On the Senate campaign trail, Al Franken frequently invokes the name of his friend, the late Sen. Paul Wellstone, as a major inspiration. But as Franken moves to consolidate Democrats behind his challenge to Republican...

Barack Obama's campaign is considering a suggestion from John McCain's campaign for the two presidential hopefuls to participate in joint town meetings and debates around the country starting this summer, Obama's chief...

Hillary Rodham Clinton began her presidential quest armed with talent, tenacity, fame, money, connections and a team that knew how to win. Many people believed her victory in the Democratic nomination battle was a sure...

Former Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards said Sunday that he thinks Barack Obama will be the party's presidential nominee and that Hillary Rodham Clinton must be careful not to damage the party's prospects in...

Call it Obamacare or call it Clintoncare. But don't call it "socialized medicine." And don't think that the health care systems that Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have promised to put into effect if they get into...

Fifty-three illegal immigrants found Sunday had been held against their will in a fortified home by suspected smugglers demanding more money, authorities said. The group of rescued immigrants included two 13-year-old...

!!-- pobj:WIAM102-0511081129 -->A medical helicopter dropped off a patient and then crashed shortly after it took off on its return flight to Madison, killing the surgeon, nurse and pilot on board, officials said...

A minivan crossed an interstate median, flipped and was hit by another vehicle in western Pennsylvania, killing six of seven people on board, state police said Sunday. After the van came to rest, it was hit by an...

Dozens of students from the University of Chicago returned Sunday from a four-day multistate trek dubbed the world's largest scavenger hunt after trying to find Barack Obama's haircut and a car horn that plays "La...

!!-- pobj:NJHAC101-0508082213 -->A 46-year-old combat medic and a 29-year-old man will be serving together in the same National Guard unit in Iraq. Nothing unusual _ except they're mother and son. Sgt. Carmen Villegas,...

Arab foreign ministers urged warring Lebanese factions to immediately cease fighting and said Sunday they will send a delegation to try to broker a settlement between the Hezbollah-led opposition and U.S.-backed...

As of Sunday, May 11, 2008, at least 427 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to the Defense Department....

An overloaded ferry capsized off the coast of southern Haiti, killing at least 11 people, U.N. and Haitian authorities said Sunday. U.N. peacekeeping mission spokesman David Wimhurst said most of the 100 people aboard...

As of Sunday, May 11, 2008, at least 4,075 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The figure includes eight military civilians. At...

Thousands of white-clad people marched silently Sunday to protest a surge of drug-related violence in a Mexican city across from Texas where the No. 2 police officer was shot dead. The crowd of several thousand...

With millions of stimulus checks going out to taxpayers, Wall Street wants to know where that money will be spent _ and this week's data could help investors gauge the mind-set of the average consumer. Tax rebates have...

Mesa Air Group Inc. hopes shareholders will soothe its financial troubles this week by allowing the airline to issue millions of new shares valued at nearly twice the company's current market capitalization. The...

Canada's biggest natural gas company said Sunday it is splitting into two separate energy companies: a fully integrated oil company and a natural gas company. EnCana Corp. will create a publicly traded integrated oil...

After slashing inventory and cutting expenses, the retail industry is still bracing for the largest overall quarterly profit decline in at least nine years when merchants report their first-quarter earnings this week. ...

Dipping its left wing, a canary-yellow biplane makes a sharp turn and dives over a flooded field, showering rice on the shallow water 15 feet below. It's aerial seeding season for rice farmers in California, which...

Less is more for Tan Dun's "The First Emperor." When the ambitious opera was given its world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera in December 2006, there were many interesting elements, both musically and theatrically....

"Speed Racer" was lapped in its opening weekend at the box office as "Iron Man" continued to fire its jets with $50.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. The anime-inspired race movie edged...

The wild kids of television's West Beverly High will have a guidance counselor familiar with the posh ZIP code's dating, drugs and drama. Jennie Garth will reprise her role as Kelly Taylor and join the cast of a...

Joyce "Dottie" Rambo, an influential gospel singer and songwriter, died early Sunday when her tour bus ran off the highway and struck an embankment. She was 74. Seven other people on the bus were injured in the wreck...

Jimmy Fallon will officially be given the keys to NBC's "Late Night" franchise following Conan O'Brien's exit. A person close to the negotiations who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement hadn't been...

A former associate of USC freshman guard O.J. Mayo claims the basketball star received thousands of dollars in cash and other gifts from an event promoter over the past four years that would violate NCAA rules, ESPN...

Sergio Garcia, the best player without a major, got the next best thing Sunday. Garcia ended the longest victory drought of his career by making a clutch par putt to force a playoff and hitting the island-green 17th on...

Raul Ibanez hit a two-run homer in the third inning and the Seattle Mariners beat the Chicago White Sox 6-3 Sunday to snap a five-game losing streak. Jose Lopez and Ichiro Suzuki each went 3-for-4 for the Mariners, who...

A member of Cuba's women's national judo team left the team at some point Sunday afternoon following the final day of the Pan American Judo Championships. As of Sunday evening, her location was still unknown. "All we...

Max Talbot, a sometimes overlooked fourth-line forward on a team renowned for its stars, scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period and the Pittsburgh Penguins took a two-game lead in the Eastern...

EL CAJON, Calif. (BP)--Who is the most famous fugitive in the Bible? Jonah is famous for being the prophet who ran from God, but then ran into God in the depths of the ocean. He discovered there are no hiding places...

ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP)--The changes our nation has seen over the past 100 years are mind boggling. Transportation, communication and education barely resemble what existed at the turn of the previous century.Fortunately,...

Authorities say the leader of an apocalyptic sect in northeastern New Mexico has been released from jail after his son posted his bond. The clerk of the magistrate court in Clayton said a $55,000 bond was posted for...

Conservative legal advocates are recruiting pastors nationwide to defy an IRS ban on preaching about politicians, in a challenge they hope will abolish the restriction. The Alliance Defense Fund, based in Scottsdale,...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Nearly 10 million children die each year from treatable illnesses like diarrhea and pneumonia -- the vast majority of them in the developing world, according to the U.S.-based charity Save the...

Agents selling private health insurance plans to the elderly and disabled would be barred from cold-calling, door-to-door solicitations and pitching their products outside hospital waiting rooms or pharmacies, under a...

Flu vaccine manufacturers expect to make a record number of doses for next flu season despite concerns that demand may drop because this year's vaccine was largely ineffective. The five companies that make flu vaccine...

Depression, teens and marijuana are a dangerous mix that can lead to dependency, mental illness or suicidal thoughts, according to a White House report being released Friday. A teen who has been depressed at some point...

There's a grim, rarely talked-about twist to all that medical know-how doctors learn to save lives: It makes them especially good at ending their own. An estimated 300 to 400 U.S. doctors kill themselves each year _ a...

Seventy-seven more people who were treated at a Las Vegas outpatient clinic have been diagnosed with hepatitis C, health officials said. Authorities can't say for sure how the 77 people were infected, said Brian Labus,...

Facebook Inc. is loosening its grip on millions of personal profiles to allow inhabitants of its popular Internet hangout to transplant the information and applications to other Web sites. With the changes announced...

An executive at Dell Inc. who led the slumping computer maker's procurement efforts and managed its relationships with suppliers has left the company, Dell said late Friday. Martin Garvin, a vice president who had been...

Jon Edwards often manages what appears impossible. He has recovered precious data from computers wrecked in floods and fires and dumped in lakes. Now Edwards may have set a new standard: He found information on a melted...

EBay Inc. is exploring whether to require customers to use its online payment service PayPal, a move that has angered users and prompted antitrust scrutiny in Australia, where a PayPal-only rule takes effect next month....

Once upon a time, people bonded with their co-workers on office softball teams and traded gossip at the watercooler. OK, so those days aren't gone yet. But as big companies parcel Information Age work to people in...

Showers and thunderstorms were forecast from the Plains to the Appalachians on Wednesday as a storm system in the upper Midwest pushes eastward, while storms targeted parts of the West. Severe weather, including...

A major storm was to move out of the Northern Rockies and into the Plains before heading even farther east toward the Upper Mississippi Valley on Saturday. Morning rain and high elevation snow were likely in the...

Rain was expected Thursday in New England, the Mississippi Valley and the Southeast. There was a slight chance of severe weather through the Lower Mississippi Valley. Out West, rain and high elevation snow were...

Cloud cover and rain were expected in the Northeast on Friday. Heavy rain was anticipated across the Mid-Atlantic interior. Flood watches were posted from northern Virginia through Long Island. The southern...

Thunderstorms and heavy rain were forecast Sunday for the Upper Mississippi Valley and Ohio Valley as strong low pressure systems move through the region. Severe storms were possible east of the Appalachians and along...