Nation & World
Wildfire near Yosemite burns into fourth week
The U.S. Forest Service reported Saturday that the Rim Fire has burned 394 square miles, 11 more than the day before when it became the third-biggest wildfire in modern California…
Conservatives sweep Australian election
Australian opposition leader Tony Abbott, third left, and his daughters Frances, left, Louise, second right, and Bridget, right, and his wife Margaret, second left, come to the stage to celebrate…
New Mexico high court to decide whether gay marriage is legal
The five-member state Supreme Court issued an order setting an Oct. 23 hearing in a case that finally could decide whether marriage licenses can be issued to gay and lesbian…
Vail Resorts trying to evict ski area in Park City, Utah
A company managed by Vail Resorts Inc. is trying to evict the Park City resort from 3,700 acres of ski terrain – a fight that took a turn in a…
U.S. orders diplomats out of Lebanon amid fears
The Lebanese government’s top security body held an emergency meeting and the Shiite militant group Hezbollah put its fighters on high alert. Lebanon and Syria share a complicated history and…
Napolitano warns of longer airport lines if spending is cut
“You always hear that line: you need to do more with less,” Napolitano told USA TODAY’s Susan Page Thursday. “But sometimes you’re at the point where you can only do…
House lining up against strike, poll shows
Deputy National Security Adviser Tony Blinken is meeting with members of Congress, trying to garner support for President Barack Obama’s plan to attack Syria for allegedly using chemical weapons against…
Leaders OK new multinational tax rules
French President Francois Hollande says G-20 leaders’ agreement to force multinational companies to pay more taxes in countries where they make profits is “perhaps the most important” decision reached at…
War fears lead U.S. to trim Lebanon staff
The Lebanese government’s top security body held an emergency meeting and the Shiite militant group Hezbollah put its fighters on high alert. Lebanon and Syria share a complicated history and…
U.S. jobless rate falls, but that’s not great news
U.S. employers added 169,000 new jobs in August although the number of people in the workforce or looking for work fell to its lowest level in 35 years, the Labor…
Reports: NSA has cracked online security
The NSA has bypassed or altogether cracked much of the digital encryption used by businesses and everyday Web users, according to reports in The New York Times, Britain’s Guardian newspaper…
Power: Russia holding Security Council ‘hostage’
Power lashed into Russia in her most extensive comments yet on the Syria crisis since starting her job as ambassador to the United Nations last month. Her criticism came as…
Hot summers more likely in future
Extreme heat waves like the one that hit the U.S. Midwest this year are more likely in the future because of global warming conditions, researchers are saying.Seth Perlman/Associated Press In…
Health law coverage may track workplace cost shift
Two independent studies out this week highlighted attractive prices for less-generous “bronze” plans that will offer low monthly premiums but require patients to pick up more of the cost if…
Obama seeks support for attack at meeting
U.S. President Barack Obama is seeking international support for his plan to punish Syria for using chemical weapons. His attempts to garner backing at the G-20 summit in St. Petersburg,…
NASA aiming for moon again, this time from Virginia
The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer will be launched to the moon Friday evening aboard this Minotaur V rocket from Wallops Island, Va. The moon launch will be the…
Amid tensions, Obama, Putin put on a happy face
Amid rising tensions between the two countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Barack Obama put on a happy face and shook hands and briefly discussed the scenery after…
Feds won’t enforce same-sex veterans law
In a letter to congressional leaders, Attorney General Eric Holder said that a provision in federal law on benefits to veterans and their families defines “spouse” to mean a person…
U.S. spies missed signs of Aug. 21 Syrian WMD strike
Secretary of State John Kerry told Congress that the Obama administration had evidence that Syrian officials were planning a chemical attack on civilians three days before the attack. The intelligence,…
Chelsea Manning seeks presidential pardon
Manning’s lawyer, David Coombs, sent the Petition for Pardon/Commutation of Sentence on Tuesday to President Barack Obama through the U.S. Justice Department, and to Army Secretary John M. McHugh. The…
Putin warns West on Syria action
Russian President Vladimir Putin is saying that Russia might support a U.N. resolution authorizing military action against Syria if the United States provides convincing evidence that Syrpia President Bashar Assad…
G-20 summit leaders face a divided global economy
And something will be missing: worry about a renewed financial crisis. Leaders from 20 of the largest economies are more confident about their banking systems than at any other time…
Report: Tsunami would swamp California’s economy
A new U.S. Geological Survey study suggests that a major earthquake in Alaska could create a giant tsunami that would cause widespread economic losses and damages in California. A tsunami…
Drug abuse groups say pot stance of feds is wrong
In a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, the groups said the DOJ’s position is a mistake and they want to know how it will measure the states’ success in…
Obama: On Syria, US, world credibility is on line
US President Barack Obama reacts during a press conference at Rosenbad, the seat of the Swedish government in Stockholm, Sweden, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2013. US President Obama is on a…
Israeli proposal detailed in talks
Israel is proposing to keep several settlements and military bases in the West Bank under a proposal that would create a Palestinian state, a Palestinian official said about peace negotiations…
Panel approves Syria attack
President Barack Obama is suggesting that he could go ahead and order a military strike on Syria if Congress fails to give its support for an attack. The Senate Foreign…
Pot use up, study shows
The nationwide survey made public Wednesday found that 7.3 percent of Americans 12 or older regularly used marijuana in 2012, up from 7 percent in 2011. Marijuana use has increased…