by Paul J. WeberAssociated Press Writer BRYAN, Texas (AP) — Adam Lanza's mother was among the tens of millions of U.S. gun owners. She legally had a .223-caliber Bushmaster rifle and a pair of handguns, which her 20-year-old son used to kill 20 children and six adults in 10 minutes inside a Connecticut school. GUN LOVER-- In this Dec. 19 photo, gun store owner Dave Burdett talks about gun rights as he displays a hand gun in his store in College Station, Texas. Burdett, who owns an outdoors and adventure shop across the street from the sprawling Texas A&M University campus in College Station, says his affinity for guns is rooted in history, not sport. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan)
by Kevin Freking WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration's chief environmental watchdog, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, is stepping down after a nearly four-year tenure marked by high-profile brawls over global warming pollution, the Keystone XL oil pipeline, new controls on coal-fired plants and several other hot-button issues that affect the nation's economy and people's health. FIRST BLACK EPA CHIEF-- This photo April 17, 2012 photo shows Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson during an interview with The Associated Press at EPA Headquarters in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — President Barack Obama has been named Time magazine's "Person of the Year" for 2012. "We are in the midst of historic cultural and demographic changes, and Obama is both the symbol and in some ways the architect of this new America," Time Editor Rick Stengel told NBC's "Today" show, where he announced the selection on Wednesday. PERSON OF THE YEAR--In this image released Dec. 19, in New York by Time Inc., President Barack Obama is Time Magazine's Person of the Year. (AP Photo/Time Magazine) The short list for the honor included Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenager who was shot in the head for advocating for girls' education, as well as Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Italian physicist Fabiola Giannati.
(Target Market News)--At a recent press briefing, the NAACP, Latino Decisions, and pollsters at Silas Lee and Associates presented information from their exclusive polling data during the Nov. 6th Presidential election. The findings pointed out the significant -- and underreported -- role that African-Americans played in Barack Obama being elected to a second term. BEN JEALOUS "This data underscores the decisive role [African-Americans] played in key battleground states," said Benjamin Todd Jealous, President & CEO of the NAACP. "It reveals opportunities for the GOP to improve its relationship with our community, and suggests the Democratic Party should not assume it will see the 2008 and 2012 levels of Black turnout in 2016."
by Seanna Adcox Associated Press Writer COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Gov. Nikki Haley appointed Rep. Tim Scott to the U.S. Senate on Monday, making him the South's first Black Republican senator since Reconstruction in a state whose politics is steeped in the history of slavery and Civil War. HISTORIC APPOINTMENT--United States Rep. Tim Scott, left, speaks during a news conference as South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley looks on at the Statehouse on Monday, Dec. 17, 2012, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Rainier Ehrhardt) "It speaks to the evolution of South Carolina and our nation," Scott, 47, said of his appointment to fill the seat vacated by Sen. Jim DeMint, a conservative who reigned his post with four years left in his second term to head a right-leaning think tank.
Atlanta business, government and civil rights leaders remember civil rights icon by Dion Rabouin Atlanta Daily World (Real Times News Service)--When Jesse Hill, Jr. the retired CEO of the Atlanta Life Insurance Co. and a legendary civil rights activist, passed away yesterday at the age of 86 the city of Atlanta mourned him. JESSE HILL JR. Leaders in civil rights, business and local as well as state government all had their lives impacted by the late business executive and community leader.
