Panel: Rework 'confrontational' MLK statue
A federal arts commission is urging that the sculpture of Martin Luther King Jr. proposed for a memorial be reworked because it is too "confrontational" and reminiscent of political art in totalitarian states.
Senator: Ban torture but give CIA leewaySeeking to referee a stalemate over how the CIA can interrogate prisoners, a top Senate Republican says Congress should ban waterboarding and seven other abusive methods of interrogation but allow the spy agency some leeway in how it questions detainees.
Records give peek at polygamist clans
Hand-scrawled bishop's records taken from a polygamist sect are helping untangle the network of family relationships at the Texas ranch, where some husbands had more than a dozen wives.
1 dead as severe storms sweep across SoutheastA line of severe storms swept across the Southeast on Thursday, damaging homes and businesses in at least four states. One person was killed by a tornado in North Carolina, authorities said.
Man who lost homes in Katrina wins $97 million
A construction company owner who lost two homes in Hurricane Katrina claimed a $97 million Powerball prize, a jackpot won off a ticket he bought at a convenience store where he stopped to buy his wife a gallon of milk.
NYT: Cash-strapped Clinton cuts spending
The once-formidable fund-raising machine of Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton has begun to sputter at the worst possible moment for her presidential campaign, Clinton advisers and donors said Thursday.
McCain pushed land swap that benefits backer
Sen. John McCain championed legislation that will allow a land swap that now stands to directly benefit one of his top presidential campaign fundraisers.
President in Texas for Jenna's wedding
President Bush stuck out his right elbow Thursday, jokingly demonstrating how he'll escort his daughter down the aisle at her wedding this weekend.
Texas sinkhole’s appetite may be easing
Geologists said a 260-foot-deep sinkhole that grew to the length of three football fields over just two days seemed to be slowing down Thursday, but that it could take months before it's clear whether surrounding areas are stable.
A rival to burial: Dissolving bodies with lye
Since they first walked the planet, humans have either buried or burned their dead. Now a new option is generating interest — dissolving bodies and flushing the residue down the drain.
Suspected pedophile arrested in N.J.
An actor who played Santa Claus and painted children's faces was arrested on child sex charges early Thursday after an international manhunt.
Tongue-twisters lurk on graduation day
A week from Saturday, 453 new graduates will cross the commencement stage on the lawn of Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn. Among them: Nokuthula Sikhethiwe Kitikiti, Udochukwu Chinyere Obodo, and Baitnairamdal Otgonshar.
1,000-pound 'Zeus' returns to ocean
A 1,000-pound manta ray was returned to the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday after three years as a research subject and tourist attraction at a Bahamian resort.
What not to do when stealing a pursePolice say they had no trouble tracking down a Pennsylvania robbery suspect, because the victims had taken his picture while chatting with him at a bar a short time before the theft.
Pollution in town rivals that of cities
The tiny Wyoming community of Boulder (pop. 75), has one thing in common with major metropolitan areas: air pollution thick enough to pose health risks.
Driver kills dog, sues owners for damageThe driver of a 1997 Honda Civic that struck and killed a dog in Minnesota is suing the dog's owners for damage done to his vehicle.
New protest planned in groom's slayingA day after his carefully orchestrated protests briefly blocked rush-hour traffic, the Rev. Al Sharpton on Thursday promised to stage another mass protest.