Valerie Richardson

Donald Trump says Bill Clinton sexual past is ‘fair game’ in campaign

Fair game or not, former President Bill Clinton's sexual dalliances, which include rape accusations, emerged as a hot topic Sunday as the ex-president prepared to campaign Monday in New Hampshire for his wife, Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton.

January 3, 2016

Obama’s gun control executive orders on background checks draw Republicans’ ire

Gun control surged to the forefront of the 2016 campaign Sunday as Republicans unloaded on President Obama's anticipated executive orders on background checks, taking advantage of a potent wedge issue less than a month before the Iowa caucus.

January 3, 2016

Donald Trump refuses to back down after being used in terrorist recruitment video

Donald Trump on Sunday shrugged off the use of his image in a recently released terrorist recruitment video, saying, "I have to say what I have to say."

January 3, 2016

Cliven Bundy’s family joins militia members in seizing Oregon wildlife refuge

Armed anti-government militants who took over an unoccupied national wildlife refuge headquarters in rural Oregon said Sunday that they have no intention of engaging in violence unless the federal government comes after them.

January 3, 2016

Bernie Sanders slams Donald Trump for broaching Bill Clinton’s sex life as a campaign issue

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders slammed Donald Trump on Sunday for bringing up former President Bill Clinton's "sexual life" as a 2016 campaign issue.

January 3, 2016

Bernie Sanders, Vermont senator, defends Obama’s expected crackdown on gun access

Vermont Sen. Bernard Sanders on Sunday defended President Obama's anticipated use of executive orders to clamp down on firearms access.

January 3, 2016

Transgenders in Washington state to use restrooms based on identity, not anatomy: rule

A legislative battle over transgender restroom access is brewing in Washington after a state commission enacted rules requiring that bathroom, shower and locker room use in public accommodations be based on "gender identity," not sex.

December 31, 2015

Sweet Cakes by Melissa forks over $135,000 for not baking gay-wedding cake

The owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa have paid a hefty $135,000 in state-mandated damages for "emotional suffering" inflicted by their refusal to prepare a cake for a lesbian couple's wedding.

December 29, 2015

Planned Parenthood’s patients, services drop as its federal funding jumps: report

Nobody questions the clout of Planned Parenthood as a political player, feminist icon and Democratic fundraising machine, but as a health care provider, the organization is increasingly finding itself on the skids.

December 29, 2015

Peyton Manning threats to sue Al Jazeera over doping story

An Al Jazeera reporter defended Monday the network's explosive report linking Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning to illegal doping even though the source has since recanted.

December 28, 2015

Peyton Manning doping claim repudiated by Al Jazeera source

An Al Jazeera America investigation alleging that Peyton Manning used illegal performance-enhancing drugs came under attack Sunday after the report's source recanted his allegations.

December 27, 2015

British Muslim family denied Disneyland trip for good reason, border security reports say

The initial outrage over a British Muslim family being denied a trip to Disneyland is increasingly being challenged as reports emerge that U.S. authorities may have had good reason to turn away the party at the airline gate.

December 24, 2015

Air Force Academy rejects complaint against football players who pray before games

Score one for the Air Force Academy football players taking a Tim Tebow-style knee in a brief pregame prayer on the field.

December 23, 2015

College students sign fake petition to ban ‘White Christmas’ as ‘racist’

An undercover video released this week shows college students signing a petition asking radio stations to boycott the "racist" song "White Christmas."

December 22, 2015

Planned Parenthood hit with fetal tissue research probe, defunding in Utah

An inspector general has agreed to probe how the government doles out money to study fetal tissue, Sen. Rand Paul announced Tuesday, in an investigation he said could pry into Planned Parenthood's sale of parts of aborted fetuses for research purposes.

December 22, 2015

Judge deals setback to Planned Parenthood, allows Utah to block funding

Planned Parenthood's winning streak in its funding battle with a half-dozen states ended Tuesday with a federal judge's ruling that Utah may block federal funds from the state's Planned Parenthood affiliate as it pursues a lawsuit.

December 22, 2015

No war on Christmas: In many communities, officials opt to surrender

There was no flap this year over the "Merry Christmas" sign in Bethlehem, New York, because the town never displayed it, opting to avoid the possibility of a legal fight even in a community named for the birthplace of Jesus.

December 21, 2015

House Republicans blast Interior Dept. for bowing to pressure from greens on lease sales

House Republicans are calling out the Interior Department for delaying a recent spate of oil-and-gas lease sales, accusing the department of kowtowing to pressure from environmentalists.

December 17, 2015

EPA use of social media to tout own program broke law: GAO

When the Environmental Protection Agency launched a social media blitz touting its hotly contested proposal to expand its water regulatory authority, Republicans accused the agency of breaking the law by spreading propaganda on the public dime.

December 15, 2015

‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’ censored by Kentucky school district over religious lines

A Kentucky school district is being urged to reconsider after censoring "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and other programs by removing all references to religion.

December 15, 2015