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[COMMANDO_0506j]
U.S. Boosts Ranks of Elite Forces
The raid on Osama bin Laden raised the curtain on secret U.S. military capabilities, including its growing ranks of hunter-killer commandos, such as the Navy SEAL team that conducted the attack.
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Al Qaeda Sought to Target Trains
Notes picked up by the Navy SEALs who killed bin Laden prompted a warning of potential al Qaeda threats to U.S. trains.
* [Factory]
Subscriber Content Read Preview
Help Wanted on Factory Floor
U.S. manufacturing companies, long known for layoffs and shipping jobs overseas, now find themselves in a very different position: scrambling for scarce talent at home.
* [OBANYsub3]
Obama Pays Tribute to 9/11 Victims
Obama laid a wreath at Ground Zero, four days after Osama bin Laden's death, to commemorate the 9/11 victims.
o Obama Visits Ground Zero
o Photos: Obama in New York City
* [DEFICITsub]
Subscriber Content Read Preview
Medicare Recedes in Debt Talks
A new round of high level budget negotiations opened Thursday, shadowed by vanishing expectations that Washington will rally around a broad budget bargain or an overhaul of entitlement programs this year.
o Congress Preps for Showdown on Debt
* [pancommod0505]
Commodity Prices Plunge
Commodities prices tumbled, led by the steepest oil-price decline in more than two years, triggering a selloff in stocks as well.
o Asia Today: Commodities Plunge, Singapore Votes
o News Hub: Commodities Plunge; Oil Below $100
o Heard: No More Free Ride for Commodities
o Vote: Is two-year run on commodities ending?
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Subscriber Content Read Preview
Jobless Claims Surge
New claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly surged last week to their highest level since last summer, though analysts blamed one-time factors. Separately, U.S. productivity slowed.
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Lacking Big Names, GOP Debate Spirited
The first debate of the Republican presidential race featured a series of spirited exchanges, with five largely lesser-known candidates taking shots at Obama on foreign policy and the new health-care law while showing differences among themselves.
o Interactive: On the List for 2012?
* [clinton0505]
U.S. Seeks Frozen Assets to Aid Rebels
The Obama administration is working with Congress to pass legislation that would allow the government to tap assets held by Gadhafi and his regime in the U.S. to help fund forces opposing the Libyan dictator.
* [WALTONS2]
Wal-Mart Heirs Give Museum $800 Million
The family of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton pledged to give $800 million to his daughter Alice Walton's new art museum in Arkansas, the largest cash donation ever made to a U.S. art museum.
* [0505bham1]
City's Future Lies in Ruins
Birmingham, Ala., sees the rubble left by last week's tornadoes as an opportunity to remake blighted neighborhoods. What the wreckage could become—and why such dreams can't always come true.
o See video coverage of the Storm
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Hope for Detecting Tornadoes Sooner
Advanced radar, a new satellite, lightning-tracking antennas and low-frequency microphones are among the technologies scientists are developing to warn people earlier about approaching tornadoes.
* [DODDFRANK]
'Systemically Important' Label Divides U.S. Regulators
Federal regulators appeared divided over what to reveal about how they would decide which nonbank financial firms should get the "systemically important" label for being big enough to threaten the financial system.
o Financial Regulation Watch
* [DETFED]
Detroit Eager to Clean Up Reputation
Mayor Dave Bing hopes to free Detroit's police department and its water and sewer system from longtime federal supervision by year's end, but the city is unlikely to reach that goal.
* [FLOOD]
Flooding Threats Flow Downriver
Arkansas and Mississippi braced for flooding as the Mississippi River threatened to reach record heights. A third hole was blasted in a levee.
o Map: Real-Time Risk Levels
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Consumer Agency Stymied by GOP
Republican senators effectively blocked President Barack Obama's ability to nominate a director for the new consumer financial-protection agency, saying they won't confirm anyone for the post unless the agency is restructured.
* [RICH_STONE]
IPOs, M&A Deals Spawn New Rich
Giant initial public offerings and a surge in mergers and acquisitions are spawning a new generation of billionaires and millionaires.
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More Teens Plead in Bullying Case
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For Silicon Valley Start-Ups, Funding Boom Is Lopsided
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Drug's Shortage Prompts Finger-Pointing
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Citizens Republic Settles Detroit-Bias Claims
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Floods Raise Runoff Concerns
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GOP, White House Talk Deal on Debt
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Signs Point to Pakistan Link
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L.A. Blames Bank for Foreclosure Blight
Death of bin Laden
* [0505bashir]
Pakistan Warns U.S. Against Raids
A senior Pakistan official warned the U.S. would face "disastrous consequences" if it carried out any more unilateral raids similar to the one that killed Osama bin Laden.
o Signs Point to Pakistan Link to bin Laden
o Vote: Should foreign aid be revisited?
* [COPTER]
Crashed Copter Sparks Concern About Secrets
The crash of a helicopter involved in the raid on Osama bin Laden's Pakistani hideout has prompted intense speculation about whether its remains could offer hostile governments clues to sensitive U.S. military technology.
* [SPLIT]
Split Seen Between bin Laden, Deputy
Osama bin Laden and the deputy leader of al Qaeda "parted ways" six years ago, a senior Pakistani intelligence official said Thursday.
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Experts: bin Laden Killing Was Legal
Many U.S. legal experts hold firm that the White House was on solid legal footing for its strike teams to carry out the Pakistani raid that killed Osama bin Laden as well as similar attacks against al Qaeda members abroad in recent years.
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Widow Says Home Was Base for 5 Years
Osama bin Laden's youngest widow has told Pakistani investigators the al Qaeda leader and his family had been living in the compound where he was killed for the past five years.
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Wall Street
* [FLASH]
Flashbacks Afflict Traders
A year after the "flash crash," some Wall Street traders are still suffering from a type of post-traumatic stress that one psychologist calls "the flash crash flashback."
o Video: Preventing Future Flash Crashes all but Impossible
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Real Estate
* [ECHOPAD]
Resort Living for Renters
Old garden-style apartments of yesteryear are out. To appeal to the new generation of renters, apartment buildings are offering smaller living quarters in urban areas, but with grand common areas for entertaining and socializing.
o Graphic: Changing Spaces
