Ryan supports prayer in schools if states agree

Demos rush to change platform to add God & Jerusalem as capital of Israel

Judge approves police enforcement of contentious part of Ariz immigration law

Ryan praises Bill Clinton on day of his speech

Chicago mayor shifting from national campaign to pro-Obama super PAC

Rain, political & security risks force Obama's speech indoors

First lady’s message: Obama is just like you

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - Michelle Obama's message: President Barack Obama is just like you.

SC Republicans Haley, Scott crash Democrats’ convention

Obama navigate thru sluggish economy

Judge: Mass. must pay for killer's sex change

Demos: GOP's Romney just 'doesn't get it'

Wildfire stays in forest, away from cities in LA area

National debt hits $16T; GOP critical

Jimmy Carter, women out front

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - Convention Watch shows you the 2012 political conventions through the eyes of Associated Press journalists. *CARTER'S WORDS: "He has done it all in the face of bitter, unyielding, in fact unprecedented partisan opposition." - former President Jimmy Carter, enumerating at the Democratic National Convention (on video, not in person) what he calls Barack Obama's victories in the past ...

Days after Isaac, thousands still in the dark

WWII vet receives long-lost dog tag from France

ROCHESTER, NY (AP) - Irving Mann has been in business long enough to be skeptical of out-of-the-blue offers that seem too good to be true.

Killed World War II Marine’s diary offers a brief look at his brief life

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Before Cpl. Thomas "Cotton" Jones was killed by a Japanese sniper in the Central Pacific in 1944, he wrote what he called his "last life request" to anyone who might find his diary: Please give it to Laura Mae Davis, the girl he loved.

Woman who flew in WWII finally gets honors

TROY, Mich. (AP) - One of the 1,000-plus women who flew for the armed forces during World War II but waited decades to earn full military recognition was the focus of her family's thoughts at a Memorial Day graveside ceremony.

NY mayoral hopeful would be a first

NEW YORK (AP) - It was an unscripted moment made for Christine Quinn.

Teen accused of plot spoke about bombs

ALBANY, Ore. (AP) - Classmates of an Oregon teenager accused of planning to blow up his high school say the 17-year-old discussed bomb-making in the weeks before his arrest, but did not speak of a plot to inflict damage.

Fire breaks out aboard cruise ship

BALTIMORE (AP) - A fire that broke out aboard a Royal Caribbean ship Monday did enough damage that the rest of the cruise was canceled and the company said the more than 2,200 passengers will be flown from the Bahamas back to Baltimore where the trip began.

NYC launches bike share program

NEW YORK (AP) - The nation's biggest bicycle-sharing program got rolling Monday, as thousands of New Yorkers got their first chance to ride a network billed as a new form of public transit in a city known for it.

Gunman in Texas rampage was Marine

EDEN, Texas (AP) - A man suspected in a West Texas shooting rampage that left one woman dead and five others wounded was a Marine who was wanted for questioning in a slaying in North Carolina, officials said Monday.

Senator: New Statue of Liberty security risky

NEW YORK (AP) - New security plans for the Statue of Liberty could leave visitors vulnerable when it reopens July Fourth, New York officials said Monday.

Medical pot laws & treats may send more kids to ER

CHICAGO (AP) - Increased use of medical marijuana may lead to more young children getting sick from accidentally eating food made with the drug, a Colorado study suggests.

Man charged with raping toddler is sex offender

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A man who has been charged with killing an elderly Alaska couple and raping their 2-year-old great-granddaughter is a registered sex offender convicted of breaking into a home and assaulting an 11-year-old girl four years ago.

Nation news briefs

• SURGING WILDFIRE FORCES EVACUATIONS IN CALIFORNIA: SANTA BARBARA (AP) - A surging wildfire has forced dozens of residents and Memorial Day campers to evacuate the mountains of Santa Barbara County in California.

Deal helping Valeant cash on increase in diabetes rate

NEW YORK (AP) -Canadian drugmaker Valeant Pharmaceuticals said Monday that it will pay $8.7 billion to buy Bausch + Lomb, one of the world's best-known makers of contact lenses, in a massive expansion of Valeant's smaller ophthalmology business.

Coastal Commission imposes property ‘caps

SOLANA BEACH (AP) - Atop the ocean bluff are the homes of those fortunate to own a piece of land overlooking the dramatic California coastline. Down on the beach are the surfers, swimmers and beachcombers lucky for a sliver of sand that skirts caves and coves in this paradise north of San Diego.