Nebraska ruling could grant Obama breathing space on Keystone
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A Nebraska judge’s ruling on the Keystone XL pipeline could let President Barack Obama delay his final decision on the project until after mid-term elections and avoid political damage, analysts say.
Cuban windsurfer missing after attempting to cross Florida Straits
KEY WEST, Florida (Reuters) – Three Cuban migrants attempted to windsurf across the Florida Straits to reach the United States on Tuesday, but only one is known to have reached dry land.
Venture capitalist in bid to split California into six states
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – A venture capitalist seeking to break California into six new states has won approval to begin collecting signatures needed to get his plan on the ballot in November, but experts said such a measure likely stands little chance o…
Colorado lawmaker leaves behind loaded handgun in state Capitol
DENVER (Reuters) – A Colorado lawmaker said on Thursday he found a loaded handgun that one of his colleagues had mistakenly left in a room at the Capitol building where a committee had discussed a bipartisan measure to ease restrictions on carrying con…
Authorities lift evacuation order for Iowa town
(Reuters) – Authorities allowed residents of a small Iowa town to return to their homes on Thursday hours after they were told to evacuate because of a fire involving sulfuric acid at a local airport.
Man called muse for ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ charged with fraud
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A man who served prison time for conning Hollywood stars and reputedly inspired Leonardo DiCaprio’s performance in “The Wolf of Wall Street” was in federal court on Thursday facing charges that he used a friend’s credit card to buy…
Oregon says will not defend state ban on gay marriage
(Reuters) – Oregon will not defend a ban on gay marriage in the state, which was sued by four same-sex couples who argue the prohibition violates equality guarantees enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, the state’s top law enforcement official said on T…
Lottery officials wait for winner of $425 million Powerball to step up
MILPITAS, California (Reuters) – Lottery officials in California were waiting on Thursday to hear from the holder of the single winning ticket of a $425.3 million national Powerball prize, a day after announcing the sixth highest jackpot drawing in U.S…
Maryland mulls repealing Civil War pro-slavery amendment
(Reuters) – More than 150 years after Maryland adopted a proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution barring the abolition of slavery, state lawmakers are considering repealing the Civil War-era ratification.
Latest shoe bomb threat linked to al-Qaeda’s Yemen affiliate
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The latest warning to airlines about shoe-bomb threats is a product of heightened U.S. concern about al-Qaeda’s Yemen-based affiliate, whose leaders include a technically-savvy bombmaker, U.S. security sources said on Thursday.
