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today's papers: A summary of what's in the major U.S. newspapers.

Foreign Drug Abuse

By Jesse Stanchak
Posted Sunday, June 17, 2007, at 7:23 AM ET

(Continued from page 1)

The wait list for a security check to become a naturalized U.S. citizen is now more than 300,000 applicants long, says the WP. Public officials blame poor coordination between agencies and inefficient processing methods. Critics point out that these delays are more than an inconvenience: If an applicant is a real security threat, the delay buys them time in this country.

The LAT runs an item under the fold on a paradox in voter attitudes: Most voters say they'd like a Democrat to win the presidency in 2008, but some voters change their mind when asked about specific Democratic candidates. The paper conducted a poll comparing voter's preference for an unspecified candidate of either party with matchups of the leading candidates of both parties. Though a generic Democrat would lead a generic Republican by 8 percent, specific Democrats, most notably Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., poll lower than their Republican rivals. The paper doesn't discuss the poll's methodology, except to say it had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent. The article is so focused on Clinton's polarizing effect on the election that it barely mentions the one clear exception to this trend: Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., who leads all the top Republican candidates by healthy margins.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is closely associated with the efforts of city firemen during the Sept. 11 attacks, but not all firemen support Giuliani's presidential bid, says the NYT.

Game theory: The NYT Magazine looks at the life of Chinese "gold farmers" who toil in online fantasy video games, earning virtual currency to be sold to wealthy American and European gamers. The NYT also has an amusing slide show comparing photos of gamers and their online avatars. Meanwhile, the LAT asks if professional gaming could be the next big spectator sport.

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Jesse Stanchak is an assistant documents editor at Congressional Quarterly. He covers elections in Oregon and Idaho for CQpolitics.com.
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