Twenty years ago today, Burundi's first democratically elected Hutu president was assassinated by Tutsi extremists. It sparked a genocide. Guest host Celeste Headlee speaks with survivor Gilbert Tuhabonye about how forgiveness — and running — helped him heal.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is likely to have a very long day when she testifies before Congress about the Affordable Care Act website problems.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is likely to have a very long day when she testifies before Congress about the Affordable Care Act website problems.
The hottest hot seat in Washington is the one occupied by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, whose office confirmed Monday she'll testify about the Internet disaster that is HealthCare.gov, the Affordable Care Act website.
It's not yet clear when she'll go before Congress, but it won't be soon enough for the Republicans who are calling for her resignation. Sebelius originally declined to appear before the House Energy and Commerce Committee Thursday, saying she had a scheduling conflict.
Many Democrats are also fuming at the shambolic roll out of the federal health exchange website, which isn't just an embarrassment to the administration but a threat to President Obama's legacy.
When she does testify, here are five questions Sebelius will almost certainly get:
What did she know and when did she know it?
This is a Washington classic, a staple of any investigatory effort. Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., chairman of the House committee holding Thursday's hearing, has signaled that he wants to know why Sebelius and others told lawmakers the federal government would be ready to go on Oct. 1 when that was far from true.
"Top administration officials repeatedly testified everything was on track, but the broad technological failures reveal that was not the case," Upton said in a news release. "Either the administration was not ready for launch, or it was not up to the job."
How many people have actually "enrolled" in health insurance through the health exchanges?
HHS on Sunday said there were "nearly a half million applications for coverage." But that's a vague number, as is the definition of enrollment. To some, it means submitting an application; to others, it means actually paying for insurance. The administration has been notably reticent about providing details. Which is why the Republican National Committee is trying to pry them out through a Freedom of Information Act request. Expect plenty of questions from House Republicans seeking hard numbers.
How can anyone trust that the problems will be fixed in time when past Obama administration assurances proved so wrong?
The Affordable Care Act's open enrollment period is scheduled to end Dec. 15. In a speech Monday that defended the law while also expressing frustration with the website, Obama said: "We are doing everything we can possibly do to get the websites working better, faster, sooner. We got people working overtime, 24/7, to boost capacity and address the problems."
Still, experts question whether the website can be made to function as well as it needs to in the remaining time. Expect much skepticism about any assurances Sebelius gives.
Do the problems with Obamacare support delaying the individual mandate for a year?
This is likely to be a major line of questioning for Sebelius from Republicans. Obama previewed her likely response when he said that Obamacare is "not just a website" — his point being that the law itself is working just fine, and the flaws of one component aren't enough to delay it. Sebelius is likely to be forced to repeatedly push back against this line of questioning.
Given the scope of the problem, shouldn't she resign?
This is also likely to be a recurring theme during the hearing. Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., a longtime acquaintance, has called for her resignation, as have Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and several House members.
Sebelius has shown no signs that she is considering stepping down and was prominently seated in the front row for Obama's Monday speech. If Sebelius, a holdover from the first term, did step down, it would not only give Obamacare's Republican opponents their biggest trophy yet but would also create more turbulence at a critical moment for the law. So it's unlikely to happen. But that won't stop Republicans from repeatedly posing the question.
Don't even think about posting cartoon nipples
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Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/ewTGNBcfzj0/facebook-is-lifting-its-ban-on-decapitation-videos-1449606221True story: During lunch today, Eva lost her ring somewhere in this sandwich.
True story: During lunch today, Eva lost her ring somewhere in this sandwich.
A food named for its size sets a certain expectation. When you order a McDonald's Quarter Pounder, or Taco Bell's Acre of Beans, you expect volume and satisfaction.
Could the Two Bagger from Lucky's Sandwich Co. here in Chicago, topped with corned beef, pastrami, cole slaw, french fries and cheese, promise even more?
Eva: Two Bags are the only clothes that fit me now.
Robert: Should I be worried they got the two bags out of the front seat pocket of an airplane?
Mike detects notes of pastrami, cole slaw and ring.
Mike detects notes of pastrami, cole slaw and ring.
Miles: There's nothing worse for marketing than naming your sandwich after the worst thing my dog can do on a walk.
Ian: Two Bagger is a good sandwich/name for a sequel to that Will Smith golf movie.
Seconds later, Robert's iPhone was covered in loose pastrami.
Seconds later, Robert's iPhone was covered in loose pastrami.
Mike: Yeah, and it's big enough they should offer a caddy to carry the Two Bagger. Then you just ask for different parts: a piece of pastrami, some slaw or a pitching wedge.
Miles: I think the fact that the sandwich doesn't actually fit in your mouth is nature's way of telling you "STOP IT."
The truth is in there.
Peter: If this were the only food source, then humans would evolve bigger mouths. We'd all look like Anne Hathaway.
Ian: There's something special about a sandwich wrapped in paper. These days, the kids wrap their sandwiches in email and it's just not the same.
Robert: That was paper?
[The verdict: a delicious sandwich, really enhanced by great, soft bread. The fries, though, are unnecessary, adding little more than a dynamic stretching workout for your jaw.]
Sandwich Monday is a satirical feature from the humorists at Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me!
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Overseers of Abu Dhabi's Grand Mosque say they asked pop star Rihanna to leave the compound after she posed for photographs considered to be at odds with the "sanctity" of the site.
Rihanna hasn't publicly responded to the actions by staff at the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Her show took place on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.
Photos posted on various websites show the singer posing on white marble, dressed fully in black, with her hair covered according to the mosque's guidelines.
The mosque statement, published Monday in local newspapers, said Rihanna was in an area normally off limits for visitors. It says the fashion-style photo session violated rules on the "status and sanctity of the mosque."
The mosque is a major tourist site in the United Arab Emirates' capital.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — At 78-years-old Diahann Carroll keeps a sense of humor.
"I don't think I realize what the passage of time really means until people talk about things that I did in the '50s and I wonder 'Who the hell are they talking about?,'" the actress, singer and Golden Globe-winner said while being honored at a House of Flowers dinner Saturday evening.
Beverly Johnson, Angela Bassett, Regina King and Anika Noni Rose were in attendance to applaud Carroll and fellow honoree Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the first African American president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The dinner, hosted by television producer Tracey Edmonds and film and television producer Debra Martin Chase, was held at Edmonds' home.
Fellow honoree Isaacs said the evening made her feel "on top of the world" and described her new post as AMPAS president as "going from zero to 60 in four seconds."
Conceptualized by Chase and deemed House of Flowers after Truman Capote's Broadway play, in which Carroll starred in 1954, the affair was meant to "celebrate female empowerment and to help open doors for future accomplishments," said Edmonds.
"Diahann is a legend who's broken so many barriers and has always represented glamour," said Chase.
Occasionally brushing the soft curls from her face with her heavily jeweled hands, Carroll cracked grins as ladies like Johnson, Bassett and dancer and producer Debbie Allen lined up to collect hugs and kisses.
"I certainly don't feel like an icon," said Carroll in an interview before dinner. "I've had long stretches of unemployment. This is not an easy game." Later in her acceptance speech she said, "I really appreciate knowing that you've heard my name and remember it. I don't even know if I would have been allowed to drive down this street back in the '50s. Being here has given me new passion."
After a 30-year hiatus, Carroll will return to Broadway in April to play Denzel Washington's mother in "A Raisin in the Sun." Rose will also star.
A Tony Award-winner, four-time Emmy nominee, Oscar nominee and the first black actress to star in her own prime-time series, "Julia," Carroll says there is still one role she has yet to conquer: "I would love to be a part of a studio that tells our stories and has a means of growing."
"Julia" debuted in 1968. Carroll is still making TV appearances as a recurring character on USA's "White Collar."
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Follow AP Film Writer Jessica Herndon on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/SomeKind
