Archives: Morning Breakouts

"Across Africa and the developing world, a new global land rush is gobbling up large expanses of arable land. Despite their ageless traditions, stunned villagers are discovering that African governments typically own their land and have been leasing it, often at bargain prices, to private investors and foreign governments for decades to come," the New York Times writes in an article that examines the factors contributing to a growing interest in such land among investors.

News outlets examine various issues - from spending to the individual mandate - related to implementation of the health law.

News outlets explore the legislative achievements and political acrimony that emerged on Capitol Hill during the 111th Congress.

The Congress Tuesday "approved a temporary spending bill [.pdf] that will fund the federal government for another 10 weeks through March 4 in order to avoid a government shutdown," Agence France-Presse reports.

A USAID official said Tuesday that potential violence following the release of Haiti's final presidential election results could interfere with efforts to contain the country's cholera epidemic, CBC News reports.

"The Vatican on Tuesday issued its most authoritative clarification on Pope Benedict XVI's recent remarks that condoms could sometimes be used for disease prevention, saying that the pope in no way justified their use to prevent pregnancy," the New York Times reports (Donadio, 12/21).

Congress considers a range of legislation during the lame duck session.

A news organization reports on the holdings of judges involved in legal challenges to the health law.