HCHRISTMAS TREE ARRIVES BY WAGON AT WHITE HOUSE

hChristmas tree arrivesby wagon at White House
WASHINGTON -- Two horses wearing Santa caps stand outside the White House after pulling the 2005 White House Christmas tree on a wagon up the driveway to the North Portico. The 181/2 foot Fraser Fir tree from North Carolina arrived at the White House Monday, where it will be decorated and displayed in the Blue Room. The tree was donated by Earl and Betsy Deal and their son Buddy of Smokey Holler Tree Farm in Laurel Springs, N.C. Gary Walters, chief usher at the White House, and Mike Lawn, grounds foreman, selected the tree at the Deals' farm Oct. 20. The tree for the Blue Room as well as trees for the Bush family's private residence and the Oval Office were cut Nov. 25 and transported to Washington.
Marble molding fallsfrom Supreme Court
WASHINGTON -- A basketball-sized piece of marble molding fell from the facade over the entrance to the Supreme Court Monday, landing on the steps near visitors waiting to enter the building. No one was hurt. The chunk of Vermont marble was part of the dentil molding that serves as a frame for nine sculptural figures completed in 1935. The piece that fell was over the figure of Authority, near the peak of the building's pediment, and to the right of the figure of Liberty, who has the scales of justice on her lap. A group of visitors had just entered the building and had passed under the pediment when the stone fell at 9:30 a.m. EST.
Canadian governmentfalls in no-confidence vote
TORONTO -- A corruption scandal forced a vote of no-confidence Monday that toppled Prime Minister Paul Martin's minority government, triggering an unusual election campaign during the Christmas holidays. Canada's three opposition parties, which control a majority in Parliament, voted against Martin's government, saying his Liberal Party no longer has the moral authority to lead the nation. The loss means an election for all 308 seats in the lower House of Commons, likely on Jan. 23. Martin and his Cabinet would continue to govern until then. The opposition is banking on the public's disgust with a corruption scandal involving the misuse of funds targeted for a national unity program in Quebec.
Gaza primary electioncanceled after violence
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip -- The ruling Fatah Party canceled its primary in Gaza at the end of a full day of voting Monday after gunmen disrupted at least a dozen polling places, firing in the air and stealing some ballot boxes. The violence underscored Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas' inability to maintain order in the Gaza Strip, or even in his own party, as Fatah tries to fight off a strong challenge from the Islamic Hamas group in the Jan. 25 parliamentary elections. The vote Monday was part of the first-ever primary held by Fatah, a democratic reform considered crucial to removing the taint of corruption from the party.
Relatives demand entryinto mine where 134 died
QITAIHE, China -- Anxious relatives demanded to be allowed into a coal mine Monday after an explosion killed at least 134 miners and left 15 others missing, adding to a soaring death toll in China's mines despite a safety crackdown. The blast in the Dongfeng Coal Mine prompted national leaders to demand stricter enforcement of safety rules in China's mining industry, by far the world's deadliest, with more than 5,000 fatalities a year in fires, floods and other accidents. The disaster late Sunday came as the nearby city of Harbin was struggling to recover from a toxic spill in a river that forced the government to cut off water supplies for five days.
Associated Press