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  Feds find association between drywall, corrosion

  The federal government said Monday that it has found a "strong association" between problematic imported Chinese drywall and corrosion of pipes and wires, a conclusion that supports complaints by thousands of homeowners over the last year.

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  Hundreds mourn Mich. boy allegedly slain by father

  An impromptu memorial of artificial flowers and dozens of stuffed animals remained Monday near strands of yellow crime-scene tape in a vacant lot where relatives say 15-year-old Jamar Pinkney Jr.'s father shot him in the head while he begged for mercy.

• Ex-NY politician's corruption trial wrapping up

  The corruption case against former New York state Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno has gone to the jury, which will return Tuesday morning to begin deliberations.

• Alleged Hawaii spy found competent to stand trial

  A Maui man accused of selling military secrets to China has been found competent to stand trial.

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  SC gov faces 37 charges he broke state ethics laws

  Gov. Mark Sanford is accused of breaking 37 ethics laws regarding campaign finances and travel, including using taxpayer money for high-priced airplane tickets that took him around the world and to Argentina for a rendezvous with the woman he once called his "soul mate."

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  Sarah Palin's book tour hits NC's Fort Bragg

  Sarah Palin brought her book-signing tour to North Carolina's Fort Bragg on Monday as thousands greeted the former Republican vice presidential candidate in a campaign-like gathering that tested military rules involving politicians.

• Police: Pa. man killed puppy before Steelers game

  Police say a western Pennsylvania man told them he kicked his girlfriend's puppy to death because he was upset that the pit bull wouldn't behave before the start of the Pittsburgh Steelers game.

• Wis. man with alleged child porn shrine charged

  A Wisconsin man transformed his apartment into a pornographic shrine to young girls, arranging mannequins in a sex act, plastering every flat surface with pictures and setting up a bed covered with stuffed animals, investigators said Monday.

• Charges unsealed in missing Somalis terror probe

  Federal prosecutors unsealed new terror-related charges against eight people on Monday as part of the long-running investigation of young men who left the United States to fight in Somalia.

• 2 men charged after 3 men found slain in rural Ky.

  Kentucky State Police say two arrests have been made following the discovery of three bodies in rural Kentucky.

• Health Bill Revives Abortion Groups

  Feeling a threat from proposed legislation, both sides are mobilizing supporters like they haven’t in years.

• U.S. to Propose Emissions Cut Before Climate Talks

  President Obama will announce a near-term target for reducing emissions “in coming days,” a senior official said.

• U.S. Charges 8 More in Inquiry of Somali Terror Support

  The charges are part of a sweeping investigation of about 20 young men who left the U.S. to join a militant Islamist group in Somalia, the Shabaab.

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  3 Clergymen Tell How Differences of Faith Led to Friendship

  A rabbi, a Protestant minister and a Muslim sheik take their experiences in interfaith understanding on the road.

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  Sanford Faces 37 Charges by State Ethics Board

  Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina will face ethics charges on 37 counts of using his office for personal gain.

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  S.C. Governor Faces 37 Charges by State Ethics Board

  The charges against Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina include spending state money on business-class plane tickets, instead of flying coach.

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  White House Begins Campaign to Promote Science and Math Education

  The plan will enlist companies and nonprofits, including “Sesame Street,” to spend money and time to encourage students to pursue science, technology, engineering and math.

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  Sanford Faces 37 Charges on State Ethics Laws

  Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina faces charges that he broke state laws more than three dozen times.

• Sidebar: Bright Lines Blur in Juvenile Sentencing

  The effects of a decision on executing mentally retarded inmates could offer a lesson on punishment for juveniles.

• U.S. to Propose CO2 Cut at Talks

  The United States will propose an emissions reduction target at a U.N. climate change summit in Copenhagen, a senior administration official said.

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• Family heritage flavors Thanksgiving side dishes

  America's diverse population has whipped up some strange bedfellows for old Tom Turkey. Ravioli, anyone? Boudin, maybe? Millions ...

• South Carolina governor faces 37 state ethics charges

  South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, whose tryst with an Argentine lover blossomed into a wide-ranging scandal, is accused of breaking ...

• Poll: Most will ignore new breast cancer guidelines

  The vast majority of women in the USA say they will get a mammogram before age 50, in keeping with American Cancer Society recommendations.

• Man pleads not guilty in Erin Andrews videos case

  An Illinois insurance executive accused of secretly making nude videos of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews is scheduled for arraignment ...

• Pipe-cutting led to radiation at Three Mile Island

  Radioactive dust unexpectedly blew out of a pipe being cut by workers during weekend maintenance at the Three Mile Island nuclear ...

• Ventures a drain on states, localities

  Government-owned businesses that generate revenue for states and cities have taken a sharp turn downward and now are draining ...

• Police: Man killed puppy before Steelers game

  Police say a western Pennsylvania man told them he kicked his girlfriend's puppy to death because he was upset that the pit bull ...

• South Carolina governor facing ethics charges

  South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford faces ethics charges that he broke state laws by violating rules on airplane travel and campaign ...

• Officer, passenger injured during transit arrest

  A train passenger's video of an arrest shows heavy-duty glass shattering and showering down on a San Francisco area transit police ...

• Man pleads not guilty in ESPN reporter videos case

  An Illinois insurance executive accused of secretly making nude videos of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews is scheduled for arraignment ...

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• Fatal shooting of student splits community known for love of the outdoors

  FERRUM, VA. -- Jessica Goode needed to clear her head. It was Tuesday afternoon, her senior project presentation was due by Friday and it wasn't going well. She wanted to be in the one place where sh always felt better: the woods.

• Calif. college student fees on the rise

  LOS ANGELES -- California's mission of providing residents with access to affordable, high-quality public education suffered a setback this week as University of California officials sharply increase student fees, driven by economic realities that are forcing similar steps at public university.

• Kuwait-based military contractor wins court delay

  A Kuwaiti-owned company indicted in Atlanta this week for alleged fraud in connection with a multibillion-dollar contract to supply food and other products to coalition troops in Iraq, Kuwait and Joran won a court delay Friday, indicating that it may be planning to fight the case, whether in.

• H1N1 cases fall in U.S. but could rise with Thanksgiving travel, gatherings

  The level of swine flu activity in the United States appears to be declining, although officials are worried about another increase of cases during the Thanksgiving holiday when many people travel an families gather.

• Hackers steal electronic data from top climate research center

  Hackers broke into the electronic files of one of the world's foremost climate research centers this week and posted an array of e-mails in which prominent scientists engaged in a blunt discussion ofglobal warming research and disparaged climate-change skeptics.

• FBI to announce charges against al-Shabaab recruiters

  The FBI and Justice Department will announce new charges today aimed at dismantling a terror recruitment ring that has sent dozens of Somali American youths and others from the United States to join n extremist Islamic insurgency in Somalia, officials said.

• Terrapins Numbers

  3 Games in which Terrapins wide receiver Torrey Smith has posted at least 260 all-purpose yards this season. He's the only player in the country to accomplish that feat.

• In the recession, all roads lead to home

  MISSOULA, MONT. -- Her parents redecorated her bedroom soon after she left for college, as sure as everyone else in this town that Melissa Meyer would not be moving back. They took down the photos ofMelissa meeting the Dalai Lama and laughing alongside Joe Biden, placing them in the closet.

• U.S. slow to build new flu defenses

  After a lethal bird flu virus emerged in Asia, U.S. officials launched an intense effort to build new defenses against a pandemic, including replacing an antiquated vaccine system, which depends on mllions of chicken eggs.

• Appointments

  Audio Video Systems of Chantilly named Michele Ferreira vice president of sales and marketing, and Barry Goldin vice president of operations.

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  For a healthcare holdout, it's lonely in the middle

  Arkansas Democrat Blanche Lincoln, who remains undecided on Senate legislation, is getting pummeled from the left and right. As one of the few senators undecided on healthcare reform, Arkansas Democat Blanche Lincoln faces a huge headache.

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  A Noah's Ark in the desert

  Animal lovers open their home to share their collection of kangaroos, porcupines, camels and more with visitors. When the recession cut into Jay and Valerie Holt's veterinary practice, their financil bind was more pressing than most.

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  Pricing an Afghanistan troop buildup is no simple calculation

  The White House estimate is twice the Pentagon's. Some see politics at play. As President Obama measures the potential burden of a new war strategy in Afghanistan, his administration is struggling to come up with even the most dispassionate of predictions: the actual price tag for the anticipated ...

• Reaction to Senate healthcare vote offers a preview of 2010 campaigns

  Next year's congressional elections weigh heavily in partisan comments. Republicans say healthcare vote shows Democrats' devotion to big government; Democrats say the GOP is merely the 'party of no.' With the Senate's 60-39 vote to proceed to debate, after Thanksgiving, on a healthcare bill that t...

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  Centrist senators say healthcare bill needs major changes

  Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson says he supported a procedural motion to begin debate but doesn't approve of the legislation as it stands. Democratic leaders face a tough fight ahead. Only a day after Senate Democrats voted to move into a historic debate on overhauling the nation's healthcare system, k...

• Legislation to stop whining gets an earful

  A Missouri congressman calls for a complaint-free day before Thanksgiving. Angry respondents feast on the bill. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II (D-Mo.) wanted people to stop complaining for a day and count heir blessings.

• Obama gathers his A list for first state dinner

  The guest list for Tuesday's gala remains a secret, but it should solidify who is considered a VIP in the Obama White House. The dinner honors India's prime minister. What's the hottest ticket in the nation's capital? An engraved invitation to Tuesday's White House state dinner, the first hosted b...

• Grand Canyon decides permit system is unfair

  Starting in February, locals won't be able to line up for the right to backpack overnight -- they'll have to mail or fax like everyone else. Getting one of the roughly 11,500 permits granted each year to backpack overnight in the Grand Canyon has become so competitive and unfair that managers at t...

• Mexican American former anti-drug chief's reputation on trial

  Richard Padilla Cramer is accused of selling out to drug lords, helping them unmask informants and set up smuggling deals. Family and former colleagues say he's the last person they'd suspect. Aroun here, the grim joke goes, most people work for the government or the mafias.

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  Senate healthcare vote clears the way for formal debate to begin

  Democrats overcome a GOP filibuster with a 60-39 vote in a key procedural move on the $848-billion healthcare legislation. Debate is likely to run through the end of the year. Without a vote to spare, Democrats pushed their healthcare legislation over its first obstacle on the Senate floor Saturda...

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• Lieberman's Stand: No Public Option

  The Connecticut senator says any public option will compel him to block a final vote on the health bill. His objection, he says, is based on fiscal risk.

• Construction-Site Pollution Targeted

  The EPA issued a final rule aimed at reducing pollution from construction sites, saying that it will significantly improve the quality of water nationwide.

• Health-Care Haggling Heats Up

  Democratic leaders moved their health bill to the Senate floor, where issues including abortion and cost remain divisive for party members.

• Scholarship Funding Divides Michigan

  Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm has launched a bid to salvage a $100 million college-scholarship program that she sees as critical to diversifying her state's flagging economy.

• Climate Emails Stoke Debate

  Emails and documents posted on the Internet after being hacked from a climate-change research center may raise ethical questions about a group of scientists who contend that humans are responsible fo global warming.

• White House Weighs Jobs, Deficit

  The White House is lukewarm about proposals by Democrats to introduce legislation to create jobs, instead favoring targeted measures that would be less likely to inflate the deficit.

• Health Fight Is First of Many for GOP

  The health-care vote was the first skirmish in a long battle aimed at frustrating White House ambitions and ensuring that Democrats bear responsibility for legislation the GOP sees as increasingly unopular with Americans.

• Fake Tan and Then a Tango

  Popular television dance shows are relying on fake-tanning professionals to create the appearance of physically-fit contestants.

• Let's Fix Michigan and Notre Dame

  The Michigan and Notre Dame football teams are in a perilous state, but the solution is simple: Merger! The Notre Michigan Irish Wolverines.

• Volunteers Log Off as Wikipedia Ages

  Wikipedia.org is losing unprecedented numbers of the millions of online volunteers who write, edit and police the world's fifth-most-popular Web site.

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  CIA Chief Panetta Winning Over Doubters at the Agency

  So many CIA veterans were particularly not happy over the summer when they felt that Panetta had failed to protect the Agency from the political backlash over its Bush-era detention and interrogationpractices.

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  Are Minorities Getting Enough Out of the Stimulus?

  Federal and state governments are missing a great opportunity to use the stimulus to aid the poor and minority communities hardest hit by the Great Recession

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  Tuition Hikes: Protests in California and Elsewhere

  A combination of budget crises and the recession spark protests in GoldenState. But the problem plagues other public universities too

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  Guantanamo Bay: Inside Obama's Plan to Close the Center

  White House plans for terror suspects currently in detention are likely to outrage liberals and conservatives

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  Army Corps of Engineers Faulted in Katrina Destruction

  There can be something thrilling about accountability, so it was nice to see a federal judge declare the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers directly responsible for the destruction of most of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina

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  Can These Parents Be Saved: The Growing Backlash Against Over-Parenting

  Overparenting got way out of control in the past generation. But now a band of rebels is trying to restore some balance and sanity to family life and help bring all those anxious helicopter parents down for a soft landing

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  Fort Hood: Hasan's Warning Signs Ignored, Say Classmates

  Soldiers who studied with accused killer Nidal Malik Hasan claim that he gave clear signals of sympathy for America's enemies

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  Detroit's Kilpatrick Back in Court Over Money Troubles

  America loves a story of redemption. But former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's constant excess, and his view that somehow he is above the law, makes absolution a difficult sell

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  Q&A: William Langewiesche on Hudson Hero Sullenberger

  In a new book, journalist William Langewiesche offers a dissenting view on Captain Chesley Sullenberger's dramatic January flight

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  A Brief History of the Court-Martial

  The upcoming military trial of accused Fort Hood gunman Nidal Malik Hasan could be the most prominent in a generation

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