rouge. president obama returns to washington facing growing criticism over the planned mosque near ground zero. friday the president told a group of arab americans that he believes muslims have the right to build a place of worship anywhere they want. that set off a firestorm and a political debate. this has taken a local issue and made it national. every democrat in the country can now be asked the question, do you agree or disagree with president obama on this issue? they know in answering that question president obama is on the minority side. most of the public disagrees with him. this is also an issue that is particularly controversial among the very independent voters that democrats need to keep in the fold if they re going to hold on to the majority in congress. a texas republican says the president s remarks show he is out of touch with mainstream america. a chemical scare closed part of new york s times square for hours last night with emergency crews taking n