Author: Scott Wilson
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As wildfires rage, California frets over future of greater perils
REDDING, Calif. • The wildfire that has burned with speed and efficiency through neighborhoods, jumped the wide Sacramento River and killed a half-dozen residents and firefighters has turned yet another place into a harbinger of what the future holds for this state. The neighborhoods along the Trinity Highway were tucked among Douglas firs, oaks and…
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‘Pure devastation’: At least 17 dead as firefighters struggle to weaken California fires
HEALDSBURG, Calif. — Hundreds of firefighters struggled Tuesday to weaken a series of Northern California fires, aided by more-favorable weather but still unable to contain an arc of flames that has killed 17 people, destroyed more than 2,000 buildings and battered the region’s lifeblood wine industry. The fast-moving fires swept through densely populated neighborhoods, causing some…
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In review of Afghan strategy, Obama held out for faster surge
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama, seated at the head of a conference table strewn with papers in the White House Situation Room, stared at charts showing various options for sending additional U.S. troops into Afghanistan.He and his top national security advisers had been debating the way forward for two full months. On this day, Nov.…
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Election dispute in Iran puts U.S. in thorny diplomatic position
WASHINGTON – The confused aftermath of Iran’s presidential election is complicating the Obama administration’s planned outreach to the Islamic republic and underscoring the challenges facing the president’s new approach to the Middle East based on shared values and common interests. The administration has remained as quiet as possible during the Iranian election season and, more…
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Education system must be fixed, Obama says
WASHINGTON • President Obama on Tuesday sharply criticized America’s public school system and outlined a strategy to reward good teachers and fire bad ones, establish uniform academic achievement standards and increase spending on the first and final stages of a person’s education. In a speech to the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Obama called on…