Cool Reception

There is a general-election feel to President Obama's trip to New Hampshire today, with GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney and state conservatives mobilizing to greet him on his first visit there in nearly two years.   Obama's trip is the latest in a string of visits to key swing states to sell his jobs program. Today he'll urge Congress to renew the payroll tax cut and provide new relief for small businesses. Romney, a former governor of neighboring Massachusetts who owns a home in the Granite State, is using the president's trip to launch his first paid advertising of the 2012 race (see video below)

Investors didn't give a warm welcome to the incoming chief executive of health insurance giant WellPoint Inc. Shares of the nation's second-largest health insurer fell $3.01, or nearly 5%, to $63 in trading Wednesday, a day after the company named a veteran hospital executive to be its next CEO. WellPoint, which runs Anthem Blue Cross in California and health plans in 13 other states, picked Joseph Swedish to lead the company through a tumultuous...

In response to your editorial "AIDS: Cool Reception" Feb. 20: It's unfortunate that the Center for Disease Control and Dr. Peter Kerndt, epidemiologist in the Los Angeles County AIDS program office, interpreted the fact that fewer than 100 representatives from minority agencies working in AIDS-prevention programs showed up at the Biltmore Hotel for the briefing the CDC offered recently, as having received a "cool reception."

TAMPA, Fla. - For top Republican donors trickling into town, the welcome has been decidedly muted, a result of the havoc that Tropical Storm Isaac has wreaked on GOP convention plans. At the Westin in the ritzy Tampa enclave of Harbour Island, one of the designated lodging spots for the campaign's biggest givers, the lobby was thinly populated with guests sporting VIP badges and gift bags. “The vibe is soggy,” said Alex Castellanos, a Republican strategist and CNN contributor who was roaming the Westin ready for rain in a yellow and navy jacket.

Apple Inc.'s new iPhone is getting a lot of buzz these days, just not the kind the company is used to. Consumer Reports magazine on Monday said it could not recommend the phone because of "a design flaw" in its antenna and questioned Apple's explanation for some devices displaying weak signal strength and even dropping calls. It was the first time that the magazine, known for independent testing of consumer products, did not endorse an iPhone since the original model was released in 2007.

An Obama administration proposal to set global curbs on the trade surpluses and deficits of major countries drew immediate opposition Friday from some key American allies and trading partners, underscoring the enormous challenge in restoring stability to the global economy. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner unveiled the idea Friday before the start of a two-day meeting of finance ministers of the Group of 20 nations' finance ministers in South Korea. The U.S. also wants G-20 nations to commit not to undervalue their currencies to gain an edge in global markets ?

An attempt by Los Angeles County and the city of Lancaster to halt construction of a maximum-security prison in the western Antelope Valley received a cool reception Wednesday from one of the state Court of Appeal judges hearing the case. Judge Miriam A. Vogel, the only one of a three-judge panel to speak, suggested local attorneys might be asking the courts to overstep their authority by intervening in the prison construction issue.

The Bush Administration's sweeping plan to overhaul the nation's banking system received a decidedly cool reception Tuesday in the Senate Banking Committee, raising serious doubts that the full proposal can win congressional approval this year.

Notable contrast Re "Witness to the grief," Oct. 30 The image of President Obama saluting our fallen brother speaks volumes about his predecessor's deafening silence on this issue. Maybe former President Bush didn't want to meet the bodies of the soldiers because he knew that he had sent us on an irresponsible and ill-planned conflict and it weighed on his conscience. The debate on whether more troops should be sent to Afghanistan is more notable when contrasted against our rush against Iraq based on faulty intelligence.

Michigan practiced Friday morning in the Coliseum and, for the most part, players and coaches had nice things to say about their home for the week leading up to the Rose Bowl. Stadium workers had put the tarp on the field against rains that fell the last few days. "It was a little wet at one end," Coach Lloyd Carr said. "Other than that it was much better than I could have expected." Defensive lineman Grant Bowman took a moment to soak up the atmosphere.

There is a general-election feel to President Obama's trip to New Hampshire today, with GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney and state conservatives mobilizing to greet him on his first visit there in nearly two years.   Obama's trip is the latest in a string of visits to key swing states to sell his jobs program. Today he'll urge Congress to renew the payroll tax cut and provide new relief for small businesses. Romney, a former governor of neighboring Massachusetts who owns a home in the Granite State, is using the president's trip to launch his first paid advertising of the 2012 race (see video below)

An Obama administration proposal to set global curbs on the trade surpluses and deficits of major countries drew immediate opposition Friday from some key American allies and trading partners, underscoring the enormous challenge in restoring stability to the global economy. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner unveiled the idea Friday before the start of a two-day meeting of finance ministers of the Group of 20 nations' finance ministers in South Korea. The U.S. also wants G-20 nations to commit not to undervalue their currencies to gain an edge in global markets ?

Apple Inc.'s new iPhone is getting a lot of buzz these days, just not the kind the company is used to. Consumer Reports magazine on Monday said it could not recommend the phone because of "a design flaw" in its antenna and questioned Apple's explanation for some devices displaying weak signal strength and even dropping calls. It was the first time that the magazine, known for independent testing of consumer products, did not endorse an iPhone since the original model was released in 2007.

Re "Fido, a.k.a. the climate criminal," Opinion, Oct. 27 I can only imagine the pep talk Jonah Goldberg would give a soccer team if he were their coach: "Sorry kids, this other team is really good, so there's no use in learning to pass or dribble, as we're not going to beat them. Instead, let's just prepare for how we'll handle defeat." I refuse to accept Goldberg's belief that it's too difficult to move from a carbon-based economy so why bother trying. We are a country that does great things.

US Airways Group Inc.'s $8-billion takeover bid Wednesday for Delta Air Lines Inc. would create the world's largest carrier and potentially set off a wave of consolidation in the industry. Delta, the nation's third-biggest airline, responded coolly to the overture, saying it would study the offer but preferred to remain independent as it attempted to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. That didn't stop Wall Street from snapping up airline stocks.

First, there was the war between eight-track tapes and cassettes. Then there was Betamax versus VHS. Now a new battle over the future of home entertainment is once again forcing consumers to choose. High-definition DVDs are supposed to provide sharp, wide-screen images to fill the more than 30 million HD television sets that have been sold. They also are meant to replace standard definition DVDs, providing studios with a new source of profits.

Re "Could a Freeze Gun Put Flames on Ice?," Sept. 3: While I am sure the inventors of the firefighting blimp and freeze gun want to help, I think they need to look into some basics of wilderness firefighting. The normal weather conditions that accompany the biggest fires may prevent the blimps' use. The training that most wilderness firefighters go through teaches them the basics of fire behavior and fire attack. The designers would be well served to go through some of this training so they can better understand the basics.

After 23 years, Diddy Riese's ice cream sandwich is finally taking a licking -- from inflation. The landmark Westwood shop, where UCLA students sometimes line up out the door in pajamas to buy $1 ice cream cookie sandwiches, has melted from economic pressure and upped the price to $1.25. That's giving longtime customers such as Daniel Horowitz the chills. It's the "one-buck ice cream sandwich, not the one-buck-and-twenty-five-cents sandwich," he moaned.