NEWS,16.01.2013

Obama unveils $500m gun-control proposals

President Barack Obama on Wednesday launched the most sweeping effort to curb US gun violence in nearly two decades, announcing a $500m package that sets up a fight with Congress over bans on military-style assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines just a month after a shooting in Connecticut killed 20 school children.Obama also signed 23 executive actions, which require no congressional approval. But the president, speaking at the White House, acknowledged the most sweeping, effective actions must be taken by lawmakers."To make a real and lasting difference, Congress must act," Obama said. "And Congress must act soon." He added, "I'll put everything that I've got into this."Obama was joined by children who wrote him letters about gun violence in the weeks following the Connecticut shooting. Families of the children killed in the shooting, as well as survivors, were also in the audience.The president appealed to the nation's conscience, but his announcement promises to set up a bitter fight with a powerful pro-gun lobby that has long warned supporters that Obama wanted to take away their guns.The US has the highest rate of gun ownership of any country in the world, and pro-gun groups see any move on gun restrictions as an offense against the right guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the US Constitution. Critics counter that the country's founding fathers never could have foreseen assault weapons more than two centuries ago, when guns were intended for the common, not individual, defence, guns were often stored in community areas and rifles fired one shot at a time."This is the land of the free and the home of the brave, and always will be," Obama said, acknowledging the right to possess and bear firearms. "But we've also long realised ... that with rights come responsibilities."Emotions have been high since the Connecticut shooting, which Obama has called the worst day of his presidency. He largely ignored the issue of gun violence during his first term but appears willing to stake his second term on it now. He'll have to contend with looming fiscal issues that have threatened to push whatever he proposes aside, at least for a while.Gun control advocates also worry that opposition from the powerful National Rifle Association (NRA) and its allies in Congress will be too great to overcome. The NRA released an online video on Wednesday that called Obama an "elitist hypocrite" for having armed Secret Service agents protect his daughters at school while not committing to installing armed guards in all schools. The NRA insists that the best way to prevent more mass shootings is to give more "good guys" guns.The White House called the NRA video "repugnant and cowardly”.The public appears receptive to stronger federal action on guns, with majorities of Americans favouring a nationwide ban on military-style rapid-fire weapons, according to a new AP -GfK poll. Three-quarters of Americans said they reacted to the Connecticut shooting with deep anger, while 54% said they felt deeply ashamed it could happen in the US.The poll also shows 51% said they believed laws limiting gun ownership infringe on the public's right to bear firearms.White House officials, seeking to avoid setting the president up for failure, have emphasised that no single measure - even an assault weapons ban - would solve the scourge of gun violence. But without such a ban, or other sweeping Congress-approved measures, it's unclear whether executive actions alone can make any noticeable difference.The president asked Congress to renew the ban on high-grade, military-style assault weapons that was first signed into law by then-president Bill Clinton in 1994, but expired in 2004. Obama also called for limiting ammunition magazines to 10 rounds or fewer, and he proposed a federal statute to stop purchases of guns by buyers who are acting for others.The president also called for a focus on universal background checks. About 40% of gun sales take place without background checks, including those by private sellers at gun shows or over the internet, according to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.The president's framework is based on recommendations from Vice President Joe Biden, who led a wide-ranging task force on gun violence. Beyond the gun control measures, Biden also gave Obama suggestions for improving mental health care and addressing violent images in video games, movies and television.States and cities have been moving against gun violence as well. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday signed into law the toughest gun control law in the US, and the first since the Connecticut shooting. The law includes a tougher assault-weapons ban and provisions to try to keep guns out of the hands of mentally ill people who make threats.The NRA criticised the bill, saying in a statement, "These gun control schemes have failed in the past and will have no impact on public safety and crime."In Washington, it's unclear how much political capital Obama will use in pressing for congressional action.The White House and Congress will soon be consumed by three looming fiscal deadlines, each of which is expected to be contentious. And the top Republican in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, has warned the White House that it will be at least three months before the chamber considers gun legislation.Congress, in any case, can move slowly. The chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee said on Wednesday he'll begin hearings in two weeks on gun safety proposals. Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy, a gun owner, said he envisions a series of hearings examining violence in popular media and how to keep guns safe, among other topics.Leahy's plan could take more time than Obama has urged.Obama's long list of executive orders includes the following:Ordering tougher penalties for people who lie on background checks and requiring federal agencies to make relevant data available to the federal background check system.Ending limits that make it more difficult for the government to research gun violence, such as gathering data on guns that fall into criminal hands.Requiring federal law enforcement to trace guns recovered in criminal investigations.Giving schools flexibility to use federal grant money to improve school safety, such as by hiring school resource officers.Giving communities grants to institute programs to keep guns away from people who shouldn't have them.

Republicans ready for debt-ceiling battle

Republican lawmakers are preparing to introduce legislation to direct the US Treasury to make interest payments on American bonds first and then prioritise other government outlays in case Congress does not raise the debt ceiling.Supporters of the idea see it as a politically palatable alternative to default, which could rattle markets as occurred in the summer of 2011. The likelihood of another market-unsettling event is challenging Republicans to find another idea as they use the debt ceiling as leverage to extract spending cuts from President Barack Obama.But critics, including some Republicans, say prioritising payments is largely unworkable and would not fool the markets.The Treasury hit the $16.4tn debt ceiling, or the legal amount it is allowed to borrow, on New Year's Eve and started moving funds around so that the government can continue paying its bills. But the department said it will run out of funds as early as mid-February. Among those advocating the approach is Republican Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, who is expected to reintroduce legislation next week to instruct the Treasury to make sure bond-holders, got paid first if Congress does not raise the debt ceiling by the deadline.In the House of Representatives, Arizona Republican David Schweikert introduced legislation that would force the Treasury to prioritize payments to bond-holders, Social Security recipients and military salaries."No one is talking about default except for the president," said Patrick Tiberi, a Republican Representative from Ohio who heads a tax-writing subcommittee."He doesn't need to default because he has enough revenue, money coming in from the taxes that you guys pay to pay bills," Tiberi told reporters on Tuesday."Ninety-nine percent of my constituents would say that sending out Social Security payments and keeping veteran hospitals open is a bigger priority than national parks," he said. But former advisers to Republican President George W Bush say the idea is unworkable for a number of reasons, including the fact that tax revenue does not come in at the same rate that payments are due."Prioritisation is impossible," said Tony Fratto, who was Deputy Press Secretary for Bush and a spokesperson on economic policy who fought through approximately seven debt limit increases with Congress. "Is the government really going to be in the position of withholding benefits, salaries, rent and contract payments, in order to pay off Treasury bond-holders? That would be a political catastrophe," Fratto said.Keith Hennessey, Bush's National Economic Council director, said prioritisation was a bad idea that could increase credit risk and said it would be irresponsible."Payment prioritisation doesn't stop payments, it just delays them. Then the aggrieved party sues the government, and probably wins, and it turns into a bloody mess," Hennessey, now an economist at Stanford, said in a blog post this week.Even when the government was operating under a budget surplus, as it did from 1998 through 2001 under President Bill Clinton, the Treasury still had to borrow or issue debt to make its regular payments because its income fluctuates month-to-month.The department is expected to run out of ways to stave off a default as early as mid-February, and Republican lawmakers say they will refuse to give the Obama administration the votes needed to raise the debt cap unless Democrats agree to spending cuts and changes to federal benefits programs.On 15 February, the government is expected to take in about $9bn in revenues and is required to pay bills amounting to $52bn, according to the think tank the Bipartisan Policy Centre, which analysed Treasury's cash flows. The Treasury Department has said ensuring that bond investors got paid before others would be a "default by another name."And in the past, Treasury officials have said the department lacks the formal legal authority to establish priorities to pay obligations, according to the non-partisan Congressional Research Service.

Germany to bring gold home

Germany's central bank is hauling home tens of thousands of gold bars currently stored in the US and France, in a high-security operation spread over eight years. All 374 tons of German gold held in Paris vaults will be moved back to the Bundesbank's vaults in Frankfurt by 2020, the bank said on Wednesday. A further 300 tons of gold stored in New York will also be brought back.In total, the shipments are worth $36bn at current market prices and represent about 19% of Germany's gold reserves - the world's second-largest after the United States.Once the shipment is complete, Frankfurt will hold half of Germany's 3 400 tons of reserve gold - currently worth about $183bn - with New York retaining 37% and London storing 13%.But don't expect the Bundesbank to reveal how it's going to keep the valuable cargo safe on its way back to Germany - especially after the stunning raid of a Berlin bank earlier this week in which burglars tunnelled 30m to reach the safety deposit room."For security reasons we can't discuss that, partly to protect the gold, partly to protect the staff that will be carrying out the transfer," said spokesperson Moritz August Raasch."But of course since we transport large sums of money around Germany every day, we've got a certain amount of experience with this."During the Cold War, Germany kept most of its gold abroad for fear it could fall into the hands of the Soviet Union if the country was invaded.Another reason was that it's easier to swap the reserves for foreign currency in London, Paris and New York, where gold is traded.Since France, like Germany, switched to the euro more than a decade ago, storing gold in Paris was no longer necessary, the Bundesbank said.The move follows criticism last year from Germany's independent Federal Auditors' Office, which concluded that the central bank failed to properly oversee its gold. The auditor suggested the central bank should carry out regular inspections of the gold held abroad.The auditors' report stunned Germany, where the Bundesbank routinely tops polls of the nation's most trusted institutions. The central bank was taken aback and maintained it didn't see the need for more scrutiny in overseeing the reserves, saying "there is no doubt about the integrity of the foreign storage sites."But several politicians jumped on the issue and called for some of the reserves to be repatriated.The Bundesbank isn't taking any chances should anything happen to the gold on its way back to Frankfurt.

Renewed talks on Iranian nuclear probe

Senior UN investigators opened a new round of talks on Wednesday with Iranian officials in Tehran in the hopes of restarting a probe into allegations that the Islamic Republic carried out atomic bomb trigger tests and other suspected weapons-related studies. The semi-official ISNA news agency reported that negotiations started at the headquarters of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation. It gave no further details.The UN meetings are considered an important test of Iran's willingness to address Western concerns before the possible resumption of wider dialogue with the US and other world powers.Negotiations with the six nations - the US, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany - fell apart more than six months ago and Iran has proposed getting them back on track, perhaps as soon as later this month.The US and others hope the talks will result in an agreement by the Islamic Republic to stop enriching uranium to a higher level that could be turned relatively quickly into the warhead-grade material.Iran denies such aspirations, insisting it is enriching only to make reactor fuel and to make isotopes for medical purposes.ISNA said EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton has agreed restart the next round of world power talks with Iran on 28-29 January, but no decision has yet been made on the venue. The last round, held in Moscow in June, ended in stalemate.The official IRNA news agency, however, said the talks may not resume until early February.Before departing on Tuesday for Iran, UN team leader Herman Nackaerts said the International Atomic Energy Agency hoped to "finalise the structured approach" that would outline what the agency can and cannot do in its investigation.The UN nuclear watchdog wants to revisit Parchin, a military site southeast of Tehran, to probe allegations that Iran may have tested components needed to develop a nuclear weapon. Tehran has steadfastly denied any such activity.Iran says IAEA's suspicions are based on forged intelligence provided by the CIA, the Israeli Mossad, Britain's MI-6 and other intelligence agencies, and that Tehran has not been allowed to see the materials to respond to them.The IAEA also is trying to follow up other suspicions, including whether Iran did computer modelling of nuclear warhead core. The agency says it has intelligence information indicating Iran carried out preparatory work for a nuclear weapons test, and development of a nuclear payload for Iran's Shahab 3 intermediate range missile - a weapon that can reach Israel.Iranians say they have a bitter memory of allowing IAEA inspections and providing replies to a long list of queries over its nuclear program in the past decade. Now, Tehran says such queries should not be revived.Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ramin Mehmanparast said on Tuesday that Iran provided detailed explanations to IAEA questions on six outstanding issues in the past but instead of giving Iran a clean bill of health, the agency levelled new allegations on the basis of "alleged studies" provided by Iran's enemies.Iran uses that term to refer to allegations about Parchin and other claims that it says the IAEA levels only to keep the issue alive.Tehran has in the past allowed IAEA inspectors twice into Parchin, but now it says any new agency investigation must be governed by an agreement that lays out the scope of such a probe."Obligations of the other party must be clearly specified. If a claim is to be raised on a spot in Iran every day and [the UN agency] seeks to visit our military facilities under such a pretext... this issue will be unending," Mehmanparast said on Tuesday.President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad acknowledged on Wednesday that sanctions have slowed down Iran's growth and disrupted its foreign trade and said the country must move away from a dependence on oil revenues to overcome sanctions.Addressing parliament, Ahmadinejad said "structural changes" are needed in Iran's economy to overcome the sanctions.Iran is under toughed Western oil and banking sanctions over its refusal to halt uranium enrichment. The US and its allies fear Iran may ultimately be able to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies.