Bonds, Clemens rejected; no one elected to BB Hall

NEW YORK (AP) — Steroid-tainted stars Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa were denied entry to baseball's Hall of Fame, with voters failing to elect any candidates for only the second time in four decades.In a vote that keeps the game's career home run leader and one of its greatest pitchers out of Cooperstown — at least for now — Bonds received just 36.2 percent of the vote and Clemens 37.6...

Read More..

Karzai's U.S. visit a time for tough talk

The last time Presidents Obama and Karzai met was in May in Kabul, when they signed a pact regarding U.S. troop withdrawal.STORY HIGHLIGHTSAfghan President Karzai meeting with President Obama in Washington this weekFelbab-Brown: Afghan politics are corrupt; army not ready for 2014 troop pulloutShe says Taliban, insurgents, splintered army, corrupt officials are all jockeying for powerU.S. needs to...

Read More..

5 years in prison for Palatine huffing crash

A Palatine woman who “huffed” fumes from a cleaning product while driving and seriously injured two people after she passed...

Read More..

Venezuela court endorses Chavez inauguration delay

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela's top court endorsed the postponement of Hugo Chavez's inauguration this week and ruled on Wednesday that the cancer-stricken president and his deputy would continue in their roles, despite a cacophony of opposition complaints. Critics had argued the 58-year-old's absence from his own swearing-in ceremony on January 10 meant a caretaker president must be...

Read More..

Wall Street slips as earnings season gets under way

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell on Tuesday, retreating from last week's rally on the "fiscal cliff" deal in Washington, as companies started to report results for the fourth quarter. After a 4.3 percent jump in the two sessions around the close of the fiscal cliff negotiations, the S&P has declined a bit, with investors finding few catalysts to extend the rally that took the benchmark...

Read More..

Saban quickly turns to challenges of 2013 season

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — It's becoming a familiar January scene for Nick Saban.The Alabama coach plastered a smile on his face for a series of posed photos next to the various trophies awarded to college football's national champions and then proceeded to talk about the challenges facing his team.Maybe Saban let the Gatorade dry from the celebratory drenching before thinking about the 2013 season....

Read More..

Iran faces oil revenue problem

By John Defterios, CNNJanuary 8, 2013 -- Updated 1535 GMT (2335 HKT)With elections in June, it remains unclear how energy policy will evolve after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's eraSTORY HIGHLIGHTSThe IEA has suggested Iraq surpassed Iran in output for the first time in over 20 yearsThe Iranian people are faced with spiralling inflation and job layoffs within the state sectorIranian oil revenues...

Read More..

NTSB says damage to Dreamliner in fire 'severe'

The National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday that the battery aboard a Japan Airlines Co. 787 jet that caught fire...

Read More..

U.S. does not rule out complete pullout from Afghanistan after 2014

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration does not rule out a complete withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan after 2014, the White House said on Tuesday, just days before President Barack Obama is due to meet Afghan President Hamid Karzai. The comments by U.S. Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes were the first signal that, despite initial recommendations by the top...

Read More..

Wall Street edges off five-year high, awaits earnings

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks lost ground on Monday, as investors drew back from recent gains that lifted the S&P 500 to a five-year high, in anticipation of sluggish growth in corporate profits. Shares of financial companies dipped after a group of major U.S. banks agreed to pay a total of $8.5 billion to end a government inquiry into faulty mortgage foreclosures. The KBW bank index...

Read More..