U.S. Senate building emptied for 3 hours
Eight senators were among 200 people who were held in a Capitol parking garage Wednesday night after a security sensor indicated the presence of a nerve agent in their office building. Later tests proved negative.
The all-clear came three hours after an air-monitoring sensor indicated a suspicious substance in the attic of the Russell Senate Office Building. It initially tested positive as a nerve agent.
“We had this warning system work,” said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., one of those in the West Legislaive Garage. “People in the building followed the directions promptly. There was no panic, no running, no upset or anything like that.”
Chicago
McDonald’s finds more fat in its fries
McDonald’s french fries just got fatter – by nutritional measurement.
The world’s largest restaurant chain said Wednesday its fries contain a third more trans fats than it previously knew, citing results of a new testing method it began using in December.
That means the level of potentially artery-clogging trans fat in a portion of large fries is eight grams, up from six, with total fat increasing to 30 grams from 25.
Washington
DeLay gets plum House assignment
Indicted Rep. Tom DeLay, forced to step down as the No. 2 Republican in the House, scored a soft landing Wednesday as GOP leaders rewarded him with a coveted seat on the Appropriations Committee.
DeLay, R-Texas, also claimed a seat on the subcommittee overseeing the Justice Department, which is currently investigating an influence-peddling scandal involving disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his dealings with lawmakers. The subcommittee also has responsibility over NASA – a top priority for DeLay, since the Johnson Space Center is located in his Houston-area district.
“Allowing Tom DeLay to sit on a committee in charge of giving out money is like putting Michael Brown back in charge of FEMA. Republicans in Congress just can’t seem to resist standing by their man,” said Bill Burton, spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Washington
Rates going up on disaster loans
Facing budget pressures, the Bush administration is seeking to markedly increase the interest rates that small businesses and homeowners pay for government-backed loans designed to get them back on their feet after disasters.
The Small Business Administration, already under criticism for its handling of such loans after the Sept. 11 attacks and Hurricane Katrina, is raising new concerns in Congress with the interest increase proposal.
The agency wants a new formula that, if implemented today, would raise the disaster loan interest rate for homeowners from its current 2.68 percent to more than 4.5 percent by pegging it to Treasury bill rates.