KMPH Fox 26 Central San Joaquin Valley News Source in Fresno, California Entertainment, News, Sports and Weather | AP Top News at 3:35 p.m. EDT -Friday, March 19, 2010
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Incoming BP CEO: It's time for 'scaleback' in cleanup, but company will still set things right More>>
NY Reps. Weiner, King spar on House floor over handling of bill to aid sick 9/11 responders More>>
Fire official: At least 1 dead in LA explosion; crews search collapsed structure for others More>>
Drug lords, bomb threats and more: young aspiring police officers train, compete at conference More>>
Arizona sheriff forges ahead with aggressive immigration sweeps even after court ruling More>>
Quest for freedom a full-time job for mothers of 3 American hikers jailed for 1 year in Iran More>>
Wildlife officials await test results to confirm captured bears attacked campers More>>
In quiet South Carolina town, another skirmish in immigration battle as councilman seeks ban More>>
Obama, Democrats push hard ahead of health vote
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama and Democratic leaders lobbied intensively for historic health care legislation Friday, striving to resolve a last-minute dispute over Medicare while gaining another precious "yes" 48 hours ahead of a climactic vote. With a showdown set for Sunday on the House floor, Democratic leaders still didn't command the 216 votes they needed, so every undecided lawmaker was the focus of personal attention from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the White House, and every "no"-to-"yes" conversion was trumpeted by party leaders.
Obama rallies support for final health care votes
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) - President Barack Obama described the stakes of this weekend's health care vote in stark terms Friday, using words uttered so rarely out of the White House that they seem all but banned: "If this vote fails." What then? "The insurance industry will continue to run amok," the president declared, pointing to rising rates, denials of coverage and limits on care.
Little fanfare for 7th anniversary of war in Iraq
BAGHDAD (AP) - Seven years after the first bombs in the war to oust Saddam Hussein, Iraqis went about their business Friday with little observance of the anniversary, looking to the future with a mixture of trepidation and hope. Perhaps more important in the minds of many was the ongoing wait for final results from the country's second nationwide parliamentary election. The milestone will determine who will oversee Iraq as U.S. forces go home, but could also point the direction the fragile democracy will take down the road - deeper into the sectarian divide that followed Saddam's fall, or toward a more secular, inclusive rule.
World diplomats urge resumption of Mideast talks
MOSCOW (AP) - International diplomats on Friday called on Israel and the Palestinians to return to peace negotiations with the goal of creating an independent Palestinian state within two years. They reiterated their condemnation of Israel's latest move to add Jewish housing in disputed east Jerusalem but did not escalate criticism of the Jewish state. The so-called Quartet group of Mideast negotiators met in the Russian capital to set the stage for peace talks in which the United States would be a go-between. Those indirect talks, also called proximity talks, would be the first under the Democratic Obama administration and the hawkish Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The four cities that best weathered the recession
WASHINGTON (AP) - Call them the Final Four: The four large cities that have made it through the Great Recession with the smallest increases in unemployment. Minneapolis, Buffalo, Oklahoma City and Rochester, N.Y., don't have much else in common. But a government report shows they've had the smallest increases in joblessness over the past two years among cities with at least 1 million people.
Heavy rains swamp camps holding Haiti's homeless
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - One of the heaviest rainfalls since Haiti's Jan. 12 earthquake swamped homeless camps Friday, sweeping screaming residents into eddies of water, overflowing latrines and panicking thousands. The overnight downpour sent water coursing down the slopes of a former golf course that now serves as a temporary home for about 45,000 people.
Strike looms as talks between BA, union collapse
LONDON (AP) - A three-day strike by British Airways cabin crew affecting thousands of travelers is going ahead Saturday after last-ditch talks between the airline's management and union leaders collapsed. The walkout has forced BA to cancel thousands of flights, but it still hopes to operate around 65 percent of its international schedule over the period.
Court: Anna Nicole Smith gets none of oil fortune
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal appeals court says Anna Nicole Smith's estate will receive none of the more than $300 million that she claimed her late billionaire husband had promised her. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is the latest stop in the 15-year legal battle over the $1.6 billion estate that oil magnate J. Howard Marshall left after his 1995 death at age 90.
Mom of octuplets may lose home to foreclosure
LA HABRA, Calif. (AP) - Octuplets mom Nadya Suleman could be kicked out of her Southern California home. Mortgage holder Amer Haddadin says he is starting foreclosure proceedings on the $565,000 La Habra residence because the family hasn't kept up the payments.
NCAA: Travon Hughes leads Wisconsin
Travon Hughes has 10 of first 12 points for Wisconsin, while Wofford is just 2 of 13 shooting and has gone 5 minutes without a field goal. The Badgers lead 12-7 with about 12 minutes left. Tim Johnson is 1 of 5 for Wofford. ___
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