FCC moving to give states phone authority

WASHINGTON -- A weeklong delay in a vote on phone competition rules apparently did not resolve deep divisions at the Federal Communications Commission over rolling back requirements for companies to share access to transmission networks.

On Feb. 10, FCC Chairman Michael Powell postponed the vote until Thursday, hopeful he could win over a third commissioner on the five-member panel for a plan favored by the regional Bells -- BellSouth Corp., SBC Communications, Verizon Communications and Qwest Communications.

Negotiations continued Wednesday, but industry officials and observers said they expected no change in the commissioners' positions.

The vote is the commission's last chance to meet a court-ordered deadline to rewrite the policy before existing rules are struck down. Courts have rejected the agency's last two attempts to revise the rules, saying they failed to meet the requirements of a 1996 telecommunications law.

Treasury expects to reach national debt limit today

WASHINGTON -- Expecting to reach the national debt ceiling of $5.6 trillion today, the government took steps Wednesday to allow federal borrowing to continue while Congress considers raising the debt limit.

Treasury Secretary John Snow wrote congressional leaders urging quick action to raise the ceiling, though he did not recommend a new limit. Treasury officials saying they wanted to leave that decision up to lawmakers.

"I know that you share the president's and my commitment to maintaining the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, especially at this critical time," Snow said in the letter.

Civil rights leaders warn on Georgia flag issue

ATLANTA -- Civil rights leaders Wednesday warned that blacks would boycott a statewide referendum on bringing back the old Georgia flag with its large Confederate emblem.

Black leaders said it would be insulting to even ask blacks to consider the question.

"Would you expect the Jewish community to participate in a campaign to raise the swastika?" said the Rev. Joseph Lowery, former head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Georgia's new Republican governor, Sonny Perdue, has proposed a statewide vote in 2004 on whether to bring back the flag that flew over Georgia from 1956 to 2001. In 2001, in hopes of avoiding racial turmoil, the legislature changed the flag to reduce the large Confederate emblem to a small insignia.

It is up to the legislature to decide whether to hold the referendum, which as proposed by the governor would be nonbinding.

Anti-war groups planning phone campaign

WASHINGTON -- Like marchers, their goal is to bring an anti-war message to the attention of political leaders in Washington. But instead of taking to the streets, these activists will try to overwhelm switchboards by telephone, computer and fax machine.

A coalition of groups opposed to a U.S.-led war in Iraq is asking supporters to call, fax and e-mail the White House and Congress next week in an effort to show the power of the anti-war effort.

"Last weekend, we marched in the streets," Tom Andrews, national director of Win Without War, told a news conference Wednesday. "Next week, we're taking it to the suites of official Washington."

--From wire reports