US & World News, Monday 1/28

US/World Summary --- Senator Kennedy WIll Join Obama At Campaign Rally (Washington, DC) -- In what could be a huge blow to the Hillary Clinton campaign, Massachusetts Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy is endorsing Barack Obama for President. Kennedy is scheduled to join the Illinois Senator today at a Washington, DC, rally. Caroline Kennedy, daughter of former President John F. Kennedy is also scheduled to attend. Shes already expressed her support for Obama. Meanwhile, the latest Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll has Republican John McCain pulling ahead of Mitt Romney ahead of tomorrows Floridas primary. McCain picked up the support of Florida Governor Charlie Crist over the weekend. --- Sick 9-11 Workers To Attend State Of The Union Speech (New York, NY) -- A group of 9-11 workers who have since become ill will be in the House chamber for President Bushs State of the Union speech tonight. The Ground Zero workers will be there as guests of the New York congressional delegation. One of those workers says he is fed up with the way he and his fellow sick 9-11 workers have been treated by the federal government. He says in the days and months after the attacks he was treated like a hero but now he is sick and has trouble getting adequate healthcare. --- Mormon Church President Dead At 97 The man credited with helping the Mormon church grow to more than 13-million members is dead. Gordon B. Hinckley used modern technology such as satellite and YouTube to help spread the Mormon faith. Utah Governor Jon Huntsman has ordered flags on all Utah state buildings to be flown at half-mast in honor of the 97-year-old Hinckleys passing. Thomas Monson is expected to succeed Hinckley as the next leader of the Mormon church. --- Senator Wants Answers For Men Denied Moussaoui Reward (Washington, DC) -- A senator wants to know why two men who were credited with tipping off federal officials to Zacarias Moussaoui arent being rewarded. Flight instructor Clarence Prevost is getting five-million-dollars for notifying his bosses about the suspicious behavior of then-student Moussaoui, but Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar wants to know why two other flight instructors were left out. All three men were honored by the Senate for their "bravery" and "heroism." A State Department spokesman says theyre looking into the senators concerns. --- Bill Planned To Protect Medical Marijuana Users (Sacramento, CA) -- A California state lawmaker is getting ready to introduce a bill protecting medical marijuana patients against being fired. Thats in response to a ruling last week from the California Supreme Court. The court ruled in favor of a Sacramento company who fired an employee after he failed a drug test even though the employee told his employer in advance that he had been prescribed medicinal marijuana. Assemblyman Mark Leno calls the ruling a serious blow to patients rights and says hell introduce legislation to protect those who legally use the substance. --- Thousands Of Media Members Set To Cover Super Bowl (Glendale, AZ) -- The New England Patriots arrived in Phoenix, Arizona, yesterday for this Sundays Super Bowl, but they arent the only ones descending on the desert city. According to azcentral.com, the Super Bowl 42 Media Center yesterday welcomed the first of more than 35-hundred reporters, photographers and camera operators who are credentialed for the NFLs championship game. League spokesman Brian McCarty says its a record number in the games 42-year history. The Patriots play the New York Giants in Sundays game. --- "Heroes" Actress An Animal Rights Hero In Real Life One of NBCs "Heroes" is speaking out against commercial whaling. Actress Hayden Panettiere meets with officials from Japan, Norway and Iceland today to question what she calls their outdated whaling practices. The 18-year-old actress is a spokeswoman for the Save the Whales Again! Campaign. She faces possible arrest in Japan for trying to save a pod of dolphins from being massacred by Japanese fishermen. (Copyright 2008 by Newsroom Solutions) RNS-01-28-08 0842CST