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Washington in brief

Study: 50 percent chance of major attack in next 5 years

By wire services
Published June 23, 2005

WASHINGTON - The world faces an estimated 50 percent chance of a nuclear, biological, chemical or radiological attack over the next five years, according to national security analysts surveyed for a congressional study released Wednesday.

Using a poll of 85 nonproliferation and national security experts, the report also estimated the risk of attack by weapons of mass destruction at as high as 70 percent over the coming decade.

WASHINGTON - The Senate soundly defeated a proposal Wednesday for mandatory reductions in heat-trapping pollution that may be warming the Earth. Supporters got five fewer votes than they did two years ago.

The proposal to cap greenhouse gases at 2000 levels within five years lost by a 60-38 vote. It was a victory for President Bush's policies that focus on voluntary actions by industry to address the problem.

Separately, the Senate agreed to give Washington authority to override states' objections to the location of liquefied natural gas terminals.

Senators rejected, by 52-45, an amendment to an energy bill that would have allowed governors to veto a federal permit for such a terminal because of state concerns.

Proponents said deciding where to put these facilities was a federal matter because imports will help meet a growing demand for natural gas and perhaps lower prices. But opponents of the idea said states should have a greater say because of concerns about possible tanker spills and terrorism.

WASHINGTON - Lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his partner created tax-exempt groups to funnel money to themselves from Indian tribes trying to build political support for their casinos, according to documents released at a Senate hearing Wednesday.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, described it as a scheme to bilk millions of dollars from the tribes.

McCain urged the Justice Department to look at whether Abramoff's tribal billings and the movement of the money associated with them constitute mail or wire fraud.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Department began working Wednesday with a private marketing firm to create a database of all U.S. college students and high school students between 16 and 18, to help the military identify potential recruits in a time of dwindling enlistment in some branches.

The program is drawing criticism from privacy advocates. The new database will include personal information such as birth dates, Social Security numbers, e-mail addresses and grade point averages.

The data will be managed by BeNow Inc. of Wakefield, Mass., one of many marketing firms that use computers to analyze large amounts of data to target potential customers based on their personal profiles and habits.

[Last modified June 23, 2005, 00:47:00]