The Wall Street Journal-20080125-World-Wide
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Congress and the White House reached a deal on a stimulus plan.
The centerpiece of the package is $100 billion in tax rebates for an estimated 117 million families. Most individual taxpayers would get $600; working couples would receive $1,200. Businesses would be able to deduct an additional 50% of the cost of certain investments. One provision raises the dollar limit on mortgages that can be bought or guaranteed by Fannie and Freddie.
Economists said the measures, coming as the risk of a downturn rises, could boost growth this year by three-quarters of a point to a full point.
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The economy is the top campaign issue for 2008, replacing last year's focus on Iraq and terrorism, according to the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.
McCain has the best chance to win against the Democrats, 37% of respondents said in the poll. Romney was far back in second, with 16%.
The Republican candidates debated ahead of Tuesday's Florida primary. Uncertainty about the economy was a prominent theme.
Democrat Dennis Kucinich is dropping his second, long-shot bid for president as he faces a tough fight to keep his seat in Congress.
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The U.S. is willing to send combat troops into Pakistan to mount joint operations against al Qaeda if the Pakistani government requests the assistance, U.S. officials said.
Musharraf pledged in talks at the World Economic Forum that Pakistan's elections next month will be "free, fair and transparent."
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A suicide bomber killed an Iraqi police chief and two other officers as they surveyed the site of Wednesday's explosion in Mosul. The death toll from that blast rose to at least 34.
Petraeus will remain the top U.S. commander in Iraq at least through fall, Defense Secretary Gates said.
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Britain unveiled plans for tougher terrorism laws that include holding suspects for up to 42 days without charge and creating a database of suspects' DNA samples.
The White House agreed to give House members access to documents about its wiretapping program, ending months of resistance.
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Italian Prime Minister Prodi quit after losing a confidence vote in the Senate, likely thrusting the country into months of uncertainty.
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Egyptian guards took measures to control the influx of Palestinians from Gaza across a breached border but they didn't try to stop the flow.
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Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and challenger Raila Odinga met for the first time since last month's elections exploded into violence.
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Relations with Libya could be chilled by a bill that lets terrorist- attack victims seek greater compensation from foreign governments.
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The State Department said it will name Paul Wolfowitz to head a high-level advisory panel on arms control and disarmament.
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Biologist Craig Venter and his team replicated a bacterium's genetic structure entirely from laboratory chemicals, moving a step closer to creating synthetic life.
