News

WASHINGTON – Rep. Ron Paul won the most support for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination in an unofficial straw poll of conservative activists attending an annual conference. A libertarian from Texas who has railed against spending and the Federal Reserve, Paul won the Saturday contest at the Conservative Political Action Conference with 31 percent backing.

WASHINGTON – The nation’s governors are on the recession’s front lines and they’re struggling to chart the road ahead. Their states are staggering from unrelenting joblessness and cut-to-the-bone budgets even as Washington reports signs of economic growth. Republican Jim Douglas of Vermont, chairman of the National Governors Association, says “the worst probably is yet to

INDIO – A demolition derby driver is recovering after being rushed to the hospital following a frightening crash. The crash happened at 3:25 p.m. Sunday afternoon. According to witnesses, the driver attempted to hit another car during an exhibition at the Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival. Instead, his car launched over the other

NEAR DESERT HOT SPRINGS – The California Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly crash that happenedSaturday nightnear Desert Hot Springs. It happenedjust before 11:30 p.m.on Dillon and Langlois Road. That’s where officers say a pickup truck heading eastbound,wastraveling at a high rate of speed, when it swerved across the westbound lanes, flipping and hitting a

WASHINGTON – The director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has died after suffering chest pains while skiing in Colorado. Sam Hamilton was 54. The 30-year veteran of the agency, who assumed its top post in September, died Saturday afternoon after being transported off the Keystone Ski Area. Joanne Richardson, Summit County coroner, says

CENTURY CITY- “The Hurt Locker” writer Mark Boal tonight won the Writers Guild Award for best original screenplay, while “Up in the Air” writers Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner won for best adapted screenplay, based on the novel by Walter Kim. The other nominees for best original screenplay were James Cameron for “Avatar,” Joel and

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Space shuttle Endeavour and its six astronauts have gotten permission to land back in Florida. Mission Control informed commander George Zamka on Sunday night that the weather has improved at Kennedy Space Center and will be acceptable for a landing. Endeavour is scheduled to touch down at 7:20 p.m. PST. At

TYLER, Texas – Federal authorities say two men have been charged with setting an east Texas church on fire and are suspected in a string of similar blazes this year. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives spokesman Tom Crowley says 19-year-old Jason Robert Bourque and 21-year-old Daniel George McAllister were charged Sunday with felony

MARJAH, Afghanistan – A NATO official in Afghanistan says coalition forces could have swept through a Taliban-dominated town “in a couple days,” but at the cost of many more lives. As it is, U.S. and Afghan troops are in their second week of fighting against an entrenched enemy in Marjah. Taliban fighters have been seen

WASHINGTON – Some Toyota dealers are rattled by the company’s recall problems. Some dealerships nearly hired the crisis public relations firm that represented socialite Paris Hilton, singer Chris Brown – and a company that California has called the state’s worst inland polluter. Toyota is running a lobbying and advertising battle to protect its name. Meanwhile,

WASHINGTON – New documents shared with congressional investigators show that Toyota officials boasted saving $100 million by successfully negotiating with the government on a limited recall over complaints of sudden acceleration. The documents were turned over to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and were obtained by The Associated Press on Sunday. In an

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration is set to release a new version of a health care overhaul bill as soon as Monday. The White House is expected to post the proposed bill on its Web site, ahead of President Barack Obama’s televised health care summit later this week. The plan will likely require most Americans

WASHINGTON – California’s Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is hitting back at members of his party for attacking President Barack Obama’s economic recovery plan. Schwarzenegger says last year’s $862 billion stimulus plan is “terrific” and has created 150,000 jobs in his state and says that Republicans who criticize the recovery measure while seeking stimulus dollars for

CATHEDRAL CITY – Two juveniles were arrested and two more are at large after surrounding a car and brandishing weapons Sunday morning. The incident, which happened on the 31900 block of Avenida Los Ninos, began at 11:15 a.m. when the victim was driving in his car and was blocked by the four teenaged suspects. The

LOS ANGELES – The Dalai Lama was in Los Angeles Saturday, where he told the Los Angeles Times he is seeing more support for autonomy for Tibet among Chinese intellectuals, although the Chinese government is still “hardened” against him. The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism arrived in Los Angeles Friday to lend his support to

VISTA SANTA ROSA – The Riverside County Fire Department is investigating a fire that burned inside an abandoned home Saturday afternoon. The fire was reported just after noon near the corner of Park Lane and Avenue 58. Fire crews reported seeing a home engulfed by flames. The fire was contained within half an hour, and

PALM DESERT -A local youth dance instructor is under investigation. Karl Green was arrested Friday at his La Quinta home. He faces several child sex charges, including unlawful intercourse and acts by force with a minor. Green has worked at several local dance studios; one of his former bosses says she’s upset, but not surprised

WASHINGTON- Former Secretary of State Alexander Haig, who served Republican presidents and ran for the office himself, has died. The Haig family says he died Saturday at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore from complications associated with an infection. He was 85. Haig’s long and decorated military service launched the Washington career for which he became

RIVERSIDE – The 10 branches of La Jolla Bank, including three in Riverside County, will reopen Monday as branches of Pasadena-based OneWest Bank after being closed by government regulators. La Jolla Bank customers will automatically become depositors of OneWest Bank and continue to be insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Depositors can access their

NEW YORK – Facebook users have been complaining about problems at the social media site. Users in the U.S. and other countries reported problems lasting at least half an hour on Saturday morning. Some could not log in, and the site was unusually slow for others. Many used Twitter to complain. Facebook, which has more