US HEADLINES
Gunman in Oregon massacre was turned away from firearms academy
By Eric M. Johnson and Emily Flitter ROSEBURG, Ore. (Reuters) – The gunman slain by police after he killed his English professor and eight others at an Oregon college was once turned away from a firearms academy by an instructor who recalled finding him “weird” and “a little bit too anxious” for high-level weapons training. Christopher Harper-Mercer, 26, who moved to Oregon from the Los Angeles suburb of Torrance, California,
Obama to look for new gun measures, says 'talk' is main tool
President Barack Obama said on Friday that he has asked his team to look for new ways to enforce existing regulations to keep guns away from criminals in the wake of the mass shooting in Oregon. “The main thing I’m going to do is I’m going to talk about this on a regular basis,” Obama said at a news conference. Obama started by mocking Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush who
'Sense of regret' in Vatican over pope meeting with gay marriage opponent
Pope Francis’ meeting last week with an American woman at the center of a row over gay marriage was not something he had sought and should not be seen as an endorsement of her views, the Vatican said on Friday. One Vatican official said there was “a sense of regret” that the pope had ever seen Kim Davis, a Kentucky county clerk who went to jail in September for refusing
Fiorina makes distortion of Planned Parenthood a centerpiece
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Republican presidential hopeful Carly Fiorina has spent the last two weeks repeating an erroneous description of videos secretly recorded by anti-abortion activists. That seems bound to continue as she makes her opposition to Planned Parenthood a centerpiece of her 2016 campaign.
The real story behind the pope’s meeting with Kim Davis
Obama: Russia action in Syria is 'recipe for disaster'
President Obama warned that Russia’s military engagement in Syria in support of strongman Bashar al-Assad is a “recipe for disaster,” though Washington could still work with Moscow on reducing tensions. Russian President Vladimir Putin “doesn’t distinguish between ISIL and a moderate Sunni opposition that wants to see Mr Assad go,” Obama told reporters, referring to the self-proclaimed Islamic State group.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan steps down after 7-year term
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is reluctantly accepting the resignation of Education Secretary Arne Duncan, saying he’s earned the right to return home as one of the longest-serving secretaries in the department’s history.
What we know about the Oregon college gunman
Blog posts suggest he had an interest in past mass shootings and a disdain for religion.
As Boehner departs, his to-do list could remain undone
Outgoing House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio has a lot he could do legislatively before he leaves Congress this month, but not a lot of time or conservative support to do it.