Obama's Immigration Plan to Have More Direct Path

President Barack Obama is expected to lay out his principles for immigration reform in a speech in Las Vegas today that will include a potentially quicker path to citizenship than the bipartisan plan a group of senators unveiled earlier this week.

The president will offer some new details about the White House's immigration reform plan, which expands on a blueprint it released in 2011, a senior administration official told ABC News. But for now Obama will stop short of offering his own piece of legislation because of the progress made by the Senate "Gang of Eight."

See Also: Senate Wants Immigration Bill Passed in Months

The White House has sounded positive notes about the Senate group's plan thus far, but the specifics that Obama announces are expected to have some key differences that might cause concern for some Republican senators who have signed onto the senate deal.

Like the senators' plan, Obama's proposal calls for a pathway to citizenship for many of the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. The senators' plan would grant "probationary legal status" immediately to eligible undocumented immigrants, but would not allow them to apply for permanent legal status, or a green card, until the border is deemed to be secure. Think of that as a trigger system.

On the other hand, Obama's framework would not contain a border security measure. Administration officials told media outlets that they believe a path to citizenship needs to be straightforward. They also believe a trigger system, like the one in the senate plan, could lead to a state of legal limbo for the undocumented immigrants who receive legal status, The Washington Post reported.

The border-security-first plan, however, is essential to Republican senators who signed onto the Senate "Gang of Eight" deal.

"I will not be supporting any law that does not ensure that the enforcement things happen," Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), a member of the group, told conservative blogger Ed Morrissey on his web radio show.

See Also: 3 Flashpoints in the Senate Immigration Blueprint

Obama's plan is likely to include language that would allow same-sex bi-national couples to have the same rights as heterosexual couples, BuzzFeed and The Washington Post reported. Under current law, gays and lesbians who are married to U.S. citizens under state laws cannot obtain a green card. Obama's plan would allow them a path to citizenship, but the issue is not mentioned in the Senate "Gang of Eight" proposal.

As noted by the Post, that language may anger Christian groups who have signaled they would support comprehensive immigration reform.

But the White House remains optimistic about the progress that has been made so far. An official described the senators' announcement as a "breakthrough" to ABC News because it wasn't clear whether Republicans would sign on to any path to citizenship.

Some observers couched the Senate group's decision to come out with his plan a day before Obama as an attempt to outfox the White House politically. But administration officials told media outlets they remain generally pleased with the plan and believe that the president's speech could build momentum for a final bill.

ABC's Reena Ninan contributed reporting.

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Bipartisan group of senators to unveil framework for immigration overhaul

A key group of senators from both parties will unveil on Monday the framework of a broad overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws, including a pathway to citizenship for more than 11 million illegal immigrants.

The detailed, four-page statement of principles will carry the signatures of four Republicans and four Democrats, a bipartisan push that would have been unimaginable just months ago on one of the country’s most emotionally divisive issues.

The document is intended to provide guideposts that would allow legislation to be drafted by the end of March, including a potentially controversial “tough but fair” route to citizenship for those now living in the country illegally.

It would allow undocumented immigrants with otherwise clean criminal records to quickly achieve probationary legal residency after paying a fine and back taxes.

But they could pursue full citizenship — giving them the right to vote and access to government benefits — only after new measures are in place to prevent a future influx of illegal immigrants.

Those would include additional border security, a new program to help employers verify the legal status of their employees and more-stringent checks to prevent immigrants from overstaying visas.

And those undocumented immigrants seeking citizenship would be required to go to the end of the waiting list to get a green card that would allow permanent residency and eventual citizenship, behind those who had already legally applied at the time of the law’s enactment.

The goal is to balance a fervent desire by advocates and many Democrats to allow illegal immigrants to emerge from society’s shadows without fear of deportation with a concern held by many Republicans that doing so would only encourage more illegal immigration.

“We will ensure that this is a successful permanent reform to our immigration system that will not need to be revisited,” the group asserts in its statement of principles.

The framework identifies two groups as deserving of special consideration for a separate and potentially speedier pathway to full citizenship: young people who were brought to the country illegally as minors and agricultural workers whose labor, often at subsistence wages, has long been critical to the nation’s food supply.

Expanding visas

The plan also addresses the need to expand available visas for high-tech workers and promises to make green cards available for those who pursue graduate education in certain fields in the United States.

“We must reduce backlogs in the family and employment visa categories so that future immigrants view our future legal immigration system as the exclusive means for entry into the United States,” the group will declare.

The new proposal marks the most substantive bipartisan step Congress has taken toward new immigration laws since a comprehensive reform bill failed on the floor of the Senate in 2007.

It comes as the White House is gearing up for a renewed push for reform. On Tuesday, President Obama will travel to Las Vegas to urge quick action; he told Hispanic members of Congress at a White House meeting Friday that the issue is his top legislative priority.

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Iran sends monkey into space

TEHRAN: Iran on Monday successfully sent a monkey into orbit, paving the way for a manned space flight, Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi told state television.

Arabic-language channel Al-Alam and other Iranian news agencies said the monkey returned alive after travelling in a capsule to an altitude of 120 kilometres (75 miles) for a sub-orbital flight.

"This success is the first step towards man conquering the space and it paves the way for other moves," General Vahidi said, but added that the process of putting a human into space would be a lengthy one.

"Today's successful launch follows previous successes we had in launching (space) probes with other living creatures (on board)," he added.

"The monkey which was sent in this launch landed safely and alive and this is a big step for our experts and scientists."

Iranian state television showed still pictures of the capsule and of a monkey being fitted with a vest and then placed in a device similar to a child's car-seat.

A previous attempt in 2011 by the Islamic republic to put a monkey into space failed. No official explanation was ever given.

A defence ministry statement quoted by Iranian media said earlier Iran had "successfully launched a capsule, codenamed Pishgam (Pioneer), containing a monkey and recovered the shipment on the ground intact".

Iran announced in mid-January its intention to launch a monkey into orbit as part of "preparations for sending a man into space," which is scheduled for 2020.

Iran's space programme deeply unsettles Western nations, which fear it could be used to develop ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads they suspect are being developed in secret.

The same technology used in space launch rockets can also be used in ballistic missiles.

The Security Council has imposed on Iran an almost total embargo on nuclear and space technologies since 2007.

Tehran has repeatedly denied that its nuclear and scientific programmes mask military ambitions.

Iran's previous satellite launches were met by condemnation from the West who accused Tehran of "provocation."

The Islamic republic has previously sent a rat, turtles and worms into space. It has also successfully launched three satellites -- Omid in February 2009, Rassad in June 2011 and Navid in February 2012.

In mid-May last year, Tehran announced plans to launch an experimental observation satellite Fajr (Dawn) within a week but it did not happen and Iran gave no explanation for the delay.

The Fajr satellite was presented by Iranian officials as "an observation and measurement" satellite weighing 50 kilos (110 pounds), built by Sa-Iran, a company affiliated to the defence ministry.

- AFP/ir

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Haryana min for early tax reforms, seeks compensation for states

CHANDIGARH: Haryana excise and taxation minister, Kiran Choudhary, on Monday urged the Empowered Committee of state finance ministers as well as Union finance ministry to work more resolutely for bringing about tax reform in the country at an early date.

Choudhry was speaking at a meeting of the Empowered Committee of state finance ministers in Bhubaneswar today.

She said that it may take some time before GST is finally introduced, in the meantime it is equally important that loss being caused to the states on account of reduction in the rate of CST from 4 per cent to 2 per cent is fully compensated by the Central government.

She pointed out that CST collections have taken a massive hit by showing decline of nearly 38 per cent. The state is losing very heavily on account of reduction in the rate of CST and non-payment of the compensation by the Central government. She also stressed the need taking corrective steps.

Choudhry said that upto December 2012, Haryana has shown an increase in VAT collection by about 17 per cent as compared with that of the same period of the year 2011. She said that upto December, 2011 total VAT collection was about Rs 9,150 crores which in the corresponding period for 2012 was Rs 10,709 crores. Collection of VAT revenue accordingly is satisfactory in Haryana.

Incase the recommendations of the Committee for 75 per cent and 50 per cent compensation in the years 2011-12 and 2012-13 respectively is accepted, it will result into loss of approximately Rs 2600 crores to the state. It is a huge amount of money for a small state like Haryana, but in the overall circumstances as explained by the committee on CST compensation, we accept the recommendation, she added.

The committee however has not specified the time period during which the compensation will be released. We would desire that the entire amount of withheld compensation should be partly released in the current financial year that is 2012-13 and remaining in the next financial year that is 2013-14. Extending the time period beyond 2013-14 will not only cause hardship to the state but it may create unforeseen complications, she added.

She pointed out that the officials of the Union finance ministry have made a serious calculation error which has resulted into double deduction from the compensation claim of Haryana on account of one per cent extra compensation granted to the Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL).

The Haryana state had accounted for this loss while filing its compensation claim, but the Union finance ministry has made double deduction for the same reason.

"While I may request the representatives of Union finance ministry to resolve this issue at an early date, I may also request the Empowered Committee to resolve that in future while finalising the due compensation claim of the states, prior consultation with officers of the states should be held to avoid such errors", she added.

She suggested that a workable model of GST should inter-alia take into account with features like robust IT infrastructure. She said that in her considered view the Union finance ministry or the Empowered Committee should get a standard design for the IT infrastructure on GST prepared, and a proof of concept of such a model should be presented to all the states at the earliest possible.

All the states thereafter should be given time to orient their infrastructure with this standard design. Needless to mention that this will be a time consuming activity.

After the proposed amendment of the Constitution comes through, a central legislation containing the structure of GST will be prepared on the basis of which system of GST will be regulated. "In my view a committee of experts comprised of legal and taxation experts should be constituted to prepare a draft legislation which may form the basic document for discussion amongst the states and the other stake holders", she added.

She said that several issues like role and functions of GST council, central authority for redistribution of taxes on account of inter-state sales; arbitration of disputes between central authorities and the state authorities; dual control; administrative infrastructure to be created for both the Central government and the states; revenue neutral rates etc also needs further detailed examination. Separate groups of experts for giving recommendation on each of these issues should be set up.

She said that if CST at a rate of two per cent is retained, then RNR of the state declines significantly and comes at around 12.50 per cent, that is in the same range as computed by the NIPFP. Accordingly, to keep the RNR of the state at a reasonable level of 12 to 13 per cent, CST at a rate of two per cent needs to be retained even after the GST is actually implemented.

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Doomed Dolphin Speaks to New York's Vibrant Wildlife

By the time New Yorkers spied a dolphin swimming through the superfund sludge of the Gowanus Canal last Friday, it was too late. The marine mammal didn't even survive long enough for a rescue plan to come together. First sighted on Friday afternoon, the dolphin perished at 6:00 p.m.

The reason the marine mammal died, and why the dolphin swam up the polluted waterway in the first place, is as yet unknown. But the sad story of the wayward creature highlights the strange nature of New York City, the global epitome of urbanity. Hidden within Gotham are native carnivores, marine mammals, and even species that have scarcely been seen before.

Marine mammals are arguably the most high-profile of New York City's wild residents and visitors. The Gowanus Canal dolphin was only the latest to venture within city limits. Just a month ago, a 60-foot-long finback whale (Balaenoptera physalus) became stranded in the Rockaway Inlet of Queens. The emaciated animal died the day after it was discovered.

There seems to be no singular reason explaining why marine mammals such as the Gowanus dolphin and Queens' finback whale wander up the city's rivers or strand on beaches. Each case is unique. But not all the city's marine mammal visitors suffer terrible fates.

In 2006, a hefty manatee (Trichechus spp.) took a long jaunt from its Florida home up the East Coast, including a detour down New York's Hudson River. The sirenian survived the trip, continuing on to Cape Cod before reportedly turning back south to a destination unknown. Hopefully the manatee didn't encounter any great white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) on the return journey, a marine predator we know patrols the waters off New York.

Of course, New York City's whales, seals, and occasional manatee can only skirt the city along its shores and canals. You likely won't see a seal caterpillaring its way along Broadway.

Yet the city's interior also hosts a strange accumulation of wildlife, including native animals that are carving out spaces for themselves in the concrete corridors and exotic species that we have introduced to city life.

Coyotes (Canis latrans) may be the cleverest of New York City's hidden wildlife. Thanks to camera traps, and the occasional police chase through Lower Manhattan, researchers are keeping track of the wily canids and studying how they are so successfully taking up residence in many of the nation's cities. "Most small, urban parks will likely hold a pair and their offspring at most—coyotes are very territorial," said Cornell University ecologist Paul Curtis.

The secretive carnivorans bring a welcome element to urban neighborhoods—an appetite for rodents—and are experts at cracking open new niches alongside people.

Black bears (Ursus americanus) may be next. The bears have proliferated in northern New Jersey in recent years, and in 2010, a black bear came within three miles of the George Washington Bridge, a major thoroughfare between New Jersey and Manhattan. The bear obviously would have eschewed rush hour traffic and the tolls, but the local population is so bountiful that it's not unreasonable to think some enterprising bear might eventually wander into the big city.

Strangely, you may actually be more likely to run into a crocodylian predator in New York City than a black bear. New Yorkers have a nagging habit of importing—and losing-alligator—like caimans and other reptiles within the city.

In 2010, an 18-inch long caiman took refuge under a parked Datsun in Astoria, Queens. No one knows how the reptile wound up on the street, but given the trend of owners buying cute crocodylians and later dumping them, someone may have abandoned the poor little caiman.

This would hardly be the first time. In 2006, another little caiman was found in the leaf litter behind Brooklyn's Spring Creek Towers, while "Damon the Caiman" swam around a Central Park lake in the summer of 2001. These caimans are only some of the most famous—according to a New York Times report, the Brooklyn-based Animal Care and Control deals with about ten caimans each year.

Many other unusual and exotic animals have romped through New York. Under some of their most notable animal celebrities, the city's Parks and Recreation department lists guinea pigs, boa snakes, and even a tiger that escaped from a circus in 2004 and ran down Jackie Robinson Parkway before his owners were able to get him back.

The Big Apple even contains species that have never been documented before. No, not the ballyhooed "Montauk Monster"—actually a rotted raccoon—but a distinct species of leopard frog. Described early this year, the cryptic amphibian was given away by its unique mating call.

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Grand Jury Wanted to Indict JonBenet's Parents

A grand jury believed there was enough evidence in 1999 to indict John and Patsy Ramsey on charges relating to the still-unsolved killing of their beauty queen daughter JonBenet Ramsey, ABC News sources say.

Six-year-old JonBenet was found dead in the basement of her family's upscale Boulder, Colo., home Christmas Day 1996. Suspicion fell on her parents, John and Patsy Ramsey, but they insisted an intruder was to blame and they were never prosecuted.

In an interview with ABC News' Barbara Walters after her death, both of the girl's parents denied that they had killed her. They were eventually cleared by prosecutors.

JonBenet Ramsey Case: New Grand Jury Report Watch Video

After meeting for more than a year, a grand jury found sufficient evidence to indict the couple on charges of child abuse resulting in death, as first reported Sunday by the Boulder Daily Camera newspaper and confirmed by two separate sources by ABC News.

"This grand jury, in effect, came up with a compromise finding, 'No, it's not murder,' but, 'Yes, we think they were responsible' for the death based on abuse," ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams said.

PHOTOS: JonBenet Ramsey: Never-Before-Seen Photos

But District Attorney Alex Hunter refused to sign off on the grand jury's decision, saying there was too little proof.

"I and my prosecution task force believe we do not have sufficient evidence to warrant the filing of charges against anyone who has been investigated at this time," Hunter said then.

Hunter believed a conviction would be impossible. Abrams said that he agrees with the decision.

"I've seen the majority of the case files and I think Alex Hunter made the right call," he said. "I think there simply was not enough evidence to move forward."

Patsy Ramsey died in 2006 after a battle with ovarian cancer. John Ramsey remarried. His attorney told ABC News that Hunter is "a hero who wisely avoided a miscarriage of justice."

The case is still officially open but, as in 1996, investigators seem no closer to solving the crime this year, when JonBenet would have turned 23.

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Iraq inks oil exploration deal with Kuwait Energy

BAGHDAD: Iraqi energy officials on Sunday signed an oil exploration deal with a Kuwait-led group, finalising a deal that was altered to expel a Turkish firm amid worsening ties with Ankara.

A contract was inked with Kuwait Energy and Dragon Oil of the United Arab Emirates to explore a 900-square-kilometre (350-square-mile) block thought to contain oil in south Iraq, near the country's border with Iran.

The contract was signed by Abdul Mehdi al-Amidi, the Iraqi oil ministry's head of contracts and licensing, a representative of the state-owned South Oil Company, Hussein al-Mosawy of Kuwait Energy and Mark Sawyer of Dragon Oil, according to an AFP journalist present.

Kuwait Energy has a 70 percent stake in the project, with Dragon Oil holding the remainder. The companies have agreed to be paid a service fee of $6.24 per barrel of oil equivalent eventually extracted.

It is one of several agreements between Baghdad and foreign energy firms to boost oil output and explore for new deposits of energy as Iraq looks to cement its role as a key global supplier.

The original consortium that won the contract had included Turkey's TPAO, but officials announced in November that the Turkish firm would be expelled due to "non-technical issues", one of several signs of worsening ties between Baghdad and Ankara.

The two countries have been at odds over the Syrian conflict and Iraq has publicly urged Turkey to hand over fugitive Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi, who has been sentenced to death in Baghdad on charges of running a death squad.

Iraq has proven reserves of 143.1 billion barrels of oil and 3.2 trillion cubic metres (111.9 trillion cubic feet) of gas, both of which are among the largest in the world.

- AFP/de

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Declaring PM candidate before elections could split BJP-NDA: VHP

BHOPAL: Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader PraveenTogadia on Sunday said that the BJP should not announce a prime ministerial candidate before the 2014 general elections. Togadia said that such an attempt would weaken the BJP and the NDA alliance. Announcing the name of the prime ministerial candidate could work as a strategy in favour of the UPA parties. It could split both the BJP and its NDA alliance partners. Best would be for the BJP to democratically elect its leader after the elections are won,'' Togadia said speaking to reporters here.

Asked if the VHP would support the BJP in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Togadia explained: The VHP neither supports nor opposes any political party or person. The VHP's one and only intention is to strengthen Hindutva. However, we are not in favour of political parties that hit-out and defame Hindus.''

Togadia argued that the recent controversy over Union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde's comment on Hindu terrorism is one such instance of how greed of minority vote-bank politics makes political parties to give statements that work in favour of Pakistan.''

In the present day, rebellion against Hindus is equated with secularism. The Congress party should press home minister Shinde to withdraw his statement which might work out as an advantage to Pakistan on the international forum. And voters should start contemplating on such remarks of the Congress and democratically give a fitting reply to such allegatuions,'' he added.

Meanwhile, the VHP stands firm on the issue of the disputed Bhojshala structure in Dhar in Madhya Pradesh. It could be yet another trying law and order situation as Basant Panchami fall on Friday February 15 this year. Bhojshala belongs to Hindus and Muslims have nothing to do with it. The VHP will keep up the struggle for Bhojshala. There will be no compromise on the issue.''

Bhojshala is an 11th century Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) protected monument in Dhar town, 350 km south of Bhopal, which Hindus believe is a temple of goddess Waghdevi (Saraswati) while Muslims treat it as a mosque. In 2003, the VHP started a movement claiming the structure was a university established by Raja Bhoj with a temple of the goddess of learning inside the premises.

That year, the law courts opened the gates of the structure for Hindus to worship on Tuesdays and Basant Panchami while directing that Muslims could also hold namaz on Fridays. This year Basant Panchami falls on a Friday, the day for offering Namaz. A similar situation was witnessed in 2006 when Basant Panchami fell on a Friday and there were violent clashed between the VHP-RSS combine and the state police in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh. The VHP was uncompromising on Bhojshala then and remains so now.

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Pictures: The Story Behind Sun Dogs, Penitent Ice, and More

Photograph by Art Wolfe, Getty Images

If you want the beauty of winter without having to brave the bone-chilling temperatures blasting much of the United States this week, snuggle into a soft blanket, grab a warm beverage, and curl up with some of these natural frozen wonders.

Nieve penitente, or penitent snow, are collections of spires that resemble robed monks—or penitents. They are flattened columns of snow wider at the base than at the tip and can range in height from 3 to 20 feet (1 to 6 meters). The picture above shows the phenomenon in central Chile. (See pictures of the patterns in snow and ice.)

Nieve penitente tend to form in shallow valleys where the snow is deep and the sun doesn't shine at too steep an angle, said Kenneth Libbrecht, a physicist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena who studies ice crystal formation.

As the snow melts, dirt gets mixed in with the runoff and collects in little pools here and there, he said. Since the dirt is darker in color than the surrounding snow, the dirty areas melt faster "and you end up digging these pits," explained Libbrecht.

"They tend to form at high altitude," he said. But other than that, no one really knows the exact conditions that are needed to form penitent snow.

"They're fairly strong," Libbrecht said. "People have found [the spires] difficult to hike through."

—Jane J. Lee

Published January 25, 2013

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Brazil Nightclub Fire: 245 Dead, Hundreds Injured

A blaze raced through a crowded nightclub in southern Brazil early Sunday, killing 245 people as the air filled with deadly smoke and panicked party-goers stampeded toward the exits, police and witnesses said. It appeared to be the world's deadliest nightclub fire in more than a decade.

Witnesses said that a flare or firework lit by band members may have started the fire.

Police Maj. Cleberson Braida told local news media that the 245 bodies were brought for identification to a gymnasium in the city of Santa Maria, at the southern tip of Brazil near the borders with Argentina and Uruguay

Television images showed smoke pouring out of the Kiss nightclub as shirtless, young male partygoers joined firefighters in wielding axes and sledgehammers, pounding at windows and walls to break through to those trapped inside. Teenagers sprinted from the scene desperately trying to find help. Others carried injured and burned friends away in their arms.

"There was so much smoke and fire, it was complete panic and it took a long time for people to get out, there were so many dead," survivor Luana Santos Silva told the Globo TV network.

Silva added that firefighters and ambulances responded quickly after the fire broke out, but that it spread too fast inside the packed club for them to help.

Germano Roratto/AFP/Getty Images

Michele Pereira, another survivor, told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper that she was near the stage and that the fire broke out after members of the band lit flares.

"The band that was onstage began to use flares and, suddenly, they stopped the show and pointed them upward. At that point the ceiling caught fire. It was really weak but in a matter of seconds it spread," Pereira said.

Most of the dead apparently suffocated, according to Dr. Paulo Afonso Beltrame, a professor at the medical school of the Federal University of Santa Maria who raced the city's Caridade Hospital to help victims.

He said survivors, police and firefighters told him a flare set by a band member set the ceiling's soundproofing ablaze. "Large amounts of toxic smoke quickly filled the room and I would say that at least 90 percent of the victims died of asphyxiation," Beltrame told The Associated Press by telephone.

"The toxic smoke made people lose their sense of direction so they were unable to find their way to the exit. At least 50 bodies were found inside a bathroom. Apparently they confused the bathroom door with the exit door."

"In the hospital I saw desperate friends and relatives walking and running down the corridors looking for information. It was one of the saddest scenes I have ever witnessed," he added.

Rodrigo Moura, identified by the newspaper Diario de Santa Maria as a security guard at the club, said it was at its maximum capacity of between 1,000 and 2,000, and partygoers were pushing and shoving to escape.

Beltrame also said he was told the club was filled far past its capacity during a party for students at the university's department of agronomy. The event featured a group called Gurizada Fandangueira, which plays a driving mixture of local Brazilian country music styles. It was not immediately clear if the band members were among the victims.

The fire led President Dilma Roussef to cancel a series of meetings at a summit of Latin American and European leaders in Chile's capital of Santiago, and was headed to Santa Maria, according to the Brazilian foreign ministry.

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