"It was engineered just for that purpose and it is the sort of thing you see campaigns doing more of," Tracey said to the Post.
U.S. enters Katrina bridge shootings case NEW ORLEANS, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. Justice Department officials say they have agreed to examine a 2005 New Orleans incident in which witnesses claim police shot and killed two unarmed men.
Four other people were injured in the incident on the Danziger Bridge in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Survivors say police officers ambushed and opened fire on unarmed men while police officials claimed there was a firefight on the bridge, The Times-Picayune newspaper in New Orleans reported Wednesday.
"As a result of this productive dialog and referral to us, the Civil Rights Division, FBI and our U.S. Attorney's Office will utilize as much time and resources as necessary to determine whether there are any prosecutable violations of federal criminal laws in this matter," Justice Department officials said in a statement.
Federal officials entered the case after Louisiana state district Judge Raymond Bigelow threw out an indictment of six current New Orleans police officers and one former officer on murder and attempted-murder charges in connection with the Danziger Bridge incident.
The New Orleans District Attorney's office is considering whether to appeal Bigelow's decision, The Times-Picayune reported.
GOP leaders urge McCain to attack Obama WASHINGTON, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- Some U.S. Republican Party officials are urging presidential nominee John McCain to step negative attacks on his Democratic opponent Barack Obama.
With recent polls showing McCain, a U.S. senator from Arizona, losing ground to Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois in at least eight key battleground states, some state GOP chairmen say McCain should put relentless focus on Obama's relationships with controversial figures, the Washington Web site Politico reported Wednesday.
They hope McCain can shift the voters' focus from bad economic news -- which polls indicate Republicans are receiving most of the blame for -- back onto Obama's fitness as a person and a leader, Politico said.
Indiana Republican Party Chairman Murray Clark said he wants Obama's "troubling relationships" to be aired, adding, "I think those things will come up in Indiana again and they do have an impact on mainstream voters in Indiana."
Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Robin Smith told Politico he's urging the McCain campaign play up Obama's connections to his controversial former Chicago pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and to convicted Illinois state government influence peddler Antoin "Tony" Rezko.
General says U.S. has no designs on Africa WASHINGTON, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- The United States won't use its military presence in Africa to gain control of the continent's natural resources, the region's top U.S. military officer says.
"There is no hidden agenda," said Gen. William Ward, the head of the new unified U.S. military command for Africa, commonly referred to as Africom. "It is about working with the African nations to help them build their capacity."
Ward told the BBC assertions the United States intends to build large military bases in Africa are "myth and "absolutely not the case." Liberia has offered to host Africom, which has its headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. The United States forces will only be in Africa to provide training "in partnership with our African friends," he said.
Africom, initiated in February 2007 by the Bush administration as a way to focus on security issues on the continent, became fully operational Wednesday. Previously, responsibilities for Africa were split among various commands.
Mauro De-Lorenzo, a resident fellow for foreign and defense policy at the American Enterprise Institute, told the Voice of America he sees Africom as "a positive development."
"Africom is simply going to take over the programs and objectives that were previously carried out by three separate U.S military commands. And most governments won't notice much of a difference," he said. "The content of what they are engaging in with the United States is not going to change very much right now. And certainly citizens will not see anything new or surprising as a result of this."
