Search results for

The Senate ends the prospect of a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, at least for this year. An attempt to cut off debate and proceed to a vote on the amendment won the backing of less than half the Senate, far short of the two-thirds needed to approve the amendment itself. Six Republicans voted with Democrats, defeating the effort 50-48. NPR's David Welna reports.

Iraqi Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi allows the Shiite weekly Al-Hawza to resume publication, reversing a decision by recently departed U.S. administrator L. Paul Bremer. In Fallujah, attacks by U.S. forces left at least 11 dead. Hear NPR's Brian Naylor and NPR's Philip Reeves.

Google reduces the amount of stock it will sell and lowers the price range of its initial public offering. The Internet search company will sell 5.5 million shares at $85 a share. The move came on the same day that the Securities and Exchange Committee approved Google's plan to sell stock in an auction process. Hear NPR's Robert Siegel and Raymond Hennessy of The Wall Street Journal.

Hurricane Ivan, the worst storm to hit the Caribbean in a decade, spares Jamaica the brunt of its force. But the storm is gaining strength as it heads for the Cayman Islands and Cuba. It could make landfall in Florida early next week. Hear NPR's Jennifer Ludden and Jamaican broadcaster Dervan Malcom.

Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry says President Bush did not do enough to urge the Republican-controlled Congress to extend a 10-year federal ban on the sale of assault weapons that expired Monday. Bush aides maintain the president did everything he could. NPR's Scott Horsley reports.

Richard Holbrooke, foreign policy adviser to John Kerry's presidential campaign, says President Bush's plan to shift 70,000 U.S. military personnel from Europe and Asia will weaken America's already strained ties with its European allies and will add to the cost of maintaining U.S. troops. Holbrooke speaks with NPR's Steve Inskeep.

Former President Bill Clinton will undergo heart bypass surgery early next week, after checking into a New York hospital with chest pains. He cancelled a two-day trip with his wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, across upstate New York. The former president, 58, does not have a history of heart problems. NPR's Robert Smith reports.

As an impasse continues at the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, the leading Shiite cleric in Iraq -- Grand Ayatollah Ali Husseini al-Sistani -- prepares to lead a mass march on the city Thursday. He's seeking an end to fighting between U.S. and Iraqi forces and militia loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. NPR's Ivan Watson reports.

The Florida Supreme Court ruled 6-1 Friday that maverick presidential candidate Ralph Nader can run as the Reform Party presidential candidate in the November election. Democrats fought to keep him off, but Republicans led the battle to keep him on. Hear NPR's Melissa Block and Bill Coterell, political editor for The Tallahassee Democrat.

Iraqi interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi vows to hold parliamentary elections in January, as planned. U.S. forces are planning an all-out offensive on insurgent-held areas to help ensure elections can take place, according to a report in The New York Times. Hear NPR's Jennifer Ludden, retired Air Force Col. Sam Gardiner, and professor Fawaz Gerges.