Larry King| BIO
CNN Anchor

He became an almost daily fixture on TV sets around the country during three traumatic weeks in October 2002. Snipers were shooting innocent victims in the Washington, D.C. area. The 14 incidents were random. 16 people were shot, 10 fatally. Area residents were afraid to go to the mall, to school, some to even leave their homes. Then Montgomery County, Maryland Police Chief Charles Moose was the public face of the investigation. His emotional and sometimes contentious briefings made Moose a celebrity. But controversy came along with his public persona.

In advance of Tuesday night's scheduled execution of convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad, we spoke with Chief Moose in an LKL Web Exclusive interview.

LKL Blog: What are your feelings about the execution of John Allen Muhammad?

Chief Moose: We live in a nation of laws. The people of Virginia made their decision based on the evidence. It's good to see the system works, and the people's will is going to be carried out.

LKL Blog: But how do you personally feel about capital punishment?

Keep Reading...

Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan

Jeffrey Toobin | Bio
CNN Senior Legal Analyst
New Yorker Columnist

Cabinet members may end up negotiating which legal system will try Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the suspect in last week's mass shooting at Fort Hood in Texas, CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said Tuesday.

Thirteen people - 12 of them soldiers - were killed and 42 wounded Thursday when a gunman opened fire at the post's Soldier Readiness Center. A police officer shot Hasan, the only suspect, ending the carnage.

Hasan remains in intensive care at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, but is breathing on his own and talking, hospital spokesman Dewey Mitchell said.

Toobin addressed questions about the case Tuesday morning.

CNN: In which legal system will Hasan be tried?

Jeffrey Toobin: We know for certain it will not be in state court. There's exclusive federal jurisdiction on an Army base. They will have to decide whether they want to do it as a court-martial or as a federal prosecution in United States District Court.

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AC360°

John Allen Muhammad, the mastermind of the 2002 sniper attacks that terrorized the suburbs of the nation's capital, is scheduled to die by lethal injection tonight at a state prison near Jarratt, Virginia.

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine denied a clemency request from Muhammad's lawyers, closing off what is likely to be his last avenue of appeal.

Do you have questions about the death penalty and about Muhammad's execution? Let us know!

Send us a text message with your question. Text AC360 (or 22360), and you might hear it on air!

Most cities in the U.S saw gains in the median price of single-family homes sold during the three months that ended Sept. 30

Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

The prolonged period of pain in the housing market seems to be easing, at least temporarily anyway.

Most cities in the U.S saw gains in the median price of single-family homes sold during the three months that ended Sept. 30, according to the National Association of Realtors' quarterly report on home prices. This is the second consecutive quarter of gains.

The national median home price was $177,900 in the third quarter, up $7,000 from the previous quarter. And while that was still down more than 11% from the third quarter of 2008, the pace of decline is slowing. In the second quarter of 2009, home prices fell more than 15% from the same period last year.

The NAR attributed much of the recent increase in home prices to the government's first-time homebuyer tax credit, which has helped revive sales.

Also on the home front… the Treasury Department says some 650,000 troubled borrowers have been put into trial loan modifications under President Obama's $75 billion foreclosure rescue plan.

That number represents 20% of eligible homeowners at least 60 days behind in their payments, according to the Treasury. This is up from 16% a month earlier.

Despite the progress, housing counselors say the number of people falling into foreclosure vastly exceeds the ranks getting assistance. The number of filings hit a record high of 937,840 in the third quarter. That's a 5% increase from the second quarter and a 23% jump over the third quarter of 2008.

And JPMorgan & Chase says it plans to hire 1,200 mortgage loan officers as the bank moves to expand its home loan business.

The New York-based bank said the hiring spree will grow its home loan sales force by 60% and will be complete by the end of 2010.

New loan officers will be hired in 23 states - including California, Florida and Texas and key cities such as New York and Chicago.

The new loan officers will work with personal bankers and referral sources, such as real estate agents and builders, as well as with their own network of homeowners, JPMorgan says.

“There’s no place like home for the holidays,” or so the old song says. But despite some discounts on plane tickets and hotels, people continue to look for even cheaper travel deals for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday - and some may wind up avoiding the airlines altogether.

The Air Transport Association says it expects a 4% decline in the number of airline passengers during Thanksgiving compared with a year ago.

The ATA attributes the drop-off to the tough economic climate, citing high unemployment and the recession as the main reason.

There are also many new fees for checking bags and a host of other charges that can add to the cost of air travel - and that may be leading more people to stick closer to home this year.

But travelers shouldn't expect planes to be less crowded than in the past. In fact, they'll be even more crowded. Airlines have been cutting back on flights or rolling out smaller planes in response to the decline in bookings.

Follow the money… on Twitter: @AndrewTorganCNN

Sarah Palin remains most recognizable name in the Republican Party.

Candy Crowley
CNN Senior Political Correspondent

She was a high-voltage candidate, lighting a fire in the grassroots of Republican-land - fresh, folksy and fierce.

She famously belittled her party's presidential opponent, Barack Obama, at her coming-out party at the 2008 Republican National Convention: "I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities."

Sarah Palin remains a force - the most recognizable name in the
Republican Party, a headline magnet. Just over a year after the defeat of the Republican ticket, the Republican No. 2 is Amazon.com's No. 1 in non-fiction pre-sales. Writer of books, giver of speeches, muser of politics on an unusually active Facebook account. And robo-caller on behalf of a conservative group in this year's Virginia governor's race.

A recent CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll found 85 percent of Republicans say Palin agrees with them on their most important issues. But only 49 percent of independents feel that way.

It's a telling measure of her political reach - and its limits - that
the Republicans who won governor seats in Virginia and New Jersey this year politely rejected Palin's offers to campaign for them.

Both governors-elect owe their victories to huge majorities of
independent voters. Palin's clout is inside the party. In a New York congressional race, she helped push a Republican Party candidate out of the way for a more conservative one. But with that battle won, Palin lost the war - the split made way for a Democratic victory.

These days, Palin is doing selected interviews, the first this week with Oprah Winfrey, to promote her book, "Going Rogue: An American Life," which comes out next week.

Palin is a politician fueled by her celebrity, which is lucrative, but
not necessarily good. "Americans tend not to elect celebrities," said David Frum, a former speechwriter for George W. Bush. "Arnold Schwarzenegger is the exception, but more often than not, people want something in their political leaders that is more steady, stable, and predictable."

Fans and critics inevitably point to Palin's quitting as Alaska's governor, with about a year and a half left in her first term, as her biggest political problem. "Only dead fish go with the flow," she said as she was stepping down.

It's that kind of rogueness that made her a household name, but in the end may make Palin a player who helps shape the party rather than lead it. Of six Republican consultants interviewed - including four who supported the Palin nomination - all see her as playing a part in rebuilding the party. None thought she would be the next Republican presidential nominee, and only two thought she would even run.

Anderson Cooper | BIO
AC360° Anchor

The Washington Post

Maj. Nidal M. Hasan, the Army psychiatrist believed to have killed 13 people at Fort Hood, was supposed to discuss a medical topic during gave a presentation to senior Army doctors in June 2007. Instead, he lectured on Islam, suicide bombers and threats the military could encounter from Muslims conflicted about fighting wars in Muslim countries.

Go here to view Hasan's entire presentation.

A memorial to the victims was erected at the apartment complex where suspect Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan lived.

Mark Thompson
Time

Less than 1% of America's 1.4 million troops are Muslim — and that number is only the military's best guess, since just 4,000 troops have declared their faith in their service records. By all accounts, the percentage of Muslims who are outstanding, competent or misfit soldiers is proportional to that of every other ethnic group. But that logic is increasingly hard to hear in the aftermath of Major Nidal Hasan's killing spree at Fort Hood in Texas.

While the word was merely whispered in the hours following Hasan's rampage, Senator Joe Lieberman, who chairs the Homeland Security Committee, made it close to explicit on Fox News on Sunday. He didn't call Hasan a terrorist, but Lieberman suggested the psychiatrist became "an Islamic extremist" while in the Army and should have been weeded out of the ranks. Ralph Peters, a retired Army officer representing a not-insignificant strain inside the U.S. military, said in the New York Post that Hasan raised all sorts of red flags and that the Army was too timid to address them. "Political correctness killed those patriotic Americans at Fort Hood as surely as the Islamist gunman did," wrote Peters. "Maj. Hasan will be a hero to Islamist terrorists abroad and their sympathizers here."

Determining whether Hasan's actions were inspired by religious fervor (he reportedly said "Allahu akbar" before opening fire), his exposure to the mental trauma of the soldiers he counseled or other unknown factors may be impossible. Hasan is in intensive care at a San Antonio hospital, breathing without a respirator. But given his mental state, even he may not know what caused him to kill.

Read More...

CNN

Thirteen people died after a mass shooting Thursday at Fort Hood, a sprawling Army post in Texas. Take a look at this gallery to learn more about the victims.

____________________________________________________________________

Tammy Lewis Engel, the owner of the day care center.

Gabriel Falcon
AC360° Writer

The owner of an Indiana day care center has been arrested for allegedly using methamphetamine inside the facility, authorities in Evansville said Monday.

The owner, Tammy Lewis Engel, 43, was charged with methamphetamine possession, marijuana possession, and drug paraphernalia possession.

A second suspect, Gene Michael Hoover, 32, was charged with dealing methamphetamine out of the day care center. He was also accused of methamphetamine possession and child neglect.

Gene Michael Hoover was charged with dealing methamphetamine out of the day care center.

According to the Evansville Police Department, patrol officers responded Sunday evening to reports of drug use at Your Day Care, a licensed child care center operating within Engel's home.

When the officers arrived, they observed a man smoking meth inside the home, police said. A news release alleges three grams of methamphetamine packaged for sale, marijuana and a marijuana pipe were recovered from the scene.

Three children were in the residence at the time the drugs were found, according to the police news release.

One police official, who asked not to be identified because of the ongoing investigation, said the day care center has been in existence for around 20 years. The official told CNN she removed her young child from the facility about two months ago because, in her words “something wasn’t sitting right.”

“I had some suspicions, but I didn’t have any confirmation, but I was uncomfortable with it,” she said. “I just knew it was a matter of time.”

Both suspects were denied bail. They are being held at the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center.

Police said the day care center’s license is in the process of being revoked.

For more crime coverage go to cnn.com/crime.

Stamps on one of Chris Guillebeau's passports.

Chris Guillebeau
AC360° Contributor

This post is relevant for readers with U.S. passports who travel frequently. If you don’t fit in that group, feel free to skip this one — or just read it for the entertainment value.

I’ve mentioned a few times that I have two U.S. passports, and each time at least one person asks me how that works. Well, I’ll tell you exactly how I got the second passport, and what you need to do if this would help you too.

First, the need for a second passport. Why bother?

U.S. passports are good for a number of reasons: notably, they are valid for 10 years, and when you fill up the pages with lots of stamps and visas, the State Department in Washington, D.C. or any embassy abroad will issue more pages at no charge. I’ve had three passport page extensions so far, and without that option I would have needed at least four passports by this point. No other major country of which I am aware offers a passport that includes both of these important features.

As good as a U.S. passport can be, there are still two problems with having only one passport of any kind. First, when you visit politically sensitive countries (especially in the Middle East), the ensuing stamps can cause delays and other problems for you later.

When I recently came back to the states via Miami, for example, the immigration officer had a least a dozen questions for me as he flipped through the passport. Among other things, he asked me:

Why did you go to Pakistan?

How many days were you there?

Who did you meet with?

Who paid you to go to Karachi?

The irony here is that my trip to Pakistan was a while back, and when I returned to the U.S. at the time, I was waved through without any questions at all. This goes to show that when it comes to immigration, you never really know what’s going to happen until you approach the desk.

I should also mention that the questions are not always confrontational. Many immigration officers are impressed with so many passport pages and stamps, and several have even congratulated me. However, the occasional interrogation is enough to cause me concern, especially when I’m far away from home and relying on the mercies of an unfamiliar country.

Second, as I go further and further throughout the world, I frequently need to arrange some of my visas in advance by applying within the U.S. Some countries do not offer visas on arrival or allow travelers to apply from a third country, and if my passport is in the hands of a consular officer for weeks, then obviously I can’t go anywhere until I get it back.

Thus, the problem: to travel to fun places, you need visas, which require you to send off your passport for a variable length of time. While your passport is sitting somewhere, of course, you can’t go anywhere else. This makes travel hacking and advanced travel planning difficult.

How to Fix the Problem

The U.S. government allows independent travelers to obtain a duplicate (i.e., secondary) passport as long as you can demonstrate a need for it. Specially, you need to:

1. Fill out an application

This is easy. The application is here.

2. Decide if you want to use a service company

You can do this on your own and save at least $50. I used a service company mostly because it looked easier to me. I’m not a journalist, so I wasn’t sure if the State Department would reject my application if I sent it in myself. The company was actually quite helpful, so in this case I’m glad I spent the extra money.

3. Write a letter explaining your need for a second passport

You need to write a one-paragraph letter explaining why you need two passports. It helps if you can include an upcoming itinerary to sensitive countries, or at least a record of frequent international travel in the past.

4. Submit the application and the fees

The cost is US $135 plus whatever fee is charged by the service provider if you use one. Also, note that the second passport is only valid for two years. Unfortunately, you can’t get a second 10-year passport.

Having the second passport has already helped me several times, by being able to send off the new one to random embassies (Russia, Eritrea, etc.) with no real worries since I have another one safely in my office.

In fact, while the increased travel freedom is good, the greatest benefit of having two passports is peace of mind. I don’t have a lot of “treasured possessions” – I value experiences much more than physical things—but if forced to pick something, I’d reach for my 100-country passport. Have you seen all the stamps?

Wrap-Up

As mentioned in the beginning, most people need only one passport. But if you’re adventurous, this may be what you need. If not, at least you know how it works.

Editor’s Note: Chris Guillebeau is a writer and world traveler. He publishes the Art of Nonconformity blog at ChrisGuillebeau.com. Follow Chris on Twitter @chrisguillebeau.

Democrat House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

Jay Newton-Small
Time

On Saturday morning, about 12 hours before the House of Representatives passed sweeping legislation to expand health care coverage to almost all Americans, President Barack Obama did what he does best: he gave an inspirational speech meant to rally recalcitrant House Democrats. Many in the room credited Obama with swaying the last of the fence sitters. "A few members that were leaning no told me afterward that they'd been moved to vote yes," Representative Rob Andrews, a New Jersey Democrat, told reporters after the meeting.

Obama spoke of doing something greater than yourself. He asked House Dems to join him in "bending the arc of history," a phrase he first invoked in his election-victory speech a year ago before 125,000 people in Chicago's Grant Park. And though there was cheering and chants of "Fired up, ready to go!" this was no easy sell for Obama. The vote came the same week as Democrats lost the Virginia and New Jersey governors' mansions, and a day after the Labor Department reported a 26-year record unemployment rate of 10.2%. Preaching altruism in such a climate to politicians bent on self-preservation is tough. In the end Democrats lost 39 of their own — passing the bill 220-215 with a cushion of just two votes, one of those a Republican in a heavily Democratic Louisiana district.

Democrats on Capitol Hill spent some of the aftermath congratulating themselves on their historic achievement, but they knew as well as anyone that it was far too early to really celebrate. Obama's speech, after all, was strikingly partisan, lambasting the GOP for doing nothing more than "saying no, stopping progress, gumming up the works." That change in tone from his fruitless attempts at outreach 10 months before in the run-up to the stimulus vote made it clear that Democrats are now resigned to going it alone both in the House and the Senate. Majority leader Harry Reid has moved away from the lone Republican still negotiating on health care, Maine's Olympia Snowe, and toward a plan to pass the bill relying solely on Democratic votes, of which he'll need every one in order to overcome the threat of a filibuster by Republicans.

Read More...

Candy Crowley and David Gergen
CNN Senior Political Correspondents

Reporter's Note: President Obama is now pushing into Senate land with his health care reform hopes, and I’m pushing toward the 300th day of my letters to the White House.

President Obama and spokesman Robert Gibbs talk at a White House event in June.

Tom Foreman | BIO
AC360° Correspondent

Dear Mr. President,

Aghghhhh! (That’s the sound of me screaming) Your press secretary, Robert Gibbs, today did precisely the kind of thing that drives reporters and voters crazy. He was being pressed on a question: Do you (meaning you, the president… not him, the media flak) expect to sign a health care reform bill into law this year?

His answer, after tap dancing like the late, great Gregory Hines on a boardwalk, was, “The president wants to sign health care before the end of the year.” With all respect, that’s the kind of answer politicians give, not normal human beings. The question was direct and fair. You have made it clear that you see health care reform as an urgent matter. For a reporter to ask if that includes a timetable is reasonable. But when NBC’s Chuck Todd asked for clarity, he was greeted with derision. “How much clearer could I be?” Gibbs responded.

I’m going to go with, “a lot clearer.” The difference is vast between “The president wants to sign” and “The president intends to sign.” Or “expects to sign.” Or “is putting those Capitol Hill feather-weights on notice that he’d better have a bill by December 31st, or the Times Square ball won’t be the only thing being dropped on New Year’s Eve.” Saying the president “wants to sign” is clearly intended to push Congress; but it’s tough talk with a loophole; if you don’t get what you want, you’ll just say, “Well, we never set a deadline.”

The funny thing is, neither you, nor Gibbs, nor anyone else on your team owes us an answer to that question. You could easily and reasonably say, “I’m sorry, Chuck, but I’m not answering that. This president is not going to be cornered over artificial deadlines. We feel that health care reform is pressing, and important, but we’re not going to rush to get something passed just so we can sign it before the snow flies. If it takes longer to get it right, and get it approved, that’s o.k. with us.” That sounds strong, and is quite clear.

Instead, what we got was just the thing you promised to get rid of: That same old DC doublespeak. Ah well. I’ve had my say. And maybe I’ve had too much caffeine. It just really rubbed me the wrong way. Give me a buzz if you think I’m off base, or if you just want to chat things over. Nice weather here lately, huh?

Regards,

Tom

Follow Tom on Twitter @tomforemancnn.

Find more of the Foreman Letters here.

His shooting spree left at least 10 dead and millions terrified of bullets coming from an unseen sniper.

But Mildred Muhammad believes she was the ultimate target of her ex-husband, John Allan Muhammad, the man dubbed the "D.C. Sniper."

And for some time, Muhammad said she felt extreme guilt for the victims that were gunned down in grocery store parking lots and gas stations. The youngest was a 13-year-old boy who was shot while walking to his Maryland school.

Muhammad spoke about the guilt she felt after the killing spree on CNN's "Larry King Live" on Monday night, the day before her ex-husband was scheduled to be executed.

Keep Reading...

Anderson Cooper | BIO
AC360° Anchor

Republicans pulled off a significant victory with Robert McDonnell defeating Creigh Deeds.

Julian E. Zelizer
Special to CNN

Republicans have been downright giddy following the off-year elections in Virginia and New Jersey. In a swing state and a blue state, Republicans pulled off significant victories with Chris Christie's defeat of Gov. John Corzine and Robert McDonnell defeating Creigh Deeds.

Just two days after the election, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, who had boasted of the results as evidence of a "Republican Renaissance," issued a stern warning to his colleagues. Steele said that his message for the 2010 midterm elections was that Republicans should remain loyal to the party principles, or "we'll come after you."

Republicans certainly can take some comfort in this election. It is clear that some of the excitement about the Democratic Party has faded since the beginning of 2009. The so-called jobless recovery, with unemployment now at 10.2 percent, is not sitting well with many Americans.

Keep Reading...

Army Spc. Ryan Hill and daughter, Emma, 3, light a candle Saturday near the main gate of Fort Hood in Texas.

Eliza Browning
AC360° Associate Producer

A memorial service for the 13 victims of last week’s shooting at Fort Hood will be held this afternoon at 2 p.m. ET. President Obama and the First Lady will attend the service and the President is expected to meet with the families of those who were killed. The service will be live on CNN starting at 1:30 p.m. ET and it will also be streamed on CNN.com/live.

Last night we learned that Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the army psychiatrist accused of perpetrating the killings at Fort Hood apparently told senior Army physicians more than a year ago that Muslim soldiers should be allowed to be released as conscientious objectors instead of fighting in wars against other Muslims. He also was known for speaking out about Islam, suicide bombers and threats the military could encounter from Muslims conflicted about fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Were these red flags? Could these have been missed opportunities for officials to intervene? And although investigators believe Hasan acted alone, his communications were flagged by U.S. intelligence agency in late 2008, according to the FBI. Drew Griffin will have the latest developments for us tonight.

We're also following the DC sniper story today. John Allen Muhammad’s shooting spree left at least 10 dead during his sniper-style attack in 2002. He is scheduled to be executed tonight at 9 p.m. ET by lethal injection at a state prison near Jarratt, Virginia. During two lengthy trials – including one in which his accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, testified – Muhammad continued to profess his innocence. Yesterday, the Supreme Court refused to block his execution. His second ex-wife, Mildred Muhammad, told Larry King she believes she was his ultimate target.

Tonight we are covering the developments related to the execution and we will bring you part two of our special, looking back at the timeline of terror that led to the arrest and eventual conviction of the so-called “DC sniper.” We’ll hear firsthand accounts from reporters and witnesses who were there seven years ago while the horrifying events unfolded more than seven years ago.

Former President Bill Clinton is having lunch with Senate Democrats today to address the caucus about health care. Do you think Clinton’s presence will make a difference? Many point to the failure of his administration to pass health care reform was a precursor to the Democrats’ suffering on Election Day. Do you think there’s any truth to that? There are major differences between the Clinton Administration’s plan and the proposal currently working its way through the legislative process. Does it matter?

We’ll also take a look at the role abortion is playing in health care reform. An amendment that tightened restrictions against abortion insurance coverage was a late addition to the House bill that narrowly passed on Saturday night by a 220-215 vote. Now Democratic senators are lining up on opposite sides of the issue, adding a new hurdle to President Obama’s goal of getting a final bill passed this year.

The House measure says that federal subsidies cannot be used to buy health policies that cover elective abortion. But abortion rights supporters say that would affect a broad set of consumers, because they believe insurers would likely abandon abortion coverage in all policies. What do you think? Can the abortion issue be separated from the overhaul of our health care system or is it a key topic in the debate?

What else are you following today? Let us know and see you at 10 p.m. ET.

Editor's Note: After last night's AC360°, we heard from many of you about the DC Snipers. Some commented about the unfortunate timing of the DC sniper story, given the recent shootings at Fort Hood and in Orlando last week. What do you think? Let us know! We always want to hear your feedback.

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Anderson, the sniper killings in Delaware is a horrible story. I hope there is a good reason for bringing it back up now. Sometimes I turn off your show because it is too gruesome.

The coverage of the anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall was absolutely idiotic. The Wall fell. It was due to Reagan's famous line which was almost not given. Can anything be more sophomoric in its superficiality and sensationalism? The event deserves a real report. Shame on you!

It was interesting to see your old footage of the D.C. Sniper stories. I wasn't watching back then, so it was something to see. It was a frightening time and it was because of the anonymity. These shots were coming out of nowhere. If the killers had gone on a killing spree out in the open, knocking over 7-11s, it would not have been quite as terrifying. But the idea of not seeing the threat coming, while you are doing chores, stopping for gas . . . that's what made it frightening, for all of us across the nation. So, I cannot imagine how it felt to be a sitting duck for the locals.