Stopgap spending bill to be unveiled as Congress finishes up

A bipartisan bill to speed government drug approvals and bolster biomedical ... WASHINGTON - Congress is quickening its pace toward adjourning late this week, marching toward a final vote on legislation boosting medical research and speeding drug approvals and readying a separate stopgap spending bill to prevent the government from shutting down this weekend. The temporary budget bill, scheduled to be unveiled Tuesday, would keep federal agencies functioning into next spring, giving the new Congress and the incoming Trump administration time to approve more than $1 trillion to fund federal agencies through the Sept.

Shutdown averted, Senate backs stop-gap spending bill

With less than hour to spare, the Senate late Friday backed legislation averting a government shutdown as coal-state Democrats retreated on long-term health care benefits for retired miners and promised a renewed fight for the working class next year. The 63-36 vote sent the stop-gap spending bill to President Barack Obama, who signed the measure early Saturday morning.

Trump faces pushback from base, allies over Romney musings

When U.S. Forest Ranger Jody Bandy confronted the man in the Pisgah National Forest, he said he'd been at the nearby wildfire and "couldn't take it anymore." When U.S. Forest Ranger Jody Bandy confronted the man in the Pisgah National Forest, he said he'd been at the nearby wildfire and "couldn't take it anymore."

Virginia Flood Damage from Matthew Costliest Since Isabel, Officials Say

Virginia suffered only a glancing blow from Hurricane Matthew last month when unprecedented amounts of rain fell, but on Wednesday officials estimated flood damage to be hundreds of millions of dollars, making it the costliest storm since Hurricane Isabel in 2003. Emergency management officials are now renewing calls for residents to get flood insurance, saying a vast majority of homeowners in areas vulnerable to major hurricane storm surge lack coverage.

Gambian official: Opposition candidate Barrow wins election

So far, the hundreds of protesters fighting the Dakota Access pipeline have shrugged off the heavy snow, icy winds and frigid temperatures that have swirled around their large encampment on the North Dakota... So far, the hundreds of protesters fighting the Dakota Access pipeline have shrugged off the heavy snow, icy winds and frigid temperatures that have swirled around their large encampment on the North Dakota grasslands.

Brown water, beaver battle among early signs of water woes

Beaver dams have been demolished, burbling fountains silenced, and the drinking water in one southern town has taken on the light brownish color of sweet tea. Though water shortages have yet to drastically change most people's lifestyles, southerners are beginning to realize that they'll need to save their drinking supplies with no end in sight to an eight-month drought.

New Aerial Survey Identifies More Than 100 Million Dead Trees in California

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced today that the U.S. Forest Service has identified an additional 36 million dead trees across California since its last aerial survey in May 2016. This brings the total number of dead trees since 2010 to over 102 million on 7.7 million acres of California's drought stricken forests.

Many outdoor activities banned as fires burn across South

On Tuesday, the Tennessee Valley Authority issued a burn ban on its public lands across Tennessee and in parts of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi... . Firefighters Valarie Lopez, left, and Mark Tabaez work to cool hot spots after a wildfire burned a hillside Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2016, in Clayton, Ga.

Told you so: Some professors correctly predicted Trump win

A few college professors stood up to a tidal wave of prevailing thought to separately predict for months that the New York billionaire and reality TV star would pull off one of the biggest shockers in American political history. A political scientist at New York's Stony Brook University based his prediction on a formula using primary results and his "pendulum of change" theory.

Massive Oklahoma manhunt ends with fugitive suspect dead

A western Oklahoma county sheriff says the manhunt is over for Michael Dale Vance Jr., a suspect in a string of violent crimes. A massive, weeklong manhunt for a suspect in a string of violent crimes, including the killing of two relatives, the shooting of three law enforcement officers and multiple carjackings, has ended in a police chase and... Authorities say investigators found three people shot to death outside a rural home in central Kansas, and an unharmed 18-month-old child was found inside.

Clinton lining up policy priorities for 2017, if she wins

A western Oklahoma county sheriff says the manhunt is over for Michael Dale Vance Jr., a suspect in a string of violent crimes. A massive, weeklong manhunt for a suspect in a string of violent crimes, including the killing of two relatives, the shooting of two police officers and multiple carjackings, ended on Sunday evening in a police chase and... Police say as many as 70 members of rival motorcycle clubs brawled during a classic car show on New York's Long Island, leaving two people hurt.

Leaders vent frustration for long-delayed Pajaro River levee project

WATSONVILLE >> Frustration levels ran high Wednesday afternoon as elected leaders came together for an annual discussion on a decades-long effort to improve Pajaro River flood control safety. The river's levees in and around Watsonville were first built in 1949, with major breaches and flooding occurring in 1955, 1958, 1995 and 1998.

Des Plaines flood buyouts finally move forward

Des Plaines officials say government buyouts of seven flood-prone homes near the Des Plaines River finally will proceed, after more than a year in limbo due to the state budget stalemate. The seven homeowners were among the first in town to seek voluntary federal government buyouts after floodwaters ravished their properties in 2008 and 2013.