The Discoverer Enterprise drill ship uses a flare to burn natural gas and oil from an insertion pipe connected to the broken oil well under the surface at the BP oil spill site, approximately 42 miles off the coast of Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico May 22, 2010. Vikings Jared Allen Jersey . [PhotoAgencies]   WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama announced Saturday the establishment of an independent presidential commission to investigate the huge oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Former senator Bob Graham, a Democrat, and former administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency William Reilly, a Republican, will serve as co-chairmen of the seven-member body, Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address. The purpose of this commission is to consider both the root causes of the disaster and offer options on what safety and environmental precautions we need to take to prevent a similar disaster from happening again, Obama said. The remaining five members of the panel, which is similar to panels created to investigate the space shuttle Challenger disaster and the nuclear accident at Three Mile Island, will be appointed in coming days. It will include scientists, engineers, and environmental advocates, but no current government employee or elected official. Obama also made his first reference to the possibility of a separate criminal probe into disaster. The commission shall ensure that it does not interfere with or disrupt any ongoing or anticipated civil or criminal investigation or law enforcement activities or any effort to recover response costs or damages arising out of the Deepwater Horizon explosion, fire and oil spill, Obama said. The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, owned by Transocean and leased by BP, sank April 22 some 52 km off Venice, Louisiana, after burning for roughly 36 hours. The untapped wellhead continues gushing oil into the Gulf of Mexico.    Previous Page 1 2 3 Next Page      Previous Page 1 2 3 Next Page   Replicas Jimmy Clausen Jersey . This series is a rematch of last years conference finals, which the Penguins won in five games before falling in six tests to Detroit in the final stage. A few months ago a trip to the postseason seemed in jeopardy for the Penguins, but the way Pittsburgh played down the stretch it appears that a second straight trip to the Cup Finals isnt out of the question. Authentic Lions Jersey .Y. -- Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis isnt surprised with the way quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has taken charge of the Buffalo Bills offence. Rangers Lundqvist Jersey . NHK said the plane took off around 8:50 am local time from the Niigata Airport but did not land at the Okadama Airport around 12:50 pm when it was supposed to. Cincinnati Bengals Rey Maualuga Jersey . Penny, who finalized a US$5-million, one-year deal Friday, is a two-time all-star who won a championship with the Florida Marlins but had his worst season last year for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Premier Zach Parise Jersey . Louis defeated Cincinnati, 24-21, in a preseason tilt at Paul Brown Stadium that was missing both teams starting quarterbacks. New England Patriots Bruschi Jersey . Jordan was signed as a free agent prior to last season and gained just 86 yards on 25 touches over nine games of an injury-plagued campaign. Rams Jersey . Sweed was placed on injured reserve Monday with a non-football related illness. Coach Mike Tomlin would not reveal any details of Sweeds condition Tuesday. New England Patriots Laurence Maroney Jersey . This time around, its Derrick Rose leading the charge instead of Michael Jordan. Rose, the reigning NBA MVP, scored 19 points and dished out 12 assists, as the Bulls handled the Atlanta Hawks, 93-73, in Game 6 of their Eastern Conference semifinal matchup. WASHINGTON：President Barack Obama plans to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan over six months, a senior administration official said Tuesday, on an accelerated timetable that would dispatch several hundred Marines by Christmas. US President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington October 7, 2009. With the full complement of troops expected by next summer, the heightened pace of Obamas military deployment in the 8-year-old war would appear to match the 2007 troop surge in Iraq, which rushed 20,000 combat forces to quell violence there. The Afghan surge would similarly aim to reverse Taliban gains and secure population centers in the volatile south and east parts of the country. Related readings:  Obama launches Afghanistan war strategy ahead of national address  Obama to detail big troop increase in Afghanistan  Obama facing tough selling job on Afghan policy  Obama set to meet with Australian prime minister In his prime-time speech to the nation Tuesday night at West Point, Obama will tie the escalation to an exit strategy, laying out a rough timeframe and some dates for when the main US military mission would end. Public opinion in this country has become increasingly divided over American participation in the stalemated war. Obama will try to sell a skeptical public on his bigger, costlier war plan by coupling the large new troop infusion with an emphasis on stepped-up training for Afghan forces that he says will allow the US to leave. The new infusion of troops had been envisioned to take place over a year, or even more, because force deployments in Iraq and elsewhere make it logistically difficult, if not impossible, to go faster. Instead, Obama directed his military planners to make the changes necessary to speed up the Afghanistan additions, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the details had not yet been announced. Military officials said at least one group of Marines is expected to deploy wiithin two or three weeks of Obamas announcement, and would be in Afghanistan by Christmas. Brady Jerseys. Larger deployments wouldnt be able to follow until early in 2010. The initial infusion is a recognition by the administration that something tangible needs to happen quickly, officials said. The quick addition of Marines would provide badly needed reinforcements to those fighting against Taliban gains in the southern Helmand province, and could lend reassurance to both Afghans and the US public. Obama also will insist that a specific withdrawal scenario be built into the process of adding new forces. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said in a TV interview Tuesday that Obama would lay out an endgame for US involvement. We want to - as quickly as possible - transition the security of the Afghan people over to those national security forces in Afghanistan, he told ABCs Good Morning America. This cant be nation-building. It cant be an open-ended, forever commitment. Officials were not specific on the withdrawal date that Obama has in mind nor the changes the military will be required to make to get the troop deployments on the presidents timeline. Obama formally ends a 92-day review of the war with a nationally broadcast address from the US Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. He began rolling out his decision Sunday night, informing key administration officials, military advisers and foreign allies in a series of private meetings and phone calls that stretched into Monday. Obamas announcement comes near the end of a year in which the war has worsened despite Obamas previous infusion of 21,000 forces. But the numbers of fresh troops dont tell the whole story, Gibbs said Tuesday. Its what their mission is, he told ABC. Were going to accelerate going after al-Qaida and its extremist allies. Well accelerate the training of an Afghan national security force, a police and an army.    Previous Page 1 2 Next Page      Previous Page 1 2 Next Page   ' ' '