Nude dip in holy sea puts Kansas Congressman in political spotlight

Austria's hills alive with sound of yodeling

VIENNA (AP) - In one part of Austria, the hills are again alive with a particular sound of music - yodeling. The Alpine country has inaugurated a new hiker's path where participants are invited to let loose with an occasional melodic mountain yell. Organizers say it's push-button easy: at rest stops along the way, hikers press a knob ...

Court says Alabama can't check students’ immigration status

Vatican win: Judge says priests aren't employees

Listen to radios? Watch TVs? Not for Class of '16

Missouri congressman fights to save GOP Senate bid after rape remarks

Scott McKenzie, singer of 'San Francisco,' dies

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Singer Scott McKenzie, who performed "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)" - which became a hit in 1967 during the city's "Summer of Love" - has died. A statement on McKenzie's website says the 73-year-old died on Saturday in Los Angeles. McKenzie battled Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a disease that affects the nervous system, and had ...

Military budget deal unlikely by November

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama says he doesn't believe Congress can reach a deal before the November elections that avoids deep cuts in military spending, but says he is optimistic that the reductions won't occur. In interviews Monday with news outlets from regions with a large military presence, Obama said he has made sure that service members don't lose pay or ...

Humorist Phyllis Diller dies at age 95 in Los Angeles

Ex-Marine detained for evaluation after making strident Facebook posts

NorCal. fire forces thousands to flee as more than 3,000 homes threatened

REDDING - (AP) - Thousands of people were told to leave their homes Sunday as a growing wildfire burning out of control in thick forest threatened rural communities in far Northern California.

Man fights to keep wife buried in front yard on street near Alabama community’s downtown

STEVENSON, Ala. (AP) - James Davis is fighting to keep the remains of his late wife right where he dug her grave: In the front yard of his home, just a few feet from the porch.

Lawsuit over roads in Tahoe Forest in Sierra west of Reno

RENO, Nev. (AP) - A national group representing off-highway recreationists is suing the U.S. Forest Service to try to overturn a new travel management plan on national forest lands in the Sierra west of Reno they say is overly restrictive.

Nation news briefs

• 72 RESCUED WHEN SIGHTSEEING VESSEL TAKES ON WATER: ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - The Coast Guard says responders have rescued 72 people on a sightseeing vessel that began taking on water in Alaska's Glacier Bay after reportedly striking a rock.

Ryan paid a higher federal tax rate than Romney

Ryan paid a higher federal tax rate than Romney

NASA picks 8 new astronauts, 4 of them women

Ga. radio hosts fired; mocked ex-player with ALS

ATLANTA (AP) - The cast of an Atlanta sports radio show has been fired after mocking a former NFL player who has Lou Gehrig's disease, a station official said Monday.

Bear mauls Alaska man who gave it barbecue meat

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A black bear mauled a man at a campground in Alaska, but the animal won't likely threaten other people, the state Department of Fish and Game said. Spokesman Ken Marsh said the bear was "pretty much goaded" into the attack Saturday near Eklutna Lake Campground north of Anchorage because the man fed it meat from a church barbecue, the Anchorage Daily News (reported. The man could be charged with illegally feeding ...

Ex-hitman heartbroken Bulger was informant

Official: Solar plane to help energy use on ground

Miss USA crown goes to Connecticut contestant Erin Brady

Adult smoking rate dips to 18 percent

NYC aims to require composting food scraps

Nation news briefs

FBI REACHES MILESTONE IN MOST WANTED FUGITIVE LIST: WASHINGTON (AP) - The FBI has reached a milestone in its 63-year-old program of pursuing its "Ten Most Wanted Fugitives."

Nation news briefs

FBI REACHES MILESTONE IN MOST WANTED FUGITIVE LIST: WASHINGTON (AP) - The FBI has reached a milestone in its 63-year-old program of pursuing its "Ten Most Wanted Fugitives."

To ease shortage of organs, grow them in a lab?

Miss Utah latest beauty queen to botch answer

Ohio police chief takes criminals to task online via Facebook page

Ohio police chief takes criminals to task online via Facebook page

Shopper is killed chasing bank robber

WASHINGTON, Pa. (AP) - A Pennsylvania bank robber fatally shot a supermarket customer who ran after him and tried to stop his getaway car, police said. South Strabane Township police identified the dead man as Vincent Kelley, 46, of Washington, Pa. Kelley and his friend Jared Cameron, 21, were shopping at the Giant Eagle in Strabane Square when police said the man robbed an in-store Citizens Bank branch about 2:30 p.m. Sunday. "I saw him ...

Hitchhiking cat 'Mata Hairi' headed home to Oregon

HELENA, Mont. (AP) - A well-traveled cat named "Mata Hairi" will soon be reunited with her owner after spending nearly 10 months traveling thousands of miles with a hitchhiker who rescued her from the rain. The feline adventure started in Portland, Ore., when the cat's owner, Ron Buss, let her out of the house on Sept. 1. The cat, white with patches of dark gray, usually left for no more than a couple of hours ...