Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 122, No. 37 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
POPULIST MESSAGE EXPECTED TUESDAY WASHINGTON (AP) — Reviving his populist re-election message, President Barack Obama will press a politically-divided Congress to approve more tax increases and fewer spending cuts ...
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
February 12, 2013
TUESDAY
www.rdrnews.com
Pope’s bombshell sends troubled church scrambling
VATICAN CITY (AP) — With a few words in Latin, Pope Benedict XVI did what no pope has done in more than half a millennium, stunning the world by announcing his resignation Monday and leaving the already troubled Catholic Church to replace the leader of its 1 billion followers by Easter. Not even his closest associates had advance word of the news, a bombshell that he dropped during a routine meeting of Vatican cardinals. And with no clear favorites to succeed him, another surprise likely awaits when the cardinals elect Benedict’s successor next month. “Without doubt this is a historic moment,” said Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, a protege and former
theology student of Benedict’s who is considered a papal contender. “Right now, 1.2 billion Catholics the world over are holding their breath.” The Feb. 28 resignation allows for a fast-track conclave to elect a new pope, since the traditional nine days of mour ning that would follow a pope’s death doesn’t have to be observed. It also gives the 85-year-old Benedict great sway over the choice of his successor. Though he will not himself vote, he has hand-picked the bulk of the College of Cardinals — the princes of the church who will elect his successor — to guarantee his conservative legacy and ensure an orthodox future for the church. The resignation may
mean that age will become less of a factor when electing a new pope, since candidates may no longer feel compelled to stay for life. “For the century to come, I think that none of Benedict’s successors will feel morally obliged to remain until their death,” said Paris Cardinal Andre VingtTrois. Benedict said as recently as 2010 that a pontif f should resign if he got too old or infirm to do the job, but it was a tremendous surprise when he said in Latin that his “strength of mind and body” had diminished and that he couldn’t carry on. He said he would resign effective 8 p.m. local time on Feb. 28. “All the cardinals See POPE, Page A3
AP Photo
In this photo provided by the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Mons. Franco Comaldo, left, a pope aide, looks at Pope Benedict XVI as he reads a document in Latin where he announces his resignation at the Vatican, Monday.
Cutbacks force the military to scale down
- PAGE A7
TOP 5 WEB For The Past 24 Hours
• Man dies in RPD custody • Jury convicts Gregory Hobbs ... • Gabby Joyce picks NMSU • RPD busts sub teacher • Coyotes edge Rockets 64-62
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (AP) — The Pentagon for the first time is considering scaling back the massive buildup of drones it has overseen in the past few years, both to save money and to adapt to changing security threats and an increased focus on Asia as the Afghanistan war winds down.
INSIDE SPORTS Two men clear snow off a roof of a home in North Andover, Mass., Monday.
Northeast commuters struggle with icy roads
SNEDEKER COMPLETES WIN PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) — With one last birdie, Brandt Snedeker finally had a chance to catch his breath at one of the best places in golf. - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Virginia Anaya • Dominga Guerra • Roberto Gutierrez • Ermenia Ortega • Debbie Jean Silva - PAGE A7
HIGH ...55˚ LOW ....23˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B5 COMICS.................B3 ENTERTAINMENT.....B5 FINANCIAL .............B4 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 NATION .................A7 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
HAR TFORD, Conn. (AP) — The workweek opened with a whiteknuckle ride Monday in the snowclobbered Northeast as drivers encountered unplowed streets, twolane roads reduced to a single channel and snowbanks so high it was impossible see around corners. Schools remained closed across much of New England and New
York, and more than 80,000 homes and businesses were still waiting for the electricity to come back on after the epic storm swept through on Friday and Saturday with 1 to 3 feet of snow that entombed cars and sealed up driveways. The storm was blamed for at least 18 deaths in the U.S. and Canada, and officials warned of a new dan-
NM lawmakers propose changes to film, TV subsidies
SANTA FE (AP) — New Mexico lawmakers are working on a compromise proposal to sweeten a tax subsidy in hopes of drawing more television projects to the state. A House committee on Monday postponed consideration of a film industry measure after a Democratic legislative leader said more time is needed to reach agreement with the Senate, Republican Gov. Susana Martinez and the entertainment industry. “We want to send a unifying message to the industry that the state of New Mexico welcomes and wants the film industry here,” House Majority Whip Antonio “Moe” Maestas, DAlbuquerque, told the Taxation and Revenue Committee. He and other Democrats have proposed revamping the 25 percent tax refund that New Mexico offers for certain film and TV production expenses. His measure would boost the See FILM, Page A3
ger as rain and higher temperatures set in: roof collapses.
In hard-hit Connecticut, where some places were buried in more than 3 feet of snow, the National Guard used heavy equipment to clear roads in the state’s three
See SNOW, Page A3
Air Force leaders are saying the military may already have enough unmanned aircraft systems to wage the wars of the future. And the Pentagon’s shift to Asia will require a new mix of drones and other aircraft because countries in that region are better able to detect unmanned versions and shoot them down.
If the Pentagon does slow the huge building and deployment program, which was ordered several years ago by See CUTBACKS, Page A3
Waivers on school class sizes poised to expire ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — School districts across the state could be forced to hire more teachers next year.
Temporary relief provided by the state during the Great Recession enabled New Mexico school districts to increase class sizes as a way to cope with reduced education funding from the state.
But that relief is about to end unless it is extended by the Legislature, and
that could mean additional costs for districts, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
The Albuquerque district has used waivers to exceed maximum class sizes by as much as 7 percent over the past three years. Without the waivers, it could be forced to hire as many as 300 teachers at a cost of $18 million, according to the newspaper. Sen. T im Keller, DAlbuquerque, has spon-
sored a joint resolution that attempts to fix the problem with a constitutional amendment that would require smaller classes by the 2020-2021 school year, while putting the onus on lawmakers to give districts enough money to meet the requirements. It also would allow waivers to continue until then under certain conditions, including lack of funding See WAIVERS, Page A3
Army veteran Clinton Romesha receives Medal of Honor for fight in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON (AP) — A veteran who helped “defend the indefensible” at a vulnerable Army outpost in Afghanistan received the nation’s highest award for military valor Monday at a tearful White House ceremony that also honored the eight men who did not survive a Taliban attack. President Barack Obama lauded former Staff Sgt. Clinton Romesha’s bravery in fighting back an intense daylong barrage by enemy fighters. The Taliban descended on Combat Outpost Keating in the mountains near the Pakistan border at 6 a.m. on Oct. 3, 2009, shaking Romesha out of his bed into what Obama said has been called one of the most intense battles of the war in Afghanistan.
The Americans were outmanned 53 to more than 300, but most survived against those odds. “These men were outnumbered, outgunned, and almost overrun,” Obama said. Romesha, 31, listened to the commendation while fighting back tears, sometimes unsuccessfully, the families of his fallen comrades sitting together and crying near the back of his East Room audience. Other troops who fought that day also watched as the president placed the medal hanging from a blue ribbon around Romesha’s neck. “I’m feeling conflicted with this medal I now wear,” Romesha told reporters outside the West Wing after the ceremony. “The joy comes from recognition for us doing our jobs
as soldiers on distant battlefields, but is countered by the constant reminder of the loss of our battle buddies, my battle buddies, my soldiers, my friends.”
Eight U.S. soldiers were killed in the fighting and other 22 wounded, including Romesha, who was peppered with shrapnel from a rocket-propelled grenade in the hip, ar m and neck. But he fought through his wounds to help lead other soldiers to safety, defend the burning camp from encroaching Taliban fighters, personally taking out at least 10, and retrieve the bodies of the fallen Americans. Romesha also served See HONOR, Page A3
AP Photo
Pres. Barack Obama bestows the Medal of Honor on retired Staff Sgt. Clinton Romesha, Monday, in the White House.