Heating up the campaign for the coming parliamentary elections, Turkey’s governing party on Wednesday unveiled a proposal to build a canal parallel to Istanbul’s Bosporus that would be longer than either the Panama or Suez canals.

Details of the plan, which has been speculated about privately in recent months as the “crazy project” of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, had been kept under wraps, but on Wednesday it immediately became the centerpiece of his party’s bid for a third term in power.

The pro-Islamic Justice and Development Party, known as the AKP, foresees a 28- to 30-mile canal connecting the Black Sea in the north to the Marmara Sea in the southwest that would be a safer alternative for heavy tanker ships than the natural Bosporus straits, which run through the heart of Istanbul, a city of around 15 million people.

The plan aims to divert ship traffic along the Bosporus that sometimes numbers 149 tankers a day carrying natural gas, crude oil, chemicals and other industrial goods.

The Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) and the Turkish Cultural Foundation (TCF) were honored to host Congressman John Boehner (R-OH), the Speaker of the House, at a dinner in Washington, D.C.
 
Speaker Boehner was joined at the dinner by Congresswoman Ileana Ros Lehtinen (R-FL), chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, as well as Congressman Ed Whitfield (R-KY) and Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-VA), two co-chairs of the Turkey Caucus.
 

Total compensation for executives from TOP sponsors Coca-Cola, Dow Chemical, General Electric, Procter & Gamble and Visa was released in a New York Times report Friday on the pay of major U.S. corporate leaders.

Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent had the highest total compensation with $19.2 million in 2010, a 30 percent increase from $14.8 million in 2009. According to the report, Kent was the 20th highest paid CEO and the highest of the TOP sponsors.

New TOP sponsor Dow Chemical reported its CEO Andrew Liveris had total compensation of $17.7 million in 2009, up 13 percent from $15.7 million in 2009.

Procter & Gamble, another newly appointed TOP sponsor, reported its CEO, Robert McDonald, had total compensation of $13.1 million in 2010. Data from 2009 was not available.

CKE Restaurants Inc. said Tuesday that it has opened its first Carl's Jr. restaurant in Istanbul, Turkey. The fast-food chain opened in the Cevahir Shopping Mall in central Istanbul. It is the first of at least 25 Carl's Jr. locations set to open in Turkey over the next six years.

The expansion into Turkey is part of CKE's plan to speed up franchise development in overseas markets. "We believe the Turkish market has tremendous potential for our brand given the strength of its economy, the youthful population base and an appreciation for premium-quality burgers. It is also a gateway for European expansion," CKE Restaurants CEO Andrew Puzder said in a statement.