County duo Big & Rich to perform at Las Vegas benefit

With the winds dying down, fire crews gained ground as they battled the wildfires that have devastated California wine country and thousands of people got the all-clear to return home. With the winds dying down, fire crews gained ground as they battled the wildfires that have devastated California wine country and thousands of people got the all-clear to return home.

Fire death toll hits 40

The California wildfires raced toward wineries and the historic town of Sonoma on Saturday, chasing hundreds more people from their homes and threatening to roll back firefighters' modest gains against fires that stretched across a 100-mile swath of Northern California. Propelled by stiff winds, the fires damaged or destroyed several buildings in the middle of the night before crews halted their advance at the edge of Sonoma, where firefighters spent days digging firebreaks to keep flames from reaching the city's historic central plaza built centuries ago when the area was under Spanish rule.

Alec Baldwin’s Trump tells Mike Pence to ditch NFL game, gay…

Saturday Night Live was back to its Donald Trump -inspired shenanigans this week, with Alec Baldwin returning to the fore to mock the president's involvement in a wide array of high-profile matters, ranging from the NFL "Take a Knee" protest controversy to his recent spat with Republican Senator Bob Corker . The cold open depicted Trump addressing a crowd in Harrisburg, Pa.

Most Insiders see Irma as boost to Scott

Gov. Rick Scott received generally high marks for his handling of the hurricanes hitting Florida and its sister territory, Puerto Rico, but his PR team lately has been working ferociously to push back against assorted reports raising questions about his emergency management record before and after the storms hit. Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio joined calls for a congressional investigation into the deaths of 14 Floridians in a sweltering Broward County nursing home.

Gov. Brown declares state of emergency amid deadly hepatitis A outbreak

California Gov. Jerry Brown issued an emergency proclamation Friday that will allow the state to increase its supply of vaccines amid a hepatitis A outbreak that has killed more than a dozen people. The outbreak involves more than 570 of cases in San Diego, Santa Cruz and Los Angeles counties.

Ex-New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin files new legal challenge to his conviction

Acting as his own attorney, former New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin filed a new motion this week asking a federal judge to overturn his conviction on 20 counts related to allegations that he traded his political influence for bribes from city contractors. Nagin's motion, typed at a federal prison camp in Texarkana, Texas, where he is serving a 10-year sentence, cites the same U.S. Supreme Court precedent that led a Virginia judge last week to vacate most of the charges that landed another disgraced New Orleans politician - former U.S. Rep. William Jefferson - in the federal pen.

Lujan Grisham plans roundtable talk on New Mexico film industry

Lujan Grisham will join a handful of Hollywood heavy hitters, including author and Santa Fe resident George R.R. Martin, for a roundtable discussion about the future of New Mexico's film industry, which generates millions of dollars annually for the state's economy. At the Oct. 19 event, which will be held at the Jean Cocteau Cinema in the Santa Fe Railyard, participants will discuss Lujan Grisham's "plans to ensure New Mexico can continue to attract investment from television and film productions."

Michigan governor stands by congressional testimony on Flint

Michigan's governor insisted Thursday that his congressional testimony regarding the Flint water crisis "was truthful and I stand by it," shortly after a committee pointed out a potential discrepancy and warned him about committing perjury. Republican Gov. Rick Snyder sent the letter to Reps.

Congressman wants to investigate Rick Perry’s use of private flights

A Democratic U.S. congressman is asking the Energy Department's watchdog to investigate Energy Secretary Rick Perry's travel on chartered aircraft, the congressman said at a hearing on Capitol Hill on Thursday. U.S. Representative Frank Pallone said Perry's trips on chartered planes need scrutiny in light of the "extreme" budget cuts the department faces in a 2018 federal budget proposed by President Donald Trump.

The Latest: Hill Dems blast Trump energy plan

Congressional Democrats are accusing Energy Secretary Rick Perry of pushing an energy plan that unnecessarily helps the coal and nuclear industries. Perry told a House energy subcommittee Thursday that his proposal would strengthen the country's energy supply so it can withstand storms and other crises.

CALmatters Commentary: What next for California’s sanctuary defiance?

"This action protects public safety and ensures hard-working people who contribute to our state are respected," Gov. Jerry Brown said as he signed a package of bills aimed at protecting at least 2 million undocumented residents from being detained and, perhaps, expelled. It's California's most dramatic "resistance" to President Donald Trump, at least so far, and seems destined to provoke his administration, particularly Attorney General Jeff Sessions, into a confrontation.

Menendez bribery trial rests, judge ponders on dismissing charges

The government rested its bribery case against U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez and a wealthy friend on Wednesday, leaving it up to a judge to decide whether a 2016 Supreme Court ruling that already has helped reverse several politicians' corruption convictions is enough to dismiss the charges here. The New Jersey Democrat is charged with accepting free flights on a private jet and other gifts from Florida eye doctor Salomon Melgen, a longtime friend, in exchange for pressuring government officials to take actions favorable to Melgen's business interests.

Senator Collins to say Friday if she will run for Maine governor

Susan Collins, one of the few remaining moderate Republicans in the U.S. Senate, is expected to announce on Friday whether she will run for governor of Maine next year in what would be a bid to replace conservative Governor Paul LePage. A Collins spokeswoman confirmed she plans to declare her intentions for the gubernatorial race following months of speculation on whether the four-term senator would be willing to leave the Senate, where she has played a pivotal role.