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Show World&Nation Wednesday, Sep. 5, 2007 President Bush defends troop buildup in Iraq ; SYDNEY, Australia (AP) - President Bush • vigorously defended his troop buildup in Iraq '• on Wednesday, and got a boost when Australian ! Prime Minister John Howard said his country's ', forces there won't change for the foreseeable future. ; "Our commitment to Iraq remains," pledged ; Howard, one of Bush's few remaining staunch war • allies. "This is not the time for any proposals of a '• scaling down of Australian forces." The two men ! spoke at a news conference. ! Bush, his voice rising before he had even been ; asked a question about the war, spoke forcefully 1 about the 30,000 additional American troops he • sent to Iraq this year. His decision raised troop lev'• els in Iraq to about 160,000. '. "If I didn't think we could succeed, I wouldn't ; have our troops there," he said. ; Bush said it was important "that we hang in • there with the Iraqis and help them." Australia participated in the U.S.-led invasion of '. Iraq in 2003 and still has about 1,600 troops in and ', around the country, 550 of them in combat roles. ; Yet the war remains unpopular here, and Howard ; faces an aggressive challenge in elections expected • to be called within three months. Bush made a surprise, 8-hour stop in Iraq on ! the way to Australia and filled Howard in on what ! he learned. Like he does with U.S. lawmakers and ; coalition partners around the world, he urged that decisions about troops be based on conditions on • the ground rather than internal politics. "The security situation is changing," Bush said. '• "There's more work to be done. But reconciliation '. is taking place." I Bush returns to Washington this weekend ahead ; of an expected showdown with war opponents on • Capitol Hill, kicked off next week with testimony • from the top U.S. commander and diplomat in Iraq I and their expected release of a progress report on ! the fighting. ; Administration officials said Gen. David ; Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, and ; Ambassador Ryan Crocker are recommending • that Bush stand by his current war strategy. The '. officials also said the president is unlikely to order ', more than a symbolic cut in troops before the end ; of the year. ; Bush's troop increase will end by default in • April or May, when one of the added brigades is • slated to leave, unless Bush makes other changes to '. hold the number steady. ! The president would not elaborate on his com; ments at the start of the trip in Iraq and then on ; the flight to Australia in which he hinted at troop Mixed reviews on progress in Iraq A Government Accountability Office report showed that Iraq met only three of 18 benchmarks set by the U.S. government, .compared to eight in a White House report released in July. White • Satisfactory/met © Some progress/partially met House O Unsatisfactory/unmet OToo early to assess A £ PRESIDENT BUSH MEETS with troops in Iraq. Bush • made a suprise visit on Labor Day. AP photo withdrawals if security conditions keep improving. He reiterated his belief that troop-level decisions should be based on recommendations from military commanders. "Whether or not that's part of the policy I announce to the nation ... why don't we see what they say and then I'll let you know," Bush said, referring to Petraeus and Crocker. In Iraq on Monday, Bush met with Iraqi government and Sunni tribal leaders, U.S. troops and their commanders at a military base in the heart of Anbar province, once rife with Sunni insurgents. Bush was spending much of Wednesday with Howard ahead of a 21-nation Asia-Pacific summit later in the week. The two leaders exchanged pleasantries before talks at the Commonwealth Parliament Offices within sight of Sydney Harbor. Later, Bush and Howard took a 20-minute boat ride across the harbor's choppy waters to Garden Island, where they had lunch with Australian troops under a tent. Carrying a hearty portion of prawns, plus corn on the cob and other items, the president bantered with soldiers as he went through the food line. Bush's visit was expected to be accompanied by a series of protests by groups unhappy with the summit's pro-business agenda, the Iraq war and the Howard government's support for it. An Australian reporter, beginning a question, mentioned how the extraordinary security for Bush's visit had transformed Sydney. This prompted Bush to break in with an apology. "Look 1 don't want to come to a community to say what a pain it is to have the American president. Unfortunately, however, this is what authorities thought was necessary to protect people," he said. "I apologize to the Australian people if I have caused this inconvenience." As host of the Pacific Rim forum, Howard has put a declaration on climate change and curbing global warming high on the agenda. Millionaire Steve Fossett missing since flight takeoff MINDEN, Nev. (AP) -Millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett, who has cheated death time and again in his successful pursuit of aviation records, was missing Tuesday after taking off in a singleengine plane the day before to scout locations for a land-speed record, officials said. Teams searched a broad swath of rugged terrain in western Nevada near the ranch where he took off, but searchers had little to go on because he apparently didn't file a flight plan, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said. "They are working on some leads, but they don't know where he is right now," FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said. Fossett, the first person to circle the world solo in a balloon, was seeking places for an upcoming attempt to break the land speed record in a car, said Sir Richard Branson, the U.K. billionaire who has helped finance many of Fossett's adventures. The 63-year-old took off alone at 8:45 a.m. Monday from an airstrip at hotel magnate Barron Hilton's Flying M Ranch, about 70 miles southeast of Reno. A friend reported him missing when he didn't return, authorities said. Fourteen aircraft were searching for Fossett in addition to ground crews, said Maj. Cynthia S. Ryan of the Civil Air Patrol. The teams were conducting grid searches over 7,500 square miles an area larger than Connecticut but were concentrating on an area of 600 square miles. "It is a very large haystack, and an airplane is a very small needle, no doubt about it," Ryan said during a late afternoon news conference. The terrain of the search area is varied, ranging from high deserts with dry lake beds and sagebrush to rugged mountain peaks. The landscape, combined with gusty winds, complicated Tuesday's search. It is not uncommon for pilots flying out of a remote, private airstrip to do so without filing a flight plan, Ryan said. Fossett had "full radio capability" but did not make radio contact with anyone at the ranch after his takeoff. The plane Fossett was in carried a locator that sends a satellite signal after a rough landing, but no such signal had been received. Nevada National Guard aircraft planned to continue searching until late Tuesday, with full rescue efforts resuming Wednesday morning. Those aircraft are equipped with infrared and other hightech vision equipment, said Col. Craig Wroblewski, the Guard's director of operations. With infrared cameras, darkness can make it easier for search and rescue teams to spot a downed pilot if still alive because body heat can make a figure appear to glow against a dark terrain. "We just want to find him alive," Wroblewski said. In 2002, Fossett became the first person to fly around the world alone in a balloon. In two Page 17 ^ 0 ^ A ^ o o o o o Forming a Constitutional Review Committee and completing the constitutional review. Enacting law on procedures to form semi-autonomous regions. Establishing supporting political, media, economic and services committees in support of the Baghdad security plan. Providing three trained and ready Iraqi brigades to support Baghdad operations. Ensuring that the Baghdad security plan will not provide a safe haven for outlaws, regardless of sectarian or political affiliation. Establishing all of the planned joint security stations in neighborhoods across Baghdad. Ensuring that the rights of minority political parties in the Iraqi legislature are protected. Allocating and spending $10 billion for reconstruction projects. Enacting law on de-Baathification. Enacting law to ensure the equitable distribution of energy resources. Providing Iraqi commanders with all authorities to execute security plan and to make tactical and operational decisions. Ensuring that the Iraqi security forces are providing even-handed enforcement of the law. Increasing the number of Iraqi security forces units capable of operating independently. o © 0 © © O O O O o o Ensuring that Iraq's political authorities are not undermining or making false accusations against members of the Iraqi security forces. o © Reducing the level of sectarian violence in Iraq and eliminating militia control of local security. o Enacting law establishing an Independent High Electoral Commission, provincial elections law, provincial council authorities, and a date for provincial elections. Enacting law addressing amnesty. Enacting law establishing a strong militia disarmament program. o o o © o o Weofc«nd gross Top 10 at the box office U H ^ J Gross to dale • Weeks in release • Theaters 1. Hao l ween ^ ^ ^ H B r ^ J 2. Superbad ^ • • H 3. Balls of Fury • ^ H u t f S ^ ^ I 4- T h e Bourne Ultimatum R^L^Hi Domestic revenues for Aug. 31-Sept. 3 Dollar figures in millions 5 Rush Hour 3 | J ] H H | * 6. Mr. Bean's Holiday ^ ^ ^ H 7. The Nanny Diaries ^ ^ H 8. Death Sentence _^_^_J^^B 9. War SOURCE: Media By Numbers, LLC Columbia Pictures 10. Stardust $30.6 S30.6 1 3,472 SI 5.9 $92.7 3 3,002 S14.1 S17.1 1 3,052 S13.4 $202.8 5 3.290 310.8 S122.7 4 3,008 $7.9 $20.9 2 1,765 S6.6 $16.7 2 2,636 $5.3 $5.3 1 1,822 S5.3 S18.2 2 2,277 $4.1 $32.1 4 1,766 At the Green Canyon Farms Corn Maze money doesn't grow on trees .it grows out their ears! • MILLIONAIRE STEVE FOSSET waves to the crowd in this file photo. A small plane carrying the aviation adventurer has been missing since Monday night. AP photo weeks, his balloon flew 19,428.6 miles around the Southern Hemisphere. The record came after five previous attempts some of them spectacular and frightening failures. It is among dozens of firsts claimed by Fossett in his life as an adventurer, which he embarked on after a successful career in securities. He set marks for speed or distance in balloons, airplanes, gliders, sailboats even cross-country skis and an airship, according to his Web site. In March 2005, he became the first person to fly a plane solo around the world without refueling. He and a co-pilot also claim to have set a world glider altitude record of 50,671 feet during a flight in August 2006 over the Andes Mountains. Branson said in a statement that Fossett's flight Monday was preparation for a shot at yet another mark: He was searching for dry lake beds that might be suitable for an attempt to break the land speed record in a car. Fossett was flying solo and had filled the plane's two fuel tanks, Branson said. "Steve is a tough old boot. I suspect he is waiting by his plane right now for someone to pick him up," he said. "Based on his track record, I feel confident we'll get some good news soon." Fossett has survived a number of close calls, including a 29,000-foot plunge into the Coral Sea after his balloon ripped during a storm in 1998. He was eventually rescued by a schooner. Fossett has an application pending before the U.S. Bureau of Land Management for a permit to attempt the land-speed record on federal land in north-central Nevada's Eureka County, BLM officials said. . . . ••I your "Corny Cash" at the Green Canyon Farms Corn Maze and (Bring a elate, but np n>bblin' on 2850 N 50 E North Logan (North of Eccles Ice Arena) Fr 15-12 Sat 2-12 Call 755-7872 for more info. Opens Friday Sept.*?!!! AP |