College playoff championship pits Oregon against Ohio State B1 REVIEW
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Bill could end tax on military benefits Lawmakers think effort could pass this session BY SUSANNE M. SCHAFER The Associated Press COLUMBIA — South Carolina’s military supporters are working to end the state’s income tax on military
Nuke talks deal closer to reality
retirement benefits, arguing it will benefit the state in the long run. Although an attempt to get rid of the tax was overwhelmingly approved by the House last session, it didn’t get out of the Senate.
This time around, backers think they will have a better chance for success. “I do think we have a better opportunity this session,” said William Bethea, chairman of Gov. Nikki Haley’s Military Base Task Force, which was formed to support and protect the state’s six major military installations.
“We’re hoping to get started earlier this year and get focused so people can pay attention to it during a less hectic time,” said Bethea, a Bluffton attorney. The state’s Board of Economic Advisors has estimated ending the
SEE TAX, PAGE A5
All in the Braxton family
Negotiators create list of issues for 1st time to help resolve disputes BY GEORGE JAHN The Associated Press VIENNA — Iran and the United States have tentatively agreed on a formula that Washington hopes will reduce Tehran’s ability to make nuclear arms by committing it to ship to Russia much of the material needed for such weapons, diplomats say. In another sign of progress, the two diplomats told The Associated Press that negotiators at the December round of nuclear talks drew up for the first time a catalog outlining areas of potential accord and differing approaches to remaining disputes. The diplomats said differences still dominate ahead of the next round of Iran-six power talks on Jan. 15 in Geneva. But they suggested that even agreement to create a to-do list would have been difficult previously because of wide gaps between the sides. Iran denies it wants nuclear arms, but it is negotiating with the U.S., Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany on cuts to its atomic program in hope of ending crippling sanctions. The talks have been extended twice because of stubborn disagreements. The main conflict is about uranium enrichment, which can create both reactor fuel and the fissile core of nuclear arms. In seeking to reduce Iran’s bomb-making ability, the U.S. has proposed that Tehran export much of its stockpile of enriched uranium — something the Islamic Republic has long said it would not do. The diplomats said both sides in the talks are still arguing about how much of an enriched uranium stockpile to leave Iran. It now has enough for several bombs, and Washington wants substantial cuts below that level. But the diplomats said the newly created catalog lists shipping out much of the material as tentatively agreed upon. The diplomats, who are familiar with the talks, spoke to the AP recently and demanded anonymity because they are not authorized to comment on the closed negotiations.
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Brandon Braxton tries for a base hit during the Braxton family’s weekly kickball and softball outing at Dillon Park on Thursday. Between 20 and 25 members of the family play together weekly, usually on Sunday.
U.S. sanctions North Korea after cyberattack North Koreans gather at Mansu Hill on Dec. 16 where the statues of the late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il tower over them in Pyongyang, North Korea. The U.S. is imposing sanctions on North Korea in retaliation for the cyberattack against Sony Pictures Entertainment.
BY JOSH LEDERMAN The Associated Press HONOLULU — The United States imposed fresh sanctions on North Korea on Friday, targeting the North’s defense industry and spy service in an attempt to punish Pyongyang for a crippling cyberattack against Sony. The sanctions marked the first public act of retribution by the U.S. for North Korea’s alleged involvement. Although it was unclear how painful the blow would be — North Korea already is under tough U.S. sanctions — the move signaled that the U.S. was not backing away from its insistence that North Korea is responsible for the attack against Sony. North Korea has denied involvement, and some cybersecurity experts say it’s possible the North wasn’t to blame.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
“The order is not targeted at the people of North Korea but rather is aimed at the government of North Korea and its activities that threaten the United States and others,” President Obama wrote in a letter to
DEATHS, A5 Jeffrey A. Dellefield Reuben Adamson Terrie W. Gainey Ernestine S. Bell Jackson McKinney Ze’Brian A. Jackson
Mildred P. Walker Allen L. Bristol Pertell Loynes Sadie S. Richardson Hercules Smith Jr. Oldest Julius
House and Senate leaders. Never before has the U.S. slapped sanctions on a foreign nation in direct retaliation for a cyberattack on an
SEE SANCTIONS, PAGE A5
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