US & World News, Wednesday 5/02

US & World Summary: Congressional Dems Blast Bush (Washington, DC) -- Congressional Democrats are blasting President Bush for vetoing the war funding bill. Bush yesterday followed through on his promise to strike down the measure because it contained a timeline to withdrawal troops from Iraq. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress wont give Bush "a blank check" for Iraq. Despite the rhetoric, Bush and Congressional leaders will meet today at the White House to try to reach a compromise to provide funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. --- Immigration Rally Turnout Drops Drastically Immigration rights rallies across the country yesterday drew significantly smaller crowds than last years gatherings. The Phoenix rally drew about 15-thousand marchers, while about ten-thousand showed up in LA. Last year, the Los Angeles gathering drew about 500-thousand people. The LA rally turned violent after a brief confrontation between some protestors and police. After some protestors threw rocks and bottles at the officers, police responded by firing tear gas and rubber bullets into the crowd. An unknown number of people were arrested. --- Corzine Pays Fine, Complaint Dropped (Trenton, NJ) -- New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine has voluntarily paid a fine for not wearing a seatbelt during last months crash that landed him in the hospital. According to authorities, the governors SUV was traveling 91-miles-an-hour when it crashed on April 12th. Corzine was thrown from the vehicle and suffered a broken leg, eleven busted ribs and other injuries. Because he paid the 46-dollar fine for the seatbelt infraction, a citizens complaint filed against Corzine for not wearing his seatbelt has been dropped. --- Study Suggests Racial Bias In NBA Referee Calls (New York, NY) -- NBA Commissioner David Stern is refuting a new study that claims calls made by the leagues referees are racially biased. According to the "New York Times," the University of Pennsylvania study looked at 13 seasons from 1991 to 2004, and claims that white refs called fouls at a greater rate against black players. Stern said the league did its own study after seeing a draft of the Pennsylvania study last year. The commissioner says the leagues review found that there is no bias. --- R. Kelly Pens Tribute To Virginia Tech Victims At least one singer is paying tribute to the victims and survivors of the recent mass shooting at Virginia Tech. R. Kelly has written a tribute to the victims of the massacre, entitled "Rise Up." According to Billboard.com, the song will be released through various digital services on May 15th, with the proceeds going to the Hokie Spirit Memorial fund. That fund gives aid to those affected by the April 16th tragedy. Jive Records says Kelly was inspired to write the song while watching TV coverage of the shootings. --- Man Objects To New Mosque, Files Suit (Pompano Beach, FL) -- One Florida man doesnt want an Islamic mosque in his neighborhood. The man filed a lawsuit yesterday against three Islamic groups who want to build the facility. According to the "South Florida Sun-Sentinel," Rodney Wright says the mosque would bring an extremist form of Islam to his Pompano Beach neighborhood and that it would be a nuisance that would decrease his property values. The Islamic Center plans to build a 29-thousand-400-square-foot worship center and school to replace an existing mosque. --- Britney Spears Performs At California Nightclub (Los Angeles, CA) -- Pop singer Britney Spears has performed publicly for the first time in more than three years. The unadvertised 20-minute gig happened yesterday at the House of Blues in San Diego. Television reports say the 35-dollar tickets were being sold for as much as 500-dollars. Rumors are the Britney gig was one of three scheduled events for the wig-wearing star. (Copyright 2007 by Newsroom Solutions/Regional News Service) RNS-05-02-07 0945CDT