the latest news on the Religious Right, Darfur, Iraq, Burma, SCHIP, Canada, Climate Change, Health Care and Sen. Larry Craig

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"Religious conservative leaders say they don't expect to win if they carry through with preparations to run their own presidential candidate next year. Instead, their goal would be to hurt the Republicans if Rudolph W. Giuliani becomes the Republican Party's standard-bearer." Romney increases overtures to disenchanted evangelicals "Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has stepped up his efforts to woo evangelicals in response to the threat by some Christian conservative leaders to back a third-party candidate."

Darfur. Carter, others lash out at Darfur misery "Prominent world figures led by former President Carter and Desmond Tutu of South Africa said they were shocked by the suffering in Darfur and criticized Sudan's government in exceptionally harsh terms." Peacekeepers slain in Darfur are buried "A sob rose from the crowd of mourners Friday as white ambulances entered Nigeria's main military cemetery, carrying the bodies of seven soldiers killed while on peacekeeping duty in Darfur."

Iraq. New military leaders question Iraq mission "Four and a half years after the nation's top military leaders saluted and fell in behind President Bush's pre-emptive invasion of Iraq, their replacements are beginning to question the mission and sound alarms about the toll the war is taking on the Army and the Marine Corps." House's Iraq Bill Applies U.S. Laws to Contractors "With the armed security force Blackwater USA and other private contractors in Iraq facing tighter scrutiny, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill that would bring all United States government contractors in the Iraq war zone under the jurisdiction of American criminal law." Debate Erupts on Techniques Used by C.I.A. "The disclosure of secret Justice Department legal opinions on interrogation set off a bitter round of debate over the treatment of terrorism suspects in American custody and whether Congress has been adequately informed of legal policies."

Burma . US envoy to meet Burma leaders "The most senior US diplomat in Burma was due to meet the regime's leading figures today to deliver a robust message over the brutal crackdown after the government made a surprise offer to talk to detained opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi." Myanmar Junta Admits Mass Arrests "For the first time, Myanmar's military rulers acknowledged mass detentions in their brutal crackdown on protesters, saying that about 1,400 people were being held."

Myanmar turns cameras on dissidents"Taking a leaf from China's book, Myanmar is using images captured from websites, TV broadcasts, cell phones and other media to identify and arrest thousands of protesters following last week's popular uprising and military clampdown."

SCHIP. G.O.P. Contenders Endorse Health Insurance Veto "The four leading Republican presidential candidates have aligned themselves with President Bush's veto of an expanded health insurance program for children."

Canada . Tories eye early December election "Federal Conservative organizers say they have been told that their election campaign offices should be ready for opening on Oct. 20 and that candidates should begin canvassing constituents immediately." Harper 'fantasy' assailed "Liberal House leader Ralph Goodale dismissed Prime Minister Stephen Harper's ultimatum on the Throne Speech as "political and parliamentary fantasy" yesterday, saying the official opposition has no intention of complying with Mr. Harper's demands."

Climate change. UN chief: 'Disaster is upon us' "A record number of floods, droughts and storms around the world this year amount to a climate change "mega disaster", the United Nation's emergency relief coordinator, Sir John Holmes, has warned."

Health care. Appalachia clinics bring help on wheels "Mobile clinics are the main source of health care for thousands living in the mountains, where doctors and health insurance are lacking. Some mobile clinics show up weekly or monthly, others only once a year."

Sen. Larry Craig. Craig says he'll stay until end of term, despite judge's ruling "Sen. Larry Craig said Thursday that he had no intention of leaving the Senate until the end of his term, despite a setback in his effort to clear his name of a sex-related guilty plea."

Op-Eds

A nuclear-free world ( Ivo Daalder And John Holum, Boston Globe) "SHOULD THE United States aim to achieve a world free of all nuclear weapons? … Although successive administrations (at least until the current one) have mouthed the words affirming this objective, few have actually made this commitment an organizing principle of their nuclear weapons policies."

Make-or-Break for Romney (Robert D. Novak, Washington Post) "Romney is asked about Mormonism wherever he goes. In my travels, I find his religion cited everywhere as a source of opposition to his candidacy. … Although there is still disagreement within the Romney camp, the consensus is that he must address the Mormon question with a speech deploring bias."

A Tax Test for the War (E. J. Dionne Jr., Washington Post) "Would conservatives and Republicans support the war in Iraq if they had to pay for it? That is the immensely useful question that Rep. David Obey (D-Wis.), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, put on the table this week by calling for a temporary war tax to cover President Bush's request for $145 billion in supplemental spending for Iraq."

The Republican Collapse (David Brooks, New York Times)"Modern conservatism begins with Edmund Burke. What Burke articulated was not an ideology or a creed, but a disposition, a reverence for tradition, a suspicion of radical change. When conservatism came to America, it became creedal. Free market conservatives built a creed around freedom and capitalism. Religious conservatives built a creed around their conception of a transcendent order."

Editorials.

Override the SCHIP veto (Chicago Tribune) "With no fanfare other than a wave of his pen, President Bush on Wednesday vetoed a bill that would have expanded government-sponsored health insurance for lower-income kids. That was a shortsighted move."

Misleading Spin on Children's Health (New York Times) "Trying to justify his ideologically driven veto of a bill to expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program, President Bush and his staff have fired a barrage of misinformation about this valuable program. Before the House votes on whether to override the veto, all members - especially those from Mr. Bush's party who say they are concerned about millions of uninsured children - must look behind the rhetoric."