Hagel tells West Point cadets they must stamp out scourge of sexual assault
WEST POINT, N.Y. (AP) -- Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point on Saturday that they must stamp out the scourge of sexual assault in the military....

Federal outreach to Muslim American communities is a pillar of Obama counterterrorism strategy
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Within hours of the Boston Marathon blasts, government officials and Boston Muslims called each other to offer assistance, calls that were the fruits of years of cultivating such relationships in an effort to ultimately prevent the very type of attack Boston experienced April 15....

Group of 8 senators who wrote immigration measure are keeping firm control over debate
WASHINGTON (AP) -- For all the soothing words she heard from fellow Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii never had a chance to win a relatively modest change to far-reaching immigration legislation....

Obama sees reduced terror threat and path away from 'perpetual war'; critics doubt his realism
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Some call it wishful thinking, but President Barack Obama has all but declared an end to the global war on terror....

An improving economy robs GOP of 1 issue, while IRS and other probes hand them others
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Alleged misbehavior by the Internal Revenue Service and other federal agencies gives the GOP something else to talk about and investigate as the economy clearly, if slowly, recovers on President Barack Obama's watch, robbing Republicans of a central argument against Democrats....

In 1st official trip to sub-Saharan Africa, Kerry urges Nigeria to respect human rights
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) -- Making his first official trip to sub-Saharan Africa, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday demanded that Nigeria respect human rights as it cracks down on Islamist extremists and pledged to work hard in the coming months to ease tensions between Sudan and South Sudan....

Obama's new lead speechwriter is a 'toiling workhorse' who believes in value of public service
WASHINGTON (AP) -- When President Barack Obama decided to attend a memorial service in Arizona for victims of a deadly mass shooting that severely injured then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, he needed a speech. And fast....

Furlough Friday: Budget cuts mean an unpaid day off for many at IRS, HUD and other agencies
WASHINGTON (AP) -- No one answered the tax-help hotline at the IRS on Friday. And you could forget about getting advice on avoiding foreclosures at the 80 Housing and Urban Development field offices nationwide....

Obama's new lead speechwriter is a 'toiling workhorse' who believes in value of public service
WASHINGTON (AP) -- When President Barack Obama decided to attend a memorial service in Arizona for victims of a deadly mass shooting that severely injured then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, he needed a speech. And fast....

Obama asks Americans to do more than just remember nation's fallen heroes on Memorial Day
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama says the nation must do more than just remember its fallen heroes on Memorial Day....