| AFA Calls for Boycott of McDonald's Over "Homosexual Agenda" |
| The American Family Association has launched a call for a boycott of McDonald's, including a website, BoyCott McDonald's. The boycott call stems from McDonald's refusal to condemn Vice President of Communications Richard Ellis's election to the Board of Directors of the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC). |
| Former Sen. Jesse Helms Dies At 86 |
| Jesse Helms, the five-term Republican Senator from North Carolina, has died, CBS News has confirmed. He was 86. |
| Pentagon extends tour of Marines in Afghanistan |
The Pentagon has extended the tour of 2,200 Marines in Afghanistan, after insisting for months the unit would come home on time. The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is doing combat operations in the volatile south, will stay an extra 30 days and come home in early November rather than October, Marine Col. David Lapan confirmed Thursday. |
| Iraqi translator starts new life in America |
In his native Iraq, Haitham Jasim had risked his life alongside the U.S. Marines who hired him as a translator during deadly counter-insurgency missions. His fellow Iraqis put a $20,000 bounty on his head. |
| "Pregnant Man" Gives Birth to Girl |
| Thomas Beatie, the so-called "pregnant man," gave birth Sunday to a healthy baby girl. Despite taking hormones, having his breasts surgically removed, and outwardly living as a man, Beatie had kept his female sex organs in hopes of one day becoming pregnant. |
| Utah is going to a 4-day workweek to save energy |
Starting next month, it will be "TGIT" for Utah state employees. As in: "Thank God It's Thursday." In a yearlong experiment aimed at reducing the state's energy costs and commuters' gasoline expenses, Utah is about to become the first state to switch to a four-day workweek for thousands of government employees. |
| Judge Rejects Bush's View on Wiretaps |
A federal judge in California said Wednesday that the wiretapping law established by Congress was the "exclusive" means for the president to eavesdrop on Americans, and he rejected the government's claim that ... |
| U.S. economy lost 62,000 jobs in June |
| Employers cut payrolls by 62,000 in June, the sixth straight month of nationwide job losses, underscoring the economy's fragile state. The unemployment rate held steady at 5.5 percent. |
| White House linked to Kurdistan oil deal |
Bush Administration officials knew that a Texas oil company with close ties to President George Bush was planning to sign an oil deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government that ran counter to US policy and undercut Iraq's central Government, a congressional committee has concluded. |
| Feds say FAA needs to change overview of airlines |
A new federal report says regulators must make changes to ensure that airlines correct safety violations like those that happened at Southwest Airlines. The report by the Transportation Department's inspector general says more inspectors should review safety cases before they're closed. It also says inspectors should be barred from immediately going to work for airlines that they monitor. |
| FBI might use profiling in terror investigations |
| The Justice Department is considering letting the FBI investigate Americans without any evidence of wrongdoing, relying instead on a terrorist profile that could single out Muslims, Arabs or other racial and ethnic groups. |
| Cyberbullying Outlawed in Missouri Following Megan Meier Suicide |
| The latest events in the Megan Meier MySpace suicide case took place Monday, when Missouri governor Matt Blunt signed into law a bill which revised the the state's already existing harassment law to include telephone and electronic communication. |
| Police find body of missing Vermont 12-year-old |
The body of a missing 12-year-old Vermont girl was found Wednesday, hours after documents surfaced that accused her uncle of planning to initiate her into a child sex ring, authorities said. |
| Video: On the Waterboard |
How does it feel to be "aggressively interrogated"? Christopher Hitchens found out for himself, submitting to a brutal waterboarding session in an effort to understand the human cost of America's use of harsh tactics at Guantánamo and elsewhere. Click here to watch the video |
| U.N. Report Calls for Government Intervention on Global Economy |
Greater government intervention is needed to moderate the severe economic swings and inequalities that seem to be an unavoidable byproduct of globalization, according to a United Nations report released yesterday.... |
| New Scrutiny of Hiring at Justice Department |
A federal watchdog agency has decided to open a new examination into political hiring practices at the Justice Department, and the department is facing the first in what could be a series of lawsuits from ... |
| The Vanishing Middle Class |
In case you haven't been keeping up with the fortunes of the fortunate, the private jet business is booming. In the first quarter of this year, shipments of private jets were up 41 percent. It seems that servicing America's elite is a thriving niche. There are so many new mega-yachts that owners can't keep them staffed, says the New York Observer. |
| Amid rising tensions, Pentagon calls attack on Iran a bad idea |
An Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear facilities would be a high-risk move that could destabilize the Middle East, the Pentagon's top military officer said Wednesday. |
| Bush concedes 'tough month' in Afghanistan |
President Bush said Wednesday it has been a "tough month" in Afghanistan, where more U.S. and NATO troops died during the past two months than in Iraq. |
| Bush: Congress shares blame for rising gas prices |
President Bush says Congress has to accept some of the blame for rising gas prices. Speaking at a Rose garden news conference, Bush says lawmakers continue to block his proposals, including lifting prohibitions on offshore oil drilling. |