Morning Brief, Tuesday, January 8

New Hampshire Primary The first votes are in: Two tiny towns with a midnight voting tradition chose John McCain and Barack Obama. Polls close today at 8 p.m., but we’ll likely know the winners long before then. Obama leads Hillary Clinton by 13 points in the latest Reuters/CSPAN/Zogby poll, and McCain has a 9-point edge ...

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ROCHESTER, NH - JANUARY 7: Democratic Presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) addresses a campaign rally at the Rochester Opera House January 7, 2008 in Rochester, New Hampshire. Polls show Obama leading Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) moving into Tuesday's New Hampshire primary. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

New Hampshire Primary

New Hampshire Primary

The first votes are in: Two tiny towns with a midnight voting tradition chose John McCain and Barack Obama. Polls close today at 8 p.m., but we’ll likely know the winners long before then. Obama leads Hillary Clinton by 13 points in the latest Reuters/CSPAN/Zogby poll, and McCain has a 9-point edge over Mitt Romney. (Some analysts claim Romney is making a slight comeback, however.)

Asia

Facing social discontent, Malaysia has barred employers from recruiting labor from India.

Sri Lanka’s minister for nation-building was killed by a roadside bomb, just 12 miles north of Colombo.

From Tokyo, U.S. envoy Christopher Hill said that the United States “will be patient with North Korea.”

Europe

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said his relationship with ex-model Carla Bruni is “serious,” adding, “Carla and I have decided not to lie.”

France leads 19 industrialized countries in avoiding preventable deaths, a new study has found. The United States ranked last.

The garbage crisis in Naples, Italy, is turning into a full-blown fiasco.

Middle East

The U.N.’s relief agency is seeking $261 million to help Iraqi refugees.

U.S. troops began what military leaders described as a major offensive against al Qaeda in Iraq.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has reportedly fallen out of favor with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Elsewhere

Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki has yet to agree to international mediation to solve a political standoff with opposition leader Raila Odinga.

Eminent Harvard economist Martin Feldstein rates the chances of a U.S. recession as more than 50 percent. Even George W. Bush appears worried. “We cannot take growth for granted,” the U.S. president said Monday.

Gold and oil are up and the dollar’s down.

Today’s Agenda

  • President Bush meets with Turkish President Adullah Gul in Washington before heading on his tour through Israel, the West Bank, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt.
  • The U.N. Security Council meets today to discuss Kosovo and the Ivory Coast.
  • Britain’s Royal Mail releases special James Bond stamps to commemorate what would be Ian Fleming’s 100th birthday.

Yesterday on Passport

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