By DINA CAPPIELLOAssociated PressWASHINGTONThe Obama administration’s top environmental official in the oil-rich South and Southwest region has resigned after Republicans targeted him over remarks made two years ago when he used the word “crucify” to describe his approach to enforcement.
By KARIN LAUBAssociated PressBEIRUTTwo suicide bombers blew up cars rigged with explosives near a military compound and a hotel in northwestern Syria on Monday, killing at least nine people and wounding nearly 100, state media said. The powerful blasts, which
(AP) The 5 al-Qaida leaders most wanted by USBy The Associated Press On May 2, 2011, Navy SEALs shot and killed al-Qaida leader and Sept. 11 mastermind Osama bin Laden in his home in Abbottabad, Pakistan. It was a raid
By JUERGEN BAETZAssociated PressBERLINGermany’s top security official said Friday the greatest terror threat to the country no longer stems from big networks like al-Qaida but from small, independent terrorist cells or “lone wolf” perpetrators. Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich told The
By KARIN LAUBAssociated PressBEIRUTTwo weeks into a cease-fire agreement, there still was no peace in Syria: Security agents in Damascus collected the remains of 10 people killed in a suicide bombing. Activists reported troops firing on protesters. Video showed a
By DANIEL WOOLLS and PAN PYLASAssociated PressMADRIDThe hole in Spain’s economy is getting deeper. The government reported Friday that unemployment rose to 24.4 percent in the first quarter compared with 22.9 percent in the fourth quarter and that more than
(AP) Usher debuts new songs during off-Broadway play By MESFIN FEKADU Associated Press NEW YORK Usher debuted new songs in an unconventional way Friday night: The singer danced to his new music as part of the off-Broadway play “Fuerza Bruta:
(AP) Chris Colfer of `Glee’ writes his Hollywood ticket By ALICIA RANCILIO Associated Press NEW YORK When “Glee” star Chris Colfer was 8, he began writing a novel. He wrote two pages, called it the first chapter and proudly showed
(AP) New Secret Service rules on alcohol, unsavory barsBy LAURIE KELLMAN and ALICIA A. CALDWELLAssociated PressWASHINGTONSeeking to shake off the disgrace of a prostitution scandal, the Secret Service late Friday tightened conduct rules for its agents to prohibit them from
(AP) Romney urges young people to take economic risksBy STEVE PEOPLESAssociated PressWESTERVILLE, OhioMitt Romney on Friday encouraged young Americans facing bleak job prospects to “take risks” _ and even borrow money from their parents _ to help improve their economic
(AP) Blind Chinese activist flees house arrestBy CHARLES HUTZLERAssociated PressBEIJINGA blind legal activist fled house arrest in his rural China village and made it to a secret location in Beijing, setting off a frantic police search for him and those
(AP) Nugent says he’s insulted by concert cancellation By RYAN PEARSON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES Ted Nugent said he was insulted by the cancellation of his planned concert at an Army post over his comments about President Obama. Commanders
(AP) Govt backs off new limits on child labor on farmsBy SAM HANANELAssociated PressWASHINGTONUnder heavy pressure from farm groups, the Obama administration said Thursday it would drop an unpopular plan to prevent children from doing hazardous work on farms owned
(AP) Senate votes to slow closing of post officesHOPE YENAssociated PressWASHINGTONThe Senate offered a lifeline to the nearly bankrupt U.S. Postal Service on Wednesday, voting to give the struggling agency an $11 billion cash infusion while delaying controversial decisions on
(AP) Ex-aide: Edwards denied knowing of payoffsBy MICHAEL BIESECKERAssociated PressGREENSBORO, N.C.John Edwards drove erratically in a borrowed black SUV down rural North Carolina roads, as his once-trusted aide tried to keep up. The former presidential contender pulled into a secluded
(AP) Mexican president discusses immigration in TexasBy JUAN A. LOZANOAssociated PressHOUSTONMexican President Felipe Calderon said during a speech Wednesday evening that while he respects U.S. laws designed to control illegal immigration, he’s against statutes like Arizona’s controversial law that he
(AP) Gingrich faces uncertain future after failed runBy RAY HENRYAssociated PressATLANTAAs he winds down his presidential campaign, Newt Gingrich faces a new challenge: reinventing himself politically yet again. Gingrich reinvented the Republican Party in the House in 1994, leading the
(AP) Political battle over student loans heating upBy ALAN FRAMAssociated PressWASHINGTONDemocrats and Republicans alike say they want to prevent the cost of federal loans from ballooning for millions of students. But the effort has evolved into an election-year battle each
By KARIN LAUBAssociated PressBEIRUTSyrian activists said troops bombarded a Damascus suburb with mortar shells and machine guns Wednesday, a day after special envoy Kofi Annan described the situation in Syria as bleak. This is the second day of government attacks
(AP) Gingrich all but concedes his campaign is overBy MITCH WEISSAssociated PressCONCORD, N.C.Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich all but conceded Wednesday that his White House campaign is over. He said he expects Mitt Romney will be the nominee and called
(AP) Longest-serving Pa. congressman loses in primaryBy KEVIN BEGOS and GENARO C. ARMASAssociated PressPITTSBURGHU.S. Rep. Tim Holden, the longest-serving member of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation, has lost his re-election bid in a Democratic primary race in a newly redrawn district. Personal
By ADAM GOLDMAN and MATT APUZZOAssociated PressWASHINGTONThe retired top CIA officer who ordered the destruction of videos showing waterboarding says in a new book that he was tired of waiting for Washington’s bureaucracy to make a decision that protected American
By MITCH WEISSAssociated PressCHARLOTTE, N.C.Newt Gingrich declined to discuss his struggling presidential campaign Tuesday and said he would decide his next steps after the latest primaries, refusing to acknowledge the Republican nominating contest is essentially over. Gingrich said Mitt Romney
By RACHEL D’OROAssociated PressANCHORAGE, AlaskaRocker and gun rights advocate Ted Nugent pleaded guilty Tuesday to transporting a black bear he illegally killed in Alaska, saying he was sorry for unwittingly violating the law. With his plea, the singer and avid
(AP) Californians to vote on abolishing death penaltyBy PAUL ELIASAssociated PressSAN FRANCISCOCalifornia voters will soon get a chance to decide whether to replace the death penalty with life in prison without the possibility of parole. A measure to abolish capital
