Senate holds talkathon over Obama nominees
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate began an around-the-clock talkathon Wednesday over some of President Barack Obama's nominees as embittered and outnumbered Republicans refused to let the Senate take a break given new, Democratic-driven curbs on the GOP's power....

Health care sign-ups pick up but may not close gap
WASHINGTON (AP) -- With time running short, the nation's health care rolls still aren't filling up fast enough....

Analysis: For once, gridlock takes a seat
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sit down, gridlock....

New estimate says budget deal raises deficit $41B
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congress' budget office estimates that the just-announced budget deal would increase the deficit over the next two years by $41.4 billion....

Key support for budget deal; deficits would rise
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A newly minted budget deal to avert future government shutdowns gained important ground Wednesday among House Republicans who are more accustomed to brinkmanship than compromise, even though it would nudge federal deficits higher three years in a row....

Federal data show health disparities among states
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The slow rollout of a new federal health insurance marketplace may be deepening differences in health coverage among Americans, with residents in some states gaining insurance at a far greater rate than others....

Budget deal offers stability to Pentagon spending
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Working-age military retirees would see fewer dollars in their federal pensions and the Pentagon would get some long-sought stability in spending under Congress' budget deal....

Senator: Staffer's home searched in investigation
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander has replaced his chief of staff after learning the staffer's home was being searched as part of a child pornography investigation....

NASA audit finds Google execs saved on jet fuel
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- An aircraft fleet owned by Google's founders and former CEO received improper discounts on jet fuel that saved the three billionaires up to $5.3 million dating back to depths of the Great Recession in 2009, according to a government report released Wednesday....

NSA: No better way to protect US than surveillance
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The NSA chief said Wednesday he knows of no better way his agency can help protect the U.S. from foreign threats than with spy programs that collect billions of phone and Internet records from around the world....