Police: Brazil nightclub fire kills at least 180

 

By NBC News and wire reports

PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil - Local police told NBC News that at least 245 people were killed in a nightclub fire in southern Brazil on Sunday after a band's pyrotechnics show set the establishment ablaze, and fleeing patrons were unable to find the emergency exits.

The toll was expected to rise, police said.

Bodies were still being removed from the Kiss nightclub in the southern city of Santa Maria, Major Gerson da Rosa Ferreira, who was leading rescue efforts at the scene for the military police, told Reuters. 

Ferreira told Reuters that the victims died of asphyxiation or from being trampled, and that there were possibly as many as 500 people inside the club when the fire broke out at about 2:30 a.m. 

Television footage showed people sobbing outside the club, while shirtless firefighters used sledge hammers and axes to knock down an exterior wall to open up an exit. 

"It was really fast. There was a lot of smoke, really dark smoke," survivor Aline Santos Silva, 29, told Globonews TV. "We were only able to get out quickly because we were in a VIP area close to the door." 

President Dilma Rousseff cut short a visit to Chile and was returning to Brazil following the blaze, her spokesperson said. 

Luiza Sousa, a civil police official in Santa Maria, told Reuters the blaze started when a member of the band or its production team ignited a flare, which then set fire to the ceiling. The fire spread "in seconds," Sousa said. 

Ronald Mendes / EPA

Relatives of those trapped in a nightclub fire in southern Brazil mourn on Sunday.

The disaster recalls other incidents including a 2003 fire at a nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island, that killed 100, and a Buenos Aires nightclub blaze in 2004 that killed nearly 200. In both incidents, a band or members of the audience ignited fires that set the establishment ablaze. 

Brazil's safety standards and emergency response capabilities are under particular scrutiny as the country prepares to host the 2014 World Cup soccer tournament and the 2016 Summer Olympics. 

Rio Grande do Sul state Health Secretary Ciro Simoni said emergency medical supplies from all over the state were being sent to the scene. 

Santa Maria is some 186 miles west of the state capital of Porto Alegre. "A sad Sunday!" tweeted Rio Grande do Sul Governor Tarso Genro. He said "all possible measures" were being taken in response and that he was on his way to the scene. 

Reuters and NBC News contributed to this report. 

 

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FW: Video: Engel: 'Almost impossible to imagine' US troops in Mali

 

 

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FW: Docs to former NYC Mayor Koch: Lay off the salt

 

 

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FW: Friar accused of abuse kills himself, police say

 

 

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FW: Ten Afghan police officers killed in suicide attack

 

 

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FW: Freezing rain warnings issued as big chill bites

 

 

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Posted on: Saturday, January 26, 2013 18:53
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Subject: Freezing rain warnings issued as big chill bites

 

By Ian Johnston, Staff Writer, NBC News

Updated at 3:30 p.m. ET: Winter storm warnings were issued Saturday for parts of Maryland and Pennsylvania in the East and Colorado and New Mexico in the West.

The National Weather Service warned of snow-covered roads with 1 to 3 inches of snow expected to fall in affected areas in the East and locally higher amounts.

In some mountainous areas of Colorado, the NWS said it expected heavy, blowing snow with total accumulations of 10 to 20 inches.

Read more at weather.com

View more videos at: http://nbcphiladelphia.com.

Some 8 to 12 inches of snow were expected to hit the northern mountains of New Mexico, the weather service said.

The Weather Channel said the last week's cold air invasion set the stage for this latest winter storm: "As an upper disturbance ejects out of the southwestern states, it will run into southerly winds on the backside of a high-pressure system centered over the Eastern Seaboard." 

Winter storm watches were also issued for parts of Illinois, including Chicago, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa.

The weather service forecasts freezing rain will develop in that area, from central Iowa to southern Wisconsin, northern Illinois and southern Michigan on Saturday night or Sunday. Travel conditions could be hazardous this weekend, NWS warned.

“Further north into Minnesota and Wisconsin, a couple inches of snow are possible before changing over to freezing rain and then rain,” said meteorologist Michael Palmer of The Weather Channel. Palmer said rain, sleet and snow could also hit the Plains and Midwest over the weekend.

Palmer warned there was the potential for a up to 0.5 inch of ice accumulation for Omaha, Des Moines, St. Louis and Chicago before rain moved in.

“The icy mixture will affect Detroit, Pittsburgh and Buffalo going into Monday,” he said.

“The band of moisture will continue to shift northeastward through the Great Lakes Sunday night and Monday with a variety of wintry weather,” he added. “Rain breaks out in Oklahoma and Kansas late Saturday and spreads northward into the colder surface air Sunday for an icy mixture” for parts of Nebraska, Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois.

Palmer warned of “significant travel issues with very slick roadways” and also said some affected areas could see power outages Saturday night through Sunday.

However, he said “a surge of warmer air" would arrive in the Plains and Midwest by late Monday with most areas seeing the ice and snow melt.

NBC staff writer Isolde Raftery contributed to this report.


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FW: Newtown residents join gun control march in Washington

 

 

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FW: Villanova beats Syracuse for 2nd-straight Top 5 win

 

 

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FW: At least 30 killed in clashes over Egypt soccer disaster

 

 

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FW: Federal website hijacked to avenge activist

 

 

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FW: Harkin won't seek 6th Senate term

 

 

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FW: Newtown residents to join gun control march in Washington

 

 

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FW: How to prevent cellphone frostbite

 

 

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FW: At least 26 killed in clashes over Egypt soccer disaster

 

 

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FW: NRA lobbyist criticizes ad referring to Obama's kids

 

 

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Posted on: Saturday, January 26, 2013 05:18
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Subject: NRA lobbyist criticizes ad referring to Obama's kids

 

By Susan Cornwell, Reuters

WASHINGTON - One of the National Rifle Association's senior lobbyists said an ad by the nation's leading gun-rights group after a school shooting in Connecticut that refers to President Barack Obama's children was "ill-advised."

Jim Baker, head of the federal affairs division at the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action, said he had made his views known to others at the powerful gun-rights organization.

The ad, which cast Obama as hypocritical for having expressed skepticism about putting armed guards in schools, when "his kids are protected by armed guards at their schools," drew widespread criticism when it first became public on Jan. 15.


Nationwide outrage over the shooting of 20 children and six adults at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14 moved gun violence and gun control to the center of the U.S. political debate.

"I don't think it was particularly helpful, that ad," Baker told Reuters in a telephone interview. "I thought it ill-advised."

"I think the ad could have made a good point, if it talked about the need for increased school security, without making the point using the president's children," he said. The NRA has advocated putting armed guards in schools.

Baker was the NRA's representative at a meeting with Vice President Joseph Biden on Jan. 10 to discuss the administration's plans to reduce gun violence in the wake of the school shooting.

He said he was not involved in creating the ad, and once it appeared, he had let others at the NRA know what he thought. "I got to say my piece," he said.

Baker gave no details of their response to him, but said, "Believe it or not, there are occasionally differences of opinion in this building."

In the ad, a narrator asks, "Are the president's kids more important than yours?" Obama's daughters, 14-year-old Malia and 11-year-old Sasha, attend private school in Washington and receive Secret Service protection, as is routine for children of presidents.

The White House has called the NRA ad "repugnant and cowardly," while New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said it was "reprehensible" and undermined the NRA's credibility by bringing the president's children into the debate. Christie is considered a possible Republican presidential contender in 2016.

Susan Eisenhower, the daughter of the late President Dwight Eisenhower who had Secret Service protection as a child, wrote in the Washington Post that she was "disgusted" by the ad.

The NRA's president, David Keene, objected to the White House criticism earlier this month, saying "We didn't name the president's daughters ... What we said is that these are people who think that their families deserve protection that yours don't."

The president's critics also have noted that when Obama announced his plan to respond to the gun violence, he was flanked by four children. Obama proposed renewing a U.S. assault weapons ban, as well as banning high-capacity magazines and more stringent background checks for gun purchasers. 

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FW: Teen with Down syndrome lands on SportsCenter after 3-point shots go viral

 

 

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FW: NJ high school teacher accused of having sex with student

 

 

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FW: Man charged in Florida manhole cover heist

 

 

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FW: Sasha Obama yawns during dad's inaugural address, sparks Twitter love

 

 

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FW: Obama: 'Our journey is not complete'

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 00:45
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Subject: Obama: 'Our journey is not complete'

 

By Michael O'Brien, Political Reporter, NBC News

 

Updated 4:33 p.m. — President Barack Obama issued a call to unity in his second inaugural address, urging the nation to move past the divisions that marked the last four years in politics and complete the work of living up to America's founding principles.

The president, in a speech that blended together post-partisan rhetoric and policy declarations, highlighted the progress made during his first term to end foreign wars and turn around the economy.

But Obama said that there was much unfinished work ahead, and he used Monday's speech to urge political leaders to finally rise above bitter squabbling — a recurring theme of his first term, and a mark of how difficult it has been for Obama to live up to his 2008 vow to change Washington's business as usual.

"Our journey is not complete," Obama said during one refrain in his speech.

Related: The full text of President Barack Obama's inaugural address

Hundreds of thousands gathered on the National Mall for Barack Obama's second inauguration, a crowning moment after what had been a bruising campaign. NBC's Brian Williams reports.

"We cannot mistake absolutism for principle, or substitute spectacle for politics, or treat name-calling as reasoned debate," Obama said. "We must act, knowing that our work will be imperfect.  We must act, knowing that today’s victories will be only partial, and that it will be up to those who stand here in four years, and forty years, and four hundred years hence to advance the timeless spirit once conferred to us in a spare Philadelphia hall."

Obama and Vice President Joe Biden were sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts and Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, respectively, shortly before noon; Monday's oath of office was ceremonial, following their formal, constitutionally-prescribed swearing-in on Sunday.

Monday's ceremonies coincided with the federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. Obama nodded to the slain civil rights leader during his speech, and the nation's first African-American president used one of King's Bibles during today's inauguration.

The president's speech, though, strode between acknowledging the accomplishments of his first term and the new priorities for his second. The president begins his new term this week intent upon pursuing an ambitious agenda following his decisive re-election victory last November over Republican opponent Mitt Romney.

Related: First Thoughts: Obama's second term begins

Rebuilding the economy, strengthening entitlement programs for future generations and addressing the threat of climate change were among the initiatives upon which the president touched during his speech. Obama nodded toward other priorities, that were set to define his next four years in office: equal rights for gay and lesbian Americans, immigration reform that offers undocumented residents a pathway to citizenship and new rules to curb gun violence.

But as political leaders from both parties looked on from the inaugural platform, Obama avoided much of the hard-charging rhetoric of last year's campaign.

Romney, the erstwhile GOP nominee, spent Inauguration Day at his home in La Jolla, Calif., and a former aide told NBC News it was unlikely that the former Massachusetts governor would watch today's festivities.

NBC's Chuck Todd and "Meet the Press" moderator David Gregory examine the goals outlined in Barack Obama's second inauguration speech. Obama defended Medicare and Social Security and wants to tackle gun violence and immigration while also advancing gay rights. But in March, Congress will debate how to fund the government – and if they can't come to an agreement about the budget impasse, Obama's other goals will be that much more difficult.

Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, Romney's running mate last fall, said today was not a day to emphasize partisan divisions.

"But today, we put those disagreements aside," Ryan said in a statement. "Today, we remember what we share in common."

To be sure, a variety of bruising political battles between Obama and Congress — in particular, a House of Representatives controlled by Republicans — loomed on the horizon. On Wednesday, Republicans said, they would vote on a measure to extend the nation's debt limit by a few months.

Earlier in the day, Obama and the first family attended a service at St. John's Episcopal Church — the "Church of the Presidents," as it is sometimes known — just two blocks from the White House.

There, Dr. Luis Leon, the rector of the church, led a series of "prayers for the nation," Washington Cardinal Donald Weurl led a Gospel reading, and an Alexandria, Va., rabbi offered a final blessing. Biden and his wife also attended the service.

Former Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter were among the dignitaries in attendance during the oath-of-office ceremonies during late Monday morning. Celebrities including musician Jay-Z and actress Eva Longoria joined government officials on the inaugural platform, and attendees were treated to performances by the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, Beyonce, Kelly Clarkson and James Taylor.

Obama retreated to a traditional luncheon on Capitol Hill following the inaugural ceremonies before participating in the parade down Washington's Pennsylvania Avenue.

"I recognize that democracy is not always easy, and I recognize there are profound differences in this room," Obama said in a toast before a bipartisan group of lawmakers, "but I just want to say thank you for your service and I want to thank your families for their service, because regardless of our political persuasions and perspectives, I know that all of us serve because we believe that we can make America for future generations."

Afterward, the president and first lady entered the motorcade from the Capitol and back to the White House, leaving the presidential motorcade at moments to walk for a portion of the trip.

The president and first lady will make their way to glitzy, black-tie inaugural balls later this evening before wrapping the whirlwind day of festivities.

NBC's Peter Alexander contributed to this report.


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FW: Flu season fuels debate over paid sick time laws

 

 

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FW: Algerian PM: Canadian key in gas plant attack

 

 

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FW: 'Horrific' scene after teen allegedly kills family

 

 

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Posted on: Monday, January 21, 2013 21:55
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Subject: 'Horrific' scene after teen allegedly kills family

 

By Matthew DeLuca, Staff Writer, NBC News

Police described a “horrific” scene after they arrived at the New Mexico home where a teenage boy allegedly killed his two parents and three siblings late Saturday night.

The five family members were found in their rural home outside Albuquerque. Police identified the victims as Greg Griego, 51; Sarah Griego, 40; and their children Zephania Griego, 9; Jael Griego, 5; and Angelina Griego, 2.

Their alleged attacker was identified by police as another family member, 15-year-old Nehemiah Griego, the Associated Press reported.

The boy was arrested and charged with two counts of murder and three counts of child abuse resulting in death, according to the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Department.  He has been placed in a juvenile detention center, according to police.

Police found multiple weapons, including an AR-15 style semiautomatic rifle, near the scene of the shooting, according to the AP.

“The victims all had multiple gunshot wounds, and there appeared to be multiple weapons, including an assault-type weapon,” Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Department deputy Aaron Williamson told Reuters.

“There’s no other way to say it, except that we have a horrific crime scene down there that we are working on it,” Sheriff Dan Houston said on Sunday.

While little was known about the alleged shooter, a picture began to emerge Monday of his father. Greg Griego, identified as a  pastor at Calvary, a local church, was remembered as a caring family man.

“Greg loved his family, he loved his church, he loved God, and was very involved with and had love for people in prison,” Calvary executive director Brian Nixon told NBC affiliate KOB-TV. “He headed up our jail ministry, he had a passion for people and to help them.”

Police: New Mexico teen charged in deaths of two adults, three children

Griego was active in the local community, working with prison inmates at the county jail as well as with area firefighters. He was the brother of former state Senator Eric Griego, KOB-TV reported.

“Chaplain Griego was a dedicated professional that passionately served his fellow man and the firefighters of this community,” Fire Chief James Breen said in a statement, according to the AP. “His calming spirit and gentle nature will be greatly missed.”

“Our family is grieving this terrible tragedy,” family members of the victims said in a statement, according to KOB-TV. “We appreciate the prayers and support we have received and request that the media honor our family’s privacy during this difficult time.”

 Down the road from the Griego residence, neighbors were shocked to hear the news.

“It’s a horrible thing,” neighbor Peter Gomez, 54, told the AP. “You see all this stuff that happens all over the country, the shootings in the schools and theaters, and then it happens right here. It’s sad.”

Gomez told the Albuquerque Journal that he did not know the Griego family well, but that he used to see the accused teen walking through the neighborhood wearing "camouflage stuff."

The Associated Press, Reuters, and KOB-TV contributed to this report.


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FW: Boeing 787 probe widens after battery voltage ruled out

 

 

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Posted on: Monday, January 21, 2013 21:45
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Subject: Boeing 787 probe widens after battery voltage ruled out

 


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FW: Giant Mars crater shows evidence of ancient lake

 

 

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FW: Former NY Mayor Ed Koch hospitalized again

 

 

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Posted on: Monday, January 21, 2013 09:24
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FW: Obama address: Liberal, but also not outside the mainstream

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 23:40
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Subject: Obama address: Liberal, but also not outside the mainstream

 

By NBC's Mark Murray

Political observers have placed so much emphasis on the “liberal” second inaugural address that President Obama delivered yesterday.

David Remnick in the New Yorker called Obama “a liberal emboldened by political victory.”

Scott Andrews / Pool via AP

President Barack Obama waves to crowd after his Inaugural speech at the ceremonial swearing-in on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol during the 57th Presidential Inauguration in Washington, Monday, Jan. 21, 2013.

The Atlantic’s James Fallows added that the speech was “the most sustainedly ‘progressive’ statement Barack Obama has made in his decade on the national stage.” 

Politico’s Thrush agreed.

So did we. “More than anything else, [the address] was an unabashed defense of liberalism/progressivism,” we wrote in First Thoughts.

And now the GOP-leaning group Crossroad GPS has pounced on similar commentary with a new web video. “At least his rhetoric is now matching his record,” Crossroads spokesman Jonathan Collegio said in an email announcing the video.

But what is being mostly overlooked is how many of the policies and viewpoints Obama articulated in his inaugural address are supported by majorities of Americans.

Chris Cillizza, in for Chuck Todd, talks about President Barack Obama's inaugural address and his forceful argument for progressive values.

Take Obama’s advocacy for gay rights, for example. (“Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law,” Obama said in his speech yesterday). As it turns out, per the Dec. 2012 NBC/WSJ poll, a majority of Americans -- 51% -- favor gay marriage. That’s up from a mere 30% in 2004.

There’s also immigration reform. (“Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity.”) The Jan. 2013 NBC/WSJ found another majority -- 52% -- supporting giving illegal immigrants the ability to apply for legal status.

And then there's his defense of entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare. (“These things do not sap our initiative; they strengthen us. They do not make us a nation of takers; they free us to take the risks that make this country great.”) Polls overwhelmingly find that Americans support these programs.

One issue that Obama discussed yesterday -- stopping climate change -- is a topic that could be a harder political sell, although the NBC/WSJ poll hasn’t tested it in a long time. And it is possible, as the Washington Post's Dan Balz notes, that Obama's second term could be marked by overreach.

But it's also hard to argue that these “liberal” ideas and policies are somehow far outside the political mainstream.

As Politico writes, “The cultural changes that allowed Obama to be the first president to mention gay rights in an inaugural address are already widely accepted by the public or destined to be so soon as a younger, more socially liberal generation comes of age. The president’s promise to address climate change and his peroration on continuing ‘what those pioneers began’ on gender equality, gay rights, voting rights, immigration and gun control likewise illustrated just how much the White House is convinced that the country’s cultural center has moved.”

NBC's Domenico Montanaro contributed to this article.


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FW: A more confident Obama emerges for second term

 

 

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Posted on: Monday, January 21, 2013 04:13
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FW: Pharmacy owners took in $16 million despite fungal meningitis outbreak

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 23:13
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Subject: Pharmacy owners took in $16 million despite fungal meningitis outbreak

 


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FW: Police in shock after colleague kills wife, son, self

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 23:10
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Subject: Police in shock after colleague kills wife, son, self

 


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FW: NFL reinstates Saints coach Sean Payton

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 22:46
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Subject: PFT: NFL reinstates Saints coach Sean Payton

 


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FW: J.Crew to retire Malia's coat, first lady's accessories

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 21:35
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Subject: J.Crew to retire Malia's coat, first lady's accessories

 


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FW: J.Crew to retire Malia's coat, first lady's accessories

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 21:35
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FW: Yes, I'm the face of Te'o's fake girlfriend

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 21:25
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Subject: Yes, I'm the face of Te'o's fake girlfriend

 


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FW: First Read: For Obama, it's no more Mr. Nice Guy

 

 

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Posted on: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 21:16
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Subject: First Read: For Obama, it's no more Mr. Nice Guy

 


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