National Desk

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

WASHINGTON


IRS REPORTS $73M IN UNCLAIMED REFUNDS


The Internal Revenue Service said yesterday that $73 million in tax refunds that were sent to taxpayers this year did not reach the destination. In most cases, the post office returned the checks as undeliverable because the taxpayers had moved. The money belongs to more than 84,000 taxpayers, some of whom have more than one check waiting to be claimed. Checking on the status of a refund – by calling 1-800-829-4477 or visiting IRS Web site – could be worth $871 to the average taxpayer due an unclaimed refund.


– Associated Press


POLL SHOWS RISE IN NEGATIVE FEELINGS TOWARD GOVERNMENT, BUSINESS


The public’s view of the government has eroded over the past year and its view of business corporations is now at the lowest level in two decades. The public’s rating for the federal government has fallen from 59% favorable last year to 45% now, according to a poll by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. The favorable view of business corporations is also at 45%.


– Associated Press


SPECTER DENIES SAUDI PRESSURE PROMPTED CANCELLATION OF HEARING


Amid mounting concerns that pressure from the government of Saudi Arabia prompted the cancellation of a Judiciary Committee hearing into the Saudis’ propagation of extremist ideology on American shores, the committee’s chairman, Senator Specter, a Republican of Pennsylvania, emphatically denied the allegations yesterday.


The full committee hearing was to take place yesterday morning, but was called off at the last minute with little explanation provided to scheduled witnesses. Mr. Specter and several committee aides maintained yesterday that the Saudi inquiry was one of several canceled hearings, with some staff saying Democratic committee members had requested more time and resources to prepare for the grilling of Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers.


When asked by The New York Sun whether the Saudi hearing would be rescheduled, Mr. Specter pledged, “Absolutely.”


– Staff Reporter of the Sun


BUSH ADMINISTRATION DROPS ‘BUNKER-BUSTER’ PLAN


The Bush administration has abandoned research into a nuclear “bunker-buster” warhead, deciding instead to pursue a similar device using conventional weaponry, a key Republican senator said yesterday. Senator Pete Domenici, a Republican of New Mexico, said funding for the nuclear bunker-buster as part of the Energy Department’s fiscal 2006 budget has been dropped at the request of the Energy Department.


– Associated Press


BROWN HAD RESIGNATION PLANS BEFORE KATRINA HIT


Michael Brown was days away from announcing plans to resign as director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency when Hurricane Katrina hit August 29, according to e-mails released by separate House and Senate investigations into the government’s flawed response to the disaster. The e-mails also suggest that the administration knew Mr. Brown was on the verge of departing when he was recalled as head of the sluggish rescue and relief efforts for the New Orleans area.


– The Washington Post


HEALTH


SCIENTISTS SAY BIRD FLU IN U.S. POSSIBLE NEXT YEAR


Could bird flu reach North America through migrating birds? Biologists in Alaska and Canada said it’s possible by next year. Scientists have been monitoring flocks since last summer, collecting live birds and thousands of samples from bird droppings. So far scientists have not found the virus that is spreading across Asia. The bigger fear is that bird flu will mutate into a flu that is both contagious and deadly to people and which would quickly spread around the globe through international travel. The current bird flu is not easily spread to people.


– Associated Press


MIDWEST


KANSAS SUES OVER TAPED INTERVIEW WITH BTK KILLER


WICHITA, Kan. – The Kansas attorney general yesterday sued two psychologists hired by the state to interview serial killer Dennis Rader, accusing them of profiting from a video of a session with him. Segments of the interview were aired by “Dateline NBC” in August, five days before Rader was given consecutive life sentences for 10 killings committed between 1974 and 1991.


– Associated Press


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