Idaho OKs lawsuit if healthcare overhaul passes

| |Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Similar proposals are under consideration in 37 other states.Read more

Residents wait to see if sandbags save them from Red River

| |Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

The Red River is expected to crest at about 38 feet Sunday.Read more

Senate passes bill to alleviate cocaine-crack sentencing disparity

Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Legislation approved by the Senate on Wednesday would significantly reduce the disparity in sentences handed out to those convicted of crack and powder cocaine charges.Read more

National briefs: Heist suspects, 1 in leprechaun costume, shot by police

Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Heist suspects, 1 in costume, shot

TENNESSEE -- Two bank robbery suspects, including one dressed in a leprechaun costume, were shot dead after a St. Patrick's Day chase and shootout with police in Tennessee, authorities said. First State Bank in Gallatin was held up by a man who wore a green costume and carried a large-caliber gun, said Sgt. Bill Storment, a police spokesman. Police said the two men in the car that sped away ditched their vehicle and ran into a field. They were killed while exchanging fire with officers, Storment said. Read more

Seattle Web-only daily marks its first anniversary

Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Web-only daily marks its first anniversary

SEATTLE -- Seattlepi.com, the online successor to the print version of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, celebrates its first birthday today. Seattlepi.com formally launched March 18, 2009, a day after the nearly 146-year-old P-I published its last edition on newsprint. The P-I's owner, New York-based Hearst Corp., had been losing money on the newspaper for years and hopes the online version will change that. Readership is stable a 4 million visitors per month. The P-I was the first major metropolitan daily in the country to go Web-only. Read more

Resolution honoring Terps sets off spat in House

Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Maybe congressional Republicans are rooting for the University of Houston Cougars to upset the Maryland Terrapins in the first round of the NCAA men's basketball tournament Friday.Read more

Flea and tick treatments kill hundreds of pets each year, EPA says

| |Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

The agency plans stricter testing and evaluation requirements.Read more

Afghanistan: After losing town, insurgents fighting for influence with fear

| |Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Public support is deemed essential to preventing the Taliban's return.Read more

Prescription drug heists are on the rise, with meds resold

| |Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Relabeled stolen drugs often show up on pharmacy shelves, experts say.Read more

Hawaii considering law to ignore Obama 'birthers'

Wednesday, Mar. 17, 2010

Birthers beware: Hawaii may start ignoring your repeated requests for proof that President Barack Obama was born there.Read more