| Educating Stéphane Dion
Halton MP Garth Turner and a handful of others were eager to hit the hustings and give Harper a kick in the pants. But folks like Dryden and other former Liberal leadership contenders were wary. What followed from that Monday meeting was essentially two days of angst; two days of talking. The Liberals' Wednesday caucus meeting, which some described as the best they'd had in years, was an exercise in venting – worry, determination and frustration. The majority wanted an election avoided. Dion dutifully took notes and then retreated, along with Deputy leader Michael Ignatieff, to work out the Liberal response. Against his own preference, knowing the barrage of ridicule awaiting him, a proud Dion had to write a speech that announced Liberal intentions to support Harper's government – for now.
Factbox: Obama, Huckabee on key issues
He has criticized the Bush administration's foreign policy for an "arrogant bunker mentality". Obama: Wants to begin immediately withdrawing one or two brigades a month and have all troops out within 16 months; would call a UN-led constitutional convention in Iraq that would not adjourn until reconciliation reached; aims to refocus energies on Al-Qaeda threat in Afghanistan and Pakistan; Immigration
Huckabee: Opposes granting amnesty to illegal immigrants or granting driver's licenses to them; says those caught illegally entering the United States must be detained, processed and deported; Obama: backs boosting the number of immigrants allowed in the United States; would permit undocumented workers to pay a fine, go to the end of the line for citizenship and learn English in order to stay in the country; would add personnel and technology to protect the US borders.
Future wide open for Skyline senior
His Skyline teammates tried to recruit him to Minnesota early on, but he asked them to stop. "It's my decision," said Cooper, a 2007 SportsDay first-team All-Area selection. "Where I am most comfortable is where I'm going." Cooper, No. 13 on SportsDay's Area Top 100, said he will visit Oklahoma or Wisconsin next weekend and possibly Kansas the weekend of Feb. 1. He visited Kansas State in the fall. Cooper said if he's blown away by Texas Tech, he could commit this weekend. "It's the school that's been coming after me for awhile," Cooper said. He plans to let things play out, but his cousin, Victor Hunter of Irving Nimitz, is a backup middle linebacker at Tech. And his family wants him to stay close to home.
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