AP Top News at 12:55 a.m. EST

00-00-0000
Bush to Declare Iraq in Violation of U.N.

[image omitted]

WASHINGTON (AP) _ President Bush's advisers are recommending that he declare Iraq in violation of a U.N. resolution on disarmament, administration officials said Tuesday night, but they do not consider the offense an immediate cause for war. Bush will be briefed as early as Wednesday on the available options in response to Saddam Hussein's 12,000-page declaration of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

Bush Orders Missile Defense for 2004

[image omitted]

WASHINGTON (AP) _ President Bush on Tuesday ordered the Pentagon to have ready for use within two years a bare-bones system for defending American territory, troops and allies against attack by ballistic missiles. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld cautioned against viewing the plan as a foolproof means of defense. He described the planned initial capability as "better than nothing" and said it would evolve in ways that incorporate technological advances, lessons learned from testing and help from allies.

Lott Says Can Survive Furor Over Remarks

[image omitted]

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Embattled Senate Republican Leader Trent Lott said Tuesday he believes he has the votes to survive a furor over racially insensitive remarks, despite increasingly blunt suggestions from officials close to the White House that he give way. While some Republicans said they hoped a politically damaging struggle could be resolved before the rank and file meet on Jan. 6, Lott, R-Miss., said he was digging in. "I am the son of a shipyard worker ... I have had to fight all of my life. And I am not stopping now," he said in an interview with ABC News.

U.N.: Al-Qaida Camps Being Reactivated

[image omitted]

UNITED NATIONS (AP) _ New foot soldiers for Islam's holy war are streaming into al-Qaida training camps that have been recently reactivated in eastern Afghanistan, a U.N. report on the terror group said Tuesday. While Osama bin Laden's financial network has been mostly dismantled his terror network still enjoys significant support and has "access to substantial funding from its previously established investments," said the report by an expert panel.

Non-Permanent Council Gets Iraq Declaration

[image omitted]

UNITED NATIONS (AP) _ The 10 non-permanent Security Council members finally got their chance to pick up a sanitized version of Iraq's weapons declaration on Tuesday night, less than two days before U.N. inspectors give their preliminary assessment of the 12,000-page document. The five permanent members who are all nuclear powers _ the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France _ received the uncensored declaration of Saddam Hussein's nuclear, chemical, biological, and long-range missile programs over a week ago.

Venezuela's Oil Situation Worsens

[image omitted]

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) _ Thousands marched Tuesday to demand President Hugo Chavez's ouster as Venezuela's opposition insisted its 16-day-old general strike is choking gas supplies and oil income in the world's fifth-largest oil exporter. The threat to domestic transportation and the loss of $50 million daily in export income posed the strike's biggest dangers for Chavez, who has sent soldiers to striking oil facilities to little effect.

Conseco Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) _ In the third-largest bankruptcy in U.S. history, Conseco Inc. filed for Chapter 11 protection after four months of talks with creditors to restructure the insurance and finance company's $6.5 billion in debt. Although the filing was not surprising given Conseco's recent woes, it marked a dramatic downfall for a company whose stock was once a Wall Street darling.

Johnson Chosen As NBA Team Owner in N.C.

[image omitted]

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) _ Robert Johnson, the billionaire founder of Black Entertainment Television, has been chosen as owner of the NBA's new Charlotte expansion franchise, beating out a group headed by Larry Bird. The 56-year-old Johnson will become the first black majority owner in major sports.

Image Caption: President Bush speaks to guests, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2002, before signing legislation of an e-government bill to put more federal information on the Internet, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)