Obama pushes plan...Auto sales tank...Israel presses on

Washington (AP) President-elect Barack Obama says he expects to sign an economic stimulus bill by the end of this month or the start of the next. It could include $300 billion in tax cuts. Obama says the economy is bad and getting worse. He met today with congressional leaders to discuss options.

DETROIT (AP) Even huge rebates and zero-percent loans couldn't keep U.S. auto sales from plunging 36 percent in December. That capped a dismal year that saw sales free-fall by 2.9 million vehicles from 2007, a drop of 18 percent. There are predictions that sales could drop even further this year.

GAZA CITY, Gaza Israel is ignoring mounting calls for a cease-fire. It says it won't stop its assault in Gaza until "peace and tranquility" are achieved in southern Israeli towns in the line of Palestinian rocket fire. Gaza health officials say since the campaign began on Dec. 27 more than 550 Palestinians have been killed.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) The Minnesota Canvassing Board has declared Democrat Al Franken the winner of the Senate race recount.

However, an attorney for Republican Norm Coleman says the process is not at an end but is just beginning. He promises a legal challenge that probably will keep the race in limbo for months.

WASHINGTON (AP) Retired textile distributor Allan Goldstein has told a House hearing into Bernard Madoff's alleged $50 billion fraud that he's "a human face on this tragedy." The 76-year-old New Yorker says he lost his entire life savings with Madoff and had to cash in his life insurance policies to cover his mortgage.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 01-05-09 1847CST | save this article / add to your favorites list