Illinois governor expected to sign gay marriage into law
CHICAGO (Reuters) – Illinois Governor Pat Quinn is expected to sign same-sex marriage into law on Wednesday afternoon, which will make President Barack Obama’s home state the 16th to allow such unions.
Voters in Albuquerque, New Mexico, defeat measure to limit abortions
SANTA FE, New Mexico (Reuters) – Voters in Albuquerque defeated a proposal on Tuesday that would have outlawed most late-term abortions in New Mexico’s largest city in the first test of such a measure on a municipal ballot in the United States.
Early Obamacare data show older Americans more apt to sign up
(Reuters) – More older Americans than young adults so far have signed up for new insurance coverage under the state marketplaces created by President Barack Obama’s healthcare law, according to early data from four states reporting details on their enr…
U.S. pastor sentenced to suspension for performing son’s gay marriage
SPRING CITY, Pennsylvania (Reuters) – A Pennsylvania pastor found guilty in a Methodist church trial of officiating at his son’s 2007 same-sex marriage ceremony was sentenced to two concurrent 30-day suspensions on Tuesday.
Learjet crashes off Florida coast, two bodies found
(Reuters) – A private jet with perhaps four people aboard crashed into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after takeoff from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Tuesday, and two bodies have been recovered, a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman said.
Florida Tea Party congressman to be in court on drug charge
MIAMI (Reuters) – U.S. Representative Trey Radel, a Tea Party Republican from Florida, is due to be arraigned Wednesday in a Washington, D.C., court on a misdemeanor charge of drug possession, according to court documents.
Obama pens tribute to Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – In a handwritten tribute to the words of a president he has long admired, President Barack Obama said on Tuesday that the Gettysburg Address has provided him late-night solace when he considers the long struggle for equality in A…
U.S. judge grants Missouri convicted killer stay of execution
(Reuters) – A federal judge granted a serial killer a stay of execution on Tuesday hours before he was to be put to death, allowing him time to challenge Missouri’s new lethal drug protocol, a ruling the state immediately appealed.
Changes weighed for California high school’s Arab mascot
THERMAL, California (Reuters) – School officials are weighing possible changes to a California high school’s decades-old Arab mascot that an Arab-American rights group has called offensive, the local school superintendent said on Tuesday.
U.S. Supreme Court declines to block Texas abortion law
WASHINGTON/DALLAS (Reuters) – A split U.S. Supreme Court declined on Tuesday to block implementation of a new abortion law in Texas that already has prompted a dozen clinics in the state to stop performing the procedure.