Franken to give Democrats a boost on key issues

By Will Vragovic (AP)

A 12-foot pet Burmese python broke out of a terrarium and strangled a 2-year-old girl in her bedroom Wednesday at a central Florida home, authorities said. Shaunnia Hare was already dead when paramedics arrived at about 10 a.m., Lt. Bobby Caruthers of the Sumter County Sheriff\'s Office said.

Charles Jason Darnell, the snake\'s owner and the boyfriend of Shaunnia\'s mother, discovered the snake missing from its terrarium and went to the girl\'s room, where he found it on the girl and bite marks on her head, Caruthers said. Darnell, 32, stabbed the snake until he was able to pry the...

By Nasser Nasser (AP)

African leaders and Brazil\'s president called for greater cooperation to boost peace and development efforts as the 13th African Union summit of heads of state opened Wednesday.

The leaders had a host of issues to address, including coups and civil wars to the backlash of the economic crisis and the challenges of global warming.

Several high-profile guests to the summit stayed home at the last minute, including Italy\'s Silvio Berlusconi, Egypt\'s Hosni Mubarak and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

A visit by Ahmadinejad would have been one of his first major...

By Will Vragovic (AP)

A 2-year-old girl was strangled by a 12-foot Burmese python Wednesday inside a central Florida home, authorities said.

The snake was a family pet, not one of a fast-growing population of nonnative pythons that has been spreading in the wild in southern Florida.

Lt. Steve Binegar, of the Sumter County Sheriff\'s Office, said the toddler was strangled by the snake in the town of Oxford, about 50 miles northwest of Orlando. Pythons can kill by wrapping themselves around a human. Paramedics said the girl was dead when they arrived at about 10 a.m. EDT. Authorities did not release...

By Alvaro Barrientos (AP)

It\'s no secret that overfishing has driven many tuna species including the iconic blue fin to the brink of extinction.

But there is plenty of disagreement over what should be done about it. The European Commission thinks reducing fleets is the answer while environmentalists say tougher quotas would do the trick. The industry wants more attention paid to reducing bycatch, the unwanted fish, sharks, turtles and other marine life caught in nets, along with young tuna.

The debate is playing out at a meeting here this week of five regional fisheries management organizations which...

By SEBASTIAN SCHEINER (AP)

Israeli archaeologists unveiled one of the largest and best preserved mosaics ever found in the country Wednesday, for only the second time since it was discovered more than a decade ago.

The 600-square-foot (56 square meter), 1,700-year-old Roman floor mosaic was found in 1996 during an archaeological dig in the town of Lod near Tel Aviv. It drew 10,000 visitors in the one weekend it was on display then, according to the Israeli Antiquities Authority, the government agency responsible for its restoration.

The agency covered the mosaic back up, though, because it lacked...

By Pablo Martinez Monsivais (AP)

Aiming to keep the focus on climate change legislation, President Barack Obama is ready to talk about making lamps and lighting equipment use less energy.

On Monday afternoon, Obama and Energy Secretary Steven Chu plan to disclose that $346 million in economic stimulus money will help improve energy efficiency in new and existing commercial buildings.

The White House added the event to the president\'s schedule at the last minute, just three days after the House narrowly approved the first energy legislation ever designed to curb global warming. The measure\'s fate is less...

By Charlie Riedel (AP)

Facing a rare defeat, President Barack Obama put a big dose of political capital on the line and scored a major victory just when he needed one.

In private telephone conversations and last-minute public appeals, Obama leaned heavily on House Democratic holdouts to support the first energy legislation ever designed to curb global warming. The measure ended up passing in dramatic fashion.

In the end, the president\'s furious lobbying _ coupled with a final push by allies including former Vice President Al Gore _ carried much weight. To a certain extent, the victory validated...

By Charlie Riedel (AP)

Facing a rare defeat, President Barack Obama put a big dose of political capital on the line and scored a major victory just when he needed one.

In private telephone conversations and last-minute public appeals, Obama leaned heavily on House Democratic holdouts to support the first energy legislation ever designed to curb global warming. The measure ended up passing in dramatic fashion.

In the end, the president\'s furious lobbying _ coupled with a final push by allies including former Vice President Al Gore _ carried much weight. To a certain extent, the victory validated...

By Lauren Victoria Burke (AP)

Hailing the House, President Barack Obama put pressure on senators Saturday to follow its lead and pass legislation to limit greenhouse gas emissions, helping usher the U.S. into a new age of energy efficiency.

\"Now my call to every senator, as well as to every American, is this: We cannot be afraid of the future. And we must not be prisoners of the past,\" the president said in his weekly radio and Internet address. \"Don\'t believe the misinformation out there that suggests there is somehow a contradiction between investing in clean energy and economic growth. It\'s just not...

By JOHN MCCONNICO (AP)

Congress has taken its first step toward an energy revolution, with the prospect of profound change for every household, business, industry and farm in the decades ahead.

It was late Friday when the House passed legislation that would, for the first time, require limits on pollution blamed for global warming _ mainly carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels. Now the Senate has the chance to change the way Americans produce and use energy.

What would the country look like a decade from now if the House-passed bill _ or, more likely, a water-down version _ were to become the...

By Charlie Riedel (AP)

Cap-and-trade? Offsets? Pollution credits? The climate bill under consideration in the U.S. House of Representatives tackles global warming with new limits on pollution and a market-based approach to encourage more environmentally friendly business practices. But what exactly do the proposed rules mean, and how would they work?

Some questions and answers about the bill, a top legislative priority for President Barack Obama:

Q: What\'s the purpose of this legislation?

A: To reduce the gases linked to global warming and to force sources for power to shift away from fossil...

By Lauren Victoria Burke (AP)

Hailing the House, President Barack Obama put pressure on senators Saturday to follow its lead and pass legislation to limit greenhouse gas emissions, helping usher the U.S. into a new age of energy efficiency.

\"Now my call to every senator, as well as to every American, is this: We cannot be afraid of the future. And we must not be prisoners of the past,\" the president said in his weekly radio and Internet address. \"Don\'t believe the misinformation out there that suggests there is somehow a contradiction between investing in clean energy and economic growth. It\'s just not...

By Bob Child (AP)

From the first time he saw Emmett \"Doc\" Brown fire up the Mr. Fusion home energy reactor in the \"Back to the Future\" movies, Dave Nichols has always wanted to make a vehicle run on garbage.

Two decades after the trilogy, the 42-year-old home builder and auto shop owner from eastern Connecticut isn\'t traveling through time in a DeLorean, yet. But he\'s modified his 1989 Ford F150 pickup truck to run on wood, leaves, cardboard and other \"biomass\" with a fuel system that he says expels virtually no pollution.

The technology is called gasification, and it\'s been around...

By Charlie Riedel (AP)

Congress has taken its first step toward an energy revolution, with the prospect of profound change for every household, business, industry and farm in the decades ahead.

It was late Friday when the House passed legislation that would, for the first time, require limits on pollution blamed for global warming _ mainly carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels. Now the Senate has the chance to change the way Americans produce and use energy.

What would the country look like a decade from now if the House-passed bill _ or, more likely, a water-down version _ were to become the...

By BRIAN BOHANNON (AP)

Larry Roberta\'s every breath is a painful reminder of his time in Iraq. He can\'t walk a block without gasping for air. His chest hurts, his migraines sometimes persist for days and he needs pills to help him sleep.

James Gentry came home with rashes, ear troubles and a shortness of breath. Later, things got much worse: He developed lung cancer, which spread to his spine, ribs and one of his thighs; he must often use a cane, and no longer rides his beloved Harley.

David Moore\'s postwar life turned into a harrowing medical mystery: nosebleeds and labored breathing that made...

By Susan Walsh (AP)

Hours after the House passed landmark legislation meant to curb greenhouse gas emissions and create an energy-efficient economy, President Barack Obama on Saturday urged senators to show courage and follow suit.

The sharply debated bill\'s fate is unclear in the Senate, and Obama used his weekly radio and Internet address to ratchet up pressure on the 100-seat chamber.

\"My call to every senator, as well as to every American, is this,\" he said. \"We cannot be afraid of the future. And we must not be prisoners of the past. Don\'t believe the misinformation out there that...

By Gerald Herbert (AP)

Sweeping legislation to curb the pollution linked to global warming and create a new energy-efficient economy is headed to an uncertain future in the Senate after squeaking through the House.

The vote was a big win for President Barack Obama, who hailed House passage as a \"historic action.\"

\"It\'s a bold and necessary step that holds the promise of creating new industries and millions of new jobs, decreasing our dangerous dependence on foreign oil and strictly limiting the release of pollutants that threaten the health of families and communities and the planet itself,\"...

By Manuel Balce Ceneta (AP)

A powerful Senate Democrat is backing an oyster farmer over the National Park Service in a northern California controversy that has environmentalists seething.

This is good news for San Francisco Bay area lovers of succulent Drakes Bay oysters, some of the world\'s finest. But to environmentalists, the move by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., sets a bad precedent because it permits a commercial operation in a wilderness area.

Feinstein is using her position as chair of the panel with jurisdiction over budget of the National Park Service _ which has been battling with oyster...

By Harry Hamburg (AP)

Rep. Ellen Tauscher made it a memorable last day in Congress.

The California Democrat wielded the gavel during debate Friday, gave an Academy Award-length thank you address to the chamber and was casting what could be one of the more important votes of her 13-year congressional career.

The Senate on Thursday confirmed Tauscher, who represents the San Francisco suburbs, as undersecretary of state for arms control and international security.

In an emotional speech on the House floor, she said she had told House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Gov. Arnold...

By Gerald Herbert (AP)

In a triumph for President Barack Obama, the Democratic-controlled House narrowly passed sweeping legislation Friday that calls for the nation\'s first limits on pollution linked to global warming and aims to usher in a new era of cleaner, yet more costly energy.

The vote was 219-212, capping months of negotiations and days of intense bargaining among Democrats. Republicans were overwhelmingly against the measure, arguing it would destroy jobs in the midst of a recession while burdening consumers with a new tax in the form of higher energy costs.

The House\'s action fulfilled...

By Ron Edmonds (AP)

In a triumph for President Barack Obama, the Democratic-controlled House has narrowly passed sweeping legislation calling for the nation\'s first-ever limits on pollution linked to global warming.

The bill also aims to usher in a new era of cleaner, yet more costly energy.

The vote was 219-212, capping months of negotiations and days of intense bargaining among Democrats. Republicans were overwhelmingly against the measure, saying it would cost jobs in the midst of a recession.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP\'s earlier story...

By Pablo Martinez Monsivais (AP)

President Barack Obama\'s criticism of Iran escalated Friday into an unusually personal war of words. To Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad\'s demand he apologize for meddling, Obama shot back that the regime should \"think carefully\" about answers owed to protesters it has arrested, bludgeoned and killed.

\"The violence perpetrated against them is outrageous,\" Obama said. \"We see it and we condemn it.\"

The president spoke at an East Room news conference capping his third set of meetings with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, one of several European leaders who spoke...

By Ron Edmonds (AP)

The House churned toward a showdown vote Friday on historic legislation to reduce pollution linked to global warming and power the nation with cleaner but more expensive energy.

Democrats struggled to solidify a fragile coalition needed to pass the bill _ firmly opposed by Republicans who called the measure a \"job killer\" that would push families\' energy bills higher and drive businesses overseas.

The White House and congressional Democrats argued the bill would create millions of \"green jobs\" as the nation shifts to greater reliance on renewable energy sources such as...