With just one day of trading left in 2011, the Dow Jones industrial average closed up 136 points, or 1.1 percent, at 12,287 Thursday.

Texas Rep. Ron Paul received a welcome befitting a man with a suddenly serious chance to win next week's Iowa Republican presidential caucuses as he arrived in the state Wednesday for a final burst of campaigning.

The U.S. strongly warned Iran on Wednesday against closing a vital Persian Gulf waterway that carries one-sixth of the world's oil supply.

U.S. officials say the Obama administration is poised to announce the sale of nearly $30 billion worth of F-15 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia.

Changes related to abortion, immigration and protecting kids are among state laws taking effect in 2012:

A new law could provide financial relief to thousands of Gulf Coast residents who received debt notices from the Federal Emergency Management agency six years after Hurricane Katrina.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 140 points, or 1.1 percent, to 12,151.

Mothers from around the country plan to support a mom who says she was harassed at a Target store for breastfeeding.

Republican Rick Perry is shifting his opposition to abortion, saying he opposes it even after rape or incest.

The Dow Jones industrial average Tuesday edged up 3 points at 12,291 at the close.

A babysitter confessed that he bludgeoned a 9-year-old Indiana girl to death then dismembered her, hiding her head, hands and feet at his home and dumping the rest of her remains nearby. The babysitter has a criminal record in Florida.

The stakes are sky-high in the race for the White House and some people are eager to place money on the winner-- and do it legally -- on the floor of the futures market.

Talk about buried treasure a scuba diver in Florida found what appears to be an in tact World War II-era plane on the ocean floor!

Much of the Civil War has been told primarily through the eyes of battlefield and political leaders, but new documents are offering insights from soldiers, their spouses and African-Americans.

IBM found that online shopping jumped 16.4 percent on Christmas Day over last year, and the dollar amount of those purchases that were made using mobile devices leaped 172.9 percent.

Drug companies are working to develop a pure, more powerful version of the nation's second most-abused medicine, which has addiction experts worried that it could spur a new wave of abuse.

For many in Russia, it's a case of deja vu. The discontent today mirrors the unhappiness of two decades ago. That's when public protests over three days brought down the Soviet Union and set a new course for the country.

State legislators will examine several crime-related bills in the upcoming legislative session that could significantly affect how justice is administered in Florida.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- One ticket matched all six Florida Lotto numbers to win a jackpot worth $50 million, lottery officials said Sunday.

Barely beating Santa's sleigh, Congress delivered a last-minute holiday tax-cut extension to 160 million American wage-earners on Friday.

The Justice Department on Friday rejected South Carolina's law requiring voters to show photo identification at the polls, saying it makes it harder for minorities to cast ballots.

Vice President Joe Biden unleashed a biting critique of Mitt Romney's policies Friday and the Republican came swiftly back at him -- a full-contact preview of what the general election might look like should Romney win the GOP nomination.

The Dow finished up 124 points, or 1 percent, at 12,294.

Many lawmakers stepping carefully around redistricting.

Former presidential candidate John Edwards says he has been diagnosed with a medical condition that would make it difficult for him to attend his approaching criminal trial.