State Department made "grievous mistake" over Benghazi: Senate report

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The State Department made a "grievous mistake" in keeping the U.S. mission in Benghazi open despite inadequate security and increasingly alarming threat assessments in the weeks before a deadly attack by militants, a Senate committee said on Monday.

A report from the Senate Homeland Security Committee on the September 11 attacks on the U.S. mission and a nearby CIA annex, in which the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans died, faulted intelligence agencies for not focusing tightly enough on Libyan extremists.

It also faulted the State Department for waiting for specific warnings instead of improving security.

The committee's assessment, "Flashing Red: A Special Report On The Terrorist Attack At Benghazi," follows a scathing report by an independent State Department accountability review board that resulted in a top security official resigning and three others at the department being relieved of their duties.

Joseph Lieberman, an independent senator who chairs the committee, said that in thousands of documents it reviewed, there was no indication that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had personally denied a request for extra funding or security for the Benghazi mission. He said key decisions were made by "midlevel managers" who have since been held accountable.

Republican Senator Susan Collins said it was likely that others needed to be held accountable, but that decision was best made by the Secretary of State, who has the best understanding "of how far up the chain of command the request for additional security went."

The attacks and the death of U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens put diplomatic security practices at posts in risky areas under scrutiny and raised questions about whether intelligence on militant activity in the region was adequate.

The Senate report said the lack of specific intelligence of an imminent threat in Benghazi "may reflect a failure" by intelligence agencies to focus closely enough on militant groups with weak or no operational ties to al Qaeda and its affiliates.

"With Osama bin Laden dead and core al Qaeda weakened, a new collection of violent Islamist extremist organizations and cells have emerged in the last two to three years," the report said. That trend has been seen in the "Arab Spring" countries undergoing political transition or military conflict, it said.

NEED FOR BETTER INTELLIGENCE

The report recommended that U.S. intelligence agencies "broaden and deepen their focus in Libya and beyond, on nascent violent Islamist extremist groups in the region that lack strong operational ties to core al Qaeda or its main affiliate groups."

Neither the Senate report nor the unclassified accountability review board report pinned blame for the Benghazi attack on a specific militant group. The FBI is investigating who was behind the assaults.

President Barack Obama, in an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, said the United States had "very good leads" about who carried out the attacks. He did not provide details.

The Senate committee said the State Department should not have waited for specific warnings before acting on improving security in Benghazi.

It also said it was widely known that the post-revolution Libyan government was "incapable of performing its duty to protect U.S. diplomatic facilities and personnel," but the State Department failed to fill the security gap.

"Despite the inability of the Libyan government to fulfill its duties to secure the facility, the increasingly dangerous threat assessments, and a particularly vulnerable facility, the Department of State officials did not conclude the facility in Benghazi should be closed or temporarily shut down," the report said. "That was a grievous mistake."

The Senate panel reviewed changing comments made by the Obama administration after the attack, which led to a political firestorm in the run-up to the November presidential election and resulted in U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice withdrawing her name from consideration to replace Clinton, who is stepping down early next year.

Rice had said her initial comments that the attack grew out of a spontaneous protest over an anti-Islam film were based on talking points provided by intelligence agencies.

Lieberman said it was not the job of intelligence agencies to formulate unclassified talking points and they should decline such requests in the future.

The report said the original talking points included a line saying "we know" that individuals associated with al Qaeda or its affiliates participated in the attacks. But the final version had been changed to say: "There are indications that extremists participated," and the reference to al Qaeda and its affiliates was deleted.

The report said that while James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, had offered to provide the committee with a detailed chronology of how the talking points were written and evolved, this had still not been delivered to Capitol Hill because the administration had spent weeks "debating internally" whether or not it should turn over information considered "deliberative" to Congress.

(Editing by Warren Strobel and David Brunnstrom)

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President Obama says deal in sight to avert fiscal cliff

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama said on Monday a deal to avert the fiscal cliff budget crisis was in sight, as dramatic New Year's Eve negotiations went down to the wire ahead of a midnight deadline.

"It appears that an agreement to prevent this New Year's tax hike is within sight. It's not done. There are still issues left to resolve, but we're hopeful that Congress can get it done," Obama said at the White House.

The framework of a possible deal to head off automatic tax increases due to kick in with the turn of a year appeared to be in place after through the night negotiations between Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill.

But Obama hinted that the proposed pact would not deal with complementary and punishing cuts to government spending also due to take place in the New Year, which he said would have to be dealt with down the line.

The president said the deal would extend tax credits for clean energy firms and also unemployment insurance for two million people which are due to expire later Monday.

"For now, our most immediate priority is to stop taxes going up for middle class families, starting tomorrow. I think that is a modest goal that we can accomplish. Democrats and Republicans in congress have to get this done."

Even if the Democratic-controlled Senate does sign off on a deal Monday, avoiding the cliff could go down to the wire.

The bill must then go to the Republican-held House of Representatives.

The chamber is in session on Monday, but House Speaker John Boehner has struggled to control his party's restive conservatives, many of whom may balk at signing on to any Obama-approved deal that raises taxes.

The key areas of friction are the income threshold at which taxes should rise, Obama's insistence on extending unemployment benefits and Republican demands for increased federal spending cuts.

Reports said that the deal would see taxes rise for families earning more than $450,000 a year. Obama had originally campaigned for the threshold to kick in for those making $250,000 and above.

"There are a number of issues on which the two sides are still apart," Democratic Senate Majority Harry Reid conceded. "Negotiations are continuing as I speak, but we really are running out of time."

Days of last-gasp talks have produced no deal between US political leaders struggling for a compromise to head off a fiscal crisis that could roil global markets and plunge the United States back into a punishing recession.

Republicans have dropped their demand for a new way of calculating inflation that would have cut the level of benefits for Social Security recipients.

But they were reportedly maintaining their insistence that estate inheritance tax rates stay at current levels.

The two sides remained bitterly at odds over the $109 billion in automatic spending cuts set to hit the Pentagon as well as other federal agencies beginning in early January.

Democrats said they were pushing for a delay of the cuts, known as the "sequester," for about two years, while some Republicans, including Senator Roy Blunt, said it was inconceivable to allow a delay without imposing more targeted offsets to pay for such a postponement.

Don Stewart, McConnell's spokesman, said in a statement on Monday that the Republican leader and Biden had talked long into the night to try to hammer out a deal.

Democratic congressman Chris Van Hollen said there was better than a 50-50 chance of a pre-midnight agreement, but his Republican rivals were a question mark.

"One big question of course is whether an agreement put together by the senators on a bipartisan basis, whether that can pass the House of Representatives," he told CNN.

Republicans largely oppose raising taxes on anyone.

There may be a push by conservatives to let the economy slide off the cliff so that taxes rise on all Americans, only for lawmakers to quickly turn around and vote for a tax cut on the middle class.

- AFP/de

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Geek pasties sparkle with 'Star Trek,' Grumpy Cat

Spock, have you seen my command pasties?

(Credit:
MontabahnPasties)

The words "geeky" and "sexy" haven't always seemed like they should go together, but a line of geek pasties from Etsy is looking to change that perception.

Pasties, for those unfamiliar with the term, are patches that cover part of the bosom for modesty or decorative purposes. In my mind, the highlight of MontabahnPasties' offerings is the "Star Trek" pasties. The famous logo/uniform insignia is available in either silver or pink versions with coordinating tassels. Though these look like the insignia from "Star Trek: The Next Generation," they're not likely to trigger your communicator when tapped.

For the meme crowd, there are Nyan Cat and Grumpy Cat pasties. The Nyan Cat pasties are particularly well rendered, complete with butt rainbow and rosy kitty cheeks. If you're more into feathery geek things, then the Angry Birds Red Bird pasties are worth checking into.

Apple fans will have plenty to dance for with the Apple logo pasties. Sorry,
Android users, I couldn't find green droid pasties anywhere in the Etsy store.

Each set of sparkly, cotton-backed pasties costs $45. They come with pasty tape, application instructions, and the promise to "never leave residue behind." One size fits all.

These pasties may be intended for the geek ladies, but there's no reason geek guys couldn't get in on the fun. A set of Spider-Man coverings may be just the ticket for subtly expressing your Marvel allegiance at the next Comic-Con.

Turn that frown upside-down, Grumpy Cat.

(Credit:
MontabahnPasties)

(Via Fashionably Geek)

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Pakistan terror incidents threaten peace talks

ISLAMABAD The killing of 41 people in two separate terrorist incidents in Pakistan appeared on Sunday to temporarily halt prospects for immediate peace talks between Pakistani authorities and Taliban militants, two senior Pakistani intelligence officers and a senior western diplomat in Islamabad warned.

Both intelligence officers said that the fallout of the killings may even harm U.S. plans to peacefully draw down troops from Afghanistan, with Pakistan's active backing.

In the first incident, 21 Pakistani paramilitary guards working in the northern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province who were kidnapped last week by the Taliban were confirmed dead on Saturday.

"All the 21 young men were brutally killed by their captors," said one Pakistani intelligence officer who spoke to CBS News on condition of anonymity because intelligence officers are not allowed to speak to journalists.

He said that the kidnapped men's killings may have been triggered in part by the Pakistani government's refusal to release some Taliban militants in custody.

After the men were kidnapped, a senior government official in the northern city of Peshawar, the provincial capital, told CBS News that the Taliban were demanding the release of some of their fellow militants in Pakistan's custody in exchange for the 21 men.

In the second incident on Sunday, at least 20 Pakistanis of the Shia Muslim faith were killed and more than 20 wounded when a car bomb targeted their convoy of buses being driven through the southwestern Baluchistan province to the Iranian border.

Pakistani officials said the dead were heading to Iran's northern holy city of Mashhad to attend an important Shiite commemoration in the coming week.

The second Pakistani intelligence officer who spoke to CBS News said that the killings in Baluchistan "seem to be linked to factions associated with the Taliban.

"These killings make it practically impossible for the government to have a peace dialogue with the Taliban," the officer said. "No one will speak to these people while we have a gun pointed to our heads."

In the past, representatives of Pakistan's Shia Muslims have claimed that the Taliban (who belong to a hardline version of the Sunni Muslim faith) have been involved in attacks on Shiites in Baluchistan.

The two terrorist incidents were preceded by reports of the Taliban sending messages to senior leaders of President Asif Ali Zardari's administration in Islamabad, seeking peace talks to end a decade-long conflict with the Pakistan army.

Senior government officials have reacted cautiously, with some suggesting that the offer should be carefully considered, while others have warned that the Taliban will not agree to end their attacks on Pakistani troops until a final settlement, on their terms, comes together.

"The two brutal terrorist incidents are a major cause of concern. They suggest there's no appetite among the Taliban for a peaceful end to the war," said a senior Western diplomat in Islamabad who also spoke to CBS News on condition of anonymity.

He warned that in addition to Pakistan's own internal security conditions, more violence will make it harder for the country to cooperate with the U.S. in facilitating an orderly American troop drawdown from Afghanistan by end of 2014.

"Pakistan will be the main route for U.S. troops leaving Afghanistan. If there is no end to Taliban violence in Pakistan, the drawdown will face threats," added the diplomat.

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President Suggests Small 'Cliff' Deal Likely

With less than two days remaining for Congress to reach a budget agreement that would avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff,” President Obama today suggested that a small deal remains the best hope to avoid the perilous package of spending cuts and tax increases.

In an interview aired this morning on NBC’s “Meet the Press” the president said if Republicans agreed to raising taxes on top income earners it should be enough to avoid the triggers that would execute the $607 billion measure. Economists agree that going over the cliff would likely put the country back in recession.

“If we have raised some revenue by the wealthy paying a little bit more, that would be sufficient to turn off what’s called the sequester, these automatic spending cuts, and that also would have a better outcome for our economy long-term,” he said.

Saying the “pressure is on Congress to produce,” the president did not specify what income level his party would deem acceptable as the cutoff for those who would see their tax rates remain at current levels. The president has called for expiration of the “Bush-era” tax cuts to affect household earnings over $250,000 since the campaign, but has reportedly floated a $400,000 figure in past negotiations. Speaker John Boehner once offered a $1 million cut-off in his failed “Plan B” proposal, which failed to garner enough support among the House Republicans.

“It’s been very hard for Speaker Boehner and Republican Leader McConnell  to accept the fact that taxes on the wealthiest Americans should go up a little bit as part of an overall deficit reduction package,” the president said.

Domestic programs would lose $55 billion in funding should sequestration pass, including $2 billion to Medicare and unemployment benefits. The Pentagon would take a $55 billion loss as well, or 9 percent of their budget.

Repeating remarks he made Friday after a meeting with congressional leaders, Obama said that should negotiations fail he has asked Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., to introduce a stripped- down proposal to Congress for a straight up-or-down vote – if it isn’t blocked.

“If all else fails, if Republicans do in fact decide to block so that taxes on the middle class do in fact go up on January 1, then we’ll come back with a new Congress on January 4, and the first bill that will be introduced on the floor will be to cut taxes on middle-class families,” he said of the worst case scenario. “I don’t think the average person is going to say, ‘Gosh, you know, that’s a really partisan agenda.’”

The interview was taped Saturday while Reid and his GOP counterpart Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky scrambled to their offices for a solution behind closed doors. Press staking out Capitol Hill reported little public activity from the leaders or their surrogates. If negotiations are successful, the lawmakers could introduce a bill for vote this afternoon.

Republican leaders bit back at the president’s remarks. In a written statement Speaker Boehner said casting blame was “ironic, as a recurring theme of our negotiations was his unwillingness to agree to anything that would require him to stand up to his own party. ”

“In an effort to get the president to agree to cut spending – which is the problem – I put revenues on the table last year, and I put them on the table again last month,” he wrote. “Republicans made every effort to reach the ‘balanced’ deficit agreement that the president promised the American people, while the president has continued to insist on a package skewed dramatically in favor of higher taxes that would destroy jobs.”

Senator McConnell’s office issued this response to the NBC appearance:

“While the President was taping those discordant remarks yesterday, Sen. McConnell was in the office working to bring Republicans and Democrats together on a solution. Discussions continue today.”

Regardless of outcome, talk of a comprehensive budget deal is gone and any bill would likely set up a series of smaller partisan roadblocks in the weeks and months to come. For example, if any hypothetical legislation managed to dodge tax increases for the middle class it may still not address the looming debt ceiling, which Treasury can avoid using accounting tricks for approximately two months.

A small deal may also not address the estate tax, another central point of the brinkmanship. Currently standing at 35 percent, Republicans want to leave that rate as-is after exempting the first $5 million in estate value. Meanwhile Democrats have called for a 45 percent tax after a $3.5 million exemption. Should negotiations fail, it would climb to 55 percent after a $1 million exemption after the New Year.

ABC’s Sunlen Miller and the Associated Press contributed to this report, which has been updated.

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Body of India rape victim cremated in New Delhi

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The body of a woman, whose gang rape provoked protests and rare national debate about violence against women in India, arrived back in New Delhi on Sunday and was cremated at a private ceremony.

Scuffles broke out in central Delhi between police and protesters who say the government is doing too little to protect women. But the 2,000-strong rally was confined to a single area, unlike last week when protests raged up throughout the capital.

Riot police manned barricades along streets leading to India Gate war memorial - a focal point for demonstrators - and, at another gathering point - the centuries-old Jantar Mantar - protesters held banners reading "We want justice!" and "Capital punishment".

Most sex crimes in India go unreported, many offenders go unpunished, and the wheels of justice turn slowly, according to social activists, who say that successive governments have done little to ensure the safety of women.

The unidentified 23-year-old victim of the December 16 gang rape died of her injuries on Saturday, prompting promises of action from a government that has struggled to respond to public outrage.

The medical student had suffered brain injuries and massive internal injuries in the attack and died in hospital in Singapore where she had been taken for treatment.

She and a male friend had been returning home from the cinema, media reports say, when six men on a bus beat them with metal rods and repeatedly raped the woman. The friend survived.

New Delhi has the highest number of sex crimes among India's major cities, with a rape reported on average every 18 hours, police figures show. Reported rape cases rose by nearly 17 percent between 2007 and 2011, according to government data.

Six suspects were charged with murder after her death and face the death penalty if convicted.

In Kolkata, one of India's four biggest cities, police said a man reported that his mother had been gang-raped and killed by a group of six men in a small town near the city on Saturday.

She was killed on her way home with her husband, a senior official said, and the attackers had thrown acid at the husband, raped and killed her, and dumped her body in a roadside pond.

Police declined to give any further details. One officer told Reuters no criminal investigation had yet been launched.

"MISOGYNY"

The leader of India's ruling Congress party, Sonia Gandhi, was seen arriving at the airport when the plane carrying the woman's body from Singapore landed and Prime Minister Mannmohan Singh's convoy was also there.

A Reuters correspondent saw family members who had been with her in Singapore take her body from the airport to their Delhi home in an ambulance with a police escort.

Her body was then taken to a crematorium and cremated. Media were kept away but a Reuters witness saw the woman's family, New Delhi's chief minister, Sheila Dikshit, and the junior home minister, R P N Singh, coming out of the crematorium.

The outcry over the attack caught the government off guard. It took a week for the prime minister to make a statement, infuriating many protesters. Last weekend they fought pitched battles with police.

Issues such as rape, dowry-related deaths and female infanticide rarely enter mainstream political discourse.

Analysts say the death of the woman dubbed "Amanat", an Urdu word meaning "treasure", by some Indian media could change that, though it is too early to say whether the protesters can sustain their momentum through to national elections due in 2014.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon added his voice to those demanding change, calling for "further steps and reforms to deter such crimes and bring perpetrators to justice".

Commentators and sociologists say the incident earlier this month has tapped into a deep well of frustration many Indians feel over what they see as weak governance and poor leadership on social issues.

Newspapers raised doubts about the commitment of both male politicians and the police to protecting women.

"Would the Indian political system and class have been so indifferent to the problem of sexual violence if half or even one-third of all legislators were women?" the Hindu newspaper asked.

The Indian Express said it was more complicated than realizing that the police force was understaffed and underpaid.

"It is geared towards dominating citizens rather than working for them, not to mention being open to influential interests," the newspaper said. "It reflects the misogyny around us, rather than actively fighting for the rights of citizens who happen to be female."

(Additional reporting by Ross Colvin and Diksha Madhokin New Delhi and Sujoy Dhar in Kolkata; Editing by Louise Ireland)

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C. Africa's pressured leader open to unity government

BANGUI: The president of the Central African Republic was on Sunday said to be ready to make important concessions to a rebel coalition that has easily pushed its way across the impoverished country and was within striking distance of the capital Bangui.

After meeting with President Francois Bozize, African Union chief Thomas Boni Yayi said Bozize was ready to take part in talks to end the crisis, and that he would not run for president in 2016.

The talks "should lead to a national unity government", Boni Yayi said, adding that Bozize, who seized power in a 2003 coup and then won two elections, would not run for re-election in 2016 and would "respect constitutional provisions".

Opposition figures have criticised the president, whom they suspect wants to modify the constitution to enable a third term in office.

Rebels from a coalition known as Seleka, who took up arms December 10 near the Chad border and have met little resistance from government troops, on Sunday warned they could enter Bangui.

The rebels, now controlling five regional capitals in the centre and north of the country, faced no opposition as they entered the town of Sibut around 150 kilometres from Bangui on Saturday, a military official told AFP.

The country's armed forces had retreated to Damara, the last major town on the way to the capital, about 75 kilometres to the southwest.

Rebel spokesman Eric Massi on Sunday had said rebels would enter Bangui "if the situation demands it" but later said he had "taken note" of Bozize's pledges.

"A meeting shall be held with (Boni Yayi) to study in detail President Bozize's proposals and together create a plan to end the crisis," he told French radio.

With the rebels closing in, the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), which has troops in the country, warned both sides Sunday that Damara must remain in government control.

"The ECCAS forces are on maximum alert, and the city of Damara is the line not to be crossed. We ask the FACA (government forces) and the rebels not to advance from their current positions and to give talks a chance," said Antonio Di Garcia, head of the regional bloc's mission, on national radio.

The rebels have been insisting on Bozize's departure.

"That issue must be discussed with the African Union," Massi told AFP. "President Bozize must recognise his military defeat on the ground ... and draw the necessary conclusions".

Officials on both sides said the rebels had also repelled army soldiers trying to recapture Bambari, a former military stronghold in the landlocked country, one of the world's poorest despite vast mineral wealth.

The coalition of three rebel movements in Seleka -- or the "alliance" in the Sango language -- launched their offensive claiming the government failed to meet the terms of peace pacts signed in 2007 and 2011, which include providing for disarmament, pay and social reintegration for insurgents.

Bozize on Sunday asked for a meeting with French President Francois Hollande, but calls for help from former colonial power France, as well as from the United States, have so far not been heeded.

France has a military presence of about 580 troops in the country, 180 of whom arrived overnight Saturday, the French defence ministry said.

This contingent is on hand to help protect and evacuate French and European nationals, should the need arise.

Hollande late Sunday urged all sides involved in the conflict to end hostilities, and welcomed efforts to find a negotiated solution to the crisis.

Neighbouring Chad, which helped Bozize with rebellions in 2010, has sent a contingent to the country, but those troops too have retreated from the rebel advance.

In Bangui, the population was fearful of a rebel attack and the uncertainty has caused a sharp spike in food prices. Authorities have imposed a night-time curfew, resulting in an eerie quiet in the usually noisy city.

In the town centre, businesses had hired guards armed with machetes to stand watch and prevent looting.

"I'm afraid of the rebels coming," said vegetable vendor Euphrasie Ngotanga in the city's huge Sambo market. "We're not going to sell our produce if there's no peace. And then how we will feed our children?"

The landlocked Central African Republic, with a population of about five million, is notorious for unrest including coups, army mutinies and rebellions.

- AFP/jc

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Foursquare to show users' full names, share more data

Foursquare has begun notifying users of privacy policy updates that will begin making more user information and data public next month.

Beginning January 28, 2013, users' "full names" will be displayed across the check-in service and venue owners will have increased access to users' check-in data, the company announced in an e-mail sent to users late last night. It also published a document called "Privacy 101" to explain the new changes.

The service currently sometimes shows full names but often displays just users' first name and last initial -- except when looking up friends on the service.

"In the original versions of Foursquare, these distinctions made sense," Foursquare explained in its e-mail. "But we get emails every day saying that it's now confusing."

After the privacy policy changes take effect, all users' full names will be displayed everywhere across the service. However, users will still have control of the name displayed by altering their "full name" in their settings.

The policy changes will also give venue owners access to more recent data about user check-ins at the venue. Businesses on Foursquare currently have access to information about customers who checked in during the previous three hours; after January they will see more recent check-ins, although Foursquare didn't indicate how much more

"This is great for helping store owners identify their customers and give them more personal service or offers," Foursquare noted. "But a lot of businesses only have time to log in at the end of the day to look at it."

As with the "full name" setting, users can opt out of letting venue owners see their check-in information.

Foursquare's careful explanation of the new policies comes in the wake of an Instagram user revolt over new privacy policies that appeared to grant the Facebook-owned service perpetual rights to sell users' photographs without notifying or compensating the photographer. Instagram quickly backpedaled, with Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom apologizing for failing to clearly communicate the company's intentions.

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East, Gulf Coast port strike averted, for now

Last Updated 12:15 p.m. ET

NEW YORK The union for longshoremen along the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico has agreed to extend its contract for 30 days, averting a possible strike that could have crippled operations at ports that handle about 40 percent of all U.S. container cargo, a federal mediator announced Friday.

The extension came after the union and an alliance of port operators and shipping lines resolved one of the stickier points in their months-long contract negotiations, involving royalty payments made to union members for each container they unload.

Negotiations will continue until at least midnight on Jan. 28. Some important contract issues remain to be resolved, but the head of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, George Cohen, said the agreement on royalties was "a major positive step forward."

"While some significant issues remain in contention, I am cautiously optimistic that they can be resolved in the upcoming 30-day extension period," he said.

The terms of the royalty agreement were not announced.

• Unionized dock workers threaten to strike at 15 ports
• Tentative deal reached to end costly Calif. ports strike

The master contract between the International Longshoremen's Association and the U.S. Maritime Alliance, a group representing shipping lines, terminal operators and port associations, originally expired in September. The two sides agreed to extend it once before, for 90 days, but it had been set to expire again on 12:01 a.m. Sunday.

As recently as Dec. 19, the president of the longshoremen, Harold Daggett, had said a strike was expected.

A work stoppage would have idled shipments of a vast number of consumer products, from electronics to clothing, and kept U.S. manufacturers from getting pars and raw materials delivered easily.

Major ports that would have been frozen included the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Savannah, Ga., Houston and Hampton Roads, Va.

Other ports that would have been affected by a strike are Boston; Delaware River; Baltimore; Wilmington, N.C.; Charleston, S.C.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Port Everglades, Fla.; Miami; Tampa, Fla.; Mobile, Ala.; and New Orleans.

The ports handle nearly 50 percent of all ocean-going container shipments to the United States, reports correspondent Anna Werner.

Some estimate a shutdown could cost a billion dollars a day in delayed shipments and lost work along the supply chain.

The Port of Houston - which handles 42 million tons of cargo every year - extended its hours this week to try and get shipments in and out before a strike could bring the port to a standstill.

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'Mom' Loses Russian Girl Weeks From Adoption

After a roller coaster week, Kendra Skaggs sat down to vent on her blog. She had used that space to document her 13 month journey of adopting a young girl named Polina from Russia. But now, with that dream just weeks away from fulfillment, she described her frustration, fear and anger as she watched it being snatched away.

"I have no control. I'm on the other side of the world and I can't hold and comfort my daughter as I wait to hear if we will forever be separated," she wrote in a passionate entry

Her writing seemed to speak for hundreds of American parents whose hopes of adopting a Russian orphan were dashed today when Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law a controversial ban on adoptions to the United States. The move is part of Russia's retaliation for a set of human rights sanctions passed by the U.S. Congress and signed by President Obama earlier this month. Critics, including the U.S. State Department, say the adoption ban is playing politics with the lives of children.

Russia is the third most popular country for Americans to adopt from, but in recent years the issue has become a political football in Russia. Americans have adopted over 60,000 Russian children since the fall of the Soviet Union, but Russian officials have seized on the cases of 19 children who died after being adopted by Americans.

Soccer Player Kick-Starts New Career After Viral Video Watch Video

In 2010, a 7-year-old adopted boy named Artyom was put on a plane back to Russia alone by his adoptive mother from Tennessee with little more than a note saying she did not want him anymore. The case touched off a wave of fury in Russia and adoptions to the United States were nearly halted.

The Many Adventures of Vladimir Putin

Just a week ago Kendra and her husband visited Polina at her orphanage outside Moscow. The bubbly 5-year-old suffers from spina bifida, a condition that has left her numb from the waist down and unable to walk. They showed Polina photos of her new bedroom and told her about her new family. They played together, hugged each other, and promised to see each other soon when they returned in January to bring her home to Arkansas.

The adoption ban legislation, meanwhile, had just been introduced by Russian lawmakers. Kendra had hoped their case, which was nearly completed, would sneak in under the wire. She held out hope again after a Moscow court approved her adoption on Monday. All that was needed was a 30 day waiting period before they could bring Polina home.

It appears even that was too late. The law goes into effect on Jan. 1, but Russian officials have said even cases of 52 children who are within weeks of traveling to the United States are now frozen. Authorities have pledged to find new homes for them in Russia.

For the Skaggs family, it is agonizing to be so close to bringing her home, yet so far. Kendra fears Polina will think she was abandoned again.

"It's the fear of what she is going to think, that we forgot her," she said in an interview with ABC News.

"She's out there and I can't take care of her," she said, crying softly. "I can't help her. I can't tell her I love her. So it's really hard."

She also worries what will happen to Polina in Russia, a country with scarce accommodations for the handicapped.

"Russia really isn't set up for people with disabilities. You can't get into the metro even to get around because it's just levels and levels of stairs that you have to go up and down and there's no handicapped access to the buildings," Kendra said.

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