Burris clears key hurdle his way to Senate

The Nation

Impeachment vote: Roland Burris cleared a key hurdle Thursday on his way to filling President-elect Obama's U.S. Senate seat, testifying under oath before an Illinois House committee in Springfield, Ill., that he didn't strike any deals with Gov. Rod Blagojevich to get the plum appointment. Later in the day, the committee recommended impeachment, setting up a vote as early as today in the full House.

Thrift-store reversal: After a barrage of complaints, federal regulators shifted gears Thursday and said they would no longer require used children's clothing, toys and other items sold at secondhand stores be tested for lead.

Madoff checks: Pressing the case that disgraced financier Bernard Madoff should have his $10 million bail revoked, federal prosecutors said in court documents Thursday that investigators found 100 signed checks worth $173 million in Madoff's desk on the day of his arrest. The checks, to be distributed to relatives, employees and friends, are another indication Madoff, accused of running a $50 billion Ponzi scheme, has tried to hide assets, prosecutors said.

Travolta service: Friends and relatives of John Travolta and wife Kelly Preston gathered Thursday at their home in Ocala, in central Florida, for a memorial service for the couple's son, Jett, 16, who died last week.

The World

Gas deal: The European Union said late Thursday in Brussels, Belgium, that gas supplies to Europe should start flowing soon, after a deal was struck with Ukraine and Russia to end a cutoff. Details of the pact were not released. Russia cut off the gas Wednesday, when a payment dispute escalated. Russia claims Ukraine siphoned off gas for its own use, a claim Ukraine denies.

Homosexuality sentences: Nine men, including prominent HIV-prevention activist Diadji Diouf, were convicted in Dakar, Senegal, of homosexual acts and sentenced to eight years in prison, their lawyer and a gay-rights group said Thursday. The arrests came just weeks after the mainly Muslim, West African nation hosted an international AIDS conference.

Al-Qaida deaths: A U.S. missile strike Jan. 1 in Pakistan's tribal areas killed two senior leaders of al-Qaida, Usama al-Kini and Sheikh Ahmed Salim Swedan, a U.S. counterterrorism official said Thursday. Al-Kini is believed to have been behind the deadly 2008 Marriott Hotel bombing in Islamabad.

Odds & Ends

No charges: Actor Brad Garrett, best known for his work on "Everybody Loves Raymond," won't be prosecuted in connection with a November incident in which he was accused of striking a photographer in West Hollywood, Calif., the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said Thursday.

Obama's Spidey gig: Marvel Comics will celebrate Barack Obama's Jan. 20 inauguration with a special issue of "Amazing Spider-Man" (Issue 583) that guest-stars the president-elect. During the campaign, Obama said he used to collect Spider-Man comics.

Grumpy panda: Gu Gu, a 240-pound panda at the Beijing Zoo, bit his third tourist in two years, and this time, his jaws had to be forced open to free the man, who had jumped in to retrieve his son's toy.

Passages

Cheryl Holdridge, 64, the actress who first gained fame as a Mouseketeer on TV's "The Mickey Mouse Club" in the 1950s, died Tuesday at her Santa Monica, Calif., home; she had lung cancer.

Gaston Lenôtre, 88, considered one of France's best pastry chefs, died Thursday at his home in Sologne, south of Paris.

Don Galloway, 71, an actor whose career was launched in the early days of TV soap operas and who played Officer Ed Brown on "Ironside" before enjoying a big-screen career, died Thursday at a Reno, Nev., hospital.

Today in history

1964: Anti-U.S. rioting broke out in the Panama Canal Zone, resulting in the deaths of 21 Panamanians and several U.S. soldiers.

1997: A Comair commuter plane crashed 18 miles short of the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, killing all 29 people on board.

Birthdays

Author Judith Krantz, 81. Folk singer Joan Baez, 68. Rock musician Jimmy Page, 65. Singer Crystal Gayle, 58. Actress Joely Richardson, 44. Rock singer-musician Dave Matthews, 42. Singer A.J. McLean, 31.

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