Valerie Richardson

Utah steps closer to using firing squad

Utah moved closer to executing an inmate by firing squad after the state parole board refused Monday to commute the sentence of convicted murderer Ronnie Lee Gardner.

June 14, 2010

Reid, Angle depicting other as out of touch

She's billed as a nut-job, and he's portrayed as a one-man economic wrecking crew. It appears she wants to eliminate Social Security and Medicare, while he wants to tax and regulate the nation into oblivion.

June 13, 2010

Primaries engender year of the woman

If California is the bellwether state, then the rest of the nation can expect to see an army of Republican, ex-CEO women taking politics by storm.

June 9, 2010

Lincoln’s seat in play as 11 states vote on ‘Super Tuesday’

There's nothing secondary about Tuesday's primary.

June 6, 2010

Greens seeing red over new Gulf oil permit

The Obama administration ran afoul of environmentalists Wednesday by approving a new oil well in the Gulf of Mexico, even as millions of gallons of oil continue to gush from BP's Deepwater Horizon rig and the British oil giant struggled with its latest effort to cap the well.

June 2, 2010

California GOP: Conservatism, cash

In the battle between Tom Campbell and his conservative foes, score one for the foes as the Republican candidates battle to challenge Democratic stalwart Sen. Barbara Boxer in November.

May 31, 2010

GOP establishment pick falls in Idaho

This may turn out to be a great election year for Republicans, but it hasn't been a great year for the Republican establishment.

May 26, 2010

‘Tea party’ favorite surges in Nevada

The Nevada Republican primary battle to challenge Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has turned into a three-candidate race with the stunning recent surge of "tea party" favorite Sharron Angle.

May 24, 2010

Ariz. governor now targets ethnic studies

Gov. Jan Brewer, already under fire for approving the nation's toughest illegal immigration law, has again run afoul of liberal activists, signing a bill that targets ethnic studies programs in schools that critics say unfairly demean white Americans.

May 13, 2010

Arizona governor now targets ethnic studies

Arizona Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, already under fire for approving the nation's toughest illegal immigration law, has again run afoul of liberal activists, signing a bill Wednesday that targets ethnic studies programs in schools that critics say unfairly demean white Americans.

May 13, 2010

Thieves take Mojave Desert cross

Two weeks after the Supreme Court said it could stay, the Mojave Cross war memorial has been ripped out of and stolen from its rocky embankment in the California desert.

May 12, 2010

Incumbency encumbers Utah senator

Sometimes politicians just wind up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Think House Democrats running for re-election in 1994, or Senate Republicans in 2008.

May 7, 2010

Most Arizonans back new immigration law

Opponents of Arizona's tough new immigration law marked Cinco de Mayo with a flurry of protests, boycotts and threatened legal challenges, but a poll released Wednesday found that a majority of Arizonans support the measure.

May 6, 2010

‘Border hawk’: Will the new McCain fly?

Sen. John McCain of Arizona has been called many things during his lengthy political career: maverick, straight-talker, the White Tornado. But "border hawk" isn't one of them. Until now.

May 3, 2010

Three states kick-start primary season

Three battleground states that swung for candidate Barack Obama in 2008 are holding closely watched Senate primaries Tuesday that could solidify the Democratic Party's gains or contribute to a Republican rebound in 2010.

May 3, 2010

Mojave Cross can stay on display in Calif.

An 8-foot cross honoring fallen soldiers in the remote Mojave National Preserve in California can stay where it is, because the Supreme Court said Wednesday that the Constitution nowhere requires the "eradication of all religious symbols in the public realm."

April 29, 2010

EVENT: IndoPac 2026 Naval Dominance: Shipbuilding, Autonomy & C2

WATCH: Ranked choice voting is coming to D.C. — here’s how it works

Celebrating America’s 250th Honoring the milestones that got us here