The latest news on SCHIP, Education, Housing, Faith at work, US military, Iran, Egypt, Turkey, Iraq, Death penalty, Colombia, Politics, Editorial, and selected Op-Eds.

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SCHIP. Weary, Wary Lawmakers See Compromise as Way Forward "Over the weekend, Democratic leaders were joined by staffers from the GOP leadership to discuss expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. By midweek, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Sen. Charles E. Grassley (Iowa), the committee's ranking Republican, hope to unveil changes to the House version of the bill that have the blessing of the Republican and Democratic leadership." Compromises Sought on Kids' Health "President Bush and other critics of a $35 billion spending increase for children's health insurance say they'll support expanding coverage to families of four making as much as $62,000 a year, but they want to limit states' ability to go beyond that level."

Education. Study: Most students in South are poor "In 11 Southern states, including Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, a significant increase in the number of poor children attending public school has sent district officials scurrying for solutions on how to best educate kids who are coming from economically disadvantaged homes." 1 in 10 schools are 'dropout factories' "Dropout Factory," a high school where no more than 60 percent of the students who start as freshmen make it to their senior year. That dubious distinction applies to more than one in 10 high schools across America."

Housing. Doors Close on Subsidized Tenants, Advocates Say"Apartment listings in New York City now routinely exclude Section 8 voucher holders, marking a significant shift in the way many landlords have come to view the program."

Faith at work. Freedom's advance "Dr. Gloria E. White-Hammond, co-pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Boston, founded My Sister's Keeper in 2002 in an effort to secure peace and justice throughout Sudan."

US military. U.S. troops in Iraq more willing to seek help for stress"U.S.troops in Iraq, facing the stress of multiple, extended combat tours, are more willing than ever before to seek mental health counseling while they're still in the field, according to military medical experts."

Iran . U.N. still probing Iran nuclear case "The head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency said Monday that the inquiry into Iran's nuclear case was not closed, as the country's president proclaimed to the United Nations last month, and called it regrettable that Iran continued to enrich uranium despite the Security Council's demand to stop the process." IAEA findings on Iran dismissed "France and the US have dismissed a finding by the head of the UN's nuclear watchdog Mohammed ElBaradei that there is no evidence of Iran building a bomb." Iran remains defiant "Iran will not back down in a nuclear dispute with the West and is not interested in talks with the United States, its president said on Tuesday ahead of a previously unannounced visit by Russia's foreign minister."

Egypt . Egypt to Build Nuclear Plants"Egypt's president announced plans Monday to build several nuclear power plants -- the latest in a string of ambitious such proposals from moderate Arab countries. The United States immediately welcomed the plan, in a sharp contrast to what it called nuclear "cheating" by Iran."

Turkey . Turkey hits Kurdish rebels in southeast "Helicopter gunships fired rockets and bombed Kurdish rebel positions in southeastern Turkey near the Iraqi border, witnesses said. Turkey has massed as many as 100,000 troops along the border, backed by tanks, artillery and aircraft,"

Iraq . Iraqi Dam Seen In Danger of Deadly Collapse "AT THE MOSUL DAM, Iraq -- The largest dam in Iraq is in serious danger of an imminent collapse that could unleash a trillion-gallon wave of water, possibly killing thousands of people and flooding two of the largest cities in the country,"

Death penalty. Eyes on Supreme Court in Execution Case Tuesday"By 6 p.m. Tuesday, when a Mississippi inmate is scheduled to die by lethal injection, the Supreme Court may give the clearest indication so far of whether it intends to call a halt to all such executions while a case from Kentucky that the justices accepted last month remains undecided."

Colombia . Murder and payoffs taint business in Colombia "Chiquita Brands International, admitted it had paid $1.7 million to a Colombian paramilitary unit known as "Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia" (AUC) over a six-year period ending in 2004. Suddenly, an episode that had seemed like rabid conspiracy-mongering was recast as unsavory corporate misdeed."

Politics. A Union With Clout Stakes Its Claim on Politics"Democratic presidential candidates are actively courting the Service Employees International Union, which also plans to spend on candidates in Congressional and state contests."

Editorial. A FRESH and better farm bill (Washington Times) "At the very moment that the mutually back-scratching, special-interest-dominated agriculture committees in both congressional chambers have reported terrible, business-as-usual, five-year agriculture-reauthorization measures, the Lugar-Lautenberg FRESH alternative is truly a breath of fresh air."

Op-Ed. No Emergency Room(By BOB HERBERT, New York Times) "Homeless advocates in New York are facing off against the Bloomberg administration in a fight that threatens to bring back the protracted court battles of a couple of decades ago."