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Good morning! Here's what you need to know: 1. Navy Seals who conducted the raid on Osama bin Laden's "mansion" in Pakistan carried off five computers, 10 hard drives and more than 100 storage devices, such as DVDs and removable flash drives. Intelligence officials are hopeful that these data will give them keener insights into Al Qaeda's network. 2. The United States has altered, to some degree, its account of the raid on Osama bin Laden's "mansion" in Abbottabad, Pakistan. 3. US distrust of and disgust with Pakistan's government has been laid bare. “It was decided that any effort to work with the Pakistanis could jeopardize the mission,” CIA Director Leon Panetta told Time magazine. “They might alert the targets.” 4. “The biggest loser from the death of Osama bin Laden is the Pakistan army,” says one analyst. “After a decade of the Pakistan army’s double-dealing on terrorism, Washington has gained the upper hand – at least for the moment.” The Financial Times has a superb report on the US-Pakistan relationship post-Abbottabad. 5. The death of Osama bin Laden creates an opening to end the war in Afghanistan. A political settlement with the Taliban is on the table. 6. The world awaits revenge attacks from Al Qaeda and its subsidiaries. U.S. intelligence agencies believe Osama bin Laden's second-in-command may try to accelerate plots in the works to prove that the terror network is still capable of mayhem. 7. President Obama is enjoying the afterglow of the successful raid on Osama bin Laden. His poll numbers have improved and he has his political opponents flat on their heels. He should enjoy it while it lasts. 8. The drought in the Great Plains continues unabated. In the Oklahoma Panhandle, it's the worst drought on record, worse than the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. 9. Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) said yesterday that he would lay out a proposal for a 2012 budget and long-term debt reduction plan that would reduce the federal deficit by $4 trillion over 10 years. Mr. Conrad is one of the so-called Gang of Six (US Senators) that is seen by some analysts as the best hope for a "grand bargain" on deficit reduction. 10. A new Congressional study concludes that the percentage of U.S. households owing no federal income tax climbed to 51% for 2009. High earners (those defined as making $250,000 or more per annum) pay an increasingly large percentage of federal taxes collected. 11. Former US Ambassador to China Jon Hunstman has formed a political action committee in advance of what his aides hope will be a campaign for the 2012 GOP Presidential nomination. For the latest in politics, visit Politics. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. |
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