Archive By Section - Signal AP
Outdoor retail exec picked for Interior
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama has picked Sally Jewell, a business executive who has earned national recognition for her support of outdoor recreation and habitat conservation, to lead the Interior Department, the White House said Wednesday.
US sues S&P over pre-crisis mortgage ratings
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration on Tuesday accused Standard & Poor's of refusing to warn investors that the housing market was collapsing in 2006 because it would be bad for business.
3 arrested in bath salts bust
THOUSAND OAKS (AP) - Three men have been arrested for distributing illegal bath salts at head shops in what authorities say is the first criminal case in California involving the sale of the synthetic drug.
Tour bus crash death toll rises to 8
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Elvira Garcia Jimenez, a 40-year-old doctor at a Tijuana, Mexico, hospital, brought along her mother and her teenage son on a day trip to a Southern California ski resort with a tight knit group of her co-workers.
French may start leaving Mali in March
TIMBUKTU, Mali (AP) - French troops may start pulling out of their anti-extremist operation in Mali as early as next month, handing over to a still-developing African force.
Boy Scouts delay decision on admitting gays
IRVING, Texas (AP) - The Boy Scouts of America put off a decision Wednesday on whether to lift its ban on gay members and leaders, saying the question will be taken up at the organization's national meeting in May.
FBI: Ala. man was in 'firefight' with SWAT agents
MIDLAND CITY, Ala. (AP) - The Alabama man who held a 5-year-old boy captive for nearly a week engaged in a firefight with SWAT agents storming his underground bunker before he was killed during the rescue operation, the FBI said Tuesday night. Also, bomb technicians scouring his rural property found two explosive devices, one in the bunker, one in a plastic pipe that negotiators used to communicate with the man.
Internet cat stars scratch the surface for fame
NEW YORK (AP) - They frolic in empty boxes and stick their heads under faucet streams of water. They dance on tippy toes and fly through the air with Pop-Tarts. They play piano wearing little frocks and get tickled to distraction to the delight of millions on YouTube.
Post Office to stop delivering Saturday mail
WASHINGTON (AP) - Apparently trying an end-run around an unaccommodating Congress, the financially struggling U.S. Postal Service says it will stop delivering mail on Saturdays but continue to disburse packages six days a week.
Congress considers putting limits on drone strikes
WASHINGTON (AP) - Uncomfortable with the Obama administration's use of deadly drones, a growing number in Congress is looking to limit America's authority to kill suspected terrorists, even U.S. citizens. The Democratic-led outcry was emboldened by the revelation in a newly surfaced Justice Department memo that shows drones can strike against a wider range of threats, with less evidence, than previously believed.
Dell's founder strikes deal to turn it around
NEW YORK (AP) - It's easy to forget now, but Michael Dell was the Mark Zuckerberg of his day.
Exhibitions plumb artistic responses to disaster
NEW YORK (AP) - A New York exhibition of art inspired by Superstorm Sandy is being included in a larger look at how artists respond creatively to natural disasters.
Iranian leader visits Egypt in warming of ties
CAIRO (AP) - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to Cairo on Tuesday, the first by an Iranian leader in more than three decades, highlights efforts by Egypt's Islamist leader to thaw long frigid ties between the two regional heavyweights.
911 call, document shed light on vet's mindset
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - A 911 recording and documents released Tuesday reveal more about the possible state of mind of the Iraq War veteran charged with gunning down a former Navy SEAL sniper and his friend at a Texas shooting range.
US home prices rose last year by most in 6.5 years
WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. home prices jumped by the most in 6 ½ years in December, spurred by a low supply of available homes and rising demand.
Articles by Section - Signal AP
Feds take over Calif. high-risk insurance program
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - About 17,000 Californians with serious medical problems will be moved from a state-run stopgap health insurance program to a federal plan starting in July, ensuring they will have no break in medical coverage until the national health care reforms kick in next year, state officials announced this week.
Calif. sends rescue workers to Okla. tornado site
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - California is sending six specially trained urban search-and-rescue workers to Oklahoma to assist recovery efforts after Monday's tornado.
Point Mugu park reopening many areas after fire
CALABASAS, Calif. (AP) - Many areas of sprawling Point Mugu State Park that have been off-limits since this month's big wildfire on the outskirts of Camarillo and Thousand Oaks will reopen in time for the Memorial Day weekend.
Teachers credited with saving students in Okla.
MOORE, Okla. (AP) - The principal's voice came on over the intercom at Plaza Towers Elementary School: A severe storm was approaching and students were to go to the cafeteria and wait for their parents to pick them up.
Senate votes to make small cut to food stamps
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate voted Tuesday to keep a $400 million annual cut - or roughly a half of 1 percent - to the food stamp program as part of a major five-year farm bill.
Togs day afternoon: dress your pooch for the beach
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Here's a rule that only applies to dog beaches: they are all clothing optional.
Arias asks for life in prison
PHOENIX (AP) - Jodi Arias begged jurors Tuesday to give her life in prison, saying she "lacked perspective" when she told a local reporter in an interview that she preferred execution to spending the rest of her days in jail.
Photo gallery from Okla. tornado
These are just a few of the images from the Oklahoma City area which was devastated Monday by a huge tornado.
Power of Okla. tornado dwarfs Hiroshima bomb
WASHINGTON (AP) - Wind, humidity and rainfall combined precisely to create the massive killer tornado in Moore, Okla. And when they did, the awesome amount of energy released over that city dwarfed the power of the atomic bomb that leveled Hiroshima.
AP photographer sees kids pulled from rubble
Editor's Note: Oklahoma City-based AP photographer Sue Ogrocki was at the elementary school destroyed by a tornado and saw rescuers pulling children out of the rubble. This is her account of what she witnessed.
Customs seizes elephant meat, dead primate in LA
LOS ANGELES (AP) - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Los Angeles have made some unusual seizures, including elephant meat, a dead primate and hundreds of handbags made from the skin of snakes, lizards and crocodiles.
Yahoo looks to regain its cool with Tumblr deal
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - After falling woefully out of fashion, Yahoo wants to be cool again while catering to the capitalistic demands of its shareholders. That goal led CEO Marissa Mayer to make a $1.1 billion bet on online blogging forum Tumblr in a risky acquisition that revolves around the vision and instincts of a 26-year-old entrepreneur who dropped out of high school to pursue his dream of bringing more beauty and creativity to the Internet.
UPDATE: Officials say 24 killed in Okla. tornado
MOORE, Okla. (AP) - Emergency crews combed the sticks and rubble remains of an Oklahoma City suburb Tuesday morning less than a day after a massive tornado slammed through the community, flattening homes and demolishing an elementary school. At least 24 people were killed, including at least seven children, and those numbers were expected to climb.
Report: NPS hantavirus response followed policy
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) - Federal investigators probing the hantavirus outbreak blamed for three deaths at Yosemite National Park recommended on Monday that design changes to tent cabins and other privately run lodging first be reviewed by National Park Service officials.
Oklahoma twister tracked path of 1999 tornado
NEW YORK (AP) - Monday's powerful tornado in suburban Oklahoma City loosely followed the path of a killer twister that slammed the region in May 1999.
