House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012.

Capitol Hill weighs GOP payroll tax gambit

House lawmakers are returning to Capitol Hill to weigh a proposal by GOP leaders to extend the 2-percentage-point cut in the payroll tax through the end of the year and add the approximately $100 billion cost to the nation's $15 trillion-plus debt instead of scrounging around the budget for ways to pay for it. Photo Gallery Available

Lawyer: Life in prison unfair for underwear bomber

A mandatory life sentence for a Nigerian who tried to blow up a Detroit-bound plane is cruel and unfair, a defense attorney said Monday as he asked a judge to declare the punishment unconstitutional.

Feds recover $4.1B in health care fraud in 2011

Federal authorities say they recovered $4.1 billion in health care fraud judgments last year, a record high which officials on Monday credited to new tools for cracking down on deceitful Medicare claims.

Lawmaker gets jail, probation for tax evasion

The father of Colorado's Taxpayers' Bill of Rights was sentenced Monday to 180 days in jail and six years of probation for evading state taxes.

Correction: Obit-Hartman story

In a Feb. 10 story about the death of longtime Associated Press foreign correspondent Carl Hartman, The Associated Press erroneously reported that Hartman served as chief of the AP bureau in Frankfurt, Germany. Hartman served in the bureau but was not the chief of bureau. The story also reported incorrectly that the AP dates from 1847. The news cooperative began operations in 1846.

OJ Simpson robbery victim facing shoplift charges

A victim in the O.J. Simpson armed robbery case said Monday he'll fight misdemeanor shoplifting charges involving incidents at the military exchange at Nellis Air Force Base.

2 Libyan-Americans now allowed to return to US

An official from a Muslim civil rights group says two Libyan-Americans from Oregon who were denied re-entry to the United States from Libya will be returning home, although one man's return has been delayed.

Cherie Cullum uses her hands to explain to Anoka school board chair Tom Heidemann, right, and vice chair John Hoffman that she wishes the left and the right will come together during a discussion on the "Respectful Learning Environment" policy during a school board meeting at the Anoka County School District headquarters in Coon Rapids, Minn. on Monday, Feb. 13, 2012. The new policy commits the north suburban Twin Cities district to providing "a safe and respectful learning environment for all students." It says that when contentious political, religious, social matters or economic issues come up — it does not specifically cite sexuality issues — teachers shouldn't try to persuade students to adopt particular viewpoint. (AP Photo/The Star Tribune, Renee Jones Schneider) MANDATORY CREDIT; ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS OUT; MAGS OUT; TWIN CITIES TV OUT

Minn. school board ends policy blamed for bullying

Minnesota's largest school district has abandoned a much-criticized policy that required teachers to remain neutral when issues of sexual identity came up in the classroom and replaced it with one that's meant to foster a respectful learning environment for all students, gay or straight, religious or not, liberal or conservative. 1329228355 Photo Gallery Available

Magnitude-5.6 quake strikes rural Northern Calif.

A moderate earthquake struck Northern California's coast Monday afternoon, rattling nerves around the Oregon border but yielding no immediate reports of major injuries or damage, officials said.

Prosecutor: Man killed Md. trooper to get revenge

A man upset about being thrown out of a restaurant returned to exact revenge by shooting the off-duty Maryland state trooper who was working security there and had told him to leave, a prosecutor said Monday.

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