NEW ORLEANS – As rain from Hurricane Rita (search) threatened to once again flood the city, the Army Corps of Engineers was racing to patch New Orleans’ fractured levee system while residents were forced to decide yet again whether to stay or go. Forecasters said the storm that swiped Florida …

A prominent journalist working for an anti-Syrian television station was seriously wounded Sunday when a bomb placed under her car exploded, Lebanese security officials said. May Chidiac (search), news anchor for the private Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. (search), was inside her car when the bomb exploded in the Christian port city …

WASHINGTON – President Bush (search) called the election of a legislature in Afghanistan a step on the road to democracy while the U.S. ambassador there said it was part of a “grinding process” that would require U.S. troops to remain in the country for some time. Bush, in a statement …

SAN JOSE, Calif. – A man who says he helped Wendy’s International Inc. unravel the scheme behind a fingertip slipped into a bowl of chili has a beef with the fast food chain. He wants the $100,000 reward the company offered. Mike Casey runs an asphalt plant in Las Vegas …

WASHINGTON – Troop levels were on the mind of to Iraqi and U.S. political leaders Tuesday as by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani (search) paid an official visit to the White House. The newly elected leader said, however, that he does not want the U.S. military to set a timetable to …

WASHINGTON – It will not take long for John Roberts to become chief justice following the Senate vote on his nomination. The White House was making plans for a swearing in ceremony in the East Room on Thursday, attended by President Bush. A separate event would be held at the …

PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – A Jamaica (search)-born woman whose U.S. Marine son died fighting in Iraq has finally been welcomed into the American Gold Star Mothers (search), which had banned non-citizens for the first 77 years of its existence. Within an hour she was enthralling fellow members with a moving description …

Dear Friends — It’s no secret that college tuition has been rising faster than the rate of inflation for at least the past twenty years. It turns out, a less obvious component of college costs has also been climbing: the price of textbooks. Congress is so concerned about this it …

This is a partial transcript from “On the Record,” August 26, 2005, that has been edited for clarity. GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, HOST: Joran van der Sloot (search) is speaking out, making stunning new claims about the night 17-year-old Natalee Holloway (search) disappeared in Aruba. Joran says Natalee was very drunk …

NEW YORK – Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) is expected to seek bankruptcy protection on Wednesday, a source familiar with the situation said, as rival Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWAC) considers doing the same. The source said that the company would file for protection after the market close on Wednesday, but …