White House to Unveil More Restrictive Nuke Policy
The Obama administration is set to unveil a new policy on nuclear weapons, which narrow the circumstances under which the United States would use such weapons. The Associated Press reports: “The U.S. officials said the administration’s new policy would stop short of declaring that the United States would never be the first to launch a nuclear attack, as many arms control advocates had recommended. But it would describe the weapons’ purpose as ‘primarily’ or ‘fundamentally’ to deter or respond to a nuclear attack. The officials said the document would say it is a U.S. goal to move toward a policy in which the ‘sole purpose’ of nuclear weapons is to deter or respond to nuclear attack. That wording would all but rule out the use of such weapons to respond to an attack by conventional, biological or chemical weapons. Previous U.S. policy was more ambiguous.”
Obama’s Day Ahead
President Obama will host an Easter Prayer Breakfast at 9:40 a.m. ET. He will receive the presidential daily briefing at 10:45 a.m. ET, and the economic daily briefing at 12 p.m. ET. He will have lunch with Vice President Biden at 12:30 p.m. ET. He will meet with senior advisers at 2 p.m. ET, and he will meet with Secretary of Defense Robert Gates at 4:30 p.m. ET.
Biden’s Day Ahead
Vice President Biden hosted a 7:45 a.m. ET breakfast meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Naval Observatory. At 10 a.m. ET, Biden will visit the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board headquarters, joined by Earl Devaney, Chairman of the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board. He will deliver remarks on ensuring that stimulus money is accounted for. He will attend President Obama’s economic briefing at 12 p.m. ET. He will have lunch with Obama at 12:30 p.m. ET. He will ceremonially administer the oath of office to four federal officials at 2:15 p.m. ET. Later, he and his wife Dr. Jill Biden will travel to San Antonio, Texas, to attend the NCAA Division 1 Women’s Final Four championship basketball game.
Government Seeks Big Fine Against Toyota
The government is seeking to levy a $16.4 million fine against Toyota, the maximum the government could immediately assess, over the recent defects in Toyota cars. “We now have proof that Toyota failed to live up to its legal obligations,” said Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, in a statement. “Worse yet, they knowingly hid a dangerous defect for months from U.S. officials and did not take action to protect millions of drivers and their families.”
Geithner Seeks To Forge Stronger Ties With India
The New York Times reports that Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner is arriving in India today for a two-day trip, which will involve plenty of issues for negotiation: “It is a return of sorts for Mr. Geithner, who lived for five years in New Delhi as a child. Mr. Geithner has his work cut out for him, economists and policy analysts in both India and the United States say. Reaching economic agreements between the two countries has traditionally been an arduous task.”
Iran Says Oil Sanctions Threat A ‘Joke’
The Iranian government is mocking the idea of sanctions from the international community on Iran’s oil exports. “Countries need oil to guarantee their economic growth … talking about imposing sanctions on Iran’s oil sector is like a joke,” said foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast, at a weekly news conference. “Such a move would hurt other (importer) countries.
Meg Whitman Self-Finances Another $20 Million On CA-GOV Race
Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman, a candidate for the Republican nomination for governor of California, put in another $20 million of her own money into her campaign on Monday. This brings Whitman’s total personal contribution into the race to $59 million thus far, in what is expected to be the most expensive gubernatorial race in California history.
