New Girl Scout cookie: Can 'Smiles' compete with Thin Mints?

New Girl Scout cookie honors organization's 100th anniversary. The new Girl Scout cookie, the 'Savannah Smiles,' is a lemon shortbread cookie dusted with powdered sugar.

Loosen your belts and clear space in your pantry: Girl Scout cookie season is upon us.

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This year, a new Girl Scout cookie will join the usual lineup of Thin Mints, Samoas, and Do-Si-Dos: In honor of Girl Scouts? 100th anniversary, the club has unveiled Savannah Smiles, a lemon-wedge shortbread cookie dusted with powdered sugar.

The new treat is named after Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low?s hometown, Savannah, Ga. According to the Girl Scouts website, the new cookie has a strong lemon flavor and recalls Girl Scout cookies of the program?s early years.?

?This lemon wedge cookie is cool and crisp, with just the right number of lemon chips to deliver tiny bursts of flavor,? says a press release for Little Brownie Bakers, the company that produces Savannah Smiles and several other Girl Scout cookie varieties, including Samoas and Trefoils. ?And, when you hold it right, you?ll quickly be reminded of that world-famous 'Brownie Smile.' "

The Girl Scout cookie program began in 1922, when the Girl Scouts? American Girl magazine published recipes for simple homemade sugar cookies, suggesting local troupes sell them as a fundraising activity. The organization began licensing recipes out to commercial bakers in 1936. Today, Little Brownie Bakers and ABC Bakers are the two licensed companies.

The Girl Scouts sell an estimated 200 million boxes of cookies per year, at around $3.50 per box. Of the 11 cookies currently available, the most popular are dark chocolate Thin Mints, which make up 25 percent of all sales. Samoas and Tagalongs are the other big sellers, comprising 19 and 13 percent of sales, respectively.

Not all cookie varieties are quite so successful. The Girl Scouts have discontinued scores of cookie varieties during the program?s run, including Aloha Chips (with macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips), Apple Cinnamons, Double Dutch (chocolate cookies with chocolate chips), and the raspberry jam-filled Ice Berry Pi?atas.

Despite Girl Scouts' efforts to make their cookies healthier (in 2007, several recipes were reworked so that they had zero trans-fat), the health-minded cookie offerings sell terribly. Many sugar-free and 100-calorie cookies have been briefly available, all disappearing quickly. Daisy Go Rounds, a 100-calorie replacement of the retired Cinna-Spins, only lasted two years (2009-2011).

Indeed, Savannah Smiles sound remarkably similar to another discontinued cookie, the Lemon Cooler (lemon-flavored cookies dusted in powdered sugar).? But will it buck the trend and have the staying power of more enduring cookies?

You can soon decide for yourself. Most regional Girl Scout troops will begin cookie sales later this month, or in early February. To find a ?cookie booth? in your area, visit girlscoutcookies.org. Girl Scouts knows how to move with the times, so you can also download the? organizations official ?Cookie Finder? app for your smartphone. ?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/Ifh4u1MqO_o/New-Girl-Scout-cookie-Can-Smiles-compete-with-Thin-Mints

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Giffords, Tucson mark 1 year since deadly rampage

In this photo provided by the office of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Giffords and husband Mark Kelly pose at the Davidson Canyon Gabe Zimmerman Memorial trailhead outside of Tucson, Ariz., on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012. Kelly posted the photo earlier Saturday via his Twitter account. The trailhead is named in honor of Giffords' slain staff member Gabe Zimmerman. (AP Photo/Office of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords)

In this photo provided by the office of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Giffords and husband Mark Kelly pose at the Davidson Canyon Gabe Zimmerman Memorial trailhead outside of Tucson, Ariz., on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012. Kelly posted the photo earlier Saturday via his Twitter account. The trailhead is named in honor of Giffords' slain staff member Gabe Zimmerman. (AP Photo/Office of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords)

People gaze at a small memorial plaque on a rock at the Safeway market on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012, to commemorate the victims of the mass shooting on Jan. 8, 2011, in Tucson, Ariz. The one-year anniversary of the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in the parking lot of the grocery store is Sunday. Arizona is marking the event with a series of events, including community-wide bell-ringing at the moment of the attack, speeches on behalf of the victims, and an evening candlelight vigil that Giffords will attend. (AP Photo/Arizona Daily Star, Rick Wiley) MANDATORY CREDIT

In this photo provided by the office of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., Giffords, second from left, and fellow shooting survivor Ron Barber unveil a memorial plaque in honor of slain staffer Gabe Zimmerman, Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012, in Tucson, Ariz. At left is Giffords' husband, Mark Kelly. (AP Photo/Office of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords)

FILE In this June 12, 2011 photo, whos U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. The signals are strong. One year after being shot in the head, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is on a mission to return to the job she so clearly loved. Her husband and people near the three-term congresswoman say she is highly motivated to recover from her injuries and get back to work in Washington, potentially using her inspirational story as a way to mend political differences in the nation's capital. She faces a May deadline to get on the November ballot, meaning she has a few months to decide her next step. (AP Photo/southwestphotobank.com, P.K. Weis) MANDATORY CREDIT

FILE - In this undated photo provided by ABC, U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and husband Mark Kelly are interviewed by Diane Sawyer on ABC's 20/20. One year after being shot in the head, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is on a mission to return to the job she so clearly loved. Her husband and people near the three-term congresswoman say she is highly motivated to recover from her injuries and get back to work in Washington, potentially using her inspirational story as a way to mend political differences in the nation's capital. She faces a May deadline to get on the November ballot, meaning she has a few months to decide her next step. (AP Photo/ABC, Ida Mae Astute)

(AP) ? It's been a year since that bloody Tucson morning ? a year of reflecting on lives shattered, of struggling with flashbacks and nightmares, of replaying the what-ifs before the deadly rampage that shocked a nation. And in the middle of it: one woman, Gabrielle Giffords, forging one of the most grueling journeys back of all.

One year after a deranged gunman shot the Arizona congresswoman in the head and opened fire on dozens of others at a Tucson grocery store, the congresswoman and other survivors were gathering Sunday to reflect and move forward.

Churches and homes throughout the southern Arizona city will ring bells at 10:11 a.m. MST, the exact time the gunman shot Giffords and methodically moved down a line of people waiting to talk to her during a congressional meet-and-greet on Jan. 8, 2011.

Six people were killed, including a 9-year-old girl born on 9/11 and a federal judge. Thirteen others were shot, including Giffords.

The 41-year-old Giffords has spent the last year in Houston undergoing intensive physical and speech therapy. Doctors and family have called her recovery miraculous after the Jan. 8 shooting; she is able to walk and talk, vote in Congress and gave a televised interview to ABC's Diane Sawyer in May. But doctors have said it would take many months to determine the lasting effects of her brain injury. The three-term congresswoman has four months to decide whether to seek re-election.

"She's making a lot of progress. She's doing great," said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz, a close friend, said. "She still has a long way to go."

Giffords, her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, and her Tucson doctor are joining thousands at an evening candlelight vigil at the University of Arizona. Kelly was expected to speak.

Close friends of Giffords and of the dead planned emotional reflections on their lives.

Colorado Sen. Mark Udall, who was born and raised in Tucson, will speak about Giffords, whose recovery has captivated the nation. Federal judge Raner Collins is remembering fellow judge John Roll; Christina Taylor-Green's two best friends will talk about the bright and ambitious girl born on Sept. 11, 2001.

Pat Maisch is set to speak on behalf of everyone who survived. The petite but feisty woman grabbed a gun magazine from Jared Lee Loughner after he was tackled during the shooting and believes she would have been shot next if he hadn't been subdued.

Loughner has pleaded not guilty to 49 charges in the shooting. The 23-year-old, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, is being forcibly medicated at a Missouri prison facility in an effort to make him mentally ready for trial.

Many of them also have lobbied for gun legislation in Washington in hopes of preventing similar shootings and started various nonprofits that award scholarships, help needy children and promote awareness about mental illness.

Some shooting survivors, including Giffords staffers Ron Barber and Pam Simon, plan to attend as many events on Sunday as possible, including an interfaith service at a church.

Others, like 76-year-old survivor Mavy Stoddard, whose husband, Dory, was killed as he shielded her from the bullets, plan to stay at home with family.

Sunday's events were designed to bring Tucson residents together much like they came together after the shooting last year.

The night of the shooting, more than 100 people showed up outside Giffords' office on a busy street corner in frigid temperatures, holding candles and signs that simply read "Peace" and "Just pray." Strangers hugged, most cried and many sang anthems like "Amazing Grace."

In the days and weeks that followed, thousands of people contributed to makeshift memorials outside the office, the Tucson hospital where Giffords and other shooting victims were treated and the grocery store where it happened.

The memorials turned into massive tributes of candles, cards, photos, stuffed animals and flowers that blanketed areas of up to 60-by-100 feet.

Others that came later include a 9-foot, 11-inch sculpture of an angel forged from World Trade Center steel in memory of Green.

Several of the shooting victims visited the memorials before they were dismantled and put in storage boxes for safekeeping until a permanent memorial is erected in the coming years. Items from the hospital alone filled 60 boxes.

Shooting survivor Susan Hileman called the memorials a "giant hug" from the community.

Her favorite memorial sign read, "Plant seeds of peace and love will grow."

___

Follow Amanda Lee Myers on Twitter at https://twitter.com/(hash)!/AmandaLeeAP

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-08-Congresswoman%20Shot-Anniversary/id-19961e0d30234557b3a76f8cf2dd35c6

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Texas teen deported to Colombia headed back to US

EL PASO, Texas A 15-year-old Texas girl who was deported in May to South America after claiming to be an illegal immigrant was headed back to the United States on Friday, Colombian and U.S. officials said.

Jakadrien Lorece Turner was turned over to the U.S. embassy Friday, a high-level official in Colombia's ministry of foreign affairs told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because ministry policy does not allow employees to be quoted by name.

The State Department said she left Colombia and was on her way to the U.S., but would give no further details.

Jakadrien's mother, Johnisa Turner, told The Associated Press she'll be meeting her daughter when she arrives in Dallas and said she was expecting a call from her. Turner said she has "a gazillion questions" for Jakadrien.

"I am very excited," Turner said. "I feel like a weight has been lifted. But at the same time, I won't just feel really, really good until I'm able to touch her. Until I'm able to put her in my arms."

The girl's family has questioned why U.S. officials didn't do more to verify her identify.

U.S. immigration officials have said they were investigating, but insist they followed procedure and found nothing to indicate that the girl wasn't - as she claimed - a woman from Colombia illegally living in the U.S.

The teen, who ran away from home more than a year ago, was recently found in Bogota, Colombia, by the Dallas Police Department with help from Colombian and U.S. officials.

According to the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the girl was enrolled in the country's "Welcome Home" program after she arrived there. She was given shelter, psychological assistance and a job at a call center, a statement from the agency said. When the Colombian government discovered she was a U.S. citizen and a minor, it put her under the care of a welfare program, the statement said.

Johnisa Turner said Jakadrien is a U.S. citizen who was born in Dallas and was not fluent in Spanish. She said neither she nor the teen's father had ties to Colombia. Jakadrien's grandmother, Lorene Turner, called the deportation a "big mistake somebody made."

"She looks like a kid, she acts like a kid. How could they think she wasn't a kid?" Lorene Turner asked on Thursday.

Jakadrien's family said she left home in November 2010. Houston police said the girl was arrested on April 2, 2011, for misdemeanor theft in that city and claimed to be Tika Lanay Cortez, a Colombian woman born in 1990.

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement official told The Associated Press on Thursday that the teen claimed to be Cortez throughout the criminal proceedings in Houston and the ensuing deportation process in which an immigration judge ultimately ordered her back to Colombia.

The ICE official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to not being authorized to discuss additional details of the case, said the teenager was interviewed by a representative from the Colombian consulate and that country's government issued her a travel document to enter Colombia. The ICE official said standard procedure before any deportation is to coordinate with the other country in order to establish that person is from there.

The girl was given Colombian citizenship upon arriving there, the ICE official said.

The Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Jakadrien was issued travel documents at the request of the U.S. National Security Agency and with information submitted by U.S. officials. Colombian officials are investigating what kind of verification was conducted by its Houston consulate to issue the temporary passport.

It was not clear if the teen might be charged upon her return for falsifying her identity in a criminal process.

Dallas Police detective C'mon (pronounced Simone) Wingo, the detective in charge of the case, explained that in August she was contacted by the girl's grandmother, who said Jakadrien had posted "kind of disturbing" messages on a Facebook account where she goes by yet another name.

Wingo said the girl was located in early November through her use of a computer to log into Facebook. Relatives were then put into contact with the U.S. embassy in Bogota to provide pictures and documents to prove Jakadrien's identity.

Lorene Turner, the grandmother of the girl, said she has spent a lot of time tracking down Jakadrien, whose family nickname is Kay-Kay.

At her work as a hairstylist, "in between customers I'd get on the computer looking for Kay-Kay, I was obsessed," she said.

Johnisa Turner said her daughter, a freshman at a Dallas high school, was experimenting with different hairstyles and clothes but "wasn't a problem kid." She was reluctant to go into any details about the deportation, saying she didn't know any specifics.

"She didn't have any reason to leave," Lorene Turner said. "She lived in a nice home (with her mother and stepfather). We were very close. I don't know why she left."

Source: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/01/05/2901382/officials-investigate-case-of.html

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Prosecutor seeks death for Egypt's Mubarak (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) ? Egyptian prosecutors have demanded the death sentence for former president Hosni Mubarak and other defendants including his two sons and the former interior minister for their role in the killing of protesters in the uprising that swept him from power.

Many Egyptians hope the trial will heal some of the scars of Mubarak's autocratic rule and help the country find stability after nearly a year of political turmoil under the military generals who replaced him in power.

But the multitude of witnesses, complexity of charges and the prosecution's difficulty in obtaining evidence from the security services might make it easier for the defense lawyers to push for a lighter sentence for Mubarak and his co-defendants.

For the final hearing of three that took place this week, Mubarak appeared in a courtroom cage reserved for the accused along with his sons, former interior minister Habib el-Adly and six senior police officers.

"The prosecution demands the maximum penalty against Mubarak and the rest of the accused, which is death by hanging," Mustafa Khater, a member of the prosecution team, told a court. "The killing of one person calls for a death penalty so what would the court say in a case where hundreds have been killed."

Khater's speech prompted cheers and claps from some lawyers who shouted: "Death, death ... God is greatest."

Mubarak, who ruled for three decades before he was forced on February 11 to step down after 18 days of public protests against his rule, is the first leader toppled by the wave of protests in the Arab world to stand trial in person.

The 83-year-old former president and the other defendants deny responsibility for the deaths.

Chief Prosecutor Mustafa Suleiman told the court that, even if Mubarak did not directly order the killing of the protesters, he failed in his constitutional responsibility to protect the people.

The prosecution also said that witness testimonies, including that of Omar Suleiman, who was named vice president during the protests, had all indicated that "police officers have to return to the president of the state in decisions that concern dealing with protesters."

"And many of those witnesses have assured the prosecution that no police officer can fire unless he gets orders from his boss," Suleiman said.

Mohamed El Gendi, a lawyer acting on behalf of Adly, said the prosecution had failed to provide conclusive evidence.

"The prosecution relied on conclusions and narrated tales that do not firmly prove that the accused person committed the crimes," he said.

On top of the charges related to the death of protesters, Mubarak and his co-defendants face charges including corruption, abuse of power and wasting public funds. The judge adjourned the trial until January 9 and 10 when the plaintiffs' lawyers will make their final statements.

(Additional reporting by Omar Fahmy, writing by Yasmine Saleh)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/crime/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120105/ts_nm/us_egypt_mubarak

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'Sherlock' star defends TV show's nude scene

FILE - British actor Benedict Cumberbatch arrives at The British Academy Television Awards at The Grosvenor House Hotel, London, in this May 22, 2011 file photo. Cumberbatch is shrugging off British newspaper criticism of his female co-star's nude scene in TV's latest season of "Sherlock." Cumberbatch spoke to the Television Critics Association on Thursday Jan. 5, 2012by satellite from London (AP Photo/Paul Jeffers)

FILE - British actor Benedict Cumberbatch arrives at The British Academy Television Awards at The Grosvenor House Hotel, London, in this May 22, 2011 file photo. Cumberbatch is shrugging off British newspaper criticism of his female co-star's nude scene in TV's latest season of "Sherlock." Cumberbatch spoke to the Television Critics Association on Thursday Jan. 5, 2012by satellite from London (AP Photo/Paul Jeffers)

(AP) ? Benedict Cumberbatch is shrugging off British newspaper criticism of his female co-star's nude scene in TV's latest season of "Sherlock."

It may be an effort to sell papers, he said, but it also helps the drama about a modern-day Holmes that will air its second season in the United States this May on PBS' "Masterpiece Mystery!"

"It's great publicity, isn't it?" Cumberbatch told the Television Critics Association on Thursday. "I think there's an awful lot of support for the way that we did it (the scene) and the taste that we did it with. And if it creates more interest in the program, thank you very much for that."

In this week's BBC-aired episode titled "A Scandal in Belgravia," Holmes has a close encounter with a whip-smart dominatrix, Irene Adler (Lara Pulver), who gets under his skin by flashing much of hers. Some detractors said the scene was too racy to air early in the evening, when children are more likely to be watching TV.

"It's not supposed to be a source of stimulation for the audience," Cumberbatch said. "It's supposed to throw his (Holmes') radar off, which is exactly what it does."

He played it coy on whether the hit series about Conan Doyle's great detective and sidekick Dr. Watson (Martin Freeman) will return for a third season. The actor has become a hot property with film credits including "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" and "War Horse."

During a Q&A by satellite from London, Cumberbatch pretended to seek legal counsel when asked if he would sign on for more "Sherlock." He also consulted another fictional lawyer when queried about his role in the forthcoming "Star Trek" sequel from filmmaker J.J. Abrams.

"I'm just getting my head around the fact it's happened. ... I'll give you my headline on it, which is, 'I'm over the moon.'"

Cumberbatch, who's going to the London premiere of "War Horse" this weekend, said Prince Charles also is expected to attend. "I work for him," the actor added," as ambassador for the Prince of Wales Trust that aids disadvantaged youth.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-01-06-People-Benedict%20Cumberbatch/id-cc78b8e64b8b43caa7731e3316995655

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100% A Separation

All Critics (63) | Top Critics (20) | Fresh (64) | Rotten (0) | DVD (2)

The film wraps us, with stunning directness, in the complex folds of its characters' passions.

A Separation is not the work of a constrained artist. It's a great movie in which the full range of human interaction seems to play itself out before our eyes.

The miracle of A Separation is that it doesn't spare any of its characters, nor does it seek to indict them. It is a democratic portrait of a theocratic world.

Tensely involving Iranian drama with niche potential.

Tense and narratively complex, formally dense and morally challenging.

A constant surprise, a film that captures the drama and suspense of real life as urgently as any picture released this year.

The audience is rocked back and forth in sympathy. . . in a tangled predicament. [N]one is one-dimensional in the superb ensemble [as] the point of view changes by minutes.

Farhadi's true focus is the flawed capacity for any law -- any form of cold rationality, period -- to address the slippery nature of human affairs. It's a frantic microcosm of life itself.

So much fun to watch that you could very nearly miss the important fact that it is also as piercing a critique of Iranian society as that country has produced in some time.

There are no heroes or villains in this story: there are only everyday figures who try their best and struggle to survive.

One of the year's most engrossing films, directed by Asghar Farhadi from his richly layered screenplay (some advice: pay particular attention to what occurs in the sequence following the opening credits)

It has an external layer that comments upon Iran's complex and seemingly unfair divorce system, as well as other social customs, but underneath it's not much more than a standard potboiler.

More Critic Reviews

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/a_separation_2011/

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WaterDefense: Big oil is threatening President Obama with "huge political consequences" if he rejects Keystone XL. @TarSandsAction http://t.co/rfEeTNMd

Loader Big oil is threatening President Obama with "huge political consequences" if he rejects Keystone XL. @

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Forecast: German 2012 economy to grow 0.6 percent (AP)

BERLIN ? A leading German economic think tank says it is lowering its 2012 growth estimate for Europe's largest economy to 0.6 percent.

The DIW think tank said Wednesday that the German economy would likely slide briefly into recession before recovering by midyear.

DIW previously had forecast 1 percent growth for Germany in 2012 but says that ongoing problems in other European Union will likely hurt German exports.

It says it expects the economy to recover with 2.2 percent growth in 2013 but only if the eurozone debt crisis stabilizes.

Other German economic think tanks are forecasting 2012 growth between 0.4 percent and 0.8 percent. The government's independent economic advisers are predicting 0.9 percent growth.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120104/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_germany_economy

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Obama appeals to Iowa Democrats on caucus night (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Inserting his voice into a big night for Republicans, President Barack Obama was appealing to Iowa Democrats during the first balloting in the GOP presidential campaign, seeking to counter months of withering criticism in the state that launched his presidential ambitions four years ago.

Obama was hosting a live video teleconference for Democrats attending precinct caucuses across Iowa, outlining his progress during the first term and asking for their help in the upcoming campaign. Beyond the lead-off caucuses, Iowa is expected to be hotly contested in the fall election.

The president's re-election campaign emailed supporters a video of Obama's Iowa victory speech in January 2008, arguing he has kept the promises he made that night: making health care more affordable, cutting taxes for the middle class, ending the war in Iraq and reducing the nation's dependence on foreign oil.

"A new chapter in the story of 2012 starts with what happens in Iowa tonight," Mitch Stewart, a top Obama campaign aide, said in a separate email to supporters. "Most of us will watch what happens on TV ? but as you do, remember that the end of this story is up to you and what you decide to do in the days and weeks ahead."

White House press secretary Jay Carney said Obama would thank supporters for their help and discuss his efforts to keep the promises he made in Iowa four years ago. But Carney said the president "has a lot of work to do before he engages aggressively in the general election. That will come in due time."

Obama was wasting little time getting back in front of voters following a Hawaiian vacation spent largely out of the spotlight. Campaign officials said Obama was expected to take questions from voters during the Iowa session, which was airing only for those who attended the caucus meetings. On Wednesday, Obama will travel to Cleveland for an event focused on the economy.

Obama was seeking to counter months of pounding by Republicans in Iowa and by the Republican National Committee, which has assailed Obama's economic record and tagged him as a president who has failed to live up to lofty expectations.

"Three years later, the president's promises of hope and change have been replaced with a record of failed leadership and policies that have made the economy worse," RNC spokeswoman Kirsten Kukowski said.

Iowa looks to be among about a dozen states that could shift either way in the 2012 campaign. Trying to build on his 2008 win there, Obama's campaign has opened eight offices in the state and had held more than 1,200 training sessions, phone banks and other events and made more than 350,000 phone calls to supporters since April.

"When the rest of the Republican field packs up their office and leaves town, we have been here, we will continue to be here and we will continue to take and treat Iowa seriously," said Democratic National Committee chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida congresswoman.

Wasserman Schultz and Rep. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa, tried to raise expectations in Iowa for Republican Mitt Romney, saying anything but a top finish in the state would bode poorly for his campaign.

Democrats have tried to undermine Romney's business background, accusing him of outsourcing jobs and laying off workers while he led Bain Capital, a private equity firm, while questioning his principles on issues such as health care, abortion and gun control.

"Crawling over the finish line in Iowa after 5 years of effort is going to come at a price," Wasserman Schultz said.

Obama returned to Washington facing further debate on extending payroll tax cuts, the same issue that consumed Washington during the final days of December.

Congress broke through a stalemate just days before Christmas, agreeing to extend the cuts for two months. Lawmakers will get back to work later this month to negotiate a full-year extension of the cuts, which Obama supports.

White House officials say the tax cut extension is the last "must-do" legislative item on Obama's agenda this year. His strategy for his fourth year in office will focus largely on taking executive actions that do not need approval from lawmakers as he seeks to break away from a deeply unpopular Congress.

___

Meredith reported from Des Moines, Iowa. Associated Press writer Julie Pace contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120103/ap_on_el_pr/us_obama

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A review of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus

Story Created: Jan 2, 2012 at 8:53 AM MST

Story Updated: Jan 2, 2012 at 8:53 AM MST

KRRS Systems is located at 423 Main Ave. South in Twin falls.

Give them a call with any of your computer or techonology related problems/questions at 208.734.5987.

Be sure to catch Owen Robbins and Arnel Culum on Rise and Shine every Monday morning between the hours of 5:30-7:00 am!

Source: http://www.kmvt.com/features/riseandshine/A-review-of-the-Samsung--136529598.html

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