Improving state’s image is a worthwhile goal

Alabamians are hopeful the ringing in of a new year brings a measure of sanity to politics in the Heart of Dixie. The waning hours of 2017 offered a touch of closure to another year of embarrassing shenanigans that kept the state under the glare of the national limelight.

Blumenthal, Murphy head to Puerto Rico to see ongoing hurricane devastation

In this Dec. 22, 2017, photo, 6-year-old Melanie Oliveras González stands on the porch of her house, in front of a handful of electric cables knocked down by the winds of Hurricane Maria, in Morovis, Puerto Rico. Morovis has been without power since hurricane smashed into the island in November.

Kudlow: Rubio ‘Confused’ Over Trump Tax Policy

Veteran economic guru Larry Kudlow is baffled over why Senator Marco Rubio, who voted for President Donald Trump's tax bill, now claims he thinks that maybe companies got too good a tax break. "I thought we probably went too far on [helping] corporations," Rubio told The News-Press, a newspaper based in Fort Myers, Florida, in an interview published Thursday.

Perils abroad, full plate at home, as Trump opens 2nd year

The glamour of his holiday break behind him, President Donald Trump is returning to Washington to face a hefty legislative to-do list, critical midterm elections and perilous threats abroad. Trump is starting his second year in office after a lengthy sojourn at his private Palm Beach club, capped by a New Year's Eve bash.

Top StoryPerils abroad, full plate at home, as Trump opens 2nd year

The glamour of his holiday break behind him, President Donald Trump is returning to Washington to face a hefty legislative to-do list, critical midterm elections and perilous threats abroad. Trump is starting his second year in office after a lengthy sojourn at his private Palm Beach club, capped by a New Year's Eve bash.

Congress faces difficult issues when it returns this week

Congress faces a jam-packed to-do list when it returns this week, with deadlines looming on difficult issues - including how to fund the government and avoid a shutdown, stabilizing the nation's health-insurance program for poor children, and whether to shield young undocumented immigrants from deportation. Fresh off a party-line vote to overhaul the tax code, the negotiations will test whether Congress and the White House still have the potential to craft any form of bipartisan agreement.

Franken replacement looks to hang on to seat for Dems

Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith is set to join the U.S. Senate next year, taking the seat left open by the resignation of former Sen. Alan Stuart Franken Democrats turn on Al Franken Schumer called, met with Franken and told him to resign Overnight Finance: Trump says shutdown 'could happen' Many assumed that Smith would only hold the seat temporarily until the 2018 special election, where voters would choose her successor.

As 2017 ends, focus turns to Nevada’s midterm elections

Representative Ruben Kihuen, D-Nev., talks to the crowd during an immigrant rights resource fair at the Pearson Community Center in North Las Vegas on Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017. With 2018's arrival, the campaign season will soon ramp up.

Not much hope for Californiaa s U.S. Senate race with choices like these

If the 2018 U.S. Senate race in California proceeds as expected, voters will ultimately have their pick of incumbent Sen. Dianne Feinstein or state Senate Leader Kevin de Len. With that set of choices, voters will have the misfortune of having to choose between an incumbent whose re-election bid most think will be a "bad thing" for California, according to a Berkeley IGS poll, and an opponent whose name 43 percent don't recognize and of those who do only a minority like him, according to a Sextant Strategies & Research/Capitol Weekly poll of 1,554 likely voters.

Not much hope for California’s U.S. Senate race with choices like these

If the 2018 U.S. Senate race in California proceeds as expected, voters will ultimately have their pick of incumbent Sen. Dianne Feinstein or state Senate Leader Kevin de Len. With that set of choices, voters will have the misfortune of having to choose between an incumbent whose re-election bid most think will be a "bad thing" for California, according to a Berkeley IGS poll, and an opponent whose name 43 percent don't recognize and of those who do only a minority like him, according to a Sextant Strategies & Research/Capitol Weekly poll of 1,554 likely voters.

Former Joint Chiefs chairman: Nuclear war with North Korea closer than ever

A former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff warned that President Trump's rhetoric aimed at North Korean likely indicates a more aggressive approach to countering the rogue regime's nuclear weapons program. A former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff warned that President Trump's rhetoric aimed at North Korean likely indicates a more aggressive approach to countering the rogue regime's nuclear weapons program.