WASHINGTON – The number of new cars considered the safest by the insurance industry nearly tripled in the past year, helped by automakers' push to make certain safety equipment more widely available.
Ford Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. had the most vehicles on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's annual list of the safest cars for the 2008 model year. Thirty-four vehicles received the top safety pick designation for 2008, compared with 13 vehicles from the 2007 model year.
The institute requires new cars and trucks to have electronic stability control, or ESC, to qualify for the award. Many auto companies are putting the anti-rollover technology into their fleets ahead of a government requirement for the systems by the 2012 model year.
Results can be found at iihs.org.
Associated Press
Spitzer dumps plan for driver's licenses
WASHINGTON – Bowing to overwhelming public pressure, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer shelved his disputed plan to give driver's licenses to illegal immigrants and called on the federal government to fix the broken immigration policy that results in high costs for the states.
“I believe what we were trying to do was right,” he said yesterday. “But you don't need a stethoscope to hear the heartbeat of the public on this,” he added, referring to polls showing more than 70 percent of New York voters opposed the license change.
Newsday
7 Democratic rivals debate today at UNLV
Seven Democratic presidential candidates will participate in a televised debate today in Las Vegas.
The two-hour debate, co-sponsored by CNN and the Nevada Democratic Party, will be broadcast live at 5 p.m. on CNN from the campus of the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
Participating will be Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut, former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
CNN did not invite former Sen. Mike Gravel of Alaska, who is running last in the polls.
Union-Tribune
