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questration."
• The automatic cuts, known as a "sequester" in Washington-speak, are the penalty for the failures of the 2011 deficit "supercommittee" and subsequent rounds of budget talks to produce an agreement.
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Deadly nightclub fire shines spotlight on Brazil's weak safety laws, sparks calls for change
• SANTA MARIA, Brazil (AP) -- Flammable and toxic foam soundproofing on the ceiling. Just one exit for a large club that could hold hundreds of people. Not a ceiling water sprinkler system in sight.
• These are some of the main causes of the massive death toll in a nightclub fire in Brazil -- and none broke any law, raising questions about safety regulations in a nation set to host the World Cup and Olympic Games.
• Documents obtained by The Associated Press, including past building and fire safety plan permits issued to the Kiss club, where 234 people died within minutes in a fire early Sunday, showed that such deadly choices were within regulations.
• "Do I agree with the fact that there was only one exit? No. Do I agree that the roof was covered with flammable material? No, I don't," said Maj. Gerson Pereira, an inspector with the local fire department. "I would have liked to shut down this place, but then the firefighters could be sued" because no law had been broken.
• But the same documents also illustrate that other regulations were broken, including irregularities in the fire safety inspection of the club, as well as violations by the band the club hired whose pyrotechnics are blamed for causing the blaze. Police inspectors say any of these violations were reason enough to shut the club down.
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AP Interview: Top US commander confident Afghan forces can take the lead
• KABUL (AP) -- The top commander of U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan believes government security forces have improved faster than expected and will be ready to take the lead in the 11-year-old war against the Taliban when foreign combat forces take a back seat this spring.
• Marine Gen. John Allen told The Associated Press that the main job over the next two years for the International Assistance Force -- as the NATO-led troops in Afghanistan are called -- will be to advise, train and build the capabilities needed for Afghan forces to go it completely alone.
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