By Wendy Wang
Issue:

Does EPA hold the authority to regulate air pollutants emitted by cars and
manufacturing companies?

The state of Massachusetts argues that some level or percentage (about 6
percent) ought to be caped on air pollutants from new vehicles. MA was
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By Wendy Wang
Outgoing Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, has a series of meetings today in and out of the Pentagon. There are no further reports of cancelled trips or appearances or meeting with foreign dignitaries on the Secretary’s schedule. Some sort of farewell to the work force will take place. The planning is under way. There is no confirmation that he spoke to Robert Gates. Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman, says that should the two men have a confirmation prior to Gates’s congressional confirmation, "they" will let "us" know should a discussion between the two take place during the transition period. Whitman did say that Gates did not take part in the Iraq policy discussion at the White House yesterday.
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By Wendy Wang
A day after the president gave his position on the Iraqi War, Secretary of Defense; Donald Rumsfeld briefed the Pentagon Press Corps for the second time in October. He lauded the efforts of the American Coalition forces and the Iraqi security forces in the face of difficult challenges.
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By Wendy Wang
Iraq

Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, and General George Casey briefed Pentagon press in the afternoon after meeting with the president on the ground situation in Iraq. First thing they were asked was about the report that 655,000 Iraqi civilian lives have been lost. Earlier, Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman deferred to the Iraqi Ministry of Health to put out hard numbers on civilian causalities. General Casey puts the actual number at 50,000, saying that he would not lend credibility to the reported 655,000. Asked where he got his number of 50,000, was it US assessment or Iraqi assessment, Casey says he did not recall. The Pentagon was mindful to remind everyone that the US coalition forces are always careful to avoid civilian causalities while the enemy forces are not. The foreign fighters in particular have taken to target civilians in the fighting.
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By Wendy Wang
Pentagon press focused on reports that North Korea may have detonated a nuclear weapon underground. Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman was asked to confirm the intelligence data to assess that it was indeed a nuclear weapon detonated. Whitman would not specify the means of data collection used to confirm the test, stating that the Department of Defense does not hold views different from that of the US government. In a word, he would not speak at all to the data used to assess reports that North Korea had indeed detonated a nuclear weapon. Apparently the Department of Defense is not in the lead in response to the report, Whitman says. Its up to the international community to respond instead. His noncommittal response applied to questions of troop levels in the region. He would not get into any discussion of changing military presence in Asia.
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By Wendy Wang
The Pentagon was reluctant to comment on Iraqi President Jalal Talibani’s statement that Iraqi security forces are expected to take over from Coalition forces by the end of this year. While, spokesman Bryan Whitman did not offer any particular insight, at an afternoon press briefing with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, says troops withdrawal will be conditions based. However he offered a bit of a mixed picture in terms of the situation in Iraq. On the one hand, admitting that the sectarian violence shows no sign of ebbing, the daily lives of Iraqi’s continue, with schools and hospitals open and operational.
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By Wendy Wang
daily and won’t end until all Americans who wish to leave are out of the region. As for the thousands of Americans in other parts of Lebanon unable to access the ports in Beirut, efforts are under way to get those people out. A modest medical capability was set up to great the evacuees in Cyprus, but there are no reports of serious medical conditions beside fatigue.
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By Wendy Wang
Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman confirmed that a contracted cruise ship, the Orient Queen is on its way to the Mediterranean area, though he cannot confirm that it has docked at Lebanon ports, to evacuate Americans stranded in the region. Commercial chartered vessels, capable of holder larger number of passengers will be the primary means of evacuation though military vessels will also be onsite to help the process. The State department is in contract negotiations with commercial vessels for this endeavor.
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By Wendy Wang
Allegations of rape and murder

While the Iraq Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki called for an independent or joint US-Iraqi investigation into the March incident involving a US soldier charges in the rape and killing of a woman and her family, the Pentagon cautions against premature reporting of the situation. Bryan Whitman, spokesman at the Pentagon, says that he is not aware if former US Army Pvt. Steven D. Green, arrested in connection to the case, has been formally charges. He says it would also be premature to draw conclusions that the kidnapping and murder of two US soldiers including another soldier at the time of the kidnapping last month was in retaliation to the rape murder. Whitman says that a criminal investigation was launched on June 24th, and cautions reporters on what they report until the investigation has concluded. He says that appropriate actions will be taken based on facts but would not engage in hypothetical situations. He says that the State Department is in discussion with the newly formed Iraqi government over this matter, but that he cannot offer insight into the discussion.
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By Wendy Wang
On his first visit to the US, as Defense Minister, Dr. Nelson offers the Australian government’s support to the global war on terrorism, and outlines the shared values between the two countries including that of a liberal democracy and free enterprise. He vows that Australia, though geographically remote from the United States, will not wait for terrorism to "turn up on their doorsteps" and will face the enemy and
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