Not since Jacqueline Kennedy first donned her signature pillbox hats have fashionistas paid such close attention to what the women of politics are wearing. Friday may be the start of New York's Fashion Week, but...

It may have been in vogue in Alaska forever, but drilling for oil has never been so hot with Republicans as it was on the floor during the final night of the Republican National Convention. Stickers advocating "Drill...

Barack Obama's campaign plans to employ high-profile female supporters in an effort to blunt GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's potential to persuade women to vote Republican. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of...

U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews said Thursday he intends to seek re-election after all, replacing his wife on the ballot for his congressional seat. Andrews had his name removed from the ballot in the spring as he launched an...

John McCain preached bipartisanship and unity from a stage retooled to carry him out to the Republican faithful. He didn't have to be biting: On the previous night, his attack dogs had paved the way. For every McCain...

A routine package delivery turned into a milestone for a UPS driver in East Texas. Brent Boyd on Thursday surpassed 1 million miles on his UPS delivery van, the same vehicle he's driven for 22 years with the company. ...

San Francisco is delaying a controversial program that would provide identification cards to all residents regardless of legal status. Mayor Gavin Newsom requested last month that the ID card plan _ closely watched by...

It may not be a best-seller, but "Greek Rural Postmen and Their Cancellation Numbers" has won a literary accolade: oddest book title of the past 30 years. The book topped a poll to find the weirdest-ever winner of...

Only hours after agreeing to resign and serve time in jail as part of plea deal, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick expressed regret for the scandal that has engulfed the city _ and left the door open for a return to public life. ...

!!-- pobj:ORPOR111-0814082006 -->!!-- pobj:ORPOR110-0814082004 -->Two-thirds of a century ago, Kathleen Wyman drove her brother to California to join the Navy. From there, he shipped out to the USS Oklahoma at Pearl...

The Russian Foreign Ministry says Russia plans no military actions in response to the increased presence of U.S. ships in the Black Sea. Foreign Ministry official Andrei Nesterenko made the comments Friday just before...

The National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Ike has weakened to a Category 3 storm in the Atlantic. Ike's maximum sustained winds have dropped to near 125 mph as of 5 a.m. EDT Friday. And the hurricane center says...

Ukraine's push for NATO membership will top the agenda for talks Friday between Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko and Vice President Dick Cheney _ on a tour of three ex-Soviet republics that are alarmed about...

Brash, right-leaning former Foreign Minister Taro Aso announced Friday that he will run for ruling party president in a move that would put him on track to take over as Japan's next prime minister. Aso, 67, is widely...

He reportedly saved a TV crew from the jaws of a tiger and flexed his muscles before cameras in Siberia. Vladimir Putin's macho image has made him plenty of fans among Russian women _ but according to one magazine,...

Russian Foreign Ministry says Russia plans no military reaction to US ships in Black Sea ...

Honda is bringing back the defunct Insight nameplate for a hybrid-only vehicle planned for the Japanese, European and North American markets early next year, as the automaker strives to play catch-up with rival Toyota...

The top business news from The Associated Press for the morning of Friday, Sept. 5, 2008: Asian markets plunge after Wall Street sell-off TOKYO (AP) _ Asian stock markets plunged Friday after more bad news on the U.S....

Asian stock markets plunged Friday after more bad news on the U.S. economy, a vital export market, triggered a broad sell-off on Wall Street overnight. Disappointing reports on U.S. retail sales and jobless claims...

There's a mushroom boom in the wet woods of the Northeast this summer. Hillsides bloom with black trumpets. Disc-shaped mushrooms called artist's conch sprout from tree trunks. Forests are laced with tasty chanterelles...

The Jacksons were crowned icons at the BMI Urban Awards, but the King of Pop was an absentee. Janet Jackson presented her music-making brothers _ Michael, Tito, Jackie, Marlon, Jermaine and Randy _ with the lifetime...

David Spade is the father of Playboy playmate Jillian Grace's newborn daughter, Spade's representative said Thursday. The baby girl was born Aug. 26 in Missouri, and Spade plans to visit her on his first break from...

Usher, Keith Urban and Natasha Bedingfield are kicking off the NFL season with a free concert that's expected to draw thousands to Manhattan's Columbus Circle. They are scheduled to perform Thursday afternoon. A video...

It's been 70 years since Judy Garland first clicked her ruby slippers in "The Wizard of Oz," yet even the well-heeled celebrities who inhabit the wonderful land of Hollywood still find the shoes a thing of beauty. ...

A guitar set alight onstage by Jimi Hendrix during a concert in London was sold at auction on Thursday for $497,557 to a collector from the United States. The scorched Fender Stratocaster was the star lot at an auction...

Alex Rodriguez and the New York Yankees are struggling to get back into the playoff race while the Los Angeles Angels are closing in on another postseason berth. Scott Kazmir allowed one hit in six scoreless innings,...

The Brewers got through August unscathed this year. Now, Milwaukee is struggling in the regular season's final month. Will Venable hit his first career homer and the San Diego Padres beat Milwaukee 5-2 on Thursday...

The New York Giants won the Super Bowl with defense and they kicked off defense of that title with more of the same. Playing without Pro Bowl linemen Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, New York limited the new-look...

That litany of health issues Novak Djokovic dealt with earlier in the week _ hip, ankle, stomach and more _ seemed a tad humorous to Andy Roddick. So Roddick joked about it, first by saying in an on-court interview it...

A better question than "Are you ready for some football?" on the opening week of the NFL season might be how soon you're ready for some more games that count. Commissioner Roger Goodell knows the answer to that one,...

NEW ORLEANS (BP)--As I prepared to evacuate from the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary campus ahead of Hurricane Gustav, I would not have guessed that I would later describe the experience as an unexpected...

WAKE FOREST, N.C. (BP)--Losing the fear of the Lord is hindering the multiplication of believers and churches, O.S. Hawkins, president of Guidestone Financial Resources, said in a chapel message at Southeastern Baptist...

PINEVILLE, La. (BP)—-Louisiana College, affiliated with the Louisiana Baptist Convention, has launched its first master's degree program. The initial course for a master's in teaching, "Teaching with Significance," was...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Following tradition, Southern Baptist seminary convocations marked the start of another academic semester, with a challenge to advance the Gospel set forth in each convocation.The convocation at...

MILL VALLEY, Calif. (BP)--Four hundred goats descended on the verdant hillsides of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary in July, cutting the grass as well as the seminary's costs for landscaping staff."We save...

Scientists have mapped the cascade of genetic changes that turn normal cells in the brain and pancreas into two of the most lethal cancers. The result points to a new approach for fighting tumors and maybe even catching...

The Food and Drug Administration ordered stronger warnings Thursday on four medications widely used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and other serious illnesses, saying they can raise the risk of possibly fatal fungal...

A radioactive tracer that "lights up" cancer hiding inside dense breasts showed promise in its first big test against mammograms, revealing more tumors and giving fewer false alarms, doctors reported Wednesday. The...

New research further debunks any link between measles vaccine and autism, work that comes as the nation is experiencing a surge in measles cases fueled by children left unvaccinated. Years of research with the measles,...

A lifesaving shock from an implanted heart defibrillator provides relief that a crisis was avoided, but new research suggests it can also be a sign that more trouble is ahead. A study found that heart failure patients...

Scientists at the European Space Agency are preparing for the first fly-by of an asteroid by their deep-space explorer, Rosetta, on a mission to solve the mystery of the birth of the solar system. Rosetta is set to...

Smog, soot and other particles like the kind often seen hanging over Beijing add to global warming and may raise summer temperatures in the American heartland by three degrees in about 50 years, says a new federal...

Yahoo Inc.'s stock sank to its lowest level in nearly five years Thursday, magnifying the challenge facing the Internet company as its management tries to justify their rebuff of Microsoft Corp.'s $47.5 billion takeover...

SeaChange International Inc. said it expects to be profitable in the second half of its fiscal 2009 year and predicts revenue for the year will be about 10 percent above fiscal 2008 levels. SeaChange International late...

SeaChange International Inc. reported fiscal 2009 second-quarter results that beat Wall Street's estimates late Thursday. The Acton, Mass., company which makes software and hardware for video-on-demand television...

The remnants of Gustav were to continue heading north on Thursday, triggering severe weather and cause flooding problems as it heads toward the Great Lakes. The upper and mid-Mississippi Valley regions were to see...

Tropical Depression Gustav was expected to slowly weaken Wednesday as it moved northwestward into eastern Texas. Gustav was to remain a tropical depression and cause severe local storms, heavy rains and high winds. It...

Hurricane Gustav roared ashore Monday in Louisiana as a Category 2 storm, weaker than had been feared. Still, the storm produced widespread torrential rain and damaging winds, knocking out power to thousands. It was...

Hurricane Gustav was expected on Monday to make landfall on the Louisiana coast as a Category 3 hurricane. An extremely dangerous storm surge of 10 to 14 feet above normal tidal levels is expected for areas along the...

Hurricane Gustav was expected to make its presence known Sunday with its outer bands lashing much of Florida with rain and some thunderstorms. As the day progresses, wind and surf was to gradually increase along the...