This week in the news

Protesters arrested inWashington, D.C., in day of
demonstrations

Police arrested more than a dozen
people who crossed a barricade and
blocked entrances at the Internal
Revenue Service building Wednesday,
the start of a day of protests marking
the fifth anniversary of the U.S. invasion
of Iraq.

A crowd of more than 100 gathered
outside the IRS headquarters, chanting
“This is a Crime Scene” and “You’re
Arresting the Wrong People.” A
marching band led protesters down
the street near the National Mall
and around the IRS building before
dozens of demonstrators gathered at
the entrance.

Protesters blocked the main entrance
for a time, but no federal
workers appeared to be trying to use
those doors. Police detained 13 people
who sat down at a side entrance.

The demonstrators said they were
focusing on the IRS because it gathers
taxes that are used to fund the war.
Anti-war protests and vigils were
planned throughout the day around
the nation. In Ohio, more than 20
different vigils, rallies, marches and
other events were planned.

At the American Petroleum Institute
in downtown Washington, dozens of
protesters held signs reading “Out of
Iraq” and “No war, no warming,” and
chanted “No blood for Oil!”

Craig Etchison, 62, a retired college
professor from Cumberland, Md., and
a Vietnam veteran, said he has been
protesting the war for years.

“I’ve watched with horror as Bush
has lied about this war,” he said in
front of the building. “I’m appalled at
the number of civilians we’ve killed
just as we did in Vietnam.”

College students from New Jersey
to North Dakota have planned walkouts,
while students at the University
of Minnesota vowed to shut down
military recruiting offices on campus.

Brief by Sarah Karush, Associated Press
Writer

John Warner named politics fellow at William and Mary

U.S. Senator John Warner has been
named the 2008 Hunter B. Andrews
Fellow in American Politics at the
College of William and Mary.

Warner will be on campus April
4 to meet with students, faculty and
staff and to speak at a meeting open
to the public.

The fellowship honors the late
Virginia state senator and William
and Mary alumnus for whom it is
named.

William and Mary said Tuesday
that Warner’s career of public service
offers extraordinary lessons in
citizenship.

Warner was a sailor during World
War II and later served in Korea with
the Marine Corps. He spent five years
as secretary of the Navy and has won
five consecutive elections to the U.S.
Senate.

Brief by the Associated Press

Yankees head to Va. Tech for exhibition game they want to play

Like most major leaguers, the
New York Yankees don’t get too
excited about Grapefruit League
games, especially when a bus trip is
involved.

Tuesday’s spring training road trip
was different.
Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and the
Yankees boarded a bus at their Tampa,
Fla., training complex to catch a flight
to Virginia, then bussed to Blacksburg
for an exhibition game they all wanted
to play. The Bronx Bombers vs. the
Virginia Tech Hokies.

“All the players are looking forward
to it,” Jeter said Monday. “The players
that can’t go want to. I’m sure it
will be emotional, especially for the
student body.”

It was 11 months ago this college
town became the focus of a horrified
nation after a gunman killed 32 people
on campus, and then himself.

People around the world rallied
behind Virginia Tech and the
community, and the Yankees were
among the organizations that offered
overwhelming support, donating $1
million to the Hokie Spirit Memorial
Fund and asking if they could come
play a game.

Tuesday afternoon they played
the Hokies in a stadium packed with
3,000 students who won a lottery for
tickets, 1,000 faculty and staff, and
victims of last April 16th.

Brief by Hank Kurz Jr., AP sports
writer