Ever since Richard Nixon's 1973 promise to attain energy independence, successive U.S. presidents all have pledged the same goal, even as foreign supplies composed a larger and larger share of the U.S. energy mix. Now, almost 40 years later, a measure of independence is within reach. But as this booming mountain town in northeastern Pennsylvania shows, the quest for independence involves both ...

Protests against Wall Street entered their 18th day Tuesday as demonstrators across the country show their anger over the wobbly economy and what they see as corporate greed by marching on Federal Reserve banks and camping out in parks from Los Angeles to Portland, Maine.Demonstrations are expected

For the dozen lawmakers tasked with producing a deficit-cutting plan, the threatened "doomsday" defense cuts hit close to home.The six Republicans and six Democrats represent states where the biggest military contractors - Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics Corp., Raytheon Co. and Boeing Co. - build missiles, aircraft, jet fighters and tanks while employing tens of thousands of workers.The potentia...

The United States has never defaulted on its debt and Democrats and Republicans say they don't want it to happen now. But with partisan acrimony running at fever pitch, and Democrats and Republicans so far apart on how to tame the deficit, the unthinkable is suddenly being pondered.The government now borrows about 42 cents of every dollar it spends. Imagine that one day soon, the borrowing slams u...

Getting people to go green is a matter of education and economic incentives, according to a panel of U.S. and U.K. experts speaking in Columbia on Friday.U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin and British energy minister Gregory Barker took part in the discussion at the University of South Carolina's Darla Moore School of Business.Barker, a leader in U.K. green initiatives that in...

President Barack Obama made a renewed push for a long-stalled climate and energy bill Tuesday, urging lawmakers at a White House meeting to pass a comprehensive bill this year.Fourteen senators from both parties - including several who remain undecided on the climate bill - met for more than an hour with Obama, four Cabinet members and White House energy adviser Carol Browner.White House spokesman...