Nation news briefs

COPS: MOM PULLED GUN AT CONN. CHUCK E. CHEESE'S: NEWINGTON, Conn. (AP) - A Connecticut mother has posted bail after being charged with pulling a gun and threatening another woman at a Chuck E. Cheese's restaurant.

Christie puts weight issue on the table

Pentagon extending benefits for gays

World's longest cat Stewie dies in Reno

Decline in carbon pollution from power plants

Most Facebook users take a break

Memphis renames three city parks that honored Confederacy

Nation news briefs

AUTHORITIES SAY 3 SHOT DEAD IN RURAL SONOMA COUNTY: SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. (AP) - Authorities say three men have been found dead in a rural Sonoma County home.

Senate tries to move anti-violence bill

Supersonic skydiver reached 843.6 mph

Nation news briefs

STROM THURMOND'S MIXED-RACE DAUGHTER DIES AT 87: COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - The mixed-race daughter of the late U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond who kept her parentage secret for more than 70 years to avoid damaging his political career has died. Essie Mae Washington-Williams was 87.

Commuters' wasted time costs $121B

Effort building to change US pot laws

Obama stands firm on federal gun control legislation despite long odds

Veteran had been in mental hospital

Congress renews undetectable gun ban

High-powered traveling companions

No hugs allowed? Madison targets pro cuddlers

MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Wisconsin's ultra-liberal capital city is a place where just about anything goes, from street parties to naked bike rides. But city officials say a business is pushing even Madison's boundaries by offering, of all things, hugs.

Internet giants weigh in on defamation lawsuit

CINCINNATI (AP) - From Twitter and Facebook to Amazon and Google, the biggest names of the Internet are blasting a federal judge's decision allowing an Arizona-based gossip website to be sued for defamation by a former Cincinnati Bengals cheerleader convicted of having sex with a teenager.

Senate Dems push Obama nominees

WASHINGTON (AP) - Fresh from shackling the traditional blocking ability of the Senate's minority party, Democrats are ready to muscle through President Barack Obama's nominees for pivotal judgeships and other top jobs.

Woman’s Christian Temperance Union targeting marijuana

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The mansion that serves as Maine headquarters of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union lay largely fallow until recently, with drug needles, liquor bottles and pornographic magazines littering the grounds. Now, in the state where Prohibition had its roots and in a city that just legalized recreational marijuana, the WCTU is overhauling the building and looking to reinvent itself.

Gay partner benefits growing at firms

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Corporate support for gay and transgender rights is reaching workers in new corners of the country and economy six months after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal Defense of Marriage Act, according to a new report card from the nation's largest LGBT advocacy group.

Move to put cameras on train engineers

NEW YORK (AP) - A week after four people died in a New York commuter train derailment, two federal lawmakers proposed Sunday that trains nationwide be outfitted with cameras pointed at engineers and at the tracks.

Snow storm along East Coast dumps snow, snarls traffic

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - A powerful storm that crept across the country dumped a mix of snow, freezing rain and sleet on the Mid-Atlantic region and headed northeast Sunday, turning NFL playing fields in Pennsylvania into winter wonderlands, threatening as much as a foot of snow in Delaware and New Jersey and raising concerns about a messy morning commute.

Police: Newlyweds killed man from Craigslist

SUNBURY, Pa. (AP) - A couple married for just three weeks lured a man to his death with a Craigslist ad because they wanted to kill someone together, police said.

NKorea deports US tourist and war vet

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - North Korea said Saturday it has deported an elderly U.S. tourist and war veteran detained for more than a month for alleged hostile acts against the country.

Obama, Bush, Clinton to travel to South Africa

WASHINGTON (AP) - At least three American presidents will travel to South Africa to attend memorial services for anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela, who died Thursday at age 95.

NSA defends global cellphone tracking

US allows eagle deaths to aid wind power

WASHINGTON (AP) - Under pressure from the wind-power industry, the Obama administration said Friday it will allow companies to kill or injure eagles without the fear of prosecution for up to three decades.

Experts want Uncle Sam to spend taxes studying how happy we are