Nation & World Digest

Dems down in polls

WASHINGTON

President Barack Obama’s national standing has slipped to a new low after his victory on the historic health-care overhaul, even in the face of growing signs of economic revival, according to the latest Associated Press-GfK poll.

Just 49 percent of people approve of the job Obama’s doing overall, and less than that — 44 percent — like the way he’s handled health care and the economy.

The news is worse for other Democrats. For the first time this year, about as many Americans approve of congressional Republicans as Democrats — 38 percent to 41 percent.

Hijack plot foiled

BAGHDAD

Iraqi security forces disrupted a Sept. 11-style plot by al-Qaida in Iraq to fly hijacked planes into Shiite religious shrines, Iraqi and U.S. officials said Wednesday.

Iraqi security officials said they temporarily shut down at least two airports and have arrested two men — one of the intended pilots and an airport worker — suspected in the plot, which appeared aimed at undermining the country’s stability while U.S. troops prepare to go home.

Twitter archives

SAN FRANCISCO

That Twitter message you just posted about your ham sandwich might now become part of history.

Twitter is donating its archives of tweets to the Library of Congress, going back to the first ones in 2006. The goal is to allow researchers to revisit discussions of significant events, including the protests in Iran last year and the earthquakes in Haiti and elsewhere.

Only tweets meant for public viewing will be available, though. Accounts with more restrictive privacy settings won’t be included.

In announcing the archives Wednesday, Twitter said the Library of Congress won’t be able to offer access to specific tweets until six months after they are posted.

More foreclosures

LOS ANGELES

A record number of U.S. homes were lost to foreclosure in the first three months of this year, a sign banks are starting to wade through the backlog of troubled home loans at a faster pace, according to a new report.

RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday that the number of U.S. homes taken over by banks jumped 9 percent in the first quarter from a year ago. In addition, households facing foreclosure grew 16 percent in the same period and 7 percent from the last three months of 2009.

Study: Illegal whale meat in sushi bars

GRANTS PASS, Ore.

A study released Wednesday offers evidence that whale meat from Japan is illegally being served at sushi restaurants elsewhere.

Scientists from Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport performed DNA tests on whale as part of a project monitoring sources of whale meat offered for sale since 1993.

The findings show that whale meat from Japan’s scientific whaling program is becoming part of an illegal international trade — and ending up on diners’ plates.

NASA plans opposed

CHICAGO

President Barack Obama is expected to reshape his vision for NASA to emphasize Mars exploration as opposition builds to his controversial plan to move NASA away from manned space missions while commercializing spaceflight.

Jim Lovell, commander of the Apollo 13 mission, and Neil Armstrong, the first man to step on the moon, were among the more than two dozen space explorers to criticize the president’s plan in two scathing letters sent to the White House this week.

The correspondence comes as Obama prepares to make the case for a radical overhaul of the space agency in an address today at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Combined dispatches