The Commercial Appeal from Memphis, Tennessee • 3

rnmmwclitoppaLcom Saturday October 312009 AS Former French president faces embezzlement trial servers Judges chased Chirac unsuccessfully in various corruption scandals for years and prosecutors had requested that this particular case be dropped Many French politicians fretted openly Friday about how the case would affect reputation abroad It's just one of several current scandals alleging dirty dealings in the conservative political establishment that Chirac headed for years tion case dating back to his tenure as mayor of Paris judicial official said Friday speaking on condition of anonymity because the case is ongoing A prosecutor can still appeal the judge's decision and ifso the ensuing judicial deliberations could last months Still the bold pursuit of Chirac who lost his presidential immunity when his 12-year presidency ended in 2007 stunned many ob One of former prime ministers Dominique de Villepin is on trial accused of orchestrating a smear campaign against successor Nicolas Sarkozy Villepin denies the charges And in a court verdict just this week Charles itaqua an influential former interior minister was sentenced to ayear in prison for influence peddling connected to arms trafficking to Angola He plans to appeal Bt Nicolas Vaux-Montagny Associated hats PARIS A French judge ordered former President Jacques Chirac to stand trial op embezzlement charges predating his presidency a case that could mark the first time a former leader of modem France is forced to defend himself in court Chirac is to be tried for embezzlement and breach of trust in a corrup CatHmodfiompagsAl PARK NASCAR has agreed to move the Nationwide race to Gateway International Raceway in St Louis and the TVuck series race to the Nashville Superspeedway Both tracks are owned by Dover Motor-sports Those who purchased tickets for 2010 events will be mailed refunds in the next few weeks 1 think a lot going on in Memphis from an entertainment standpoint that competes with what we McGlynn said juk able to overcome McGlynn said he is willing to listen to potential buyers and will wait a few weeks before deciding the next step Jason Rittenbeny MMP vice president and general manager said the last economic study of the race track in 2004 showed race fans spent more than $245 million miring the more than 200 events at the track The economic impact cm Memphis and Shelby County that year was more than $545 million Rittenberrysaid best years were in 2005 and 2006 when it drew NASCAR's managing director of corporate communications talking with Dover we know it was an incredibly difficult decision for them and unfortunately it was dictated by Kenny Bernstein a Top Fuel owner and former driver who won at the 2001 NHRA event has a special connection to the track the drag strip was named after him that trade is very special to me personally and the day they named the strip after me was a memory I will always he said If John Force all time winningest driver and five-time Funny Car winner in Memphis has his way the track will be making a comeback 1 was shocked to hear he said Then as I started to rationalize they didn't use the words they bulldozed still there That means had financial trouble and somebody will pick it up just too good of a market 1 love to go to Memphis places you go to to party The hotels are accommodating don't zonk it be positive and help someone pick it up Morgue 5293792 Stqffrtporter Craig Wack ccmtnbuteclto this story Brad LuttraftSpscM to Ths Commerce Appeal The gates are dosing at Memphis Motorsports Park for the last time after owner Dover Motorsports was unable to complete Its tale to Gulf Coast Entertainment and CEO of Palm Beach International Raceway and Palm Beach Driving Club owned by Moroso Investment Partners Kroger had just completed its second year as title sponsor for the Cure 250 Nationwide Series race Before this event Kroger had signed a new threeyear deal with MMP as the title sponsor "We understand the eco nomic times but it wasagreat partnership with Memphis Motorsports Park in helping us carry the message of breast cancer said Whitney Atkins assistant marketing manager for KrogerDelta Marketing Area NASCAR officials said it would miss having a presence here hate not to have those races in Memphis said Ramsey Poston more than 600000 fans From 2001 to 2006 attendance increased each year In 2007 it started declining This year Rittenbeny said MMP drew just more than 500000 fans for 250 events Rittenberrysaid it has yet to be determined how many of the 26 employees will land jobs at other Dover properties Rittenbeny learned he has been named the president C3BICDB6 24 BELLE Ml JOUR 2999 NIKE Jackets Front zip woven Jackets In fan colors 4-20 19" EYESHADOW All-Over Printed Hoodies Choose from a selection of prints 2-6x Tops Sharps over tye dye or screen INITIAL ERRORS The White House promised the lobs data would be far more reliable than the first batch of numbers on federal contracts which the administration initially embraced then branded a "test run" after thousands of errors were discovered Many errors in that initial batch were reported by The Associated Press this week Teletech Government Solutions of Englewood Cdo which staffed call centers for the digital TV transition was among the largest non-government job creators The AP's review found the company previously had claimed more than 4200 jobs but most of those were temporary It has corrected the job count to 635 to reflect the equivalent of full-time employees in the newly released data The new data indicated the government has made more than 17000 such corrections to previously faulty records Conttnwdfnm page A1 JOBS many teachers and school workers from the unemployment Une Vice President Joe Biden said the recovery plan operating as and on target to reach Obama's goaL starting to make real progress on the road to recovery Biden said Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell said bewildering" to see the Obama job-creation claims when 3 million jobs have been lost since Congress approved the program White House economic adviser Jared Bernstein said the figures show that when adding in jobs linked to $288 billion in tax cuts the stimulus has created or saved more than 1 million jobs The new data released late Friday represents 156614 federal contracts grants and loans awarded to more than 62000 state and local governments companies school districts universities non-profits worth a total of $215 billion Tire largest numbers of jobs were created or saved by state governments California received nearly twice as many stimulus contracts grants and loans $269 billion as any other state followed by New York with $145 billion and Itacas with $13 billion Among the largest nongovernment creators or saviors of jobs were construction company Shelco Inc of Ralrigh NXX with 836 jobs and nudearwaste cleanup firm Savannah River Nuclear Solutions LLC of Aiken SjC with 800 jobs Government recovery plans everything from the $787 billion stimulus to tax credits for buying new homes to government deals on new cars are credited with helping the economy grow again after a long and deen recession But the job market has yet to show signs of recovery putting pressure cm the White House to show that the stimulus was worth its hefty price The economy has shed millions of jobs since Obama signed the stimulus in February giving Republicans ammunition to say the government is spending too much for too little effect The White House said the latest report bolstered its case that tire recession would have been far worse without the stimulus a of government tax cuts state aide and social programs The numbers released Friday have limitations since calculating saved will always produce an inexact estimate and collecting data from so many sources is certain to produce errors Bernstein said not a huge distinction between jobs and jobs ated by the stimulus money Either way he said an unemployed person The data released represent the most extensive effort by any administration to the effect of a spending program in real time Associated Press writers Outfits BabinghM in Washington and Scott Baser Madison Wis contributed to this repot tee 7-16 119 JESSICA SIMPSON Large Button Coats Single 99 SIEVE MADDEN loggia rront Coats With detachable hood Magenta Mack grey sizes e-xL 99 LOUDON FOB french Coats Garnet stone Mack chocolate daik green e-id Petites'Mack chocolate stone ebespB-pxL Women's Mack 1-3XH09 Black and cloud xs-xl Maid's I IBEKW IMRBI HAMAH iwUlUr 1 BgagaiSfagBsaiE divert urchas4j0 aeifcRBi OPglMONDW THROUGH SMllHDWno AM -9 PM 1 OPEN SUNDAY 12 NOON -6 PH- ini.