Texas school can force teenagers to wear locator chip: judge

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - A public school district in Texas can require students to wear locator chips when they are on school property, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday in a case raising technology-driven privacy concerns among liberal and conservative groups alike.U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia said the San Antonio Northside School District had the right to expel sophomore Andrea Hernandez, 15,...

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US sees Iran behind hostage photos of ex-FBI agent

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two years after a hostage video and photographs of retired FBI agent Robert Levinson raised the possibility that the missing American was being held by terrorists, U.S. officials now see the government of Iran behind the images, intelligence officials told The Associated Press.Levinson, a private investigator, disappeared in 2007 on the Iranian island of Kish. The Iranian government...

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Debt ceiling no place for stand on spending: Nasdaq's Greifeld

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. borrowing limit should not be used as leverage by members of Congress to force the Obama administration to cut spending as there will be other opportunities to make a stand, said Robert Greifeld, chief executive of Nasdaq OMX Group.The debt ceiling, which could be hit as early as mid-February, has been dragged into a high-stakes fiscal battle snarling Washington, with...

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Legal Scholar Robert Bork Dies

American legal scholar Robert Bork, who was nominated by Ronald Reagan for the U.S. Supreme Court, died on Wednesday morning. He was 85.The Senate rejected Bork’s nomination to the high court following objections from civil rights groups over his views of the federal government and voting rights.Conservatives blamed his failed nomination on partisanship.During the 2012 election, Mitt Romney made...

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Republicans Turn to Bush for Inspiration

As Republicans reassess their future in the presidential wilderness, seeking a message and messenger to resonate with a new generation of voters, one unlikely name has popped up as a role model: former President George W. Bush.Prominent Republicans eager to rebuild the party in the wake of the 2012 election are pointing to Bush’s successful campaigns for Hispanic votes, his efforts to pass immigration...

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Senators Screen 'Lincoln' with Stars Tonight

As lawmakers struggle to solve the fiscal cliff, they're set for a movie night tonight in the Senate.Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.,will meet with the cast and crew of "Lincoln" including Director Steven Spielberg and actor Daniel Day-Lewis in the Capitol before the special showing.Then each senator, along with their spouse, will be invited to watch the film in the Capitol Visitors Center...

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In crusade against guns, Bloomberg finds platform beyond City Hall

Just days after he publicly scolded President Barack Obama for not being more aggressive in his efforts to curb gun violence, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he was “very encouraged” to see Obama pressing for new gun measures in the wake of last week’s deadly school shooting in Connecticut.“His announcement is an important step in the right direction,” Bloomberg said in response to Obama...

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Opinion: How Demography Became the Narrative for Obama's 2012 Victory

Since 2008, commentary about presidential campaigns has been saturated in the rhetoric of narrative. However, President Obama’s 2012 presidential victory wasn’t, strictly speaking, based on narrative.So what happened? The Obama campaign focused strategically on offering specific policies or programs that targeted the new demographics. This meant ensuring a government mandate to address immigration,...

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Changes in law aim to protect kids' online data

Aiming to prevent companies from exploiting online information about children under 13, the Obama administration on Wednesday imposed sweeping changes in regulations designed to protect a young generation with easy access to the Internet.Two years in the making, the amended rules to the decade-old Children's Online Privacy Protection Act go into effect in July. Privacy advocates said the changes...

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US, China economies 'inseparable': China official

 The economies of China and the U.S. have become "interdependent and inseparable," a top Chinese official said Wednesday after high-level trade talks which were being watched for signs of how the two powers will cooperate after their respective political transitions.Vice Premier Wang Qishan was speaking after the annual U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade. Tackling dozens of thorny,...

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Reported sex assaults spike at military academies

Reported sexual assaults at the nation's three military academies jumped by 23 percent overall this year, but the data signaled a continued reluctance by victims to seek criminal investigations.According to a report obtained by The Associated Press, the number of assaults rose from 65 in the 2011 academic year to 80 in 2012. However, nearly half the assaults involved victims who sought confidential...

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Census: US population growth rising again

America's population is now increasing a bit faster thanks to an improving economy, but not enough to lift growth above its lowest level since the Great Depression.New 2012 estimates released Thursday by the Census Bureau offer the latest snapshot of the U.S. population, whose growth has slowed dramatically since the recent recession."After decades of wars, a depression, immigration surges, baby...

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Groups: $12 million mystery donation was crime

Two election watchdog organizations on Thursday urged the Justice Department and Federal Election Commission to investigate more than $12 million in campaign contributions that were mysteriously funneled through two little-known companies in Tennessee to a prominent tea party group. The origin of the money, the largest anonymous political donations in a campaign year filled with them, remains a secret.The...

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