Houston Equal Rights Ordinance fails by wide margin  —  Houston's controversial equal rights ordinance failed by a wide margin Tuesday, with voters opting to repeal the law that offered broad non-discrimination protections, according to incomplete and unofficial returns.

How Democrats Could Win the House.  Really.  —  Whatever happens in the White House a year from now, it's an article of faith that not much will change in the House, where Republicans have a seeming lock on the majority.  —  But wait: the ascendancy of Donald Trump and Ben Carson just might have cracked the window open.

The meaning of Ben Carson's stunning rise  —  It's very meaningful that the surgeon Ben Carson appears to be taking the lead in the polling for the GOP nomination — but not in the ways you might expect.  —  First, it means Donald Trump has stalled out.  Given Trump's standing atop the polls …

Marco Rubio spent lavishly on a GOP credit card, but some transactions are still secret  —  It has become legend in Florida political circles, a missing chapter in Marco Rubio's convoluted financial story: two years of credit card transactions from his time in the state House …

House panel approves climate rule resolutions  —  A House committee on Tuesday approved two resolutions to overturn the Obama administration's climate rule for power plants.  —  The Congressional Review Act resolutions, sponsored by Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), are meant to block …

Kelly Grills Cruz On Proposal That Only Republicans Moderate GOP Debates  —  Fox News Megyn Kelly, who has expressed skepticism of Republican candidates' demands following the CNBC debate, on Tuesday night quizzed Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on his pitch that only Republican journalists moderate the Republican primary debates.

Oviedo middle school student gets detention for hug  —  Student's family fears principal taking policy too far  —  OVIEDO, Fla. -  —  A before-school hug between friends ended in detention for one local student, and now her parents are questioning the school's policy.  —  “I just like hugged them.

‘Get serious about enforcing our laws’  —  Passing immigration reform during the Obama presidency would render it meaningless.  —  The House of Representatives will not vote on comprehensive immigration legislation as long as President Obama is in office.  And the reason is simple …

Feds Rule to Force High School Girls to Undress Next to Naked Boys Who Think They're Girls  —  On Monday, the federal government declared itself fit for the madhouse by mandating that a Chicago high school allow a full biological male into the girls' locker room for all purposes, including nudity.

DON'T MISS STORIES.  FOLLOW RAW STORY!  —  Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) said he's been quietly watching his colleagues work during his first year as a senator, and nearly one year after his election — he wonders whether the U.S. Senate should even exist.  —  The Tea Party lawmaker said …

Ohioans reject legalizing marijuana  —  Ohioans pushed a monopoly marijuana-legalization proposal out the door Tuesday by a nearly 2-to-1 vote.  —  But the question is, will pot make a comeback?  —  Although Issue 3 was handily defeated, the debate and conversations about the issue …

The Chilling Regularity of Mass Extinctions  —  One thing we know for sure is that conditions on Earth were, shall we say, unpleasant for the dinosaurs at the moment of their demise.  Alternate and overlapping theories suggest the great beasts were pelted with monster comets, drowned by mega-tsunamis …

Steve Jobs Considered Building an Apple Car in 2008  —  The Apple co-founder kicked around ideas with longtime confidant and iPod co-creator Tony Fadell.  —  Count Steve Jobs among those curious about what an Apple car would look like.  In 2008, not too long after the Apple co-founder introduced …

Jefferson County Public Schools see new five-member board take over after election  —  LAKEWOOD — Voters overwhelmingly chose to recall three members of the Jefferson County school board Tuesday night and elected two others to form an entirely new board in Colorado's second-largest school district.

Ryan refuses to rule out riders on spending bill  —  New Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Tuesday refused to rule out attaching legislative policy riders to an omnibus spending bill, foreshadowing a possible confrontation with President Obama next month.  —  “This is the legislative branch …