WASHINGTON - When it comes to budgets, balance is in the eye of the congressional beholder. To House Republicans, it means a balanced budget in a decade, achieved by $4.6 trillion in spending cuts and without any tax increases.

WASHINGTON - Turning the page on years of war and recession, President Barack Obama summoned a divided nation Monday to act with "passion and dedication" to broaden equality and prosperity at home, nurture democracy around the world and combat global warming as he embarked on a second term before a vast and cheering crowd that spilled down the historic National Mall.

WASHINGTON - Uncompromising and politically emboldened, President Barack Obama urged a deeply divided Congress Tuesday night to embrace his plans to use government money to create jobs and strengthen the nation's middle class.

I have been a Registered Nurse for 35 years. I have learned to recognize subtle changes in my patients before a catastrophic health condition occurs. That is one example of what nurses do.

I think I've mentioned that I am pretty apolitical. The first time I voted I was eager to be connected with a political party. I was 21 and a couple of months (yes, I had to be 21 to vote). The candidate stood for everything my very young persona understood. And he won.

A natural gas pipeline from the North Slope to serve Alaskans and Lower 48 markets is possible, but to turn that into probable will take the right market conditions, investors willing to risk tens of billions of dollars and state involvement.

The Declaration of Independence of 1776 clearly states that "governments are instituted among men deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." In essence this means we the people give our representatives power to run our government.

WASHINGTON -- The United States will watch closely to see what Iraq, Iran and North Korea do next, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld warned Wednesday, a day after President Bush singled them out as part of a dangerous ''Axis of evil.''

Sixteen-year-old Maya Chay and her sister Freya were too young to cast their vote at the local Democratic caucus on Tuesday, but that didn't keep them from choosing a candidate to support and campaign for.

In his State of the Union address last week, President Barack Obama delivered one message that we believe most Alaskans can agree on -- our elected representatives...