 2006, 12:33 PM

WHITE HOUSE TREE.jpg

Two horses, both wearing Santa hats, rest in the driveway of the White House after delivering the Official White House Christmas Tree to First Lady Laura Bush Monday. The 18 1/2-foot Douglas fir, which will be displayed in the Blue Room of the White House, was grown by the owners of the Crystal Spring Tree Farm in Lehighton, Pa. (Photo by Rick McKay/Cox Washington Bureau)

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