Iranian armed forces paraded in Tehran on Tuesday to mark Army Day

U.S. and Iran Take Tough Stances in Standoff

WASHINGTON, April 18 —As diplomats meeting in Moscow failed to reach agreement on how best to raise pressure on Iran over its nuclear program, the American and Iranian presidents, both using tough language, staked out unyielding positions today.

In response to a reporter's question, President Bush declined to rule out a nuclear attack to stop Iran from building atomic weapons if diplomacy fails. "All options are on the table," he said. But Mr. Bush added, "We want to solve this issue diplomatically, and we're working hard to do so."

In Tehran, a defiant President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told the Iranian military that it had to be "constantly ready," and he warned bluntly that Iran would "cut off the hand of any aggressor," The Associated Press reported.

In Moscow, Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said diplomats of the five permanent United Nations Security Council members plus Germany had recognized the "need for a stiff response to Iran's flagrant violations of its international responsibilities," The Associated Press reported.

But he said talks on possible sanctions against Tehran had failed to produce an agreement. Mr. Burns said the United States expected Security Council action if Iran misses an April 28 deadline to stop uranium enrichment.

Neither Mr. Burns nor other American officials would say whether Russia and China had softened their opposition to sanctions.

Rumsfeld Stepping Down? Not Likely!

WASHINGTON (April 18) - Donald H. Rumsfeld said Tuesday he hasn't considered resigning despite calls for him to do so by a half dozen retired generals, and that whether he should remain as secretary of defense is up to President Bush.

Asked at a Pentagon briefing whether he would consider resigning to ease political pressure on Bush and Republicans in Congress, Rumsfeld said, "No."

"The president knows, as I know, there are no indispensable men ... He knows that I serve at his pleasure, and that's that," Rumsfeld said.

Rumsfeld spoke several hours after Bush reiterated his support for Rumsfeld. "I'm the decider and I decide what's best," Bush told reporters in the Rose Garden as he announced several White House staff changes. "And what's best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain as the secretary of defense."

Rumsfeld said he is proud of his five-year tenure of overseeing the Pentagon, through wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and a major restructuring of the armed forces.

He suggested that many in the military were naturally resistant to changes.

"These are important issues that are involved. There's no question about that. Change is difficult. It also happens to be urgently necessary," Rumsfeld said.

Under his leadership, he said, the first Marine corps general - Peter Pace - has been promoted to the chairmanship of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Many expensive weapons systems have been canceled, like the Crusader mobile artillery system, and some U.S. forces have been brought home from Europe and South Korea.

"I look back on those decisions and I am proud of them. They caused a lot of ruffles," Rumsfeld said.

With the past month, six retired generals have called for Rumsfeld to resign, accusing him of mishandling the Iraq war, ignoring advice of military commanders and having an arrogant management style.

In what seemed to be a swipe at such critics, Rumsfeld said, "People who are often talking about what's taking place inside here don't know what's taking place inside here."

As to the recent criticism of him from one-time commanders, Rumsfeld said, "We should be reasonably tolerant with respect to things that get said."

Asked whether there was any validity to the criticism of him, Rumsfeld said, "Well, you know, I've been hearing all about all of this, and I would prefer to let a little time walk over it."

"I think that because of the importance of these matters that are being discussed, I'd like to reflect on them a bit," Rumsfeld said.

Meanwhile, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the second-ranking Senate Democrat, said Tuesday that Democratic senators have discussed trying to force the Senate to take a symbolic vote testing the support Rumsfeld has when Congress returns next week from its spring recess.

Durbin has said Rumsfeld should step down.

"I think we need to have a vote of confidence on Secretary Rumsfeld. Let the Senate go on record," Durbin told reporters in Springfield, Ill.

Cubs Off to a Great Start

The Chicago Cubs this year seem to know what's important, winning games early. After completing a sweep of the division rival St. Louis Cardinals, the Cubs are 4 and 1.
Here's the story from the Cubs website:

CHICAGO -- Imagine having a tornado drop a large tree into your living room, then having to face St. Louis closer Jason Isringhausen with the game on the line.
That's the kind of nightmarish, dream-like weekend Michael Barrett had.

On Friday, in the Chicago Cubs' home opener, Barrett caught Greg Maddux, who pitched masterfully for the win. On Saturday, he hit a game-tying pinch-hit home run against the St. Louis Cardinals. He topped that Sunday night when he belted his second career grand slam in the eighth inning to help post an 8-4 win and sweep the series.

And Barrett did so after learning that a tree had crashed into his living room Friday in his Alpharetta, Ga., home, because of a tornado that ripped through the neighborhood.

Isringhausen (0-1) came into the game with none out and one on, and walked both Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez, neither intentionally, to set up Barrett's blast, which cleared the left-field bleachers.

"I've never seen him that wild," Cubs manager Dusty Baker said of Isringhausen, who had 39 saves last season. "Anybody is capable of losing their control. He doesn't lose it that often. I don't think I've seen him blow one ever. We'll just take it and savor it."

Barrett wasn't thinking home run or even extra-base hit, or even about his upcoming remodeling bill.

"As good as his stuff is, I'm not thinking anything but try to put a good swing on it, and I just ran into one," he said. "When [Isringhausen] loaded the bases like that and I came up to hit, and the first pitch he laid in for a strike, I thought, 'Here we go, he's back on track.' I expected him coming at me with his best stuff, and he did.

"The last pitch there, I know it's not where he wanted it because it was a little more of the plate," Barrett said. "I think because I wasn't trying to do anything but put a good swing on the ball, that's why the ball jumped out."

It's the first time the Cubs have swept the Cardinals at Wrigley Field since June 5-7, 2001, and it served as career win No. 1,110 for Baker.

Zacarias Moussaoui testified that he and Richard C. Reid were supposed to fly an airplane into the White House.

Jury Finds Moussaoui Eligible for Execution

ALEXANDRIA, Va., April 3 — A federal jury found today that Zacarias Moussaoui was responsible for at least some of the deaths that occurred in the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, meaning that he could be subject to the death penalty.

In concluding unanimously today that the defendant lied to federal agents after his arrest in August 2001, that he did so contemplating that human life would be taken, and that at least one victim of the Sept. 11 attacks died as a direct result of his deception, the jurors said death should at least be considered as the appropriate punishment.

The jury of nine men and three women now move into the next phase of the sentencing trial, in which they will decide whether he should actually be executed by lethal injection at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Ind. Before reaching that decision, the jurors will hear evidence of factors both favorable and unfavorable to the defendant. Relatives of Sept. 11 victims will be among those testifying.