AP - Seeking a bigger say in homeland security decisions, the nation's governors are creating a new, 50-state panel to give the states a single voice on national plans to prepare for threats from terrorists and natural disasters.

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin told citizens of 'The Big Easy' city to stand up and take destiny in their own hands as hurricane season opened on Thursday and he started his second term in office.

AP - A couple accused in the death of a woman whose sexual assault and strangulation were videotaped were charged Friday with kidnapping a 5-year-old girl.

AP - Two qualifying heats, two wire-to-wire victories, two nearly identical times. It was almost like the same mule won twice. Idaho Gem, the world's first equine clone, and his brother, Idaho Star, made successful debuts Saturday in what scientists billed as the first professional competition between clones of any kind.

AP - It's convention time, do you know where your mayor is? If you live in a major American city, the answer is probably Las Vegas, this year's host of the U.S. Conference of Mayors annual meeting.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A hard-fought U.S. House election in California that could offer clues about voter sentiment before November's midterm election highlights a busy day of voting in eight states on Tuesday.

AP - Hurricanes Katrina and Rita drove an estimated 450,000 people from their communities along the Gulf Coast last year, but in the storms' wake Hispanics moved in — perhaps 100,000 or more.

TACOMA, Washington (Reuters) - A U.S. Army officer said on Wednesday that fighting in the war in Iraq would make him 'party to war crimes' and he would not go.

AP - A border inspector accused of accepting cash and a luxury vehicle from smugglers driving carloads of illegal immigrants through border crossings was arrested Thursday.

AP - A 16-year-old girl who tricked her parents into getting her a passport and then flew to the Mideast to be with a man she met on MySpace.com has returned to Michigan.

AP - Firefighters saved six homes in a northwestern Arizona community that were evacuated Saturday after an 11,000-acre wildfire came within a quarter mile of the houses.

AP - Two men drowned in Tampa Bay after they jumped into the water to save a female boater who had tumbled off their boat, authorities said.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Gay performance artist Kevin Aviance was released from the hospital on Monday after suffering a beating that rights advocates said was a reminder of the hate crimes gays still face, even in New York City.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Rep. Patrick Kennedy, a member of one of America's most famous political dynasties, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to driving under the influence of prescription drugs when he crashed his car near the U.S. Capitol last month.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Eclectic pop singer Rufus Wainwright bridged musical generations on Wednesday with a daring re-creation of Judy Garland's legendary 1961 concert at Carnegie Hall.

MIAMI (Reuters) - The Miami Heat rode a spectacular 36-point performance by guard Dwyane Wade to crush the Dallas Mavericks 98-74 and level the NBA Finals at 2-2 on Thursday.

AP - When her son was shot and killed in 2002, Sarah Dillon got a button that read "Billy Gene Dillon is a very important person" and vowed to wear it until a suspect was found. That button was still clasped above her heart Friday after Dillon learned that Washington-area sniper Lee Boyd Malvo reportedly told authorities that he and his one-time mentor were responsible for her son's death and three other unsolved shootings.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - NASA managers cleared the shuttle Discovery for launch on July 1, over the objections of the agency's top safety officer and its lead engineer, officials said on Saturday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nokia, the No. 2 U.S. mobile phone maker, said on Monday that it plans to open its first U.S. retail store in Chicago on Saturday in a bid to improve brand awareness among consumers here.

AP - With only two days remaining, the Episcopal General Convention is far from deciding whether they should bar gays from serving as bishops for now.

AP - Elk Grove, Calif., wasn't even incorporated six years ago, and now it's the fastest-growing city in America.

AP - Limiting the hours teens can drive and the number of people riding with them can reduce crash rates among young motorists by 20 percent, according to a study of drivers in Canada and Oregon.

AP - The Bush administration and The New York Times are again at odds over national security, this time with new reports of a broad government effort to track global financial transfers.

AP - Prosecutors said Friday they will seek the death penalty for a man accused of beheading his wife, then killing a woman and her 4-year-old daughter in a botched suicide-by-car accident attempt.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Aaron Sele led a seven-hit shutout and Jeff Kent slammed a two-run homer as the Los Angeles Dodgers dumped the slumping Pittsburgh Pirates 7-0 in the only National League game on Saturday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - People with long-term, low-level exposure to pesticides have a 70 percent higher incidence of Parkinson's disease than people who have not been exposed much to bug sprays, U.S. researchers reported on Monday.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Consumption of coffee, particularly the decaffeinated variety, is associated with a reduced risk of diabetes, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

AP - Federal judges stayed the executions of two convicted murderers Tuesday, only hours before the state was to administer back-to-back lethal injections on the same day.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Star Jones Reynolds, co-host of 'The View,' was barred on Wednesday from the show she helped build into a daytime television fixture a day after catching her colleagues and the network off guard by announcing plans to leave in July.

AP - A lunch date with billionaire investor Warren Buffett is getting pricier. Someone paid $620,100 in an online charity auction to dine with the Oracle of Omaha in New York. In last year's auction, the winning bid was $351,100.