Supporters listen to Barack Obama in Iowa. (Jae C. Hong/AP)
The Deciding Votes
Barack Obama and John McCain are courting a new electorate in unexpected battleground states as they vie for the White House.
ECONOMY
Customers line up in front of an IndyMac Bank branch in Santa Monica, California, July 14, 2008. Federally-seized IndyMac Bank was due to reopen Monday after suffering one of the biggest bank closures in US history, as the troubled US mortgage industry struggles to stem further meltdown.The regulatory Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) announced Friday it had placed the California-based bank, worth an estimated 32 billion dollars, under the control of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The mortgage lender, which will reopen as IndyMac Federal Bank, marked the largest bank failure in a year of mortgage and foreclosure crisis highlighted by a surge in defaults and a plunge in housing prices which are rippling through the US economy. (Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images)
Californians Report Economic Pain
In a poll, 63 percent say they are financially worse off than they were a year ago.
ENERGY POLICY
Wind turbines churn at Invenergy's Buffalo Mountain windfarm near Oak Ridge, TN. (Charlie Archambault for USN&WR)
Congress Dickers Over Wind-Energy Tax Breaks
Meanwhile, the industry holds its breath to see if a deal can be worked out.
OIL
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) speaks at a campaign rally at the Lansing Center August 4, 2008 in Lansing, Michigan. Obama spoke about energy and the economy. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
Obama Open to Offshore Drilling
The candidate would consider lifting the moratorium to help Congress pass energy bill.
FOOD
An Afghan villager checks the quality of flour which was donated by the World Food Program during a flour distribution event in Kabul. (Musadeq Sadeq/AP)
Fuel Costs Cut Deeply Into Food Aid
Shipping costs rise 30 percent, adding to inefficiencies.
HOMELAND SECURITY
Bill Hogan in the Judiciary Committee hearing room and hallway outside before the hearing on "Laptop searches and other violations of Privacy faced by Americans Returning from Overseas Travel". (Charlie Archambault for USN&WR)
Seizing Laptops and Cameras Without Cause
A customs practice creates a legal backlash.
FOOD SAFETY
South Korean protesters march with a mockup symbolizing "US mad-cow" during a rally against US beef imports in Seoul on June 7, 2008. South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak insisted he would not re-negotiate a deal on US beef imports that has triggered the biggest crisis yet to face his young administration. (Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images)
South Koreans Worry About U.S. Beef
They distrust U.S. safety standards—and they eat more of the cow.
SPECIAL REPORT: THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
A painting by John Trumbull portraying the Battle of Bunker's Hill during the Revolutionary War. (John Trumbull, "The Battle of Bunker's Hill", Yale University Art Gallery/Art Resource)
Secrets of A Revolution
New research shines a fresh light on the war for independence and the men who fought it.
HISTORY
Photos and documents donated by John Milan Palik to the veterans oral history project at the Library of Congress . (Jeffrey MacMillan for USN&WR)
Why Don't More Colleges Teach Military History?
Despite its enduring public appeal, the subject gets little respect on campus.
HURRICANES
Cement foundations and empty streets are all that remains in parts of the once bustling Lower Ninth Ward.
A Quiet Progress in New Orleans
Three years after Katrina, residents are finding new reasons to hope.
VOTERS
Rick Shenkman, author of "Just How Stupid Are We?" (Scott Rensberger)
The Ignorant American Voter
Historian Rick Shenkman laments the breed in his new book, "Just How Stupid Are We?"
IMMIGRATION
Scenes from one of the marches, in Los Angeles, held across the nation, demonstrating for immigration reform. People stayed home from their jobs, students left school and stores closed for the day, to show the impact of immigrants on American society. (David Butow/Redux for USN&WR)
Mexican Immigrants Slow to Fit In
Why Mexicans assimilate at rates lower than other newcomers.
RELIGION
Scenes from the offices of Dr. James Dobson, a child psychologist and founder of Focus on the Family, an evangelical organization aimed at reversing such legalizations as abortion and same-sex marriage by influencing judicial appointments and supporting conservative candidates. Worshippers gather for a service. (Kevin Horan/Aurora for USN&WR)
Evangelical Manifesto: What It Means
An important new statement says theological principles should trump policy preferences.
