http://www.mail.com/subjects/368-legislature.html Mail.com - the best personalized free web-based Email en en http://sec-s.uicdn.com/mail.com/2.23/img/mailcom_logo_rss.png http://www.mail.com/subjects/368-legislature.html http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1862506-scott-brown-wont-seek-kerrys-senate-seat.html BOSTON (AP) — Former Sen. Scott Brown said Friday he would not run in a special Senate election in Massachusetts, dealing a setback to Republican hopes of winning the seat being vacated by Secretary of State John Kerry. Brown, who electrified his party with an upset win in a 2010 special election but lost his re-election bid in November, ended weeks of in... Sat, 02 Feb 2013 03:58:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1862506-scott-brown-wont-seek-kerrys-senate-seat.html 2013-02-02T03:58:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/health/1862032-healthier-schools-goodbye-candy-greasy-snacks.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Goodbye candy bars and sugary cookies. Hello baked chips and diet sodas. The government for the first time is proposing broad new standards to make sure all foods sold in schools are more healthful, a change that would ban the sale of almost all candy, high-calorie sports drinks and greasy foods on campus. Under new r... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 21:27:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/health/1862032-healthier-schools-goodbye-candy-greasy-snacks.html 2013-02-01T21:27:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1862736-chicago-takes-leading-role-national-gun-debate.html CHICAGO (AP) — They are counting the dead from gunfire again in Chicago, a city awash in weapons despite having one of the strictest gun-control ordinances in the nation. After a year in which Chicago's death toll surpassed 500, the bloodshed has continued in 2013 at a rate of more than one killing a day. It was the city's deadliest January in more than a... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:33:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1862736-chicago-takes-leading-role-national-gun-debate.html 2013-02-01T20:33:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1828252-priest-sheik-marriage-lebanon.html BEIRUT (AP) — She was an English language tutor with an easy smile and an independent streak. He was a gym receptionist who wanted to better himself. They met for English lessons, swapped views on life and fell in love. Three months ago, a notary married them before their friends and family — but not in the eyes of the Lebanese government. The government ... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 19:01:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1828252-priest-sheik-marriage-lebanon.html 2013-02-01T19:01:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1861220-white-house-hagel-will-win-senate-confirmation.html WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House on Friday dismissed criticism of Chuck Hagel's hesitant congressional testimony and insisted that it expects the Senate to confirm him as defense secretary. One day after Hagel was roughed up in a grueling confirmation hearing, White House spokesman Jay Carney said Hagel did a "fine job" and the Obama administration would... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 18:56:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1861220-white-house-hagel-will-win-senate-confirmation.html 2013-02-01T18:56:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1862654-harkin-campaign-aide-iowa-donor-list.html IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin's campaign fundraiser gave Iowa State University a list of possible donors to his namesake research institute, records show, though university officials have promised the powerful Democrat would have no influence over the center. The Harkin Institute of Public Policy would house the papers of the senator, who re... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:10:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1862654-harkin-campaign-aide-iowa-donor-list.html 2013-02-01T20:10:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1861388-hk-clamps-cross-border-baby-formula-trade.html HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong announced measures Friday to curb the amount of baby formula that mainland Chinese visitors are buying as anger grows at shortages in the city's stores ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday. Chief among the measures is a plan to change the law to restrict the amount of baby formula that individuals can take out of the city. Food a... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 16:00:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1861388-hk-clamps-cross-border-baby-formula-trade.html 2013-02-01T16:00:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1860398-shot-armenia-presidential-hopeful-seeks-vote-delay.html YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) — The shooting of a presidential candidate threw Armenia's election into disarray Friday, with the wounded victim saying he will call for a delay of the vote. Paruir Airikian, 63, was shot and wounded by an unidentified assailant outside his home in Yerevan, the Armenian capital, on Thursday just before midnight. Airikian said from t... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 19:55:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1860398-shot-armenia-presidential-hopeful-seeks-vote-delay.html 2013-02-01T19:55:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/music/1861254-hawaii-lawmakers-propose-shielding-celeb-privacy.html HONOLULU (AP) — More than two-thirds of Hawaii's state senators have signed onto a bill to protect celebrities from paparazzi, giving them power to sue over unwanted beach photos and other snapshots on the islands. The bill's author says he's pushing the law at the request of Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler, the former "American Idol" judge who recentl... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 22:02:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/music/1861254-hawaii-lawmakers-propose-shielding-celeb-privacy.html 2013-02-01T22:02:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1861238-republicans-face-balancing-immigration.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans face a delicate balancing act as they embrace an unprecedented shift in their views on immigration reform — and no one better exemplifies the potential risks and rewards than Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida. Rubio has courted conservative commentators in recent weeks, outlining a set of principles for changes in immigration law t... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 08:17:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1861238-republicans-face-balancing-immigration.html 2013-02-01T08:17:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1861170-hillary-clinton-takes-rest-weird-that.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton's plan for 2013 was simple. She'd embark on an epic swansong around the world as secretary of state, a dizzying itinerary of east-west and north-south flights that would take her past 1 million miles in the air at the helm of American diplomacy and perhaps break her own record of 112 countries visited while in the ... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 07:33:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1861170-hillary-clinton-takes-rest-weird-that.html 2013-02-01T07:33:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1860396-foxs-geraldo-rivera-weighing-us-senate-nj.html NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Geraldo Rivera, who hosts a weekend show on Fox News Channel, said Thursday he's seriously thinking about running for U.S. Senate in New Jersey. "Buckle your seat belts!" said Rivera before announcing, on his radio show on WABC-AM in New York, that he is "truly contemplating" a Senate bid. He said he has spoken to some people in the Ne... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 06:18:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1860396-foxs-geraldo-rivera-weighing-us-senate-nj.html 2013-02-01T06:18:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1861032-iraqi-presidents-absence-leaves-political-hole.html BAGHDAD (AP) — President Jalal Talabani's unexpected exit from Iraqi politics couldn't have come at a worse time for his nation, threatened by mounting antagonism among Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites. The 79-year-old Talabani, who suffered a stroke six weeks ago, had assumed the role of father figure, the only leader seemingly capable of transcending Iraq's se... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 06:02:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1861032-iraqi-presidents-absence-leaves-political-hole.html 2013-02-01T06:02:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858370-congress-sends-bill-to-obama-averting-govt-default.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress sent President Barack Obama drama-free legislation on Thursday raising the debt ceiling, averting a government default and putting off the next tax-and-spending clash between the White House and Republicans until later in the year. The measure cleared the Senate on a vote of 64-34 after winning House approval late last week. It ... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 22:58:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858370-congress-sends-bill-to-obama-averting-govt-default.html 2013-01-31T22:58:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858392-menendez-reimbursed-donor-2-jaunts.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Robert Menendez's office says he reimbursed a prominent Florida political donor $58,500 on Jan. 4 of this year for the full cost of two of three trips Menendez took on the donor's plane to the Dominican Republic in 2010. More details about the New Jersey senator's trips emerged as his office said unsubstantiated allegations that the... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 22:51:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858392-menendez-reimbursed-donor-2-jaunts.html 2013-01-31T22:51:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1860582-ark-senate-passes-measure-to-ban-abortions.html LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The Arkansas Senate voted Thursday to prohibit most abortions if a heartbeat is detected, ignoring warnings from opponents that banning the procedure as early as six weeks into a pregnancy would invite lawsuits. If enacted, the ban would be the most stringent in the nation. The Ohio House passed a similar ban in 2011, but it was s... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 22:38:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1860582-ark-senate-passes-measure-to-ban-abortions.html 2013-01-31T22:38:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1860484-biden-gun-curbs-killings-help.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Curbing guns can't ensure an end to mass slayings like December's killings of 20 first-graders in Newtown, Conn., but it will reduce firearm deaths, Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday. Biden said lawmakers can take steps "that have virtually zero impact on your Second Amendment right to own a weapon for both self-defense and recreati... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 22:26:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1860484-biden-gun-curbs-killings-help.html 2013-01-31T22:26:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858372-republicans-hammer-defense-nominee-chuck-hagel.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican senators hammered former GOP Sen. Chuck Hagel at his confirmation hearing Thursday on issues ranging from Israel and Iran to his support for a group that advocates the elimination of nuclear weapons. But with most Democrats in his corner, an unflustered Hagel seems headed for approval as defense secretary. Hagel, a former two-... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 22:17:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858372-republicans-hammer-defense-nominee-chuck-hagel.html 2013-01-31T22:17:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1859710-arizona-lawmakers-struggle-to-stay-priorities.html PHOENIX (AP) — One Republican proposal would ban state enforcement of federal gun laws. Another would require that hospitals check the citizenship of anyone treated in an emergency room. Still another would call for students to pledge loyalty oaths to the Constitution before high school graduation. It's early on in t... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 21:24:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1859710-arizona-lawmakers-struggle-to-stay-priorities.html 2013-01-31T21:24:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1859704-senate-group-focuses-border-security.html WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of senators working to craft immigration legislation is focusing on how to define when the border is secure, one of several contentious issues that could cause the whole deal to collapse, a key Senate negotiator said Thursday. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., pointed to "serious challenges ahead" as the lawmakers delve into... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 20:56:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1859704-senate-group-focuses-border-security.html 2013-01-31T20:56:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858548-congress-grapples-with-gap-scofflaw-contractors.html WASHINGTON (AP) — With thousands of civilian contractors remaining in Iraq and Afghanistan, Justice Department officials want Congress to resolve a legal issue they say obstructs efforts to prosecute any such workers who rape, kill or commit other serious crimes abroad. Scofflaw Pentagon employees and contractors supporting the American war mission overse... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 18:37:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858548-congress-grapples-with-gap-scofflaw-contractors.html 2013-01-31T18:37:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1859614-reset-pentagon-nominee-hagel-fights-job.html The odds should favor Senate confirmation of Chuck Hagel as President Barack Obama's next defense secretary despite strong Republican criticism at Thursday's Senate confirmation hearing. For one thing, Senate rejections of Cabinet nominations are rare. It hasn't happened since March 1989, when President George H.W. Bush's nomination of former Sen. John To... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 16:51:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1859614-reset-pentagon-nominee-hagel-fights-job.html 2013-01-31T16:51:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858736-stalingrad-days-marking-battle.html MOSCOW (AP) — The southern Russian city where the Red Army decisively turned back Nazi forces in a key World War II battle will once again be known as Stalingrad, at least on the days commemorating the victory, the regional legislature declared Thursday. The city was renamed Volgograd in 1961 as part of the Soviet Union's rejection of dictator Joseph Stal... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 15:46:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858736-stalingrad-days-marking-battle.html 2013-01-31T15:46:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1858390-economic-jitters-compete-with-obama-agenda.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Just as President Barack Obama is pushing new initiatives on gun control and immigration, the gloomy old problem of a sluggish economy is elbowing its way back into prominence. Consumer confidence is falling, the economy is contracting and large automatic spending cuts are threatening to hit the Pentagon and other programs, with uncertain consequences. ... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 15:06:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1858390-economic-jitters-compete-with-obama-agenda.html 2013-01-31T15:06:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858814-german-parliament-extends-afghan-mission.html BERLIN (AP) — Germany's Parliament has voted to extend the country's military mission in Afghanistan by 13 months. Parliament approved the extension on Thursday by a vote of 435 to 111. The German contingent is being slowly reduced as the country prepares to bring all combat troops home by the end of 2014. The new mandate foresees a drop from a current ma... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 10:00:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858814-german-parliament-extends-afghan-mission.html 2013-01-31T10:00:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858326-conn-town-residents-urge-stricter-gun-control.html NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) — One after another, Newtown residents stepped to the microphone and urged Connecticut lawmakers to stop another tragedy like the deadly shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School and take action, such as banning high-powered, military style rifles and high-capacity magazines. While a General Assembly bipartisan task force heard Wednesda... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 09:46:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858326-conn-town-residents-urge-stricter-gun-control.html 2013-01-31T09:46:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858398-illegal-immigration-foes-despair-gop-moves.html DENVER (AP) — Marty Lich is ready to bolt. It's been a couple of years since the self-described conservative considered herself a Republican, but she still often votes for GOP candidates. That's partly because of their tough stands against illegal immigration, which the retired teacher's aide blames for ruining her Southern California hometown and fears c... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 07:21:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1858398-illegal-immigration-foes-despair-gop-moves.html 2013-01-31T07:21:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1855620-england-regulators-approve-steep-fish-cuts.html PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) — New England fishermen say their centuries-old industry is facing collapse after regulators on Wednesday approved cuts in cod catch limits that fishermen warn will hollow out what remains of the fleet. "I'm bankrupt. That's it," Gloucester fisherman Paul Vitale, 40, a third-generation fisherman. "I'm all done. The boat's going up fo... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 00:34:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1855620-england-regulators-approve-steep-fish-cuts.html 2013-01-31T00:34:00Z