Washington in five minutes

WALTER REED

Obama visits wounded soldiers

President Obama spent nearly two hours visiting wounded U.S. soldiers Friday afternoon.

The president met with 19 soldiers being treated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, as well as the families of three soldiers in intensive care, and hospital staff. He also awarded two Purple Hearts.

The president’s visit came a day after an Army psychiatrist who once trained at Walter Reed hospital purportedly killed 13 people at Fort Hood. The White House said the hospital visit was planned before the shootings.

Friday’s visit was Mr. Obama’s first to Walter Reed since taking office, though he visited as a presidential candidate.

BERLIN WALL

Clinton to represent U.S. in Germany

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will lead a U.S. delegation to Germany for next week’s 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the White House said Friday.

The White House announced a delegation to Monday’s ceremony that includes the U.S. ambassador to Germany, Philip Murphy, and German Marshall Fund President Craig Kennedy. Also traveling with Mrs. Clinton will be Brett Scowcroft, a top aide to Presidents Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush, and President Jimmy Carter’s key aide, Zbigniew Brzezinski.

Mrs. Clinton will arrive Sunday in Berlin, and before attending the celebrations will deliver what is billed as a “major policy address” on democracy promotion to the Atlantic Council, a nearly 50-year-old group that seeks to improve U.S.-European relations.

From Germany, Mrs. Clinton will travel to Singapore to meet foreign ministers from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum on Wednesday, ahead of that organization’s annual summit later in the week, which President Obama will attend, the State Department said.

On Thursday and Friday, Mrs. Clinton will visit the Philippines, which is recovering from a series of devastating typhoons, to show U.S. support for the islands, the State Department said. She will return to Singapore to join Mr. Obama for the Asia-Pacific summit and will accompany the president on the rest of his Asia tour to China and South Korea, according to the agency.

HEALTH CARE

Frank takes dig at GOP colleague

Democratic Rep. Barney Frank took a dig Friday at the Republican lawmaker who organized a protest by conservatives against health care legislation.

Mr. Frank, a Massachusetts liberal, told an audience: “Some of the people [at the rally] that wanted to engage me in conversation appeared to have been the losers in the ’Are you smarter than Michele Bachmann’ contest?”

Rep. Bachmann, Minnesota Republican, had organized Thursday’s rally attended by thousands of conservatives critical of the Democrats’ health care plan. Her spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment. Mr. Frank, who recently compared arguing with an angry voter to conversing with a dining room table, said this week’s protest was like being trapped inside a furniture warehouse.

FDA

Web firms warned on flavored cigarettes

The Food and Drug Administration is warning several companies it says are still selling banned flavored cigarettes to U.S. consumers online.

The agency sent letters to more than a dozen Web-based companies directing them to stop selling the products and asking the companies to describe in writing what actions they have taken.

The FDA banned candy-, fruit- and clove-flavored cigarettes in September. Federal health authorities and regulators say those products appeal especially to young people and are intended to attract new smokers.

The FDA won authority over some aspects of the tobacco industry in June. It can now ban certain products, limit nicotine allowed in others and regulate their marketing.

SMUGGLERS

Worldwide sting nets millions in cash

A crackdown in more than 80 countries turned up $3.5 million hidden in carry-on and checked bags as people smuggled illicit money across international borders.

The more than 70 cash seizures are likely the proceeds of organized crime, said John Morton, assistant secretary of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The operation, which was conducted during the last week of October, shows the commitment of these criminal organizations to move money all over the world, Mr. Morton said, adding that he’s always surprised by the creative ways people try to hide cash. The weeklong operation involved 83 countries.

For instance, last week’s operation found cash hidden inside the padding of winter jackets packed in luggage in an Eastern European airport and silver coins stuffed in a rice cooker in a central European airport.

The operation led to at least four arrests - none in the U.S. - according to an ICE spokeswoman. She would not say where the arrests took place.

NASA

NASA ex-official gets probation

A former top NASA official has been sentenced to three years’ probation, six months of electronic monitoring and a $2,500 fine for breaking ethics laws.

Courtney Stadd of Bethesda was convicted of helping a consulting client get nearly $10 million of the space agency’s funds.

U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer rejected the government’s suggestion of a one-year prison term at Friday’s sentencing hearing. She said it was a “close call” in deciding whether Stadd’s conduct was corrupt or a misunderstanding of ethics laws, but added that he ignored his ethical obligations in steering NASA contract money to his client.