Legislature's inaction puts drug effort at risk

ATLANTA (AP) - A new program designed to combat prescription drug abuse in Georgia might run out of money to operate only a few months after it gets under way in June.

Witherspoon ' embarrassed' by arrest; hearing set

ATLANTA (AP) - A court hearing on a disorderly conduct charge is scheduled for actress Reese Witherspoon, who said she's "deeply embarrassed" by what she said to a state trooper during a traffic stop in Atlanta.

The stories of 2 brothers suspected in bombing

Boy Scouts propose to lift gay ban for youth

NEW YORK (AP) - Searching for compromise on a divisive issue, the Boy Scouts of America is proposing to partially lift its long-standing exclusion of gays - allowing them as youth members but continuing to bar them as adult leaders.

Tornado warning for Walton and Morgan counties+

ATLANTA (AP) - The National Weather Service has issued a tornado warning for areas of Morgan and Walton counties in north central Georgia.

Deal signs bill incentivizing dual credit classes

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has signed a bill to give high school students an incentive to take dual credit courses and earn college credit.

Boston suspect's father says he's a 'true angel'

Official: 12 bodies recovered after Texas blast

Police go door-to-door in search for Boston bomber

WATERTOWN, Mass. (AP) - State police say officers are going door-to-door, but the Boston Marathon suspect is still on the loose.

UGA stadium concert might lead to more shows

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - University of Georgia President Mike Adams says he had some trepidation about hosting a concert at Sanford Stadium, which he said was a great success.

Republican: Boston raises immigration questions

WASHINGTON (AP) - The top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee says the events in Boston make clear the importance of understanding gaps and loopholes in the U.S. immigration system.

IBM tugs Dow lower; S&P 500 up after rough week

Poll: Public pessimism on economy is increasing

Russia's Caucasus: breeding ground for terror

1 of 2 Mass. bomb suspects dead; suburbs shut down

Senate panel ready to OK gun background checks

WASHINGTON (AP) - Democrats are ready to muscle expanded background checks and other gun curbs through a Senate committee, giving President Barack Obama an initial if temporary victory on one of his top priorities.

History shows NKorean pattern: Wait, then attack

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Recent Korean history reveals a sobering possibility: It may only be a matter of time before North Korea launches a sudden, deadly attack on the South. And perhaps more unsettling, Seoul has vowed that this time, it will respond with an even stronger blow. Humiliated by past attacks, South Korea has promised - as recently as Tuesday - to hit back hard at the next assault from the North, ...

Chipper in pinstripes? Well, Yanks' Cashman tried

VIERA, Fla. (AP) - Chipper Jones putting on pinstripes? The banged-up New York Yankees would love to have him. General manager Brian Cashman even said so Monday, expressing interest in the retired Atlanta Braves star. "He'd be perfect," Cashman said at Yankees' camp in Tampa. "I'd take Larry in a heartbeat. I think everybody would." The eight-time All-Star third baseman - better known by his nickname than actual first name - quickly ended such ...

House unveils amended Ga. budget plan

ATLANTA (AP) - An amended $40.9 billion budget plan in Georgia would restore what amounted to cuts for rural school districts and reduce some of the funding cuts for a school nutrition program, a ranking Republican said Monday.

Elisabeth Hasselbeck staying put at 'The View

NEW YORK (AP) - No need to say goodbye to Elisabeth Hasselbeck. She's staying put as a co-host of "The View" despite reports insisting otherwise.

Senate Democrats prepare government funding bill

WASHINGTON (AP) - Senate Democrats are preparing a catchall government funding bill that denies President Barack Obama money for implementing signature first-term accomplishments like new regulations on Wall Street and his expansion of government health care subsidies but gives Democrats modest additional funding for domestic priorities like health research.

GOP retaliates against Dems over Fulton tax vote

ATLANTA (AP) - Revenge is on the menu at the Georgia Capitol. Republicans dominate the House, but they're one vote shy of having a supermajority to do whatever they want. That mattered last Thursday when Democrats blocked a local bill that would have cut Fulton County property taxes by doubling the homestead exemption. So when representatives convened Monday, Republicans retaliated by reversing Thursday's votes in favor of more than a dozen local bills sponsored by ...

US begin drills as NKorea threatens war

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - North Korean state media said Monday that Pyongyang had carried through with a threat to cancel the 60-year-old armistice that ended the Korean War, as it and South Korea staged dueling war games amid threatening rhetoric. Enraged over the South's joint military drills with the United States and recent U.N. sanctions, Pyongyang has piled threat on top of threat, including vows to launch a nuclear strike on the ...

UGA to compare pay of male, female professors

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - The University of Georgia plans to compare the salaries of male and female professors in an attempt to find out whether they're getting equal pay for equal work and accomplishment.

Highway patrol: 'High rate' of speed in Ohio crash

WARREN, Ohio (AP) - Investigators were focused on speed as a key factor in the crash of a sport utility vehicle carrying eight teenagers that smashed into a guardrail and flipped over into a swampy pond, killing five boys and the young woman driving. While citing an unspecified "high rate" of speed, investigators wouldn't speculate on whether alcohol or drugs were involved in the crash about 7 a.m. Sunday on a two-lane road snugged ...

Changes in GA immigration bill draw opposition

ATLANTA (AP) - A Georgia bill that was intended as a simple fix for unintended consequences of a 2011 crackdown on illegal immigration is suddenly drawing opposition. The bill was presented as a solution to complaints from several state agencies that Georgia's 2011 law was creating extra work and delays in processing public benefits. But a House committee added key changes last week. Now the bill would effectively deny driver's licenses to young people ...

Sen. McCain slams release of illegal immigrants

PHOENIX (AP) - Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona said Friday that some of the more than 2,000 illegal immigrants recently released by the Homeland Security Department because of budget cuts may have been convicted of serious crimes, citing "local sources."

Georgia Capitol Notes

ATLANTA (AP) - HEADLINES: House lawmakers endorsed big changes to Georgia's gun laws this week just ahead of a key internal deadline. Under internal rules, most bills had to be approved by at least one chamber of the General Assembly by Thursday or risk failing for the year. There are some exceptions. House Republicans voted to allow people with a license to carry a firearm to take their weapons into bars, churches and parts ...

Stocks move higher following strong job growth

NEW YORK (AP) - A burst of hiring in February pushed stocks higher on Wall Street.

New TSA policy on knives, bats sparks backlash

WASHINGTON (AP) - Flight attendants, pilots, federal air marshals and even insurance companies are part of a growing backlash to the Transportation Security Administration's new policy allowing passengers to carry small knives and sports equipment like souvenir baseball bats and golf clubs onto planes. The Flight Attendants Union Coalition, representing nearly 90,000 flight attendants, said it is coordinating a nationwide legislative and public education campaign to reverse the policy announced by TSA Administrator John ...