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The Hardball Briefing On MSNBC
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Big news out of Washington this morning folks...Powell is going to the Middle East
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2002/04/04/powell-mideast.htm
Full text of Bush speech http://www.msnbc.com/news/734039.asp
We'll get reax on the speech and Powell's trip from a cast of all stars...Right now we
got Barney, Squitty, Howard, Andrea and we'll go overseas to the Middle East as
well...We have a lot of calls out so expect a couple of surprises...
Dersh will make the case for torture of Abu Zabaydah, that top Al Qaeda dude we picked
up in Pakistan last week "Captured Al Qaeda official Abu Zubaydah won't be tortured by
the U.S. or allied interrogators, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday."
(NY Daily News)
http://nydailynews.com/2002-04-04/News_and_Views/Beyond_the_City/a-146569.asp
Luntz will do the latest polls on this..."Americans' sympathies lie more with the
Israelis than the Palestinians in the current conflict in the Mideast, according to a
CBS News poll released yesterday" (NY Post)
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/45152.htm
More on the Donahue move: "Donahue, MSNBC strike TV deal...TV veteran will take on
�The O�Reilly Factor� with a new show this summer" http://www.msnbc.com/news/732622.asp
Another American Taliban?? "Pentagon and Justice Department officials are discussing
what to do with a prisoner captured in Afghanistan who they believe was born in
America and is a U.S. citizen." (AP)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020404/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/afghan_detainees_26
"Coalition forces have come under fresh attack from Taliban and al-Qaeda forces in
eastern Afghanistan's Shahi Kot valley, a US military spokesman said" (AFP)
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/020404/1/2ngyu.html
Page Six: "Hillary Rodham Clinton keeps telling people she doesn't covet her old digs
in the White House, but one of her key aides may soon move to Iowa"
http://www.pagesix.com/pagesix/13684.htm
"U.S. agents whisked bigwig al Qaeda prisoner Abu Zubaydah to a secret location
yesterday to grill him after finding documents revealing he was planning a new wave of
terror against America, The Post has learned."
http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/45065.htm
"Pope accuses Israel of humiliating Palestinians" (The Times of London)
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/0,,3-256651,00.html
The statement said John Paul "rejects unjust conditions and humiliations imposed on
the Palestinian people, as well as the reprisals and revenge attacks, which do nothing
but feed the sense of frustration and hatred." (NY Post)
http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/45184.htm
West Bank battles heat up...Israeli forces and Palestinian militants waged pitched
battles in several West Bank towns on Thursday -- including Bethlehem, where
unconfirmed reports indicated that the Israeli military blew open a door leading to
the Church of the Nativity.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/677951.asp
Sammon: "The White House yesterday said new documents linking Yasser Arafat to
terrorists suggest that he may have violated the 1993 Oslo peace accords but that the
Palestinian leader still can redeem himself."
http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20020404-37390583.htm
"Israeli troops have destroyed a door into Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity and have
battled with Palestinians holed up in the building, one of the priests trapped in the
complex said on Thursday." (Reuters)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20020404/wl_nm/mideast_church_priest_dc_1&e=3&ncid=721
Afghan government faces threat..Hundreds of people linked to a hard-line Islamic group
have been arrested in Kabul in the past week in connection with a plot to destabilize
the government of interim Prime Minister Hamid Karzai, Afghan officials said Thursday.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/733927.asp
WashPost: U.S. open to talks without cease-fire...The White House said Wednesday it
was willing to open discussions over Palestinian political demands before the current
violence is brought under control, dropping its emphasis on a cease-fire.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/733795.asp
"Massive Attack Targets Another West Bank City...An Israeli assault on Nablus, a city
of about 100,000 and home to Palestinian militant groups, is the latest step in
destroying what Ariel Sharon has called the Palestinians' terrorist infrastructure."
(The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58178-2002Apr3.html?referer=email
"Calling on the United States to solidly support Israel in a speech last night, House
Majority Whip Tom DeLay (R-Texas) walked a fine line between lambasting Palestinian
leader Yasser Arafat for his ties to terrorism and praising President Bush for his
efforts in the rapidly escalating Middle East conflict." (Roll Call)
http://www.rollcall.com/pages/news/00/2002/04/news0404d.html
"Arafat Lives With Enemy Breathing Down His Neck...As Israeli forces hunker down, life
inside Ramallah compound has become a waiting game." (LA Times)
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-000024108apr04.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dfrontpage
"Glance at Possible Arafat Successors...Some possible successors to Palestinian leader
Yasser Arafat" (AP)
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/bw-other/2002/apr/03/040309273.html
"Bush Stance Pleases U.S. Jewish Groups...Initially Skeptical, Pro-Israel Lobbyists
Say They Are 'Pleasantly Surprised'" (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58147-2002Apr3.html?referer=email
Afghans arrest hundreds in plot...Islamic group suspected of planning to overthrow
Karzai's government; 'They wanted to launch coup d'etat' (AP)
http://www.sunspot.net/news/custom/attack/bal-plot04.story?coll=bal%2Dhome%2Dheadlines
"The Terrorists Next Door...Al Qaeda Suspects Posed as Traders Before Capture in
Pakistan" (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58274-2002Apr3.html?referer=email
"Saddam Hussein has increased money for the relatives of suicide bombers from $10,000
to $25,000, drawing sharp criticism from Washington. But Palestinians say the bombers
are driven by a priceless thirst for revenge, religious zeal and dreams of glory--not
greed." (Chicago Sun Times) http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-meast04.html
"Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge soon will brief lawmakers on two House
committees but will not testify as a Senate committee has insisted." (AP)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=536&ncid=703&e=3&u=/ap/20020404/ap_on_go_co/ridge_congress_13
"Representatives of some of the nation's largest financial firms met yesterday to
discuss using consumer databases to catch terrorists, alarming privacy advocates who
cautioned that the information could be misused." (The Washington Times)
http://washingtontimes.com/business/20020404-7381241.htm
Harper on Media: 'Terrorist' term scrubbed by Minnesota paper...The paper won't use
the term 'terrorist' in stories about Arab-Israeli violence, opting for specific terms
such as "suicide bomber." http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20020404-5562528.htm
"A grass-roots group that includes many of Minnesota's Jewish and political leaders
criticized the Star Tribune on Tuesday for the newspaper's policy on using the word
'terrorist,' specifically on how it should be applied to the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict." (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/2203504.html
"Va. GOP Holds Back On Firing Director...Party Awaits Results Of Eavesdropping Probe"
(The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58276-2002Apr3.html
"Sneed hears rumbles White House wags are being urged to enlist Republican National
Committee chief Marc Racicot's support in getting [IL] Gov. Ryan to resign"
http://www.suntimes.com/output/sneed/cst-nws-sneed04.html
Page Six: "The leading lady in James Gandolfini's life appears to be a young
director's assistant he met on the set of "The Mexican" more than two years ago."
http://www.pagesix.com/pagesix/pagesix.htm
Opinion/Editorial
A pro forma lifestyle...What if we could polish up our lives the way companies such as
Enron have been polishing up their earnings? Rob Walker, writing in Slate, takes a
humorous and satirical look at how rosy his life would be on a "pro forma" basis.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/733521.asp
Will: No more hesitating with Arafat
http://www.suntimes.com/output/will/cst-edt-geo04.html
"Burning Synagogues...Europe winks at anti-Semitism. Haven't we been here before? "
(The Wall Street Journal) http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html
Novak: What's next move in Mideast?
http://www.suntimes.com/output/novak/cst-edt-novak04.html
Steiner http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/steiner.htm
Doonesbury http://www.ucomics.com/doonesbury/viewdb.cfm?uc_full_date=20020404
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