WASHINGTON (AP) - Invoking the memory of Edward M. Kennedy, Democrats united Saturday night to push historic health care legislation past a key Senate hurdle over the opposition of Republicans eager to inflict a punishing defeat on President Barack Obama. There was not a vote to spare. The 60-39 vote cleared the way for a bruising, full-scale debate beginning after Thanksgiving on the legislation, which is designed to extend coverage to roughly 31 million who lack it, crack down on insurance company practices that deny or dilute benefits and curtail the growth of spending on medical care nationally.
Fort Hood suspect ordered held until court-martial FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - The Army psychiatrist charged with killing 13 people at Fort Hood will be confined until his military trial, initially staying in a hospital where he is recovering from gunshot wounds, his attorney said Saturday. During a hearing at Maj. Nidal Hasan's hospital room in San Antonio on Saturday, a magistrate ruled that there was probable cause that Hasan committed the Nov. 5 shooting spree at Fort Hood, said his civilian attorney, John Galligan. Hasan has been at Brooke Army Medical Center since the shooting, and his attorney said Hasan has been told he has permanent paralysis.
BEIJING (AP) - A state news agency says the death toll in a northeast China coal mine blast has jumped to 87. The official Xinhua News Agency says another 21 people are still trapped underground Sunday after the pre-dawn blast a day earlier at the state-run Xinxing mine in Heilongjiang province near the border with Russia.
SAN ANTONIO (AP) - A court-martial acquitted a former military nurse of murder Saturday after he was accused of giving lethal doses of painkillers to hasten the deaths of three terminally ill patients at the Air Force's largest hospital. Capt. Michael Fontana, wearing his Air Force uniform, showed no emotion as a military judge cleared him of three counts of murder, then collapsed into the arms of weeping family members inside a Lackland Air Force Base courtroom.
WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of Americans traveling away from home for Thanksgiving will be up only slightly this year from 2008, according to a report from the AAA auto club. The group, which surveyed 1,350 households, said there will be about 33.2 million people traveling by car this year - a 2.1 percent increase from last year.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - A spacewalking astronaut put aside the impending birth of his daughter and blazed through his first-ever venture outside the International Space Station on Saturday. Expectant father Randolph Bresnik and Michael Foreman were so far ahead despite their late start and interrupted sleep the night before - false fire and decompression alarms jolted them awake - that their commander handed them extra work.
NEW YORK (AP) - The shimmering, white glove Michael Jackson wore when he premiered his trademark moonwalk dance in 1983 was auctioned off for $350,000 - plus tax - on Saturday. Winning bidder Hoffman Ma of Hong Kong will pay $420,000, including taxes and fees, for the rhinestone-studded, modified golf glove Jackson wore on his left hand for his moonwalk on Motown's 25th anniversary TV special.
Police: Ohio suspect may have eaten evidence STREETSBORO, Ohio (AP) - Police say a bank robbery suspect in Ohio may have eaten evidence when he gobbled a piece of paper while handcuffed and lying across the hood of a police cruiser. A police video camera captured the 35-year-old John Ford of Cleveland grabbing the paper with his mouth as police emptied his pockets.
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) - So many unusual things happened in the final 3 minutes of Mississippi's victory Saturday against No. 10 LSU, it got confusing. Even for the participants.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) - Top-ranked Florida moved another step closer to perfection with a 62-3 rout of Florida International. Tim Tebow accounted for three touchdowns and Brandon Spikes returned an interception for a score to extend the nation's longest winning streak to 21 games Saturday.
