Bush chooses Roberts as chief justice to succeed Rehnquist
WASHINGTON – Seizing a historic opportunity to reshape the Supreme Court, President Bush swiftly chose conservative John Roberts as chief justice Monday and weighed how to fill another vacancy that could push the nation’s highest court to the right on issues from abortion to affirmative action.
Polished and plainspoken, Roberts had been on a likely track to be confirmed as an associate justice and it appeared Bush turned to him for the top job to avoid an acrimonious fight at a volatile moment. Bush was on the defensive about the administration’s sluggish response to Hurricane Katrina and his poll ratings had fallen to their lowest point of his presidency.
Roberts’ nomination, just two days after the death of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, raised fears among Democrats about a rightward shift as Bush fills two openings on the nine-member court. Democrats have been frustrated by Roberts’ popularity and said the Senate must take a closer look at his new nomination.
Rehnquist died at home late Saturday after a long battle with cancer. President Bush ordered flags to fly at half-staff until Tuesday evening in honor of the chief justice, who was on the Supreme Court for 33 years and its leader for 19.
The death created upheaval in Washington Sunday as President Bush and the Senate scrambled to deal with court’s first double vacancy in 34 years.
Floodwaters recede from New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS – The floodwaters that caused so much misery and death in New Orleans were being pumped back into Lake Pontchartrain as rescue crews from as far away as California trolled the evacuated city for stragglers and authorities braced for what the receding deluge would reveal.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began pumping water out the flooded city Monday after closing a major gap in the levee that burst during Hurricane Katrina, flooding 80 percent of the bowl-shaped city.
Draining the floodwaters is likely going to take weeks, leaving behind a layer of toxic sludge and bodies. The mayor said it wouldn’t be “unreasonable” to have the city’s death toll reach 10,000.
Gas prices slowly level off
Labor Day traffic slowed around the country as drivers lucky to find gas stations open paid over 30 percent more than before Hurricane Katrina disrupted Gulf Coast refinery and pipeline operations a week ago.
Pump prices are starting to level off, but analysts say the dramatic rise in gasoline costs has forced consumers to begin rethinking everything from vacation travel plans to how much they can afford to spend for food, clothing and restaurant meals.
Drivers paid an average of about $3.20 a gallon for unleaded regular on Monday, up $1.35 from a year ago, and 75 cents more than they did before the hurricane, according to Randy Bly, director of community relations for AAA Auto Club South.
Students return to Red Lake High School for classes
RED LAKE, Minn. – Red Lake High School students who missed several weeks of school last year after a deadly shooting returned Tuesday for the first day of fall classes.
Principal Chris Dunshee said 272 students reported for classes in the morning. About 300 students from the Red Lake Indian Reservation are eligible to attend the high school in this small town.
A 16-year-old student killed seven people at the school before taking his own life last March. The school unveiled new security measures last week, including three armed guards, surveillance cameras and new door locks.