Scuffles near Lebanon parliament before vote on budget

BEIRUT (AP) — Dozens of protesters have scuffled with Lebanese security guarding the country's parliament just as lawmakers met to vote on a controversial austerity budget. The protesters, most of them army veterans, have been camped near parliament for three days to oppose a draft bill that aims to cut...

House approves $15 minimum wage, Senate prospects are dim

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democrats approved legislation Thursday to raise the federal minimum wage for the first time in a decade, to $15 an hour, but the bill has almost no chance in the Republican-controlled Senate. Passage was assured after centrists won concessions for a slower phase-in, over six years...

The Latest: House OKs minimum wage hike, Senate chances dim

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on legislation to raise the federal minimum wage (all times local): 12:05 p.m. The House has approved legislation to raise the federal minimum wage for the first time in a decade, to $15 an hour. Democrats pushed through the bill Thursday with a party-line vote of 231-199, but...

House passes bill raising federal minimum wage to $15, but prospects are dim in Senate

US lawmakers propose ban on export of tribes' sacred items

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico Democrats are making a renewed push in Congress to ban collectors and vendors from exporting Native American ceremonial items. Sen Martin Heinrich, U.S. Reps. Ben Ray Lujan and Deb Haaland, and others intend to reintroduce legislation Thursday that also would increase...

House votes to block sale of weapons to Saudi Arabia

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is heading for a showdown with President Donald Trump after the House voted to block his administration from selling billions of dollars in weapons and maintenance support to Saudi Arabia. Trump, who has sought to forge closer ties with Riyadh, has pledged to veto the resolutions...

Lead paint suppliers settle California lawsuit for $305M

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The nation's former major suppliers of lead paint have agreed to pay California's largest cities and counties $305 million to settle a nearly 20-year-old lawsuit, attorneys said Wednesday. The settlement comes after years of legal and legislative battling in California and other...

GOP Sen. Rand Paul slows bill to boost 9/11 victims fund

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Sen. Rand Paul on Wednesday blocked fast-track approval of a bipartisan bill that would ensure a victims' compensation fund related to the Sept. 11 attacks never runs out of money. Paul objected to a request by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., to approve the bill by unanimous...

Washington talks could soon yield spending, debt deal

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington negotiators are closing in on a budget and debt deal that would stave off the chance of a government shutdown this fall and allow Congress to speed through legislation to increase the government's borrowing cap. The emerging two-year framework would satisfy demands for an...

Dems pan 'Zuck buck,' want Facebook to rein in currency plan

WASHINGTON (AP) — Facebook endured a second day of criticism from Congress over its plan to create a digital currency as senior House Democrats asked Facebook to scale back the project and threatened legislation that would block big tech companies from getting into banking. Facebook's massive market power...