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The article reports that the U.S. Homeland Security officials informed the Senate Finance Committee that the nation require new border security arrangements. The officials informed that the border guards are facing problems in identifying counterfeit driver licenses and birth certificates. Customs and Border Protection's assistant commissioner, Jayson Ahern informed lawmakers that implementing stringent requirements for people coming into the country should not be delayed.

This article reports that former U.S. Representative Bob Carr of Michigan is not seeking to succeed Representative Ted Strickland of Ohio. Carr who is running was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for the U.S. Congress in Michigan in 1996. Carr, who is now a Democrat, said that he did not want to talk about his political history except that he had won a federal election in Michigan. However, Columbiana County Democratic Chairman Dennis Johnson, who first spoke to Carr last month, disputes Carr's claims.

The article reports that U.S. Republican Senator Larry Craig has filed court papers seeking to withdraw his guilty plea in an airport sex sting. Craig pleaded guilty in August to disorderly conduct following a sting operation in a men's bathroom at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The court papers filed in Hennepin County District Court says that Craig plead guilty to the disorderly conduct charge in the hope that the matter would not be made public.

The article states that U.S. Senate Rules Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein is pushing to require senators to electronically file campaign finance reports with the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC) rather than use paper. The Senate's current exemption from electronic filing results in a circuitous process that involves filing paper copies with the U.S. Senate Office of Public Records, which scans them to make electronic copies that are transferred to the FEC.

The article reports that U.S. House Democrats unveiled their national security vision that recommends enlarging the military's ground forces by 100,000 troops and bolstering recruiting and retention. Their 15-page position paper criticizes the White House for "fiscal irresponsibility" and seeks to institute pay-as-you-go budget rules. Adding 100,000 troops to the military's end-strength would add roughly $10 billion annually to personnel costs alone, a pricey proposition that military leaders have feared would put expensive modernization programs at risk.

A crowded U.S. Senate race will top the Illinois primary ballot March 16, while both parties will be scrutinizing next Monday's candidate filing deadline to see if they can turn relatively safe districts into competitive races. Among Republicans running to succeed retiring GOP Senator Peter Fitzgerald, millionaire investment banker Jack Ryan, wealthy paper company executive Andy McKenna and Senator Steve Rauschenberger have created the most political buzz. A spokesman for state House Speaker Michael Madigan, Illinois' Democratic Party chairman, said political experience counts more than money in statewide politics.

If the U.S. Senate passes the bill maintaining capitals on media ownership, introduced by Senate Commerce ranking member Ernest Hollings and Commerce member Ted Stevens, it will not last in the House, according to a spokesman for Energy and Commerce Chairman Billy Tauzin. Tauzin plans to release a white paper on media ownership changes, as well as talking points for lawmakers. Few Republican lawmakers in the House have expressed interest in any ownership issue except the network ownership capital and Tauzin already has given his approval of the Federal Communications Commission's decision to prohibit any single broadcasting firm from owning more than 45 percent of the nation's stations.

Quotes a comment by former Representative David Bonior on donation of his official papers to Wayne State University's College of Urban, Labor and Metropolitan Affairs.

This article reports that officials have been unable to serve Chad Condit, son of former U.S. Representative Gary Condit, with legal papers stemming from a lawsuit filed by an independent state agency that investigates alleged violations of campaign laws. The agency, the U.S. Fair Political Practices Commission, has asserted that Condit and his sister, Cadee Condit, who has been served, illegally pocketed campaign funds raised by their father. Its lawsuit targets the Condit family's use of a public action committee called Keep California Golden, established by Gary Condit in 1999.

This article reports that Temple University law professor Jan Ting met with Pennsylvania state Republican leaders on Wednesday to announce his plans to challenge freshman Senator Thomas Carper. Ting has not yet filed papers with the FEC. Ting joins airline pilot Mike Protack in seeking the party nomination at a spring convention. Ting, a former commissioner for the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, has taken a conservative stance on illegal immigration and terrorism during appearances on national news programs. Republican Party Chairman Terry Strine said that he was excited by Ting's decision, but must remain neutral until after the spring nominating convention.

This article reports that U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) John Portman today announced that Everett Eissenstat will serve as assistant trade representative for the U.S. Eissenstat moves to USTR from his post as chief international trade counsel to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley. Portman also announced today that China has repealed its antidumping duty order on the U.S. kraft linerboard, a paper product used to make corrugated boxes. In a statement, Portman said that the U.S. was on the verge of filing a case involving the World Trade Organization, if the issue was not resolved to its satisfaction. Meanwhile, President George W. Bush plans to sign the U.S.-Bahrain free trade agreement Wednesday at the White House.

The article reports on developments in the computerized health information systems in the U.S. Representatives Tim Murphy and Patrick Kennedy declared that the government would authorize grants to regional organizations to develop interoperable health information technology systems that can communicate with each other. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton said that computerized health information systems will help reduce errors, will improve quality and will save money. Backers of computerized medical records says the health care industry has been dangerously slow to move away from paper records.