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Mohamed ElBaradei has dropped out of the running as a candidate in the Egyptian presidential race. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former head of the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency announced his decision Saturday. "My conscience does not permit me to run for the presidency or any other official position unless it is within a democratic framework," ElBaradei said in a statement reported by the Los Angeles Times, adding that the ruling military council still had too much control over Egypt. The council, which in the past has said it will step aside when a new president is...

I’m not talking about resignation, or just refusing to offer any proposals until after the next election. What if Obama simply decided not to run for a second term as President? The thought occurred to me after reading Peggy Noonan’s piece this week for the Wall Street Journal, which argues that Obama has already quit in a practical sense: The phrase of the day is “new lows.” It blares from every screen. The number of Americans satisfied with the ways things are going hits new lows—11%. President Obama’s popularity: new lows. The Dow Jones Industrial Average this year: new lows....

The United States is beset by violence, racism and torture and has no authority to condemn other governments' human rights problems, China said on Sunday, countering U.S. criticism of Beijing's crackdown.(snip)Chinese artist Ai Weiwei is the most prominent of the activists to be detained by police or held in secretive custody in the latest crackdown. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday she was "deeply concerned" about it, and cited "negative trends" including Ai's detention.

TUCSON, Ariz. – A veteran firefighter refused to respond to last month's deadly shooting spree that left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords wounded because he had different political views than his colleagues and "did not want to be part of it," according to internal city memos. Mark Ekstrum's insubordination may have delayed his unit's response because firefighters had to stop at another station to pick up a replacement for him, the Arizona Daily Star reported. While the crew was not among the first called to the supermarket where six people were killed and 13 others wounded, a memo from Ekstrum's supervisor said...

Californians will welcome 725 new laws on Jan. 1. Here's a glance at some of the laws taking effect when you ring in the new year: AB 119 prevents insurance companies from charging different rates for men and women for identical coverage. SB 782 prevents landlords from evicting tenants who are victims of domestic or sexual abuse or stalking. AB 1844—informally known as Chelsea's Law and authored by local Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher—will increase penalties, parole provisions and oversight of sex offenders, including a "one-strike, life-without-parole penalty" for some.  AB 1871 allows people to lease out their cars when they...