the latest news on Religious Right, Homeless veterans, Pakistan, U.S. - France, Georgia, Iran, Darfur, Employment non - discrimination, Mideast and selected Op-Ed.

Sign up to receive our daily news summary via e-mail »

Religious Right. Social conservatives fracture as Robertson endorses Giuliani "Televangelist Pat Robertson endorsed Rudy Giuliani's campaign, a surprising embrace that underscored the divisions among Christian conservatives about the field of candidates for the Republican presidential nomination." Pat Robertson endorsement of Giuliani shows schism among Christian conservatives"Rudy Giuliani, whose two divorces and proabortion-rights views have alienated many Christian conservatives, yesterday captured the endorsement of the Rev. Pat Robertson, a prominent televangelist who said the former New York mayor would be the best candidate to counter the "blood lust of Islamic terrorists." Christian right scatters support in GOP "Christian conservative leaders, unable to coalesce around a single candidate, instead are spreading their blessings among several Republican presidential hopefuls - and drying up talk of a third-party "Christian values" ticket." In a Surprise, Pat Robertson Backs Giuliani"It was the latest manifestation of the deep divide in the Christian conservative movement over how to balance politics and principle in the coming era after President Bush, who once so deftly brought it all together." Consensus Lacking in GOP Endorsements "The endorsements of two Christian conservative leaders underscored the fractures that remain among evangelical voters less than two months before the first votes will be cast in the Republican presidential nominating contest."

Homeless veterans. Study: 1 Out of 4 Homeless Are Veterans "Veterans make up one in four homeless people in the United States, though they are only 11 percent of the general adult population, according to a report to be released Thursday." Surge Seen in Number of Homeless Veterans"Experts who work with veterans say it often takes several years after leaving military service for veterans' accumulating problems to push them into the streets. But some aid workers say the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans appear to be turning up sooner than the Vietnam veterans did." Many D.C. Veterans Homeless, Study Says "The report, from the National Alliance to End Homelessness, found that veterans make up a quarter of the United States' homeless population and that the District has a particularly high rate, with an estimated 7.5 percent of the nearly 32,000 veterans in the city living on the streets, in shelters or in assisted housing."

Pakistan . Musharraf delays Pakistan vote "Pakistan's ruling party today dashed hopes that the country's scheduled January elections would go ahead as planned. The country's state TV quoted the president, General Pervez Musharraf, and Chaudhury Shujaat Hussain, the president of the ruling party PML-Q, as saying the vote would be delayed until mid February." U.S. Prods Musharraf to End Emergency Rule"Amid a deepening crisis in Pakistan, Bush administration officials have begun pushing Gen. Pervez Musharraf on several fronts to reverse his state of emergency, quietly making contact with other senior army generals and backing Pakistan's opposition leader as she carries out back-channel negotiations with him." Bush Pushes Pakistan's Musharraf to Give Up Military Leadership "President Bush intervened in Pakistan's political crisis with a telephone call urging embattled President Pervez Musharraf to resign as commander of the Pakistani military and to hold elections within the next two months, as originally scheduled." Pakistan's nuclear arsenal a U.S. worry "Alarmed by the political crisis in Pakistan, U.S. spy agencies have stepped up their scrutiny of the country's nuclear weapons program and directed analysts to reexamine the risk that rising instability could lead to the loss of a nuclear device or material,"

U.S.-France. Sarkozy gets rapturous welcome in US "The long years of animosity between the US and France formally ended just after 11am yesterday when the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, entered the House of Representatives to applause and yelps of approval. Congressmen gave him a standing ovation and queued to shake his hand." Bush, Sarkozy stand on common ground "President Bush and French President Nicolas Sarkozy saluted the thaw in the French-American relationship, finding common ground on Afghanistan and Iran -- two of the most troublesome foreign-policy challenges -- and suggesting they even agreed on Iraq, the bete noire of Washington's dealings with Paris." Bush, Sarkozy oppose nuclear Iran "President Bush and French President Nicolas Sarkozy stood shoulder-to-shoulder against a nuclear-armed Iran, demonstrating the cozier relationship between the countries under France's new conservative leader."

Georgia . Georgian Leader Imposes a State of Emergency"The president of the republic of Georgia declared a state of emergency Wednesday night, after riot police officers used tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon to clear thousands of demonstrators from the streets. The order immediately closed two television stations and banned public assembly in the capital,"

Iran . Iran Says It Reaches Nuclear Milestone "Iranhas reached a milestone in its nuclear program, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday, suggesting that the country now has 3,000 uranium-enriching centrifuges fully operating."

Darfur . UN official expelled from Darfur "Authorities in Sudan's South Darfur province have expelled the head of the United Nation's humanitarian operations, Wael al-Haj Ibrahim. He was accused of unspecified rule violations. The United Nations has deplored the expulsion." Darfur's 'Moment of Truth' Yields Little "since convening the latest international talks to end the 4½-year conflict in the vast region of western Sudan, international mediators have been unable to achieve accord on even the most basic points of the negotiations themselves -- where they should be held and when, and who should take part."

Employment non-discrimination. House votes for protections for gay workers "The House voted Wednesday to extend the nation's employment discrimination protections to gay workers, the first time the long-proposed measure has passed either chamber of Congress." House Approves Broad Protections for Gay Workers"The House on Wednesday approved a bill granting broad protections against discrimination in the workplace for gay men, lesbians and bisexuals, a measure that supporters praised as the most important civil rights legislation since the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990"

Mideast. Interfaith peace plan touted "The most senior religious leaders from Israel and the Palestinian territories announced details yesterday of a Middle East peace initiative that emphasizes the importance of religion in resolving the conflict."

Op-Ed. Torture: the new abortion (Rosa Brooks, Los Angeles Times) "Remember that golden, innocent time -- the 1980s and '90s -- when the phrase "political litmus test" was associated with the debate about abortion rights, and torture was associated with the Spanish Inquisition? The good news? Abortion isn't nearly as divisive an issue as it used to be. The bad news? For the GOP, torture is the new abortion. The legality of torture takes over as the political litmus test in campaigns and confirmation hearings."