Clem’s Chronicles: Health Care/Kids Direct Air Traffic/Chile Aftershocks Continue

Happy Wednesday folks—President Obama has thrown down the health care gauntlet. That story and the rest of the day's news follows……

HEALTH CARE REFORM-Enough talk-time to act. President Obama spoke from the East Room in the White House this afternoon on health care reform yet again, and it seems pretty clear he’s ready to move on. Obama said at one point “Every idea has been put on the table, every argument has been made, everything there is to say about health care has been said.” The President’s message to Congress? “I believe the United States Congress owes the American people a final vote on health-care reform.” The problem facing the President, Jake Tapper noted on WORLD NEWS, is that “right now there are not the votes in the House to pass the bill into law…part of what the President needed to do today was not just explain to the American people the direction forward for health care legislation but to convince them and their members of Congress that this is not about politics but about doing the right thing.” Tapper continues: “The President said the legislation will cover the uninsured, bring down health care costs and end the ‘worst practices’ of insurance companies.” That message will be reinforced and reiterated next week, Tapper tells us, when the President takes to the road starting Monday to campaign for his plan. First stops-Philadelphia and St. Louis.
With the President calling for an “up or down” vote from Congress, Diane Sawyer asked George Stephanopoulos how confident the White House was in the outcome: “the truth is, top strategists in the white house, the senate and the house simply don't know if they can get the votes. they put the odds at about 50/50 right now.” Stephanopoulos also notes that before we even get to the “up or down” phase “there are questions of process and policy” that have to be resolved. Stephanopoulos explains: “on the process, House members are suspicious of the Senate. They don't want to take a vote right now unless they are guaranteed the Senate's going to pass it once they pass the bill. So, they have to find a way around that, around the house rules. Second, questions of policy. Right now, as Jake Tapper noted, they're short, about ten votes short. Most of the yes votes that are now undecided are centered around the issue of abortion. Unless they can get some assurance there will be no public funding for abortions, they could switch from yes to no.”

CHILDREN DIRECT FAA TRAFFIC:  ABC News has confirmed that an air traffic controller had a child directing flight traffic at John F. Kennedy Airport not one, but TWO times within the past month.  Both incidents involved two children of the same controller and occurred in mid-February, and both times the children gave instructions to pilots taking off. Lisa Stark reports: “Aviation experts say bringing your child to work is one thing, allowing him to takeover THIS job quite another.  At JFK Airport there were 60 planes an hour taking off and landing, about one a minute…the junior controller radioed take-off instructions to at least three large commercial aircraft in the space of just two minutes.”  Stark reports the second child made two radio transmissions.  The FAA has suspended the controller and his supervisor, and has currently barred unofficial visits from family friends or relatives to air traffic control areas while it reviews its policies.  "This lapse in judgment not only violated FAA's own policies, but common-sense standards for professional conduct. These kinds of distractions are totally unacceptable," FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt said in a statement. (thanks to Marisa Bramwell for this entry)

CHILE AFTERSHOCKS:  There have  been well over a hundred aftershocks since that 8.8 quake that devastated central Chile early Saturday.  There was one particularly scary temblor earlier in the day that was followed by a tsunami warning. David Wright was in Pelluhue when the alarm sounded: “This is the spot where those giant waves first crashed ashore on Saturday.  So as you can imagine, when the alarm sounded that another killer wave might be coming, everyone started to run.”  David says they didn’t have to think twice when they heard the warning:  “ In cars… and on foot…. they fled for higher ground. Some helped the elderly climb uphill.  Others worried about children.”   And David adds: “The people here have long lived with the threat of tsunamis.  Evacuation routes are clearly marked. Now with 60 of their neighbors confirmed dead… and hundreds missing… the threat is real and immediate.”  This time, the tsunami warning was lifted.  A false alarm.  But with the death toll now over 800 in central Chile, one woman wondered: “How can we possibly live like this.” And as David put it: “The people who live on this beautiful coastline now can't help but look at these waves as something potentially deadly.  They may never really feel safe here again.” (thanks to Ed Bailey for this entry)

ACS PROSTATE CANCER SCREENING GUIDELINES:  The American Cancer Society has altered its guidelines for prostate cancer tests, specifically the annual PSA screenings.  Here’s Dr. Besser with details:  “Since 1997, the American Cancer Society hasn’t routinely recommended the PSA test, but most doctors have done it.  Now they’re saying you need to have a conversation between you and your doctor before that test is done.”  Roger Sergel provides some insight on the ACS’s decision today: “While the actual change appears subtle, the days of ACS recommending annual PSA screening are clearly gone. Len Lichtenfeld, the deputy chief Medical Officer of the cancer society says as much in his blog today… If ACS believed that PSA screening was a ‘good thing’ for men, they would be all for those free mass screenings in parking lots and health fairs… Lichtenfeld says no way.  ‘In our opinion, mass screenings at health fairs, or local parking lots or wherever are not a good idea.’ They are not a good idea because this means a man and his doctor are not in an ‘informed decision making’ process to discuss the pros and cons of PSA testing.  It is this push for a discussion between patient and doctor that is a key change in tone for ACS on PSA.” Patients who should discuss the possibility of routine tests include those who have a family history.  “If you have a first degree relative, a close relative who had this, if you are African-America, you should have that conversation earlier,” Dr. Besser says.  (thanks to Marisa Bramwell for this entry)

SEX OFFENDER CHARGED- A 30-year-old sex offender has been charged with murdering a 17-year-old San Diego County girl who vanished after heading off for a run in a park. Prosecutors say John Albert Gardner III also faces a special allegation of rape or attempted rape, and a count of assault with intent to commit rape. Gardner pleaded not guilty to both charges at a brief arraignment this afternoon. 

INSIDE AL-QAEDA CAVES-Tonight a look inside a secret world, the caves of al-Qaeda. Reporting for WORLD NEWS, Martha Raddatz fills us in:“The caves are impossible to spot from the air, hidden in these soaring mountains along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan, but inside this mountain just a week ago al-Qaeda and the Taliban operated a nerve center from which attacks were launched.” And what an elaborate nerve center it appears to be…”tunnels…taking you deep into the mountain where you discover room after room carved inside…156 caves in all.” What’s left behind makes clear their exit was hasty-Raddatz tells us there’s “artillery shells, rocket propelled grenades, mines” as well as hundreds of blankets and pillows. The big question, Raddatz notes, “where are those fighters now? And who is helping them?”

FDA WANTS MISLEADING FOOD LABELS CHANGED- The Food and Drug Administration is cracking down on baby food manufacturers and other companies for misleading nutrition labeling on their products.  The FDA sent warning letters to 17 food companies – including Nestle, which produces Gerber's baby food – for violations it says include unauthorized claims about health, nutrient contents and terms such as "healthy."

RANGEL WOES-Facing serious ethics inquiries, Representative Charles Rangel (D-NY) stepped down today as Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee. George Stephanopoulos provides some context on both the man and his job: “(The House Ways & Means Committee)…that is the tax writing committee of the House. Health care goes through that committee. He's a 40-year veteran and a powerful member of the House. He's temporarily stepping aside, but he's resigned as chairman. This is a real blow.” Stephanopoulos added that Rangel “is still under investigation”. AP provided a laundry list of Rangel’s woes-“He still faces inquiries by the House ethics committee over late payment of income taxes on a rental villa he owns in the Dominican Republic, his use of House stationery to solicit corporate donations to an educational institution that bears his name, and belated disclosure of hundreds of thousands of dollars in previously unlisted wealth.” A lot to overcome…Stephanopoulos: “he hopes to return once he is cleared but other sources tell me it's unlikely he's going to be cleared and his colleagues were abandoning him, which is why he had to resign. They were prepared to vote to deny him the chairmanship, which is why he resigned.”

WHAT IS IT ABOUT POLITICIANS FROM NEW YORK???  There’s more bad news for Congressional Democrats.  This time freshman Rep. Eric J.J. Massa from upstate New York announced on a conference call with reporters that he will not seek a second term.  Massa explained that a recurrence of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma late last year has forced him to not seek reelection in November.  DAVID CHALIAN was listening-in on the conference call.  Massa said doctors told him “he can no longer run his life at 100 miles per hour.  I will now enter a final phase of my life at a more controlled pace,” Massa said.  However, there are whispers that Massa, 50, was accused of harassing a male staffer.  Massa responded to those allegations.  “Do I or have I ever used salty language when I am in the privacy of my inner office or at home?” Massa rhetorically asked.  He said that he indeed does use salty language and has apologized to those where appropriate.  He then went on to attack “those kinds of articles” which are “unsubstantiated without fact or backing” that causes so many to complain about what is wrong with Washington and the gridlock and the intense partisanship.  Democrats may have a difficult time retaining this seat because before Massa’s victory in 2008, the district was long dominated by Republicans.  (thanks to George Sanchez for this entry)

TOYOTA UPDATE-The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration said today it is reviewing claims from Toyota owners who claim Toyota’s “fixes” did nothing of the sort. David Strickland, the NHTSA administrator, said in a statement that the agency wants to "get to the bottom" of the matter and ensure that Toyota is doing "everything possible" to address the situation. "If Toyota owners are still experiencing sudden acceleration incidents after taking their cars to the dealership, we want to know about it," Strickland said.

PRESIDENT OBAMA/AMERICA’S MOST WANTED-From Sunlen Miller: “This afternoon President Obama sat down for an interview with ‘America’s Most Wanted,’ to mark their 1000th episode since the show started 22 years ago. The president and host John Walsh discussed the administration’s crime-fighting initiatives and the show’s anniversary, America’s Most Wanted says in a press release. The episode airs Saturday March 6th on FOX.” But you don’t have to wait that long to see some of it. John Walsh will be live on GOOD MORNING AMERICA tomorrow which will feature clips from the President’s interview.

OTHER STUFF-
–IRAQ VIOLENCE-Iraq saw its deadliest attacks in more than a month today when suicide bombers struck in a former insurgent stronghold northeast of Baghdad, killing at least 32 people.  Today’s bloodshed comes ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for Sunday. Al-Qaida in Iraq has vowed to violently disrupt the vote and has warned Sunnis not to take part in the balloting.
–BULLYING ON THE WANE?-A study funded by the Department of Justice finds a sharp drop in kids being bullied or beaten up by their peers. The details- the percentage of children who reported being physically bullied over the past year had declined from nearly 22 percent in 2003 to under 15 percent in 2008. The percentage reporting they'd been assaulted by other youths, including their siblings, dropped from 45 percent to 38.4 percent. Why the large drop? Anti-bullying programs are believed to be having an impact. (AP)
–SULLY STEPPING DOWN- Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger flew his final commercial flight today. The pilot who landed a US Airways plane safely on the Hudson River last January said Wednesday he is retiring after 30 years and plans to spend some of his time pressing for more flight safety. Sullenberger held a news conference at Charlotte’s Douglas International Airport after his final flight, US Air #1167 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
–TAIWAN QUAKE- No word of any injuries or damage from a 6.4 earthquake in Taiwan. Our Taipei stringer says "everything is fine. The kids are in school." (Ed Bailey)