National News

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER, Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — A man convicted of leading an Islamic State-inspired plot to behead a conservative blogger who upset muslims when she organized a prophet muhammad cartoon contest was sentenced on Tuesday to 28 years in prison. David Wright sobbed as he apologized to blogger Pamela Geller, law enforcement and…

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER and MARCY GORDON, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Gleeful Republicans on Tuesday muscled the most sweeping rewrite of the nation's tax laws in more than three decades through the House. House Speaker Paul Ryan dismissed criticism of the widely unpopular package and insisted "results are what's going to make this popular." The vote,…

By RACHEL LA CORTE, GILLIAN FLACCUS and MICHAEL SISAK, Associated Press DUPONT, Wash. (AP) — Federal officials confirmed an Amtrak train was hurtling 50 mph over the speed limit when it careened off an overpass south of Seattle, spilling cars onto the highway below and killing at least three people. Bella Dinh-Zarr, a National Transportation Safety…

By JONATHAN LEMIRE, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Sen. John McCain on Monday expressed thanks for the overwhelming support as he battles brain cancer, saying he is feeling well and looks forward to being back on the job in January. The 81-year senator returned home to Arizona after being treated for a viral infection at…

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr., Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — While power has been restored to the world's busiest airport, the travel woes will linger for days. Thousands of people were stranded Monday morning at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, where more than 1,000 flights were grounded just days before the start of the Christmas travel rush. A…