Cheryl K. Chumley

Obama cuts short four-nation trip to Asia to deal with shutdown

President Obama is cutting short his scheduled four-nation trip to Asia due to the government shutdown, the White House said Wednesday.

October 2, 2013

Jacksonville airport reopens after bomb squad clears takeoffs

Jacksonville International Airport in Florida was back in full swing on Wednesday, after police found two suspicious packages, evacuated the airport and called in the bomb squad to deactivate what they described as a “destructive” device.

October 2, 2013

Jellyfish wave shuts down one of the world’s largest nuclear reactors in Sweden

A massive wave of jellyfish has shut down one of the world's largest nuclear reactors, located in southeastern Sweden, and marine biologists are warning of more of the same.

October 2, 2013

Nancy Pelosi raises ghost of George Washington to condemn GOP

Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, visibly angry with Republicans for standing fast on their opposition to Obamacare and forcing the Democrat-controlled Senate to enter government shutdown mode on Tuesday, pulled out a George Washington paraphrase on Tuesday to lambaste the GOP.

October 1, 2013

Barilla pasta king says sorry — again — for gay comments

The chairman of the Barilla Group, under fire for saying his business ads would never feature gay couples, issued first an apology, then another apology, and now says he will meet with leading same-sex groups to gain some sensitivity and awareness of the issues they confront.

October 1, 2013

Piers Morgan’s gig to end? CNN ‘actively looking for a replacement’

An Internet site that reports on issues that emanate from within America’s news rooms said CNN’s Piers Morgan is on the out.

October 1, 2013

Hollywood star Rob Schneider turns Republican, citing Democratic ‘disaster’

Hollywood television and movie comedy star Rob Schneider, 50, said he's been a lifelong Democrat but can't take it any longer. He's moved into the GOP camp and announced a switch to the Republican Party.

October 1, 2013

Egyptian activist with anti-Israel posts poised for human rights prize

An Egyptian activist with pro-Palestinian tendencies and a past that includes social media attacks on Israel is one of three finalists for an elite human rights award, the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.

October 1, 2013

FAA furloughs 3,000 air safety inspectors as shutdown kicks in

The Federal Aviation Administration has announced the furloughing of almost 3,000 air safety inspectors as part of the government shutdown.

October 1, 2013

Justice Antonin Scalia: Judges are not ‘moral philosophers’

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said judges are much too activist, are deviating from their rightful roles and are spending too much time arbitrating moral issues — such as gay marriage.

October 1, 2013

Colorado rock slide kills 5, injures 1

Emergency responders on Tuesday returned to the site of a devastating rock slide on a popular Colorado mountain to recover the bodies of five hikers who were killed. A sixth hiker, a girl aged 13, was pulled from the rubble hours earlier, transported for treatment of various injuries.

October 1, 2013

Ron Binz, Obama’s energy nominee, withdraws under pressure

President Obama's nomination to lead the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced he was stepping aside on Tuesday, on the heels of concerted pressure from the coal industry and a widespread reluctance in the Senate to take on the confirmation battle.

October 1, 2013

Obama now says Obamacare will bring months of ‘glitches’

President Obama said in comments broadcast Tuesday, on the cusp of enrollment in Obamacare's exchanges, that of course there will be "glitches" in the implementation of the health reform — months of glitches, he added.

October 1, 2013

Fast and Furious lawsuit can proceed, judge tells Obama administration

A federal judge ruled Monday evening that the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee could indeed proceed with a lawsuit against the Justice Department to access certain Fast and Furious documents.

October 1, 2013

Japan’s budget-conscious send dead into space, as funeral costs hits $27K

Talk about a send-off. With burial costs averaging almost $30,000, Japan’s budget-conscious and cash-strapped are turning to space as a funeral option for their loved ones.

October 1, 2013

Angry Nigerian students trash embassy in Russia; 16 arrested

Sixteen Nigerian students have been arrested by police in Moscow, accused of trashing the inside of their country's embassy and smashing furniture when they realized that Russia wasn't paying their grants.

October 1, 2013

Berkeley University evacuated as explosion injures several people

Investigators on Tuesday were still trying to pinpoint the exact cause of an explosion at University of California at Berkeley that injured several and sent the campus into evacuation mode.

October 1, 2013

Mount Rushmore to stay open despite government shutdown, S.D. governor says

Mount Rushmore will remain open to tourists and visitors, despite the U.S. government shutdown, the governor of South Dakota promised.

October 1, 2013

China ‘shocked’ as embassy in Syria hit by mortar; 1 hurt

Chinese authorities reported Tuesday that a mortar shell landed inside its embassy in Damascus, leaving one person with injuries and causing slight damage to the building.

October 1, 2013

Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro expels U.S. diplomats: ‘Yankees go home’

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, in a fiery and dramatic television speech broadcast Monday, accused U.S. diplomats of "acts of sabotage" and ordered them to leave the country.

October 1, 2013