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Republicans vs. Republicans: When are federal budget cuts too deep?

Washington – After voting together on issues ranging from repeal of health-care reform to ending taxpayer funding of presidential campaigns, House Republicans are struggling to close rifts in their new majority over this years projected $1.5 trillion deficit.

At issue is how fast and how far to rein in the size and scope of government. House GOP leaders propose cutting $32 billion from current spending levels. The Appropriations panel is on track to release draft legislation laying out new spending proposals to reach this goal on Thursday.

But many conservatives, especially tea party freshman, want significantly deeper cuts closer to the $100 billion level promised in last falls GOP Pledge to America. The projected deficit for FY 2011 is $180 billion higher than the deficit in FY 2010.

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Last month, 86 GOP conservatives signed a letter to Speaker John Boehner calling for the full $100 billion. Sen. Rand Paul (R) of Kentucky, who founded the Tea Party Caucus, says that the Congress should aim for $500 billion in cuts for fiscal year 2011, to jump start the massive cuts needed to rein in a $1.5 trillion deficit.

If the original bill does not get all the way to $100 billion in savings, we plan to offer an amendment that closes the gap,

Blue Dogs challenge DemocratsMeanwhile, Democrats are coping with rifts in their own ranks. Seventeen fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats voted with Republicans last month to bring spending back to levels to 2008 levels, before the stimulus spending of the Obama administration.

Speaker Boehner has promised a rare, open debate on federal spending levels next week, giving both Democrats and Republicans a chance to offer amendments on spending levels.

The open process is going to allow members such as the Blue Dogs who I have read recently are also considering that they may join us in actually cutting spending it will allow them to propose their spending cuts, as well as perhaps some in the progressive caucus on the other side, so that perhaps we could find some common ground, realizing the necessity for us to cut spending coming out of Washington so we can grow this economy, said House majority leader Eric Cantor at a press briefing Tuesday.

The debate over current year spending cuts is a harbinger of a tougher battle, expected as early as late April, on raising the $14.3 trillion national debt limit, which many GOP freshmen campaigned to oppose. Boehner, who supports raising the debt limit, says it will be an adult moment for the Congress, because the consequences of a government shutdown would be so damaging to the nation.

Capitol Hill culture shiftGOP senators say that the culture of Washington on spending is shifting in the Senate, where Republicans are still in the minority.

This debate has completely changed, said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, in a floor speech on Tuesday. Two years ago, the president and Democrats running Congress werent debating whether to cut spending. They were debating how much to spend. Today, the only debate is how much to cut.

Speaking at a tea party rally in Washington on Tuesday night, GOP Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee of Utah called for a balanced-budget amendment. Congress has to be put in a straight jacket, said Senator Lee, whose defeat of three-term Sen. Robert Bennett (R) in last years Utah Republican primary stunned the GOP national establishment. Senator Hatch faces reelection in 2012 and is reaching out to tea party activists in advance of that campaign.

Still, the forces driving up federal spending are formidable, analysts say. Spending in the budget is going to go up, interest on the debt is going to go up, Social Security, Medicare, defense, even agricultural price supports will probably all be going up, says Stan Collender, a budget analyst at Qorvis Communications in Washington.

The only place theyre talking about holding the line and trying to spend less is less than one-tenth of all spending,

RELATED: Five ways Republicans will change the House

Man given 1-year term for child rape dies in jail

MCALESTER, Okla. – Authorities say an Oklahoma man whose one-year sentence for raping a child sparked national outrage has died in jail.

Pittsburg County Sheriff Joel Kerns told the McAlester News Capital that David Earls died about 2:30 p.m. Saturday at a McAlester hospital, where he was taken after developing flu-like symptoms.

Earls was awaiting a separate trial on a 2009 grand jury indictment charging him with lewd and indecent acts with a child under 16.

The indictment came after Earls was sentenced to 20 years in prison with the last 19 years suspended in a 2008 child rape case. Earls was nearing a release date on the one-year sentence when he was indicted in the separate case.

His attorney, Al Hoch, didn't immediately return a call Monday seeking comment.

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Information from: McAlester News-Capital,

No. 4 Pittsburgh holds off No. 25 West Virginia

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Nasir Robinson scored 15 points and No. 4 Pittsburgh overcame an awful start to beat No. 25 West Virginia 71-66 on Monday night.

Pittsburgh (22-2, 10-1 Big East) got a balanced attack without leading scorer Ashton Gibbs, who is out up to two weeks with a left knee injury. Gary McGhee had 13 points, Travon Woodall added 12 and Brad Wanamaker scored 11 for the Panthers.

Pittsburgh went hard to the glass after being held to a season-low 23 points in the first half. The Panthers went ahead to stay with 8 minutes left in the game to improve to 5-0 on the road in the Big East and continue their best overall start in conference play.

This is the 10th straight season Pitt has won at least 20 games overall and at least 10 in the Big East, the conference's longest current streak.

Deniz Kilicli scored a career-high 19 points and Kevin Jones added 12 for the Mountaineers (15-8, 6-5), who have lost four of their last five.

Without Gibbs, Pittsburgh had little outside shooting presence — and it didn't matter. The Panthers, who lead the nation in rebounding margin, outrebounded West Virginia 40-28 on the strength of 18 offensive boards.

From start to finish, Pittsburgh pounded the ball inside, piling up 42 points in the paint against a Mountaineers defense that eventually wore down.

Pittsburgh had just three turnovers after halftime and shot 61 percent (17 of 28) from the field in the second half and 44 percent for the game.

West Virginia guard Casey Mitchell played 24 minutes in a backup role after being reinstated a game earlier from an indefinite suspension, but he wasn't much help. The Mountaineers' leading scorer was limited to seven points on 2-of-10 shooting.

West Virginia was aching for any kind of offense after managing just 50 points in Saturday's loss at No. 9 Villanova and Kilicli provided it.

He scored on a left-handed baby hook and made a three-point play 25 seconds apart to bring West Virginia within 59-58 with 4:03 remaining.

Gilbert Brown made a layup and a three-point play during Pittsburgh's ensuing 12-4 run. Robinson's dunk with 19 seconds left capped the run and put Pittsburgh ahead 71-62.

West Virginia scored eight of the game's first 10 points, fell behind only once before halftime and held the Panthers to one field goal over the final 5 minutes of the half. Pittsburgh shot 29 percent (9 of 31) from the field and trailed 25-23 at halftime.

The Panthers matched their first-half output in the first 11 minutes of the second half.

Woodall, Gibbs' replacement, put the Panthers ahead to stay, 47-46, on a jumper with 8:16 remaining.

But like most games in the Backyard Brawl, West Virginia managed to stay close until the Panthers' decisive run.

Buffalo, N.Y., Snow Totals May Rise with Approaching Storm

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Another hard-hitting storm is bringing a mixed bag of precipitation to the Northeast. Buffalo, once the butt of snow jokes, still lags behind the new winner of snowfall totals -- Syracuse with 115 inches. There are even cities in the east that have tied Buffalo this year and are bracing to surpass with this new wave coming early Wednesday morning.

Although Buffalo is in third for snow totals in New York state, the snow tonight may not change the rankings. That's because almost every county in New York and northern Pennsylvania is under the same storm warning, although they won't be seeing the same precipitation.

"The places that will get the most snow will be along the lake Ontario shoreline where they're going to get anywhere between 8 to 14 inches," said David Zaff of the National Weather Service out of Buffalo. "As you move south towards the PA line that number will drop quite a bit."

However those places south of Buffalo and Rochester will be dealing with a combination of sleet and freezing rain. The initial dump of snow is also just the beginning as many will be dealing with blowing and drifting throughout the day with winds of 25 mph and reaching up to 35 mph wreaking havoc with driving conditions.

Most municipalities are asking the public to watch closely to the news and to heed any driving bans or warnings associated with your area. This helps the highway crews to better clear the roads without stranded or stuck vehicles hindering their progress.

"Just use common sense" was the advice from Steve Stepniak, the city of Buffalo's Commissioner of Public works. "If it looks rough out there and you don't have to go in it, don't. Take the warnings serious, if there are driving bans or driving warnings they're there for a reason."

Preparation is also key to the success of the highway crews.

"You can't prepare for one as apposed to another. You have to prepare each one as they come at you and do the best you can," Stepniak explained. He will have a 2 p.m. conference call with the National Weather Service to get any updates on the storm which will help them prepare for any last-minute details. Because our lake is frozen, we won't have to deal with that lake enhancement. But with this huge storm, Buffalo and the rest of the northeast will still have their hands full... with shovels.

B of A to pay $410 million to settle overdraft lawsuit

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) has agreed to pay $410 million to settle lawsuits accusing it of charging customers with excessive overdraft fees, court documents show.

The largest U.S. bank by assets is among the more than two dozen U.S., Canadian and European lenders named as defendants in the class-action litigation, which in 2009 consolidated lawsuits filed across the country.

JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N), Citigroup Inc (C.N) and Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) are among the other defendants named in the case, court records show.

Bank of America spokeswoman Anne Pace in an email said the bank has already changed its overdraft practices, eliminating fees for debit transactions and significantly lowering fees for customers who overdraw excessively.

She also said the Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender has "fully accrued funds" to cover the settlement.

Notice of the January 27 accord with Bank of America was filed on Friday with the U.S. district court in Miami. The settlement requires court approval.

Many banks let customers overdraw their accounts in exchange for fees, typically $25 or $35. Critics say the fees disproportionately burden lower-income customers and others who often maintain low account balances.

In a November 2009 complaint filed with the Miami court, customers said Bank of America routinely processed debit transactions from largest to smallest rather than in chronological order, causing account balances to fall faster and boosting potential overdraft fees.

They said the bank also did not clearly tell customers they could decline overdraft protection, and typically charged the fees to debit card users rather than decline transactions.

Bank of America customers would often rack up hundreds of dollars of overdraft fees, even when they may have been overdrawn by only a few dollars, the complaint said.

Overdraft fees industry wide totaled about $23.7 billion in 2008, up from $10.3 billion just four years earlier, according to the Center for Responsible Lending.

Last year the Federal Reserve imposed a rule that prohibits banks from charging overdraft fees on electronic and debit card transactions without advance customer approval.

In August, a federal judge ordered Wells Fargo to pay $203 million to California customers who complained about overdraft fees.

The bank is appealing.

The case is In re: Checking Account Overdraft Litigation, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida, No. 09-md-02036.

(Editing by Mohammad Zargham)