Here is your special R&D weekend edition for October 17th:
U.S. backs off in currency dispute with China from Reuters
On Friday, the Obama administration backed away from a showdown with China over its currency as the Treasury Department delayed a decision on whether to label China as a currency manipulator.
Lebanon becoming Iranian satellite, Netanyahu warns from the Jerusalem Post
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned over the weekend that Lebanon is becoming an Iranian satellite in the Middle East. Netanyahu’s remarks follow Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to Lebanon last week.
GOP candidates surge ahead in fundraising from the Washington Post
For much of the midterm election cycle, Democrats have outfundraised Republicans. However, Republican congressional candidates have taken the lead, which will give them a huge advantage in the two weeks before Election Day.
Mexico convoy threads its way through strange drug war in Sonora state from the Los Angeles Times
This is an interesting story that describes the conditions for people caught between the lines of the Mexican drug war. It can provide extempers with some examples for their speeches on this topic.
Pressures Likely to Remain on the Dollar from the Wall Street Journal
Extempers will have to talk about pressures on the U.S. dollar several times this season. This article provides a quick overview of why the dollar is declining.
Clegg drives his voters away from the UK Independent
Has the Liberal Democrat’s coalition with the Conservatives undermined its future? Better yet, are the Liberal Democrats really a left-wing alternative to the Labour Party?
Sunnis in Iraq Allied With U.S. Quitting to Rejoin Rebels from the New York Times
In a disturbing sign, hundreds of well-disciplined fighters that were part of Awakening Councils across Iraq have switched sides and joined insurgency movements. The defections are driven by frustration with the Shiite-led government and pressure from al-Qaeda.