Members of both parties Monday voted to keep their cherished home-state projects as the Senate resumed debate on a spending bill covering foreign aid and domestic agency budgets. By a 63-32 vote, lawmakers rejected a bid by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to effectively strip about 8,000 of those earmarks from the $410 billion measure. ...more

March 9, 2009

Suspected U.S. missiles slammed into a compound near the Afghan border Saturday, killing about 30 people, local officials said. Most of the dead were thought to be militants linked to the Taliban or al-Qaida. ...more

February 15, 2009

During the election some compared Barack Obama to a rock star. They were wrong. He's bigger than a rock star if TV coverage is any measure of fame. ...more

January 18, 2009

President-elect Barack Obama wants to conclude his inaugural oath with the words "so help me God," but a group of atheists plans to go in front of a federal judge in hopes of stopping him. ...more

January 14, 2009

The inauguration committee of President-elect Barack Obama, who ran on a platform to change the way business is done in Washington, is selling four-day packages of four tickets to his historic swearing-in ceremony and parade plus some extras in exchange for $50,000. ...more

December 13, 2008

The senator overseeing Barack Obama's swearing-in ceremony said Monday she's writing to Internet sites such as eBay asking them not to sell scalped inauguration tickets. ...more

November 12, 2008

A little-noticed provision co-authored by Sen. Mel Martinez and contained in a massive Senate housing bill would create a national licensing registry for mortgage loan workers, requiring them to undergo fingerprinting and background checks. ...more

July 12, 2008

Nursing homes, notorious places for voter fraud, need greater guidance on how to help residents vote, senators and voter advocates said Thursday. ...more

February 1, 2008

If a Bush administration ruling stands, states are going to need the federal Big Brother's permission to deal with pollution or other problems that plague them. ...more

January 8, 2008

The Senate confirmed retired judge Michael Mukasey as attorney general Thursday night to replace Alberto Gonzales, who resigned from office in the midst of a scandal over his handling of the Justice Department. ...more

November 9, 2007