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Obama cancels trip as health bill's rescue progresses (AP)

AP - President Barack Obama delayed a scheduled Asian trip on Friday as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi forecast final passage of sweeping health care legislation in days.

43 die in week's fourth major attack in Pakistan (AP)

AP - A pair of suicide bombers targeting army vehicles detonated explosives within seconds of each other Friday, killing at least 43 people in this eastern city and wounding about 100, police said. It was the fourth major attack in Pakistan this week, indicating Islamist militants are stepping up violence after a period of relative calm.

Iraqi PM starts laying groundwork for new govt (AP)

AP - The Iraqi prime minister's bloc said Friday it has started laying the groundwork to form a coalition government, signaling growing confidence after preliminary election results showed it winning in at least three provinces in the southern Shiite heartland.

A happy surprise in retail sales figures (AP)

AP - Retail sales posted a surprising increase in February as consumers did not let major snowstorms stop them from racking up purchases. The advance, the biggest since November, provided hope that the recovery from the Great Recession is gaining momentum.

Asia trip delayed to keep heat on health care (AP)

AP - President Barack Obama has delayed his visit to Asia, his first international trip of the year, to focus on the push to salvage health care legislation after a year of contentious debate.

Experts say US doctors overtesting, overtreating (AP)

AP - Too much cancer screening, too many heart tests, too many cesarean sections. A spate of recent reports suggest that too many Americans — maybe even President Barack Obama — are being overtreated.

Lesbian teen sues to force school to hold prom (AP)

AP - A lesbian student who wanted to take her girlfriend to her senior prom is asking a federal judge to force her Mississippi school district to reinstate the dance it canceled.

Court OKs TV rules opposed by Comcast, Cablevision (AP)
AP - A federal court Friday upheld regulations that require cable TV companies to make sports programming and other channels they own available on equal terms to rival TV providers such as satellite companies.

Michael Jackson's custom-made furniture for sale (AP)

AP - The 22 pieces of custom-made furniture Michael Jackson commissioned for his London home are going on the auction block.

Vonn wins 3rd straight overall World Cup title (AP)

AP - Standing atop the mountain, Lindsey Vonn already knew she was the best skier in the world for the third year in a row.

Iraq election is tight, results are slow (Reuters)

Reuters - Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki had a narrow lead over rival Shi'ites, partial results in Iraq's tight election race showed on Friday, but a secularist challenger remained far ahead in minority Sunni areas.

Obama delays Pacific trip for healthcare (Reuters)

Reuters - President Barack Obama is delaying his trip to Indonesia and Australia next week to stay home and focus on his final push for a healthcare overhaul, White House officials said on Friday.

Obama to tap Yellen for Fed vice chair: source (Reuters)

Reuters - President Barack Obama plans to nominate San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Janet Yellen, a respected policy dove, to be vice chairman of the central bank, a source familiar with the process said on Thursday.

Leave yuan to us, China tells Obama (Reuters)

Reuters - The United States should not make a political issue out of the yuan, a Chinese central banker said on Friday, as the two countries lurched toward a potential bust-up over Beijing's currency regime.

Confrontations, anger in Jerusalem over building (Reuters)

Reuters - Israeli forces sealed off the West Bank and massed riot squads around Jerusalem's Old City and Arab neighborhoods during Muslim weekly prayers on Friday, facing down Palestinian anger over Jewish settlement expansion.