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  January 8, 2010, 11:11 am

U.S. Olympic Committee to host Warrior Games

By Roxana Tiron

The U.S. Olympic Committee will host a sports competition for wounded warriors this year, the first of its kind.

The Pentagon announced Thursday that some 200 wounded members of the military and veterans will compete in the inaugural Warrior Games to be held May 10-14 in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Events will include shooting, swimming, archery, track, discus, shot put, cycling, sitting volleyball and wheelchair basketball (shown here being played by Marines this fall at the White House while President Obama looks on).

Army Brig. Gen. Gary Cheek, commander of the U.S. Army Warrior Transition Command, made the announcement at a Pentagon news conference on Thursday.

Athletes will be recruited from each military service, including the Coast Guard, through an independent selection process, according to the Pentagon’s news service. Competitors will train with Olympic and Paralympics coaches at the Olympic training facilities in Colorado for about a month before the actual competition.

The competition is open to military members and veterans with bodily injuries as well as mental wounds of war, such as post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury, according to the Pentagon’s news service.

The Army will send 100 soldiers chosen from a pool of almost 9,000 wounded warriors; the Marine Corps will send 50 competitors; the Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard will send 25 each.

“While we've made enormous progress in all the military services in our warrior care, … it's not enough,” Cheek said.

“And what we have to do with our service members is inspire them to reach for and achieve a rich and productive future -- to defeat their illness or injury to maximize their abilities and know that they can have a rich and fulfilling life beyond what has happened to them in service to their nation.”


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  January 8, 2010, 10:41 am

HHS Secretary Sebelius spends quiet evening out

By Kate Oczypok

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and what looked to be her husband Gary were spotted at the W Hotel's Wine Bar Thursday evening around 7 p.m. Sebelius, who arrived at the bar located below J&G Steakhouse, wore a black skirt and matching jacket with a large gold dove brooch.

Sebelius and her dining companion ordered red wine at the bar and then were seated at a table, where they enjoyed a steak dinner in a quiet corner.

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  January 8, 2010, 10:33 am

After minor car accident, Schock tweets comparison with Tiger Woods

By Christina Wilkie

Illinois has caught some of the worst of the season's snowstorms, and on Thursday the state's its icy roads claimed another victim: Rep. Aaron Schock (R-Ill.). Schock's car reportedly hit a patch of ice while he was driving in Peoria, causing him to lose control and skid into another car.

Luckily the accident was minor; there were no inujureis and the two drivers agreed not to involve the police, according to celebrity gossip site TMZ

On Friday, Schock riffed on golf legend Tiger Woods' well-known auto accident in a Twitter post about his own mishap on the road. He also took aim at the celebrity gossip site TMZ, which posted the incident.

TMZ also extensively covered Woods' crash, prompting Schock to tweet:

Glad tmz is reporting on a car accident that doesn't involve fire hydrants or golf clubs and I'm glad no one was hurt http://bit.ly/6u7I43

The circumstances surrounding Woods' crash led to revelations that he had cheated on his wife Elin Nordegren with multiple other women. Nordegren has since left Woods.


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  January 7, 2010, 5:47 pm

Smithsonian to feature Elvis exhibit

By Kate Oczypok

To celebrate the 75th anniversary of Elvis Presley’s birth Friday, the Smithsonian will showcase Presley’s life in D.C. and Los Angeles.

ABC News reported the exhibit, “One Life: Echoes of Elvis” will be at the National Portrait Gallery through August. It will be a one-room exhibit and show the evolution and influence of Presley’s image after his death in 1977.

Artwork from an Elvis stamp design competition as well as a gold bust of Presley as Julius Caesar will be on display.

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  January 7, 2010, 5:45 pm

Biden's 92-year-old mother 'seriously ill'

By Michael O'Brien

Vice President Joe Biden's mother is "seriously ill," the White House announced Thursday.

The vice president's family has returned home to Wilmongton, Del., where his 92-year-old mother, Catherine Eugenia "Jean" Biden, has been sick.

The White House said in a statement: "The Vice President is at home today in Wilmington, Delaware where he has gathered with family to spend time with his mother, who has taken seriously ill in recent days."

Pictured here with Vice President Biden, Jean Biden was hospitalized in March of 2009 after falling.

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  January 7, 2010, 5:14 pm

Rep. Loretta Sanchez celebrates her 50th birthday with a fiesta

By Christina Wilkie

Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) turned 50 on Thursday, and she has a lofty goal for the half-century mark: "My biggest [personal] goal is to learn to play the piano," she told ITK in an email. 

Learning a new instrument is tough enough, but Sanchez intends to do it while maintaining a bi-coastal lifestyle, chairing the Homeland Security Committee's Subcommittee on Border, Maritime and Global Counterterrorism, and getting re-elected this fall. Phew!

With all this, somehow Sanchez still has the energy to throw a rocking birthday party this Friday night in the Golden State, where the entertainment will include legendary Puerto Rican singer Rita Moreno, Mexican actor and performer Fernando Allende, and award-winning DJ Tony Moran.

Revelers will dance the night away at an auspiciously named Anaheim, Calif. restaurant: White House.

Also on the birthday agenda is a hike with her girlfriends, which is likely to include her sister and fellow congresswoman, Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.)

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  January 7, 2010, 5:10 pm

Sen. Boxer to attend Sundance Film Festival

By Kate Oczypok

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) will be headed out west later this month to attend the Sundance Film Festival. The Creative Coalition recently sent out a notice that said Boxer will be at a Jan. 24 cocktail reception.

The party will be in honor of “Climate Refugees,” a documentary film about climate change leading to population displacement.

Boxer is chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee and is active in climate change legislation.

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  January 7, 2010, 4:05 pm

Naked jogger streaks outside the White House

By Christina Wilkie

In what could be one of the best streaking incidents ever, a jogger stripped down to his birthday suit outside the White House on Wednesday evening and began running around the perimeter of the property.

The escapade ended about a minute later, when Secret Service agents took him into custody.

The incident took place at around 5 p.m.; it was already dark and temperature was a chilly 35 degrees.

The Associated Press reported that authorities have yet to release the man's name, but they said that he ditched his clothes in a duffel bag near the Ellipse before his "run."

President Barack Obama was home at the time, and the incident was treated seriously despite the fact that the jogger did not threaten the president. The man was later hospitalized for a psychiatric evaluation, but it was not clear whether he will face charges.

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  January 7, 2010, 2:06 pm

Former President Reagan's grandson arrested

By Kate Oczypok

The grandson of former President Ronald Reagan was arrested early Thursday morning at his parent’s old home in Van Nuys, California.

Cameron Reagan, 31, was allegedly drunk and hostile when police arrived at the scene, Radar Online reported. Reagan was yelling at officers, touching them and calling them names. He was charged with resisting arrest and he remains in custody.

Cameron is the son of Fox News commentator Michael Reagan. Michael Reagan has a Web site, Reagan.com, whose primary goal is to “bring the party back to Reagan.”

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  January 7, 2010, 1:58 pm

Former congressman to appear in Abramoff scandal documentary

By Kate Oczypok

Bob Ney, a former Republican congressman from Ohio, will appear in an upcoming documentary about the Jack Abramoff scandal.

Ney resigned from Congress in 2006 after he pled guilty to charges of conspiracy and making false statements in relation to the Abramoff case.

The Associated Press reported that Ney, who served time in prison, will attend the film’s premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah. 

Ney wasn't paid for his appearance in “Casino Jack and the United States of Money.”

He was the first member of Congress to admit to criminal charges in relation to the Abraham case and was accused of taking action on behalf of Abramoff's lobbying clients in exchange for bribes and trips, including the infamous golf trip to Scotland.

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