News

The Newsroom - In a fitting show of solidarity for International Women's Day, First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made light of the brutal 2008 battle Clinton conducted to defeat Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination. As Michelle Obama launched a State Department commemoration of International Women's Day, she briefly stumbled over Clinton's job title. "Let me thank my dear friend, Senator - Secretary Clinton. I almost said, 'President Clinton,' " said the first lady to laughter and applause. "But let me thank you for that kind introduction, and most of all thank you for your friendship, thank you for your support, and thank you for your indispensable advice in getting me through this first year and helping me figure out how to get my family settled in our new life in D.C."

AP - Two years after receiving its first deposits, a "doomsday" seed vault on an Arctic island has amassed half a million seed samples, making it the world's most diverse repository of crop seeds, the vault's operators announced Thursday.

AP - A group of Republican senators is questioning high salaries and expensive travel bills for executives at the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, raising issues that could jeopardize millions in federal funding for the national charity.

The Newsroom - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid confirmed today that he plans to use the "reconciliation process" to pass the final changes to the Senate's health care reform legislation. So... what the heck is it?

AP - President Barack Obama is postponing his long-scheduled Asian trip for a few days to make a final push for passage of historic legislation reinventing the health care system.

AP - A lesbian student who wanted to take her girlfriend to her senior prom is asking a federal judge to force her Mississippi school district to reinstate the dance it canceled.

AP - For the want of a better two-second picture of a tachometer, ABC News has called into question its reporting on acceleration problems with Toyota vehicles.

LiveScience.com - Just a few months into 2010, and Mother Nature has delivered a slew of costly and deadly natural disasters. From the catastrophic Haiti and Chilean earthquakes to the U.S. blizzard that descended on Washington, D.C., last month, which was mostly just inconvenient by comparison, 2010 is already above average in terms of natural-disaster casualties.

The Christian Science Monitor - The case of Colleen R. LaRose â?? also known as â??Jihad Janeâ?� and â??Fatima Roseâ?� â?? raises troubling questions about the ability of Al Qaeda to attract US-born women to terrorism.

AP - "Little Billy" was in a jam: His parents blamed him for dismembering his sister's doll, but the dog did it. How could he clear his name?

AP - A pair of suicide bombers targeting army vehicles detonated explosives within seconds of each other Friday, killing at least 43 people in this eastern city and wounding about 100, police said. It was the fourth major attack in Pakistan this week, indicating Islamist militants are stepping up violence after a period of relative calm.

AP - The Iraqi prime minister's bloc said Friday it has started laying the groundwork to form a coalition government, signaling growing confidence after preliminary election results showed it winning in at least three provinces in the southern Shiite heartland.

AP - Security video has attracted some tips, but none so far have led police to the stranger who followed a woman into a bar restroom, savagely beating her and perhaps trying to sexually assault her after she rejected his advances.

AP - President Barack Obama has delayed his visit to Asia, his first international trip of the year, to focus on the push to salvage health care legislation after a year of contentious debate.

AP - Teen power won out on "American Idol" as Katie Stevens claimed a place in the top 12 while a more experienced singer got the ax.

AP - Israel is moving to amend the country's planning procedures on sensitive political decisions following an embarrassing diplomatic flap during a visit this week by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, a Cabinet minister said Friday.

AP - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is grateful that actor Sean Penn has defended him against his critics within the U.S. media.