Nation news briefs

MAN SAYS HE GOT DEATH THREATS OVER ABANDONED DOG: DENVER (AP) - A man who left his dog to die on a Colorado mountain said he received death threats, even though he has paid vet bills and agreed to turn over the dog to one of the rescuers.

Military drinking 'culture' now a 'crisis'

Obama team tries to lower expectations for upcoming fall debates with Mitt Romney

Ohio inmate says he's too obese at 480 pounds plus for execution

Obama, Romney courting key states, constituencies in bid for more votes

BURLINGTON, Mass. (AP) - President Barack Obama and Republican Mitt Romney are embarking on a week heavy with travel through battleground states and appeals to key constituencies, with both campaigns wrangling over unrest in the Middle East and who is best equipped to rejuvenate the economy.

Occupy is in disarray on its first anniversary

NEW YORK (AP) - Occupy Wall Street began to disintegrate in rapid fashion last winter, when the weekly meetings in New York City devolved into a spectacle of fistfights and vicious arguments.

Furor fades a year after military’s gay ban lifted

NEW YORK (AP) - They are images Americans had never seen before. Jubilant young men and women in military uniforms marching beneath a rainbow flag in a gay-pride parade. Soldiers and sailors returning from deployment and, in time-honored tradition, embracing their beloved - only this time with same-sex kisses.

11 killed in crash at air races honored

RENO, Nev. (AP) - Spectators and racers paid tribute Sunday to 11 people who were killed when a plane crashed into box seats at last year's Reno National Championship Air Races.

African-American Christians waver over vote for president in November

WASHINGTON (AP) - Some black clergy see no good presidential choice between a Mormon candidate and one who supports gay marriage, so they are telling their flocks to stay home on Election Day. That's a worrisome message for the nation's first African-American president, who can't afford to lose any voters from his base in a tight race.

CDC: Kids eat too much salt, as much as adults

CHICAGO (AP) - American children eat as much salt as adults - about 1,000 milligrams too much, or the same amount as in just one Big Mac. Extra salt is linked with higher blood pressure, even in kids, but government research says those who are overweight and obese may be most vulnerable to its effects.

Odd news

• MOVIEGOER UPSET WITH SNACK PRICES LOSES LAWSUIT: DETROIT (AP) - There is no happy ending for a Detroit-area man who challenged the high price of movie snacks.

US scrambles to rush spies, drones to Libya

WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. is sending more spies, Marines and drones to Libya, trying to speed the search for those who killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans, but the investigation is complicated by a chaotic security picture in the post-revolutionary country, and limited American and Libyan intelligence resources.

Obama honors memory of Libya attack victims

ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Md. (AP) - Four Americans killed in an attack on a U.S. consulate in Libya returned home Friday, their remains each carried in a slow procession by six Marines as a military band filled a vast air base hangar with the mournful hymn "Nearer My God to Thee."

Nation news briefs

DELIVERY TIMES RISE FOR IPHONE 5: NEW YORK (AP) - Delivery times climbed quickly as Apple Inc. started taking orders for the iPhone 5 on Friday, suggesting strong demand.

House votes to end energy loan guarantee program; bill not likely to pass in Senate

Country singer charged with threats to Ga. man

GOP puts off its health care bill

Boston bomb investigation extends to Russia; terror list had one brother

Government reviewing prison phone charges

Texas plant blast loss likely exceeds $100M

Mississippi men's feud looms over ricin probe

Obama administration missed Fisker clues

White House open to fix on FAA furloughs

Brown pushing school-funding changes