■ United States
Bolton vote delayed
The US Senate on Thursday put off a vote to confirm John Bolton as US ambassador to the UN, yielding to Democrats' demands that the Bush administration be asked to hand over more information on Bolton's use of intelligence material. The Senate voted 56-42, giving Republicans less than the 60 votes needed to end debate and go to a final vote to confirm Bolton, a favorite of conservatives who currently is the top US diplomat for arms control. The vote is now delayed until after Congress's weeklong Memorial Day recess, marking another setback for the troubled nomination that has become a test of US President George W. Bush's political clout in his second term.
■ United States
Pope's car sale put on hold
The planned multimillion-dollar auction of the only car Pope John Paul II ever owned was put off on Thursday until a judge can resolve a father-and-son tiff over who owns it. The Illinois judge ordered the humble blue 1975 Ford Escort returned to Jerome Rich from Kruse International, the Indiana rare automobile museum and auction house where his son, Jim, originally bought it. Jim shipped the car to Kruse International and an auction was set for June 5 at Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas. Pope John Paul, who died last month, had driven the car himself and put 96,560km on it before giving it to Kruse in 1996 to sell, with the proceeds going to charity. Jim Rich paid US$102,000 and traveled to the Vatican to pick up the keys from the pontiff himself.
■ United Kingdom
Expensive cheese sold
A British cheese company said Thursday that a small piece of their special blend of extra-strong cheddar cheese, branded "TNT," had sold on Internet auction site eBay for £152 (US$278). "It works out at more than £500 (US$916) a kilogram, so that's an expensive piece of cheese," said Richard Clothier of the cheese company Wyke Farms of Somerset, England. Clothier said the successful bidder, known only by his eBay login name of "Huggysdad," plans to feed the pricey cheddar to his cat. "Huggy is apparently the name of his cat, who loves cheese," Clothier said.
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