Washington, D.C.

Bush, black leaders try for fresh start

President Bush told black leaders Tuesday that his plan to add private accounts to Social Security would benefit blacks since they tend to have shorter lives than some other Americans and end up paying in more than they get out.

Social Security was one of many issues that came up during Bush’s private meeting with 14 clergy and 10 leaders from business and nonprofit groups.

Exit polls showed that Bush received just 11 percent of the black vote in November’s election, a slight increase over the 9 percent he received four years earlier.

Bush planned to meet with the Congressional Black Caucus, a group of 43 Democrats, today. The caucus had an adversarial relationship with Bush in his first term, but Rep. Melvin Watt, D-N.C., the group’s new chairman, said members were hoping to find common ground with Bush in his new term.

Los Angeles

Study: Defense system for planes unreliable

Outfitting every U.S. commercial passenger plane with anti-missile systems would be a costly and impractical defense against terrorists armed with shoulder-fired rockets, according to a study released Tuesday.

Researchers said it could cost nearly $40 billion over 20 years to deploy defense technology on the country’s 6,800 passengers jets. By comparison, the federal government currently spends roughly $4.4 billion a year on all transportation security.

The study by California-based Rand Corp. also found the devices — powerful on-board lasers that divert heat-seeking missiles — weren’t yet reliable enough for commercial aviation because of false alarms that could distract authorities and create a safety hazard.

Florida

Gays drop challenges to marriage act

Three gay couples Tuesday dropped their lawsuits challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act, saying they do not want to risk having a conservative U.S. Supreme Court set precedent by rejecting their case.

The lawsuits were brought by gay couples who were wedded in Massachusetts and Canada and wanted Florida to recognize their marriages. Florida law recognizes only marriages between a man and a woman, and the Defense of Marriage Act allows states to disregard gay marriages performed in other states and foreign countries.

Their attorney Ellis Rubin said the key to their decision was the Supreme Court’s recent refusal to hear a challenge to a Florida law that bars gays from adopting children.

“That ruling strongly suggests that our case would not be favorably received,” Rubin said.

Two of the lawsuits were dismissed by a federal judge in Tampa last week. The third, filed in Miami, had not been heard.