Valerie Richardson

Rahm Emanuel tries to lure firms from Indiana over law that Illinois already has

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has engaged in some interstate payback by attempting to lure Indiana companies over the state's newly signed religious-freedom bill, but what he doesn't mention is that Illinois already has a similar law.

March 30, 2015

Obama anti-Israel sentiment spreads to Virginia State Bar Association

The White House is coming under increasing fire for fueling anti-Israel sentiment in the United States, particularly among Democrats, stoked by President Obama's feud with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

March 29, 2015

Martin O’Malley angers Hillary Clinton adviser with ‘dynasty’ remark

There was jostling Sunday on the Democratic presidential campaign trail between a top Hillary Rodham Clinton supporter and ex-Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley after he took a swipe at the former secretary of state, saying the presidency isn't a "crown to be passed between two families."

March 29, 2015

White House hits Indiana’s religious freedom law amid criticism of Obama hypocrisy

White House spokesman Josh Earnest took aim Sunday at Indiana's religious-freedom law, saying it appears to "legitimize discrimination," as critics said President Obama voted for a similar law as an Illinois state senator.

March 29, 2015

Court allows Wisconsin Amish family to remain in home for now

The Amish don't have telephones, so Erick Woods drove 45 minutes to give the Borntregers the news: They won a reprieve Friday from an order to vacate their Wisconsin home after refusing to comply with updated building-code rules for religious reasons.

March 28, 2015

Indiana singled out for boycott over religious-liberty law in 19 other states

Indiana is being threatened with an economic boycott after Gov. Mike Pence signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act Thursday, even though 19 other states and the federal government have already passed similar laws.

March 27, 2015

Amish Wisconsin home gets police yellow tape

Law-enforcement officers strung yellow police tape across the door of a Wisconsin Amish home and declared it unfit for habitation Thursday in a dispute over the family's refusal to comply with county rules on modern appliances such as smoke alarms.

March 26, 2015

Germanwings France plane crash sparks rush to embrace 2 pilots in cockpit rule

Had German carrier Lufthansa followed U.S. protocols on pilots in the cockpit, the deadly crash that claimed 150 lives this week might have been avoided.

March 26, 2015

Religious exemption sought for Amish after Wisconsin family forced out of home

The outcry over a Wisconsin Amish family ordered by a court to leave their home is fueling a legislative push for a religious exemption from building codes requiring smoke alarms and other modern devices.

March 25, 2015

Pilot left cockpit before France plane crash, couldn’t get back in: report

Evidence from the cockpit voice recorder indicates that one of the pilots of the Germanwings flight that crashed in the French Alps left the cockpit before the plane's descent and was unable to get back in, the New York Times reported.

March 25, 2015

Marco Rubio rips Obama ‘political machine’ for trying to oust Benjamin Netanyahu

Sen. Marco Rubio on Tuesday accused President Obama's "political machine" of waging an "unprecedented" campaign to defeat Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the recent Knesset election.

March 25, 2015

Amish family Borntregers facing eviction from Wisconsin home

An Amish family faces eviction from their home after being found in contempt of court for refusing to comply with building codes on the grounds that doing so would violate the religious community's ban on modern technology.

March 24, 2015

Hillary Clinton attacked by green groups over fracking, Keystone

Environmentalists turned up the heat Monday on former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, urging her to "come clean" on issues like the Keystone XL pipeline and hydraulic fracturing in a protest outside her speech at a journalism awards ceremony.

March 23, 2015

Conservative professors winning legal battles but losing campus culture war

Teresa Wagner recently notched a victory at the U.S. Supreme Court, but she can be forgiven if she doesn't exactly feel like a winner.

March 23, 2015

Obama fracking rules anger environmentalists who want ban on federal land drilling

Anyone in the Obama administration who thought tougher hydraulic fracturing regulations would score points with the green movement was in for a rude awakening.

March 22, 2015

Republicans blast new Interior fracking safety rules as unnecessary job-killers

The Obama administration's unveiling Friday of federal regulations aimed at ensuring the safety of hydraulic fracturing ignited a furious eruption from the industry and Republicans, who blasted the rules an attack on jobs and energy independence.

March 20, 2015

Western states coalition opposes listing sage-grouse as endangered

A coalition of rural Western counties and business interests is contesting the science being used to decide whether to list the Greater sage-grouse as endangered or threatened, accusing the Obama administration of relying on "selective, false and biased" research.

March 18, 2015

Raul Grijalva’s probe into David Legates, climate scientist, spurned by University of Deleware

University of Delaware officials have refused to provide information on a climate professor in response to an investigation by House Democrats, stating that to do so would violate the university's policies on academic freedom.

March 18, 2015

Jewish students say Israel divestment movement leads to campus anti-Semitism

As the Israel divestment movement heats up on campuses nationwide, scoring victories with a series of student government votes to divest, Jewish activists fear the side effect has been a wave of anti-Semitism.

March 17, 2015

Atheists post Arabic billboard in Memphis to attract ex-Muslims

Atheists' organizations have been offending Christians for years with their irreverent billboards, but the latest is directed toward the Muslim community.

March 17, 2015