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OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) -- The fight to emerge as the Republican challenger to Barack Obama turns next to Washington state - a Democratic bastion known not just for majestic mountain ranges and good coffee, but also for independent-minded voters....

CAIRO (AP) -- A plane carrying seven American pro-democracy workers on trial over their activities took off from Cairo airport after sunset Thursday after the U.S. posted nearly $5 million in bail, officials said, easing a deep diplomatic crisis over charges that their groups funded and promoted anti-government protests in Egypt....

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- President Barack Obama and his party together raised $60 million last month, his campaign reported Thursday....

PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- A woman dubbed the "Black Madam" could face charges in the death of a London tourist who received illegal buttocks-enhancement injections last year in a Philadelphia hotel, police said Thursday....

ROME (AP) -- His musical roots were in jazz, but his songs ranged from folk to pop to classical to opera, creating a soundtrack beloved by generations of Italians....

BERLIN (AP) -- Germany's public-sector workers are set to walkout next week over a pay dispute with the government, a trade union said Thursday....

BELTSVILLE, Md. (AP) -- With Maryland poised to legalize gay marriage, some conservative opponents and religious leaders are counting on members of their congregations, especially in black churches, to upend the legislation at the polls this fall....

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Greece's election result has eased fears of imminent financial disaster for Europe, but the continent's leaders are still searching for a way to contain a debt crisis that threatens the global economy....

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez made his first live communication with his country's news media in nearly a week Thursday, saying he was in good shape and recovering quickly from tumor surgery in Cuba....

HARRISBURG, Ill. (AP) -- Crews cleared splintered plywood and smashed appliances from small-town neighborhoods Thursday, a day after tornadoes killed 13 people in the Midwest and South. But the forecast held a menacing possibility: More twisters may be coming, and they could be even stronger....

PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- A woman arrested in connection with an illegal buttocks-enhancement injection that left a patient sickened last month is considered a "person of interest" in the death of a tourist who underwent a similar procedure last year, police said Thursday....

CAIRO (AP) -- A plane carrying seven American pro-democracy workers took off from Cairo airport after sunset Thursday, airport officials said, easing a deep crisis in relations over charges that their groups funded and promoted anti-government protests in Egypt....

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- The New York Police Department ignored one of the key lessons of Sept. 11 by not sharing information with New Jersey law enforcement agencies when it conducted secret surveillance of Muslim communities, Gov. Chris Christie said Thursday....

PARIS (AP) -- Voters in France's overseas territories began casting ballots for Nicolas Sarkozy or Francois Hollande on Saturday in a presidential election that could affect everything from Europe's efforts to fight its debt crisis to how long French troops stay in Afghanistan....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama is paying tribute to the nation's fallen warriors on Memorial Day, attending a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery and honoring those who died during the Vietnam War....

CHICAGO (AP) -- Officials say one student has died and another is hospitalized after a stabbing at a Chicago school for children with behavioral and emotional needs....

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has made his first live communication with his country's news media since surgery to remove a possibly cancerous tumor....

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Conservative media publisher and activist Andrew Breitbart, who was behind investigations that led to the resignations of former Rep. Anthony Weiner of New York and former U.S. Agriculture Department official Shirley Sherrod, has died in Los Angeles at age 43....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate has defeated a Republican effort to roll back President Barack Obama's policy on contraception insurance coverage....

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- In another sign of warming relations between two wartime foes, a senior North Korean nuclear negotiator will attend a security conference in the United States, a person with knowledge of the negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang told The Associated Press on Thursday....