TheRepublic.com - Social affairs News

The pope and the devil: Is Francis an exorcist?

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:55:11 -0400

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis' obsession with the devil took on remarkable new twists Tuesday, with a well-known exorcist insisting Francis helped "liberate" a Mexican man possessed by four different demons despite the Vatican's insistence that no such papal exorcism took place.

RI Senate approves Chafee's pick to lead EDC

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:52:58 -0400

PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island - Rhode Island's Economic Development Corp. has a new leader after the state Senate on Tuesday unanimously approved Gov. Lincoln Chafee's pick to head the agency, still reeling from its failed investment in former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling's video game company.

Teachers credited with saving students in Okla.

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:51:41 -0400

MOORE, Oklahoma - The principal's voice came on over the intercom at Plaza Towers Elementary School: A severe storm was approaching and students were to go to the cafeteria and wait for their parents to pick them up.

NC Senate budget drawn by GOP target for critics

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:51:32 -0400

RALEIGH, North Carolina - Senate Republicans pushed their state spending proposal through a pair of committees Tuesday, but not before giving Democrats and advocacy groups plenty to pick at when it comes to reshaping public school funding and raising fees.

Arias asks jury to give her life in prison

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:51:25 -0400

PHOENIX - Jodi Arias begged jurors Tuesday to give her life in prison, saying she "lacked perspective" when she told a local reporter in an interview that she preferred execution to spending the rest of her days in jail.

Brazil party challenges ruling on gay marriage

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:50:55 -0400

BRASILIA, Brazil - A conservative party is challenging a judicial ruling that requires all of Brazil's notary publics to register same-sex civil unions as marriages if couples request it.

Apple's Cook faces Senate questions on taxes

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:49:19 -0400

WASHINGTON - The Senate dragged Apple Inc., the world's most valuable company, into the debate over the U.S. tax code Tuesday, grilling CEO Tim Cook over allegations that its Irish subsidiaries help the company avoid billions in U.S. taxes.

Ala. legislators' view of session depends on party

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:47:43 -0400

MONTGOMERY, Alabama - Shortly after the Legislature's 2013 session ended, the public address system in the Senate began playing a recording of Otis Redding singing the bluesy lyric, "They call me Mr. Pitiful."

White House: Reporters shouldn't be prosecuted

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:43:39 -0400

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama believes journalists shouldn't be prosecuted for doing their jobs, the White House said Tuesday, showing solidarity with First Amendment advocates alarmed by a pair of high-profile federal probes into national security leaks.

5 things to know in Florida for May 22

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:42:09 -0400

Your daily look at news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today.

Gay Fla. teen charged for underage girlfriend

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:41:44 -0400

MIAMI - An 18-year-old Florida cheerleader is facing felony charges that she had sexual contact with her underage, 14-year-old girlfriend, leading gay rights advocates to say the teen is being unfairly targeted for a common high school romance because she's gay.

Police: Dog breeder charged with animal cruelty

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:38:52 -0400

JACKSON, Mississippi - Authorities say a Mississippi man has been charged with animal cruelty and surrendered 104 dogs, but the man denies mistreating the animals.

2 new lawsuits filed over KC priest sex abuse

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:29:38 -0400

KANSAS CITY, Missouri - Two new lawsuits have been filed against a Kansas City priest convicted of taking lewd photographs and the officials who oversaw him.

Fort Jackson commander facing adultery charges

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:27:38 -0400

WASHINGTON - The Army says the commanding general of Fort Jackson, South Carolina, has been suspended in connection with charges of adultery and involvement in a physical altercation.

Photos of Tucson shooting scene show gun, knife

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:20:34 -0400

PHOENIX - Photos taken in the aftermath of the attack that killed six people and wounded former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords show the handgun, high-capacity pistol magazines and knife that Jared Lee Loughner carried with him as he carried out the January 2011 attack.

Oklahoma schools hit by tornado had no safe rooms

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:15:57 -0400

MOORE, Oklahoma - An emergency official says Oklahoma has reinforced tornado shelters in more than 100 schools across the state, but the two that were hit by this week's storms in suburban Oklahoma City did not have them.

Egypt troops in Sinai sweep mistakenly hit funeral

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:13:38 -0400

CAIRO - Egyptian troops and police mistakenly fired on a Bedouin funeral in the Sinai Peninsula on Tuesday, security officials said, in the opening salvo of a sweep searching for security personnel kidnapped by suspected militants.

UN: Drop in Syrians reaching Jordan, unclear why

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:13:02 -0400

GENEVA - U.N. officials said Tuesday that the number of Syrian refugees arriving in Jordan has suddenly fallen from an average of 2,500 a day to fewer than 20, and they are trying to quickly figure out why.

Burlington mother unhappy son's diploma delayed

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:09:21 -0400

BURLINGTON, Iowa - A Burlington woman is disappointed her disabled son didn't receive his high school diploma with other graduates last weekend.

Senators reject new school funding formula

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:08:56 -0400

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana - Senators on Tuesday killed a $3.5 billion public school funding proposal submitted to lawmakers by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, because of concerns about proposed changes to payments for special education and gifted students.

New Egypt tax law: cuts for poor, business hikes

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:08:11 -0400

CAIRO - Egypt's president signed a new tax law Tuesday that cuts the amount paid by poorer Egyptians in the latest move aimed at reforming the country's economy.

UVM hires new provost from NY school

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:06:03 -0400

BURLINGTON, Vermont - An engineering dean at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will become the next provost and senior vice president at the University of Vermont, the school announced.

PSU costs for Sandusky scandal top $44M

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:54:41 -0400

STATE COLLEGE, Pennsylvania - The latest bill from Penn State shows the costs for legal fees, consultants and other services connected to the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal topping $44.4 million.

Gay marriage bill clears UK House of Commons

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:52:05 -0400

LONDON - Britain's House of Commons has passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in England and Wales.

Indian guest workers sue company in Miss., Texas

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:36:07 -0400

GULFPORT, Mississippi - Dozens of Indian guest workers are suing an Alabama-based marine and fabrication company, claiming it financially exploited them and forced them to live in squalid conditions after bringing them to work at Gulf Coast shipyards after Hurricane Katrina.