America now on edge of fiscal cliff

WASHINGTON (AP) - A Capitol Hill deal to avert the "fiscal cliff" was proving elusive Sunday as a deadline to avert tax hikes on virtually every American worker and block sweeping spending cuts set to strike the Pentagon and other federal agencies grew perilously near.

National news briefs

9 KILLED IN TOUR BUS CRASH ALONG OREGON HIGHWAY: PENDLETON, Ore. (AP) - A tour bus careened through a guardrail along an icy Oregon highway and several hundred feet down a steep embankment Sunday, killing nine people and injuring more than 20 others, authorities said.

2012 styles that made our heads turn

Burned bear cub recovering, may be released soon

HAMILTON, Mont. (AP) - An orphaned black bear cub burned in a wildfire last summer is recovering and may be released in June, an Idaho wildlife sanctuary official said. The 4-month-old bear nicknamed "Boo Boo" was discovered by a fisherman in a tree along the Salmon River in August days after the 312-square-mile Mustang wildfire complex passed through the area. <p style="line-height: ...

Couple says pet chicken alerted them to blaze

Gays in Maine poised for first weddings

Jean Harris, 'Scarsdale Diet' doctor killer, dies at age 89

Last ditch effort to avoid fiscal cliff

Mayor Bloomberg: Keep two NY subway push deaths in perspective

'Fifty Shades' dominates publishing in 2012

Nation news briefs

ARIZONA SHERIFF AIMS TO PUT ARMED POSSE AT SCHOOLS: PHOENIX (AP) - An Arizona sheriff has announced plans to deploy an armed volunteer posse to protect Phoenix-area students in the wake of the mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school.

Former California lawmaker John Quimby dies at age

77

Dockworkers strike averted for now

Sin City getting ready for New Year’s Eve

Senate approves $60.4 billion Sandy aid bill

Uncle arranging suspect’s burial rites

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) - The uncle of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev arrived in Massachusetts on Sunday to arrange for his burial, saying he understands that "no one wants to associate their names with such evil events."

Obama to grads: Reject cynical voices

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - A year to the day after kicking off his victorious re-election campaign on this college campus, President Barack Obama returned to Ohio State University and told graduates that only through vigorous participation in their democracy can they right an ill-functioning government and break through relentless cynicism about the nation's future.

Solar powered plane lands in Arizona

PHOENIX (AP) - Alone in the single-seat cockpit and high above the American Southwest, pilot Bertrand Piccard could hear only his plane's gear box and the quiet whine of four electric motors. No noisy jet engines.

Giffords receives Profile in Courage award

BOSTON (AP) - Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords received the 2013 Profile in Courage award at the John F. Kennedy Library on Sunday in recognition of the political, personal, and physical courage she has demonstrated in her fearless public advocacy for policy reforms aimed at reducing gun violence.

Utah cabin had uninvited guests: 60,000 or so bees

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - It was the biggest beehive that that Ogden beekeeper Vic Bachman has ever removed - a dozen feet long, packed inside the eaves of a cabin in Ogden Valley.

Gerbils strut their stuff at New England pageant

BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) - The American Gerbil Society's annual pageant brought dozens of rodents scurrying to New England this weekend for a chance to win "top gerbil."

Nation news briefs

&bull; WOMAN USED FACEBOOK TO HARASS HERSELF, COPS SAY: GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) - A western Michigan woman is accused of creating a Facebook account to stalk herself.

Priest with history of molestation resigns

Exercise cuts kidney stone risk in women

NRA: 'Culture war' more than gun rights

Police: No crime in student mouth taping in Colorado

Climber dies in fiery fall on power tower

Utah soccer league hiring security after ref hit

PVC pipes staking mine claims killing birds

Suspect died of gunshots, blunt trauma