Associated Press

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FILE - In this Aug. 29, 2012, file photo, New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez addresses the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla. A political generation ago, the West signaled the nation's rightward swing -- from the emergence of Ronald Reagan to the success of tax limitation ballot measures in California and Colorado. But now the fabled expanse of jagged peaks, arid deserts and emerald coastlines is trending in a different direction. From Washington state -- where voters in November legalized marijuana and upheld the legality of gay marriage -- to New Mexico, once a hotly-contested swing state that Republicans ceded to Democrats in the presidential campaign, the west has become solidly Democratic terrain. The coastal base states of Washington, Oregon and California continue to move further to left, while the hotly-contested swing states east of the Sierra Nevada are trending more and more toward the Democrats. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

West continues to drift into Democrats’ column

Associated Press · January 26, 2013 5:00 am

Egyptians riot after soccer fans sentenced to die

Egyptians riot after soccer fans sentenced to die

Associated Press · January 26, 2013 5:00 am

Malia Obama, right, and Sasha Obama look on from the presidential box during the Inaugural parade, Monday, Jan. 21, 2013, in Washington. Thousands marched during the 57th Presidential Inauguration parade after the ceremonial swearing-in of President Barack Obama. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

What will Michelle Obama do with 4 more years?

Associated Press · January 26, 2013 5:00 am

Iowa’s Tom Harkin won’t seek 6th Senate term

Iowa’s Tom Harkin won’t seek 6th Senate term

Associated Press, Thomas Beaumont · January 26, 2013 5:00 am

White House press secretary Jay Carney gesture as he speaks during his daily news briefing at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

White House, senators launching immigration push

Associated Press · January 26, 2013 5:00 am

Denis McDonough no stranger to Obama inner circle

Denis McDonough no stranger to Obama inner circle

Associated Press · January 25, 2013 5:00 am

Bill filed in Mississippi seeks to nullify federal laws

Bill filed in Mississippi seeks to nullify federal laws

Associated Press · January 25, 2013 5:00 am

Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia testifies on a tuition bill before the Senate Education committee at the Capitol in Denver on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013. One of the sponsors of the bill that would give illegal immigrants in Colorado in-state tuition rates Angela Giron, D-Pueblo listens at left. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)

Colorado immigrant tuition bill advances

Associated Press · January 25, 2013 5:00 am

Kovalchuk’s OT goal gives Devils win over Capitals

Associated Press · January 25, 2013 5:00 am

Kansas state Sen. Julia Lynn, right, an Olathe Republican, asks questions about a proposed amendment to the state constitution to change how appellate court members are selected, as Sen. David Haley, a Kansas City Democrat, watches during a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting, Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, at the Statehouse in Topeka, Kan. The committee has endorsed the measure, with Lynn supporting it and Haley opposing it. (AP Photo/John Hanna)

Kansas Senate panel backs judicial selection change

Associated Press · January 25, 2013 5:00 am

Fox News, Sarah Palin cutting ties

Fox News, Sarah Palin cutting ties

Associated Press · January 25, 2013 5:00 am

Richard Cordray stands left as President Barack Obama announces in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, that he will re-nominate Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a role that he has held for the last year under a recess appointment, and nominate Mary Joe White to lead the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC). (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Court: Obama NLRB appointments are unconstitutional

Associated Press · January 25, 2013 5:00 am