Obama, Boehner, Kasich play golf

Obama, Boehner, Kasich play golf

WASHINGTON

President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner put partisanship aside, at least on the golf course, and teamed up to triumph on the final hole Saturday in their long-awaited links outing.

The match pitted the political rivals against Vice President Joe Biden and Ohio’s Republican Gov. John Kasich. The match was won on the 18th hole, with the winning partners each pocketing a $2 prize.

The question now is whether a partnership forged on the tees, fairways and greens of a military base course can yield success in the policy arena.

Yemeni clerics call for elections

SAN‘A, Yemen

More than 100 influential religious clerics and tribal leaders called for the Yemeni president’s ouster and elections to choose a new leader, adding their weight to the opposition movement seeking to end nearly 33 years of autocratic rule by Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The president, who has clung to power despite four months of protests, is undergoing treatment in neighboring Saudi Arabia for serious burns and other injuries from a June 3 attack on his palace in the capital, SanSSLQa. His allies insist he will return to the country within days and resume his duties.

The clerics’ petition, obtained Saturday, demands elections within 60 days and says Saleh is unfit to return to his post.

Source: Pakistan tips off militants

WASHINGTON

U.S. officials say Pakistan apparently has tipped off militants at two more bomb-building factories in its tribal areas, giving the terror suspects time to flee, after U.S. intelligence shared the locations with the Pakistani government. Those officials believe Pakistan’s insistence on seeking local tribal elders’ permission before raiding the areas may have most directly contributed to the militants’ flight, though they also suspect low-level security officials may have tipped off the militants.

FTC OKs Microsoft $8.5B bid for Skype

washington

The Federal Trade Commission is letting software giant Microsoft Corp. proceed with its largest deal ever, an $8.5 billion bid for web chat and call service Skype.

The FTC announced Friday that it had finished its review of the buyout so it can proceed if the Department of Justice also approves. Both agencies must review any deal worth more than $65.2 million, according to the FTC’s website.

Associated Press