U.S. evolves on same-sex marriage

STORY HIGHLIGHTSThe president and the nation have shifted perspectives on same-sex marriageSupreme Court ruling on California's same-sex marriage ban a critical testGrowing public support for gay marriage give proponents hope for changeWashington (CNN) -- The nation's growing acceptance of same-sex marriage has happened in slow and painstaking moves, eventually building into a momentum that is sweeping...

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Second leak at North Sea oil platform forces evacuation

LONDON: An oil leak at a North Sea platform caused it to be partially evacuated on Saturday, its Middle East operator said, the second such incident at the installation in less than two months.The Alpha Cormorant platform and the pipeline system it services were shut down as a precaution, operator Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) said in a statement.The company said it had evacuated...

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U.S. to 'rain mice' on tree snakes

on your computer or on the CNN Apps for iPhone® and iPad®.iPhone, iPad and Mac are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc.If you get CNN and HLN at home, you can watch them online and on the go for no additional chargeStart watch...

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Romney: Sequester not a success for Obama

Mitt Romney may not be running for the White House any more, but he certainly came out swinging against President Obama in his first post-election interview with "Fox News Sunday," accusing the president of poisoning the negotiations over automatic spending cuts by "berating" Republicans. "No one can think" that the fight over the sequester has "been a success for the president," last year's Republican...

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US Seeks to Confirm Report of Terror Leader's Death

American military and intelligence officials said today they are attempting to confirm a report from the Chadian military of the death of al Qaeda leader Mokhtar Belmokhtar, the alleged mastermind of the deadly attack on an Algerian natural gas facility in January.If the new report is confirmed, Belmokhtar's death would be a significant victory against a growing al Qaeda threat in...

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Syria war is everybody's problem

Syrians search for survivors and bodies after the Syrian regime attacked the city of Aleppo with missiles on February 23.STORY HIGHLIGHTSFrida Ghitis: We are standing by as Syria rips itself apart, thinking it's not our problemBeyond the tragedy in human terms, she says, the war damages global stabilityGhitis: Syria getting more and more radical, jeopardizing forces of democracyGhitis: Peace counts...

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Obama to visit Russia in September

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama will visit Saint Petersburg for September's G20 summit and will also hold a meeting with President Vladimir Putin at the G8 summit in Northern Ireland in June.The White House made the announcement Friday after the leaders spoke by phone to discuss the Syria crisis amid testy relations between Russia and the United States, which have deteriorated since...

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Man vanishes into bedroom sinkhole

STORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: Authorities release the audio of a 911 call: "The house just fell through"Rescuers have turned to trying to recover man's body, sheriff's office saysThe sinkhole opened under a home's bedroom, swallowing a man insideHole, previously reported as 100 feet across, is about 20 to 30 feet wide, engineer saysSeffner, Florida (CNN) -- The ground just swallowed him up.A Florida man fell...

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Man feared dead in 100-foot sinkhole near Tampa

Last Updated 1:15 p.m. ET SEFFNER, Fla. A man was missing and feared dead early Friday after a large sinkhole opened under the bedroom of a house near Tampa. His brother says the man screamed for help before he disappeared. The 36-year-old man's brother, Jeremy Bush, told rescue crews he heard a loud crash around 11 p.m. Thursday, then heard his brother screaming for help. "When he got there,...

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Sequester Begins But Govt. Shutdown Looks Unlikely

Mar 1, 2013 4:13pm Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg/Getty ImagIt may not be readily obvious from the blizzard of news out there today on the “sequester,” but a government shutdown became significantly less likely today, even as the automatic budget cuts barreled ahead toward reality.What happened? Both sides – Republicans and Democrats – basically seem to have agreed that...

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Syria war is everybody's problem

STORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: France considers sending Syrian rebels night-vision gear and body armor, a source saysBritain's foreign secretary says the UK will announce new aid soonThe statements after European Union loosens restrictions to allow nonlethal aid to rebelsThe U.S. will also send non-lethal aid to rebels for first time, plus $60 million in administrative aidRome (CNN) -- The United States stepped...

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Polls close in crucial British by-election

LONDON: Polls closed in the southern English town of Eastleigh on Thursday in a by-election for a new member of parliament in a tight contest that threatens serious repercussions for Britain's main parties.The election pits Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party against its junior coalition partner, the Liberal Democrats, while the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) is hoping...

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Suspect in Las Vegas shooting, crash apprehended

By Erica Henry and Greg Botelho, CNNupdated 6:30 PM EST, Thu February 28, 2013Ammar Asim Faruq Harris, 26, was arrested about noon Thursday, the FBI says.STORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: Ammar Asim Faruq Harris was arrested "without incident" in Los Angeles, police sayPolice say Harris, 26, fired at a Maserati, which then crashed into a taxi in Las VegasMaserati's driver and two people in the taxi, one of them...

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Judge accepts Manning's guilty pleas in WikiLeaks case

Updated at 5:52 p.m. ET FORT MEADE, Md. A U.S. Army judge has accepted an offer by a private to plead guilty to violating military regulations in the biggest leak of classified material in U.S. history. Pfc. Bradley Manning admits to sending hundreds of thousands of Iraq and Afghanistan battlefield reports, State Department diplomatic cables and other files to WikiLeaks while working as an intelligence...

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Obama Admin to Court: End Calif. Gay Marriage Ban

Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli, plans to file a brief today with the Supreme Court in favor of challengers of Prop. 8, according to an administration source.It would mark the first time that the Obama administration has come out in court against the California ballot initiative that defines marriage as between one man and one woman.As far back as 2008, the president said that...

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Italy left on financial high-wire

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi delivers a speech during a campaign rally in Rome on January 25, 2013. STORY HIGHLIGHTSBrilliant minds are still trying to figure out the financial impact of Italy's electionThe lack of certainty is seen as a negative for Italy -- and the eurozoneInstability could reignite the eurozone crisisBut it depends on what deal will be done, and how the markets will respond...

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AIM not bidding for PAP town councils' tender

SINGAPORE: Action Information Management (AIM), which runs the People's Action Party (PAP) town councils' computer systems, will no longer operate the systems when its contract expires on April 30. It said on Wednesday that it will not participate in the latest tender exercise.The arrangement between AIM, a company fully owned by the PAP, and the PAP town councils had caused controversy...

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Newtown father's emotional plea to Congress

During emotional testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee today, the father of a first grader slain at Sandy Hook Elementary School fought back tears as he stressed the need to ban weapons like the assault rifle that a gunman used to kill his son, 19 other children, and 6 educators in Newtown, Conn. Neil Heslin described how his son Jesse "was brutally murdered at Sandy Hook school on December...

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Holder Says Sequester Makes America Less Safe

The looming budget sequestration will make Americans less safe, Eric Holder says—and anyone who says otherwise isn't telling the truth."This is something that is going to have an impact on the safety of this country," the U.S. attorney general told ABC's Pierre Thomas on Wednesday in a wide-ranging, exclusive interview."And anybody that says otherwise is either lying or saying...

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Benedict: Pope aware of his flaws?

Pope Benedict XVI delivers his last Angelus Blessing to thousands of pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter's Square on February 24.STORY HIGHLIGHTSSister Mary Ann Walsh: Pope Benedict acknowledged that he made mistakesWalsh: In firestorm over scholarly quotes about Islam, he went to great lengths to atoneWalsh: Similarly, he quickly reversed a decision that had angered Jews and repaired tiesEven his stepping...

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Dollar edges higher as Bernanke confirms stimulus

NEW YORK: The dollar edged higher Tuesday against the euro after Ben Bernanke confirmed the US Fed's stimulus program would continue, while the yen traded flat ahead of the nomination of a new Bank of Japan chief.At 2200 GMT the euro was at $1.3061, compared to $1.3065 late Monday. The euro remained under pressure after Italy's inconclusive election, which some fear could lead to more...

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Meet the new Pentagon chief: former Army Sgt. Chuck Hagel

STORY HIGHLIGHTSSenate votes 58-41 to confirm former Nebraska senator, a RepublicanFight for Cabinet post was deeply partisan, uphill battle for HagelRepublicans objected to Hagel's views on Israel and the Patriot ActHagel must salvage congressional relationships, hit the ground running at PentagonWashington (CNN) -- Chuck Hagel's rocky and inauspicious path to leadership of the Pentagon could haunt...

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