US HEADLINES

Hurricane Joaquin strengthens but U.S. landfall not certain

(Reuters) – Hurricane Joaquin gathered strength on Thursday as it moved over the Bahamas and officials on the U.S. East Coast began gearing up for possible landfall early next week, three years after Superstorm Sandy devastated New York and New Jersey. Joaquin, the third hurricane of the 2015 Atlantic season, intensified into a major Category 3 storm on a scale of 1 to 5, with maximum sustained winds of 125

Trump gives Putin an 'A' on leadership

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — One day after President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin made little headway in their standoff over Syria at their first formal meeting in more than two years, Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump is agreeing with Putin on his backing of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Republicans, Planned Parenthood square off in Congress

By Megan Cassella WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. congressional Republicans on Tuesday challenged Planned Parenthood’s eligibility for federal funds, while the health organization’s president said defunding it would restrict women’s access to care and disproportionately hurt low-income patients. A series of videos that purport to show that Planned Parenthood improperly sells fetal tissue to researchers for profit has reignited anti-abortion voters’ fervor during a turbulent Republican presidential primary campaign. At a

Congress moves on spending bill as shutdown deadline looms

By Richard Cowan and David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Congress moved on Monday to rush legislation to President Barack Obama that avoids a government shutdown on Thursday as the new fiscal year starts while setting aside a bitter Republican feud over money for Planned Parenthood. The Senate kicked off the effort by advancing a measure to extend all previous agency funding levels until Dec. 11, in a bipartisan

Congress moves on spending bill as shutdown deadline looms

By Richard Cowan and David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Congress moved on Monday to rush legislation to President Barack Obama that avoids a government shutdown on Thursday as the new fiscal year starts while setting aside a bitter Republican feud over money for Planned Parenthood. The Senate kicked off the effort by advancing a measure to extend all previous agency funding levels until Dec. 11, in a bipartisan