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Articles written by Jim Abrams


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  • Congress closing in on a deal to avert US default

    JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press

    WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate plunged today into what many lawmakers and the White House — and millions of Americans coast to coast — hoped would be an all-but-decisive last-minute effort to raise the nation's debt ceiling and defuse a crisis that still could lead to an unprecedented government default. As senators began debate in a rare Sunday session — just hours after Saturday night's concluded — Democratic leader Harry Reid said he was "cautiously optimistic" agreement could be reached. Republican leader Mitch McConnell...

  • House rejects balanced budget proposal

    JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press

    WASHINGTON — The House has rejected a proposed constitutional amendment that would have forced Congress to balance its budget every year as a way to reverse years of deficit spending. AP Photo/Harry Hamburg Rep. Nan Hayworth, R-N.Y., center, accompanied by, from left, Rep. Todd Rokita, R-Ind., Rep. Austin Scott, R-G., and Rep. Rick Berg, R-N.D., shows a photo of her children, Will and Jack, during a House Republican freshmen news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday to discuss a Balanced Budget Amendment. A m...

  • Congress moves to end ban on gays in military

    JIM ABRAMS Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON

    Congress has taken two big steps toward ending the "don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military. I n q u i c k s u c c e s s i o n Thursday, the Senate Armed Services Committee and the full House approved measures to repeal the 1993 law that allows gay people to serve in the armed services only if they hide their sexual orientation. The votes were a victory for President Barack Obama, who has actively supported ending the policy, and for gay rights groups who have made repealing the ban...