Amid conflicting and heated rhetoric, a political pragmatism began to emerge Sunday as senators prepared for a debate on a sweeping Democratic health care bill.

While Senate Democrats cleared a major hurdle on health care reform, it was hardly a unified party behind the bill.

Rep. Patrick Kennedy asked by bishop to stop taking Communion over his support for abortion rights.

The United States will propose an emissions reduction target at a U.N. climate change summit in Copenhagen, a senior administration official said.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is drawing criticism for receiving Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in his first state visit to Brazil.

As an ethics investigation continues, Representative Charles B. Rangel’s once-considerable clout has diminished, and signs of stress are starting to show.

Representative Patrick J. Kennedy said he was instructed to refrain from communion because of his stance on abortion.

The plan will enlist companies and nonprofits, including “Sesame Street,” to spend money and time to encourage students to pursue science, technology, engineering and math.

A primer on the military utility of some of the force options before President Obama to bolster the 68,000 American troops already in Afghanistan.

Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani’s case in Manhattan could be important in a future trial of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, accused of planning 9/11.

Whether benefits from the president’s policies will be realized in time for the elections in 11 months is a big question.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says the small amount of radiation detected at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant is not significant.

The Martin Luther King Jr. hospital is entering a public-private partnership for more cost-effective operations.

In August, Southern farmers thought they had a bumper crop — the best in years. Then heavy rains in September and October spoiled the harvest.

Professor Hymes was a prominent anthropologist, linguist and folklorist whose work mined the rich, often overlooked territory where language and culture intersect.

Officials at the University of California, Santa Cruz say dozens of protesters who were occupying the university’s main administrative building have ended their protest.

Two centrist senators, Ben Nelson and Joseph I. Lieberman, said that they were opposed to the bill as it is currently written.

Investment funds are buying mortgages, trimming some of them to the benefit of homeowners, and shifting any risk to the federal government.

On her book tour, Sarah Palin has skipped the big cities authors usually visit in favor of smaller places where she and Senator John McCain performed well in 2008.

In advance of next year’s re-election bid, Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas sided with fellow Democrats for one vote, but was cautious about the overall bill.