FOXNews.com: Obama walks to Easter service at nearby church

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Obama walks to Easter service at nearby church Mar 31st 2013, 18:49 Published March 31, 2013 Associated Press Sunday, March 31, 2013: President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama walk from the White House with their daughters, Sasha, second from left, and Malia, to St. John's Episcopal Church in Washington.AP President Barack Obama attended Easter services at an Episcopal church near the White House where past presidents frequently have worshipped. The president, first lady Michelle Obama and daughters Sasha and Malia took the short walk across Lafayette Park to St. John's Church Sunday morning. Obama was greeted by several parishioners with handshakes and smiles as the church members were returning to their seats from Holy Communion, which the first family also joined. The sermon by Rev. Dr. Luis Leon was based on the Gospel of John and the Resurrection of Jesus. Leon said the message of Easter was about the "proclamation of victory, the victory of powerful love over loveless power." He said the "Easter vision" was the ability of the congregation to recognize the presence of Christ in their life, which would allow them to see the world in a new way without pain, loneliness, injustice, war, hate and despair. Instead, with the new vision, he intoned, they can see with love, hope and truth. The Obamas have previously worshipped at St. John's, including Easter services in 2009 and 2012. They attended Easter service at Shiloh Baptist Church in 2011. A pew nine rows back from the altar at St. John's carries a small brass plaque designating it as "The President's Pew." Church history claims that every president since James Madison has visited.

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FOXNews.com: Survey: New York, California last in personal freedoms

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Survey: New York, California last in personal freedoms Mar 31st 2013, 15:59 New York and California have for generations of Americans been considered destination spots to express personal freedoms -- one with a city big enough for anybody with a dream to perhaps become a star, and the other a state synonymous with the so-called laid-back lifestyle.   But such attitudes have drastically changed, according to a new study that finds the two states last in individual freedom. The "Freedom in the 50 States" study published last week by the libertarian-leaning Mercatus Center ranks New York last and California second to last. The survey is based on fiscal issues such as job prospects and tax rates, regulatory policies that include property rights and personal freedoms such as gun laws. "When it comes to overall freedom, New York ranks dead last," the study's authors said. They point out that New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has taken away – or at least tried to take away – several personal freedoms, including his failed effort to outlaw the sale of sodas 16 ounces and larger. "Though the law ran into a judicial buzz saw on the eve of its enactment earlier this month, it demonstrates the attitude city and state legislators have toward their constituents," the authors noted. Bloomberg has already imposed a stiff tax on cigarette sales and is a leading advocate for tougher gun laws. In addition, New Yorkers pay a state income tax of 14 percent. "Even New Yorkers who don't care about sweet drinks have to deal with the highest state and local tax burden in the country," the authors wrote. The result is New Yorkers are voting with their feet, with roughly 1.7 million leaving between 2000 and 2010, though newborns and new immigrants are keeping its population steady, according to the study. "We're not living in a police state," White Plains attorney John Murtagh told CBS New York. "But the economics of New York clearly don't work. And then you see things like Mike Bloomberg and his Big Gulp sodas." The top five states with the most freedom were North  Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, New Hampshire and Oklahoma, according to the study. North Dakota came in first in large part based of its "very low taxes" and government debt, the authors said. "However, its spending is uncharacteristically high."  The three other lowest ranking states were Rhode Island, Hawaii and New Jersey, in descending order. The study authors said California's biggest problem is business regulation, though attempts to impose a higher tax rate on the state's highest earners have recently become a major complaint among residents. "The Golden State, with hundreds of miles of picturesque Pacific coastline, nonetheless managed to drive off a net of 1.5 million residents between 2000 and 2010 — over  4 percent of its 2000 population," the authors wrote. They also pointed out Californians' personal income contracted by 0.4 percent a year in the seven years before the Great Recession struck, a record worse than any other state besides Michigan.

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FOXNews.com: Kelly warns Republicans about blocking a Senate debate, vote on gun control legislation

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Kelly warns Republicans about blocking a Senate debate, vote on gun control legislation Mar 31st 2013, 14:18 File: June 19, 2010: Assorted shotguns are displayed on a table at a gun and knife show in White Plains, N.Y.,AP Leading gun-control advocate Mark Kelly warned Republican senators Sunday that trying to block a vote on new firearms legislation that includes universal background checks could hurt their re-election efforts. Kelly, a former astronaut and Navy captain, directed his remarks to Sens. Rand Paul and Marco Rubio, among five Republican senators who have suggested they will filibuster a debate and full floor vote. "They should listen to their constituents" and not get in the way of the debate, Kelly told "Fox News Sunday." Kelly, who with wife and retired Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords leads the gun-control advocacy group Americans for Responsible solutions, said at least 80 percent of voters in Paul and Rubio's districts favor universal background checks for potential gun buyers. Giffords was shot in the head by Jared Lee Loughner, a mentally ill young man, in January 2011 during a town hall-style meeting outside Tucson, Ariz. Congress returns April 8 from spring break. No vote on the legislation has been scheduled. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the legislation will include the background check but no bans on semi-automatic weapons and high-capacity gun magazines. Sens. Ted Cruz, Texas; Mike Lee, Utah; and James Inhofe, Oklahoma, are the three others who have vowed to join in the filibuster. "We, the undersigned, intend to oppose any legislation that would infringe on the American people's constitutional right to bear arms, or on their ability to exercise this right without being subjected to government surveillance," they said in a March 22 letter to Reid, a Nevada Democrat. Meanwhile, Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley is crafting a Republican alternative to the one recently passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee, his office said Thursday. No details have been released, but the bill is expected to include tougher laws on straw purchases and illegal gun trafficking, efforts to increase school safety and keeping guns out of the hands of the mentally ill. A new CBS poll shows 47 percent of Americans now support tougher gun laws, compared to 57 percent after the December 2012 shooting massacre at a Connecticut elementary school in which 20 first-graders and six adults were killed. Kelly called the potential Grassley bill a "mistake" because it doesn't include the background check and disagreed with the argument it will lead to a federal registry and possible gun confiscation.   However, he agreed with the argument that states a need to pass along to the federal government information about mentally ill people. "They absolutely have a point," Kelly told Fox.

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FOXNews.com: Flake: Republican presidential candidate supporting gay marriage 'inevitable'

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Flake: Republican presidential candidate supporting gay marriage 'inevitable' Mar 31st 2013, 16:49 Published March 31, 2013 FoxNews.com FILE: Nov. 2, 2010: Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., at an event in Phoenix.AP Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake said Sunday that a Republican presidential candidate in support of gay marriage is "inevitable," but he remains steadfast in his beliefs that marriage is only between a man and woman. "I believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman," Flake told NBC's "Meet the Press." His comments follow the Supreme Court hearing two cases last week related to same-sex marriage and what appear to be shifting political landscapes on the issue in which elected lawmakers from both parties seem more open to the change.     Flake, who supported the repeal of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gay service members, also said a Republican candidate supporting gay marriage will likely find support within the party on the issue. Fellow Republican Sen. Rob Portman, Ohio, recently  announced his support for gay marriage in states that choose to allow such unions. And Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska,  has said her position is "evolving." Scores of Democrats in recent weeks have announced their support for gay marriages. The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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FOXNews.com: Rubio warns that reports of Senate agreement on immigration reform are 'premature'

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Rubio warns that reports of Senate agreement on immigration reform are 'premature' Mar 31st 2013, 12:53 FILE: Nov. 17, 2012: Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks during Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad's annual birthday fundraiser in Altoona, Iowa.AP Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio said Sunday that a recent agreement between organized labor and big business has advanced Senate efforts to craft immigration reform legislation but reports about a full agreement are "premature." "We have made substantial progress and I believe we will be able to agree on a legislative proposal that modernizes our legal immigration system, improves border security and enforcement and allows those here illegally to earn the chance to one day apply for permanent residency," said Rubio, one of eight senators working on bipartisan legislation. "However, that legislation will only be a starting point." The agreement was reached during a Friday night phone call between AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and U.S. Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Tom Donohue, according to several news organizations and confirmed by Fox News. The deal was brokered by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who was on the phone call and is one of eight senators working on bipartisan  legislation. Rubio's office cautioned Saturday that Congress still has a long way to go before passing legislation in the Democrat-controlled Senate and the Republican-controlled House. Rubio sent a letter Saturday to Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., calling for a deliberate hearing process on the new legislation and cautioning against a "rush to legislate."  In Rubio's statement Sunday he also said: "We will need a healthy public debate that includes committee hearings and the opportunity for other senators to improve our legislation with their own amendments. Eight senators from seven states have worked on this bill to serve as a starting point for discussion about fixing our broken immigration system. But arriving at a final product will require it to be properly submitted for the American people's consideration, through the other 92 senators from 43 states that weren't part of this initial drafting process. In order to succeed, this process cannot be rushed or done in secret." White House spokesman Clark Stevens said President Obama continues to be encouraged by the progress being made by the bipartisan group of senators. "We look forward to seeing language once it is introduced and expect legislation to move forward as soon as possible," Stevens said Saturday. The weekend agreement resolves disagreements over wages for new, low-income workers and which industries would be included.   ""We expect that this new program, which benefits not just business, but everyone, will promote long overdue reforms by raising the bar for existing programs," Trumka said in a statement late Saturday. All members of the so-called Gang of Eight are expected to sign off on the agreement. The remaining big hurdles to passage are securing the U.S. borders, cracking down on employers who hire illegally and creating a pathway to citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants already in the country. The bipartisan group is expected to introduce the bill officially the week of April 8, after Congress returns from a two-week recess. The AFL-CIO and the Chamber had been fighting over wages for tens of thousands of low-skilled workers who would be brought in under the new program to fill jobs in construction, hotels and resorts, nursing homes and restaurants and other industries. On Friday, officials from both sides said there was basic agreement on the wage issue, and Schumer said a final deal on the worker dispute was very close. "We're feeling very optimistic on immigration: Aspiring Americans will receive the road map to citizenship they deserve and we can modernize `future flow' without reducing wages for any local workers, regardless of what papers they carry," AFL-CIO spokesman Jeff Hauser said in a statement earlier this week. "Future flow" refers to future arrivals of legal immigrants. Under the emerging agreement between business and labor, a new "W" visa program would bring tens of thousands of lower-skilled workers a year to the country. The program would be capped at 200,000 a year, but the number of visas would fluctuate, depending on unemployment rates, job openings, employer demand and data collected by a new federal bureau pushed by the labor movement as an objective monitor of the market. The workers would be able to change jobs and could seek permanent residency. Under current temporary worker programs, personnel can't move from employer to employer and have no path to permanent U.S. residence and citizenship. And currently there's no good way for employers to bring many low-skilled workers to the U.S. An existing visa program for low-wage nonagricultural workers is capped at 66,000 per year and is supposed to apply only to seasonal or temporary jobs. The Chamber of Commerce said workers would earn actual wages paid to American workers or the prevailing wages for the industry they're working in, whichever is higher. The Labor Department determines prevailing wage based on customary rates in specific localities, so that it varies from city to city. The low-skilled worker issue had loomed for weeks as perhaps the toughest matter to settle in months-long, closed-door talks on immigration among the senators, including Republicans John McCain, Arizona, and Rubio. The issue helped sink the last major attempt at immigration overhaul in 2007, when the legislation foundered on the Senate floor after an amendment was added to end a temporary worker program after five years, threatening a key priority of the business community. The amendment passed by just one vote, 49-48. Obama, a senator at the time, joined in the narrow majority voting to end the program after five years. The president, who won roughly 71 percent of the Hispanic vote during his November re-election, has made immigration reform a key part of his second term. And Republicans are attempting to improve their relationship with Hispanics, the fasting growing segment of the U.S. populations. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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FOXNews.com: Gun makers facing new limits urged to relocate

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Gun makers facing new limits urged to relocate Mar 31st 2013, 07:41 Jan. 4, 2013: Handguns are displayed in the sales area of Sandy Springs Gun Club and Range, in Sandy Springs, Ga.AP Firearms and ammunition manufacturers facing new gun control restrictions in their home states are receiving invitations to flee critics and move to states that have a more favorable climate for gun sales. Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper earlier this month signed bills that require background checks for private and online gun sales and ban ammunition magazines that hold more than 15 rounds. Magpul Industries, which manufactures firearms accessories and ammunition magazines, said on its Facebook page that it would have "no choice" but to leave if the magazine bill was signed, causing an opening for states eager to prove they're more gun-friendly. Grassroots Facebook pages have popped up - some, before the Colorado bills were even signed - encouraging Magpul to settle in places like Alabama, West Virginia or Texas. Alaska state Rep. Tammie Wilson's staff created a Facebook page, too, called "Magpul Industries - Alaska Wants You." In Texas, Gov. Rick Perry has made overtures to Magpul, which announced on its Facebook page following the signing of the magazine bill that the moving process has begun. A new location has yet to be determined by the company. In New Hampshire, a group of conservative Republicans sent letters wooing gun companies. Politicians in Virginia and West Virginia have said they would welcome Beretta if it chose to leave Maryland. Alaska House Speaker Mike Chenault, in a letter to the head of Magpul Industries last week, said he read "with shock and disdain" reports of new gun laws in Colorado, the home of the firearms accessory and magazine manufacturer. "Though many feel the actions taken by your state government were appropriate," he wrote, "we in Alaska do not." A Hickenlooper spokesman declined comment Friday on efforts to woo Magpul. Hickenlooper told reporters after he signed the bills that state officials tried to ease Magpul's concerns and craft the legislation so they could continue manufacturing in Colorado. He said "nothing in any of these laws" prohibits Magpul from continuing to operate in Colorado. "But that's their decision," he said. When the debate over gun laws reignited after the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., in December, critics of proposals to toughen state laws cautioned that gun manufacturers could move and take local jobs with them. And indeed, now lawmakers and residents in a few states are using restrictions on guns recently passed and proposed elsewhere as an opportunity to attract affected businesses. Whether their campaigns would work remains to be seen, and it may be beside the point. Jeremy McGowan, of Buckhannon, W.Va., said he started a Facebook page, "Bring Magpul to West Virginia," with "very little hope" of actually attracting the company. He said he wanted at least to draw attention to the issues raised in Colorado and try to prevent something similar from happening in West Virginia. "I don't think we are a minority at all," he said. "I think a lot of us feel we have been pushed in a corner." He's joined in the movement by a group of self-described constitutional conservatives in the New Hampshire legislature, the House Republican Alliance, who are pitching the state as a haven for gun companies. The group recently sent letters to Beretta USA Corp. in Maryland and Colt Manufacturing Co. in Connecticut. Both companies have voiced frustration with proposals in their states that aim to tighten background checks as well as ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines. But the group has done little beyond write letters, leaving open the question of whether its pleas will bring any new business to the state. The group has not enlisted the help of the state agency that would traditionally handle outreach to companies elsewhere. Rep. Al Baldasaro, a Londonderry Republican, said that's because group members see it as an extension of Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan, whom they have also not reached out to. And neither gun maker has written them back. Baldasaro rejected the notion that courting gun companies could be seen as a cynical attempt to capitalize on the gun debate. "This is about bringing jobs to New Hampshire," he said Friday. "It has nothing to do with what happened in Connecticut or anywhere else." His group noted that New Hampshire is already home to 80 firearm component manufacturers including Sig Sauer Inc., Sturm, Ruger & Co. Inc., Heckler & Koch USA, and its letters cited laws preventing restrictions on firearms manufacturing. Such restrictions drew the ire of a Beretta executive at a recent hearing in Maryland, where an assault weapons ban has been proposed. The bill spurns Beretta's longstanding commitment to the state, Jeff Reh, a member of the company's board of directors, told lawmakers. Those types of complaints from firearms companies leave lawmakers in their home states pulled between responding to the hunger for more restrictive gun laws and wanting to keep their constituents employed. Maryland's Senate president pointed to work lawmakers have done this year to try to help Beretta while also keeping important provisions of the bill intact. "We've allowed them to manufacture," said Thomas V. Mike Miller, who represents the district where the factory is located in Accokeek. "We've allowed them to sell, and we've cut back on their paperwork." Much more than that awaits Beretta and its employees in New Hampshire, the Republicans there promised. The state does not have an income tax or sales tax, and it's known for gun advocacy. "It would be a win-win for any gun company to move here. We're the 'live free or die' state," Baldasaro said, citing New Hampshire's motto. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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FOXNews.com: Labor, big business agree on key part of immigration reform, but final deal still faces hurdles

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Labor, big business agree on key part of immigration reform, but final deal still faces hurdles Mar 31st 2013, 08:30 FILE: March 27, 2013: In this photo on the Twitter account of Ariz. GOP Sen. John McCain, he and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., left, stand with U.S. Border Patrol agents in Nogales, Ariz.AP Organized labor and big business have reached a deal on a new, low-skilled workers program that will help clear the way for Capitol Hill immigration reform, but President Obama and a leading Republican senator maintain cautious optimism about a final deal. The deal was reached during a Friday night phone call between AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and U.S. Chamber of Commerce chief executive Tom Donohue, according to several news organizations and confirmed by Fox News. The deal was brokered by New York Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer, who also was on the phone call and is one of eight senators working on bipartisan reform legislation. "This issue has always been the dealbreaker on immigration reform, but not this time," Schumer said.  "The strength of the consensus across America for just reform has afforded us the momentum needed to forge an agreement in principle to develop a new type of employer visa system," Trumka said in a statement late Saturday. "We expect that this new program, which benefits not just business, but everyone, will promote long overdue reforms by raising the bar for existing programs." Despite the breakthrough, Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio's office cautioned Saturday that Congress still has a long way to go before passing legislation in the Democrat-controlled Senate and the Republican-controlled House. Rubio sent a letter Saturday to Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., calling for a deliberate hearing process on the new legislation and cautioning against a "rush to legislate."  "Senate negotiators are making good progress on immigration reform, but we're not done yet," Rubio press secretary Alex Conant tweeted Saturday. White House spokesman Clark Stevens said Obama continues to be encouraged by the progress being made by the bipartisan group of senators. "We look forward to seeing language once it is introduced and expect legislation to move forward as soon as possible," he said. A source told The Associated Press, on the condition of anonymity, the deal resolves disagreements over wages for new, low-income workers and which industries would be included.   All members of the so-called Gang of Eight are expected to sign off on the agreement. The remaining big hurdles to passage are securing the U.S. borders, cracking down on employers who hire illegally and creating a pathway to citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants already in the country. The bipartisan group is expected to introduce the bill officially the week of April 8, after Congress returns from a two-week recess. The AFL-CIO and the Chamber had been fighting over wages for tens of thousands of low-skilled workers who would be brought in under the new program to fill jobs in construction, hotels and resorts, nursing homes and restaurants and other industries. On Friday, officials from both sides said there was basic agreement on the wage issue, and Schumer said a final deal on the worker dispute was very close. "We're feeling very optimistic on immigration: Aspiring Americans will receive the road map to citizenship they deserve and we can modernize `future flow' without reducing wages for any local workers, regardless of what papers they carry," AFL-CIO spokesman Jeff Hauser said in a statement earlier this week. "Future flow" refers to future arrivals of legal immigrants. Under the emerging agreement between business and labor, a new "W" visa program would bring tens of thousands of lower-skilled workers a year to the country. The program would be capped at 200,000 a year, but the number of visas would fluctuate, depending on unemployment rates, job openings, employer demand and data collected by a new federal bureau pushed by the labor movement as an objective monitor of the market. The workers would be able to change jobs and could seek permanent residency. Under current temporary worker programs, personnel can't move from employer to employer and have no path to permanent U.S. residence and citizenship. And currently there's no good way for employers to bring many low-skilled workers to the U.S. An existing visa program for low-wage nonagricultural workers is capped at 66,000 per year and is supposed to apply only to seasonal or temporary jobs. The Chamber of Commerce said workers would earn actual wages paid to American workers or the prevailing wages for the industry they're working in, whichever is higher. The Labor Department determines prevailing wage based on customary rates in specific localities, so that it varies from city to city. The low-skilled worker issue had loomed for weeks as perhaps the toughest matter to settle in months-long, closed-door talks on immigration among the senators, including Republicans John McCain, Arizona, and Rubio. The issue helped sink the last major attempt at immigration overhaul in 2007, when the legislation foundered on the Senate floor after an amendment was added to end a temporary worker program after five years, threatening a key priority of the business community. The amendment passed by just one vote, 49-48. Obama, a senator at the time, joined in the narrow majority voting to end the program after five years. The president, who won roughly 71 percent of the Hispanic vote during his November re-election, has made immigration reform a key part of his second term. And Republicans are attempting to improve their relationship with Hispanics, the fasting growing segment of the U.S. populations. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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FOXNews.com: Nevada wind farm could face hefty fine over eagle death

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Nevada wind farm could face hefty fine over eagle death Mar 31st 2013, 04:00 ELY, Nev. –  An eastern Nevada wind farm could face a fine of up to $200,000 over the death of a golden eagle. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the bird's death at the Spring Valley Wind Farm near the Utah border, 350 miles east of Reno, spokesman Jeannie Stafford said. San Francisco-based Pattern Energy, owner of the 152-megawatt wind energy project that sells power to Las Vegas-based NV Energy, turned over the dead eagle to federal authorities within 36 hours of its discovery in February. Despite reporting the death, the wind farm could face a fine because it does not hold a federal "take" permit that would allow the incidental death of a golden or bald eagle, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported (http://bit.ly/Yvz3qs ). Eagles receive special protection under federal law. Scott Flaherty, spokesman for the Fish and Wildlife Service's southwestern regional office in Sacramento, Calif., said wind energy projects are not required to obtain take permits, but those that don't open themselves up to investigation and possible prosecution under federal law. Applying for a permit and engaging with the service before any eagles are killed "provides the best possible outcomes for the companies and the wildlife," Flaherty said. "We really prefer that wind developers work with the Service early on in the process" to identify the best site for a farm and its individual turbines to reduce bird strikes, he told the Review-Journal. The $225 million facility went online in August as the first utility-scale wind farm in Nevada and the first to be built on federal land anywhere in the United States. It features 66 turbines, each roughly 400 feet tall, scattered over 7,500 acres in White Pine County's Spring Valley near Great Basin National Park. Pattern CEO Mike Garland called the bird's death "unfortunate" but noted that it is "the one eagle incident" since the start of operations on Aug. 8. "We reported the incident to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other local agencies and continue to work with these organizations on this matter," he said in a statement. Stafford said Spring Valley is not a breeding ground for golden eagles, but they migrate through the area and forage for food there. Few bald eagles, if any, are known to pass through Spring Valley, she said. Environmental groups sued to block construction of the wind farm over concerns about birds and bats dying in collisions with the turbines, among other issues. Under a settlement, Pattern agreed to expand its program for tracking bird and bat deaths associated with the project. The company also agreed to pay $50,000 for a study of nearby Rose Cave, where more than 1 million Mexican free-tailed bats roost during their fall migration. In 2010, developers of the wind farm said they expected fewer than 203 birds and 193 bats to die each year from turbine encounters, citing mitigation measures such as "modified" electrical lines and an advanced radar system to reduce risks to birds. NV Energy has agreed to buy wind energy from the wind farm for the next 20 years.

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FOXNews.com: Labor, big business agree on key part of immigration reform, but final deal still faces hurdles

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Labor, big business agree on key part of immigration reform, but final deal still faces hurdles Mar 30th 2013, 21:03 FILE: March 27, 2013: In this photo on the Twitter account of Ariz. GOP Sen. John McCain, he and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., left, stand with U.S. Border Patrol agents in Nogales, Ariz.AP Organized labor and big business have reached a deal on a new, low-skilled workers program that will help clear the way for Capitol Hill immigration reform, but President Obama and a leading Republican senator maintain cautious optimism about a final deal. The deal was reach during a Friday night phone call between AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and U.S. Chamber of Commerce chief executive Tom Donohue, according to several news organizations and confirmed by FoxNews. The deal was brokered by New York Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer, who also was on the phone call and is one of eight senators working on bipartisan reform legislation. Despite the breakthrough, Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio's office cautioned Saturday that Congress still has a long way to go before passing legislation in the Democrat-controlled Senate and the Republican-controlled House. "Senate negotiators are making good progress on immigration reform, but we're not done yet," Rubio press secretary Alex Conant tweeted Saturday. White House spokesman Clark Stevens said Obama continues to be encouraged by the progress being made by the bipartisan group of senators. "We look forward to seeing language once it is introduced and expect legislation to move forward as soon as possible," he said. A source told The Associated Press, on the condition of anonymity, the deal resolves disagreements over wages for new, low-income workers and which industries would be included.   All members of the so-called Gang of Eight are expected to sign off on the agreement. The remaining big hurdles to passage are securing the U.S. borders, cracking down on employers who hire illegally and creating a pathway to citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants already in the country. The bipartisan group is expected to introduce the bill officially the week of April 8, after Congress returns from a two-week recess. The AFL-CIO and the Chamber had been fighting over wages for tens of thousands of low-skilled workers who would be brought in under the new program to fill jobs in construction, hotels and resorts, nursing homes and restaurants and other industries. On Friday, officials from both sides said there was basic agreement on the wage issue, and Schumer said a final deal on the worker dispute was very close. "We're feeling very optimistic on immigration: Aspiring Americans will receive the road map to citizenship they deserve and we can modernize `future flow' without reducing wages for any local workers, regardless of what papers they carry," AFL-CIO spokesman Jeff Hauser said in a statement earlier this week. "Future flow" refers to future arrivals of legal immigrants. Under the emerging agreement between business and labor, a new "W" visa program would bring tens of thousands of lower-skilled workers a year to the country. The program would be capped at 200,000 a year, but the number of visas would fluctuate, depending on unemployment rates, job openings, employer demand and data collected by a new federal bureau pushed by the labor movement as an objective monitor of the market. The workers would be able to change jobs and could seek permanent residency. Under current temporary worker programs, personnel can't move from employer to employer and have no path to permanent U.S. residence and citizenship. And currently there's no good way for employers to bring many low-skilled workers to the U.S. An existing visa program for low-wage nonagricultural workers is capped at 66,000 per year and is supposed to apply only to seasonal or temporary jobs. The Chamber of Commerce said workers would earn actual wages paid to American workers or the prevailing wages for the industry they're working in, whichever is higher. The Labor Department determines prevailing wage based on customary rates in specific localities, so that it varies from city to city. The low-skilled worker issue had loomed for weeks as perhaps the toughest matter to settle in months-long, closed-door talks on immigration among the senators, including Republicans John McCain, Arizona, and Rubio. The issue helped sink the last major attempt at immigration overhaul in 2007, when the legislation foundered on the Senate floor after an amendment was added to end a temporary worker program after five years, threatening a key priority of the business community. The amendment passed by just one vote, 49-48. Obama, a senator at the time, joined in the narrow majority voting to end the program after five years. The president, who won roughly 71 percent of the Hispanic vote during his November re-election, has made immigration reform a key part of his second term. And Republicans are attempting to improve their relationship with Hispanics, the fasting growing segment of the U.S. populations. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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FOXNews.com: Obama attends Syracuse-Marquette basketball game

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Obama attends Syracuse-Marquette basketball game Mar 30th 2013, 22:18 Published March 30, 2013 Associated Press March 30, 2013: President Barack Obama waves to the crowd as he watches the first half of the East Regional final in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament between Syracuse and Marquette in Washington.AP WASHINGTON –  President Barack Obama attended one of the weekend's big college basketball games after playing a round of golf Saturday. Obama's motorcade took him directly from a golf course at Andrews Air Force Base in suburban Maryland to Washington's Verizon Center to watch Syracuse and Marquette play for a berth in the Final Four of the NCAA basketball tournament. With less than 11 minutes remaining in the first half of the East Regional final, Obama appeared on the Jumbotron suspended above the Verizon Center court. He was sitting with Reggie Love, his former personal aide at the White House and a member of the Duke team that won the NCAA championship in 2001. At least one other friend, Marty Nesbitt, was sitting with Obama. The audience responded with loud applause when Obama's face flashed on the huge screen, and he smiled and waved. Earlier Saturday, Obama played golf for the first time since automatic spending cuts known as the sequester went into effect on March 1. Some conservatives have called on Obama to give up golf since popular public tours of the White House have been canceled because of the budget cuts. The White House has said the tours were canceled to keep Secret Service agents from being furloughed because of the spending reductions. Obama played golf with Nesbitt and two White House aides.

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FOXNews.com: Obama administration withdraws plan to use taxpayer funds for sex-change operations

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Obama administration withdraws plan to use taxpayer funds for sex-change operations Mar 30th 2013, 19:34 Published March 30, 2013 FoxNews.com FILE: June 20, 2012: Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius speaks at Covenant Community Care, Inc. in Detroit.AP The Obama administration has withdrawn a proposal to allow Medicare to pay for sex-change operations. The policy change was expected to draw criticism from Congress and taxpayers. However, the Department of Health and Human Services said Friday the proposal was withdrawn until the agency's appeals board considers a challenge to the federal government's existing policy that such operations are experimental and should not be covered by Medicare or Medicaid, according to The Hill.   "An administrative challenge to our 1981 Medicare national coverage determination concerning sex reassignment surgery was just filed," an agency spokesperson told the newspaper Friday. "This administrative challenge is being considered and working its way through the proper administrative channels. In light of the challenge, we are no longer re-opening the national coverage determination for reconsideration." The decision was made during Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Awareness Week, in which Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said President Obama's Affordable Care Act will help improve health care for such Americans and that the president asked her after the law was enacted to "identify steps" the agency could take to improve such patients' health and well being. Supporters of the proposed change argue the medical procedures and related treatments are no longer experimental and that research shows they improve the lives of transsexual patients. The Human Rights Campaign, a leading national advocacy group for transgender Americans, did not respond to a request for comment.

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FOXNews.com: NY lobby board asked to investigate Yoko Ono, other Artists Against Fracking

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NY lobby board asked to investigate Yoko Ono, other Artists Against Fracking Mar 30th 2013, 17:51 FILE: Jan. 17, 2013, Yoko Ono, left, and son Sean Lennon visit a fracking site in Franklin Forks, Pa., during a bus tour of natural-gas drilling sites in northeastern Pennsylvania.AP A formal complaint filed with New York's lobbying board asks it to investigate whether Artists Against Fracking, a group that includes Yoko Ono and other A-List celebrities, is violating the state's lobbying law, according to the document obtained by The Associated Press. The Independent Oil & Gas Association, an industry group that supports gas drilling, filed the complaint Tuesday with the state's Joint Commission on Public Ethics. The complaint is based on an AP story that found that Artists Against Fracking and its members, including Ono, her son Sean Lennon, actors Mark Ruffalo and Robert De Niro and others, aren't registered as lobbyists and therefore didn't disclose their spending in opposition to hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to remove gas from underground deposits. "The public has been unable to learn how much money is being spent on this effort, what it is being spent on, and who is funding the effort," said Brad Gill, executive director of the Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York. "I understand the power of celebrity that this organization has brought to the public discussion over natural gas development, but I do not understand why this organization is not being required to follow the state's lobbying law." The group confirmed it filed the complaint but didn't comment further. Artists Against Fracking, formed by Ono and Lennon, says its activities are protected as free speech. The group was created last year amid the Cuomo administration's review to determine whether to allow hydraulic fracturing to remove gas from vast underground shale formations in southern and central New York. Gov. Andrew Cuomo continues his review as public opinion has shifted from initial support based on the promise of jobs and tax revenue from drilling in economically depressed upstate New York to mixed feelings because of concerns over potential environmental and health effects. Seven months after Artists Against Fracking was formed, the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute on March 20 found that New York voters were for the first time opposed to fracking, 46 percent to 39 percent. "There's no doubt the celebrities had an effect," Quinnipiac pollster Maurice Carroll said. "As far as I can tell, they made all the difference." A spokesman for Artists Against Fracking said the group and its individual members don't have to register as lobbyists. "As private citizens, Yoko and Sean are not required to register as lobbyists when they use their own money to express an opinion and there's also no lobbying requirement when you are engaged in a public comment period by a state agency," spokesman David Fenton said. "If the situation changes then, of course, Artists Against Fracking will consider registering," Fenton said. "Up to now, there has been no violation because they are entitled to do this as private citizens with their own money." On its website, the group implores readers: "Tell Governor Cuomo: Don't Frack New York." Celebrities supporting the group have led rallies and performed in the song "Don't Frack My Mother," also carried on the Internet. Ethics commission spokesman John Milgrim didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday. By law, the commission doesn't confirm or deny pending investigations. New York's former lobbying regulator, attorney David Grandeau, said he believed the group and the supporting artists, including musicians Paul McCartney and Lady Gaga and actress Anne Hathaway, should be registered and required to disclose details on their efforts to spur public opposition to gas drilling. "When you are advocating for the passage or defeat of legislation or proposed legislation and spend more than $5,000, you are required to register," Grandeau said Friday. "Just because you are a celebrity doesn't mean that lobbing laws don't apply to you. Your celebrity status does not protect you in Albany." Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and developer Donald Trump are among the high-profile figures who clashed with the commission when Grandeau was regulator. The biggest penalty for failure to follow the lobbying law resulted in a $250,000 fine against Trump and others over casinos in 2000.

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FOXNews.com: Obama signs bill that protects makers of genetically engineered crops from federal courts

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Obama signs bill that protects makers of genetically engineered crops from federal courts Mar 30th 2013, 16:57 FILE: November 24, 2008: A Greenpeace activist displays signs that symbolize genetically modified maize crops, during a protest in front of the European Union headquarters in Brussels.REUTERS President Obama approved a temporary spending bill this week that averted a government shutdown but also riled a slew of groups that say one provision protects Monsanto and other makers of genetically modified seeds and crops from federal courts. The so-called Monsanto Protection Act essentially requires the Agriculture Department to approve the growing, harvesting and selling of such crops, even if the courts rule environmental studies are incomplete -- undermining  the judicial review system and posing potential health risks, critics say. The biotech rider was included in spending bill HR 933 and signed Tuesday by Obama, despite White House protests and at least two petitions, including one by the group Food Democracy Now that got more than 250,000 signatures. Critics have also attacked Senate Appropriations Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski, accusing the Maryland Democrat of allowing the rider to be added to the continuing resolution without a proper hearing. Andrew Kimbrell, executive director of the Center for Food Safety, described the situation as a "hidden backroom deal." "Sen. . Mikulski turned her back on consumer, environmental and farmer protection in favor of corporate welfare for biotech companies such as Monsanto," he added. "This abuse of power is not the kind of leadership the public has come to expect from Sen. Mikulski or the Democrat majority in the Senate." On Friday, Mikulski's office issued a statement that appeared to attempt to take the blame away from the senator, saying the provision was included in legislation completed in fall 2012, before she became chairwoman of the committee. "Senator Mikulski understands the anger over this provision," the statement also said. "She didn't put the language in the bill and doesn't support it either."   Kimbrell called the statement a "positive first step" and said the Center for Food Safety and others have now set their sights on making sure the six-month provision in not included in future legislation. He said Democratic Sens. John Tester, Montana; Kirsten Gillibrand, New York; Patrick Leahy, Vermont; Mark Begich, Alaska; and Richard Blumethal, Connecticut, already oppose the rider. Tester told Politico that the deal worked out with Monsanto, the world's biggest producer of genetically modified crops and seeds, was simply bad policy. "These provisions are giveaways, pure and simple, and will be a boon worth millions of dollars to a handful of the biggest corporations in this country," he said. And such major groups and food companies as the National Farmers Union, the American Civil Liberties Union, Stonyfield Farms and Nature's Path also purportedly oppose the rider. A blog posting on the Stonyfield website in December 2012 appears to validate Mikulski's argument that the rider was added before her committee appointment. "Even if the courts find that a (genetically engineered) crop shouldn't be planted until more research is done about its safety, no one could stop that crop from being planted, even temporarily," the posting states. "This provision clearly tells us that Congress thinks public health and safety should take a back seat to the expansion of GE crops. The good news is it's not too late to tell Congress that this is one holiday surprise we don't need."

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FOXNews.com: North Korea in 'state of war' with Seoul, as US officials denounce remarks, stand ready

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North Korea in 'state of war' with Seoul, as US officials denounce remarks, stand ready Mar 30th 2013, 13:21 North Korea said Saturday that the peninsula it shares with South Korea is entering a 'state of war,' as top United States officials denounced recent comments from the totalitarian country and repeat that they stand ready to protect allies in the region. North Korea made the comments after two U.S. B-2 stealth bombers dropped dummy munitions Thursday on an uninhabited South Korean island as part of annual defense drills that North Korean sees as rehearsals for invasion. Hours later, North Korea's young leader Kim Jong Un ordered his generals to put rockets on standby and threatened to strike American targets if provoked. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Friday condemned North Korea's response to the U.S. exercise, including put artillery forces on alert, calling the actions "provocative," saying North Korea has struck a belligerent tone." On Thursday, White House Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest said North Korea is engaging in "bellicose rhetoric" and that the U.S. commitment to protect its interests and allies in the region "is something that should be evident." Analysts say a full-scale conflict is extremely unlikely, noting that the Korean Peninsula has remained in a technical state of war for 60 years. But the North's continued threats toward South Korea and the United States, including a vow to launch a nuclear strike, have raised worries that a misjudgment between the sides could lead to a clash. On Saturday, Kim also threatened to shut down a border factory complex that is the last major symbol of inter-Korean cooperation. North Korea's threats are seen as efforts to provoke the new government in Seoul, led by President Park Geun-hye, to change its policies toward Pyongyang, and to win diplomatic talks with Washington that could get it additional aid. North Korea's moves are also seen as ways to build domestic unity as young leader Kim Jong Un strengthens his military credentials. North Korea said in a statement Saturday that it would deal with South Korea according to "wartime regulations" and would retaliate against any provocations by the United States and South Korea without notice. "Now that the revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK have entered into an actual military action, the inter-Korean relations have naturally entered the state of war," said the statement, which was carried by Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency, referring to the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Provocations "will not be limited to a local war, but develop into an all-out war, a nuclear war," the statement said. Hours after the statement, Pyongyang threatened to shut down the jointly run Kaesong industrial park, expressing anger over media reports suggesting the complex remained open because it was a source of hard currency for the impoverished North. "If the puppet group seeks to tarnish the image of the DPRK even a bit, while speaking of the zone whose operation has been barely maintained, we will shut down the zone without mercy," an identified spokesman for the North's office controlling Kaesong said in comments carried by KCNA. South Korea's Unification Ministry responded by calling the North Korean threat "unhelpful" to the countries' already frayed relations and vowed to ensure the safety of hundreds of South Korean managers who cross the border to their jobs in Kaesong. It did not elaborate. South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said the country's military remains mindful of the possibility that increasing North Korean drills near the border could lead to an actual provocation. "The series of North Korean threats -- announcing all-out war, scrapping the cease-fire agreement and the non-aggression agreement between the South and the North, cutting the military hotline, entering into combat posture No. 1 and entering a `state of war' -- are unacceptable and harm the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula," Kim said. "We are maintaining full military readiness in order to protect our people's lives and security," he told reporters Saturday. Naval skirmishes in the disputed waters off the Korean coast have led to bloody battles several times over the years. But on the streets of Seoul on Saturday, South Koreans said they were not worried about an attack from North Korea. "From other countries' point of view, it may seem like an extremely urgent situation," said Kang Tae-hwan, a private tutor. "But South Koreans don't seem to be that nervous because we've heard these threats from the North before." The Kaesong industrial park, which is run with North Korean labor and South Korean know-how, has been operating normally, despite Pyongyang shutting down a communications channel typically used to coordinate travel by South Korean workers to and from the park just across the border in North Korea. The rivals are now coordinating the travel indirectly, through an office at Kaesong that has outside lines to South Korea. North Korea has previously made such threats about Kaesong without acting on them, and recent weeks have seen a torrent of bellicose rhetoric from Pyongyang. North Korea is angry about the South Korea-U.S. military drills and new U.N. sanctions over its nuclear test last month. Dozens of South Korean firms run factories in the border town of Kaesong. Using North Korea's cheap, efficient labor, the Kaesong complex produced $470 million worth of goods last year. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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