At Benghazi Hearing, Shouting Match Over Hillary Clinton's Emails  —  WASHINGTON — Republican lawmakers sharply questioned Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday, seeking to build a case that the former secretary of state had been derelict in her duty to secure the American diplomatic mission in Benghazi …

Ryan offers concession to House Freedom Caucus  —  <p>Rep. Paul Ryan has agreed to delay a discussion about reforming the procedural motion used to remove a House speaker, a major concession to the House Freedom Caucus.</p><p>The Wisconsin Republican, now the presumptive next speaker of the House …

Obama vetoes $612 billion defense bill in rebuke to GOP  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama vetoed a sweeping $612 billion defense policy bill Wednesday in a rebuke to congressional Republicans, and insisted they send him a better version that doesn't tie his hands on some of his top priorities.

Angered by Trump and Cruz, Hispanic conservatives plan ‘unprecedented’ meeting  —  Months since Donald Trump sparked outrage with his comments about Mexican immigrants, about two dozen of the nation's top Hispanic conservative activists are joining forces to respond and issue a warning to the Republican Party.

State investigators serve subpoenas at three Texas abortion clinics  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  Action appears related to state efforts to kick Planned Parenthood out of Medicaid.  —  SAN ANTONIO — State health investigators on Thursday served subpoenas for records at Planned Parenthood offices …

It's Getting Embarrassing  —  Listening to the questions from Republicans questioning Hillary Clinton, it's hard not to step back and ask what it is they're even trying to prove or what their point is.  The lines of questions are disjointed and they're pressing points she either freely concedes …

U.S. and Kurdish Commandos Said to Raid ISIS Prison in North Iraq  —  BAGHDAD — American and Kurdish commandos raided an Islamic State outpost near the northern Iraqi town of Hawija, freeing prisoners there and capturing some of the militants themselves, Iraqi officials said on Thursday.

Rubio: Trump Lacks Basic “Understanding” Of 9/11, Clinton Not Bush Deserves Blame  —  “The truth is that President George W. Bush inherited all sorts of things from the Clinton administration, including intelligence agencies and others who weren't doing a very good job that were not sharing information across agencies.

Albuquerque road rage: Man confesses to killing 4-year-old, police say  —  (CNN)In Lilly Garcia's short life, her big brown eyes sparkled — just like her personality, her parents say.  She swept into a room and filled it with laughter.  —  The 4-year-old died this week in a road rage shooting …

Gov. LePage says public campaign financing like “giving your wife your checkbook”  —  At a town hall meeting in Auburn on Wednesday night, Governor Paul LePage once again lashed out against Question 1, a citizen initiative to increase election transparency and strengthen Maine's Clean Elections Act.

Secret Service officers found asleep on job; watchdog to warn of overworked staff  —  A federal watchdog plans to send the U.S. Secret Service a formal warning Thursday about the security risks of overworking its employees — after discovering two Secret Service officers asleep at their posts …

Religion and Science  —  Are science and religion at odds with each other?  A majority of the public says science and religion often conflict, with nearly six-in-ten adults (59%) expressing this view in newly released findings from a Pew Research Center survey.