Top Stories - AP

WASHINGTON - Congress approved mortgage relief for 400,000 struggling homeowners Saturday as part of an election-year housing plan that also aims to calm jittery financial markets and bolster the sagging economy. President Bush said he would sign it promptly, despite reservations.

COTTONWOOD, Ariz. - Republican presidential candidate John McCain is pledging support for a proposal to expand protections for disabled people under an 18-year-old landmark civil rights law.

BAGHDAD - The United States is now winning the war that two years ago seemed lost. Limited, sometimes sharp fighting and periodic terrorist bombings in Iraq are likely to continue, possibly for years. But the Iraqi government and the U.S. now are able to shift focus from mainly combat to mainly building the fragile beginnings of peace — a transition that many found almost unthinkable as recently as one year ago.

WASHINGTON - Republican John McCain's campaign on Saturday sharply criticized Democratic rival Barack Obama for canceling a visit to wounded troops in Germany, contending Obama chose foreign leaders and cheering Europeans over "injured American heroes."

NEW YORK - The popular urban street pastime called double dutch, in which competitors jump between two ropes twirled eggbeater-style, is getting more recognition, becoming an officially sanctioned sport in New York City high schools.

NEW ORLEANS - A large fuel spill that has shut down 100 miles of the Mississippi River for four days has had a limited impact on wildlife so far, but officials are worried about fragile wetlands downstream.

PHOENIX - Customers of two banks closed by federal regulators were assured that every penny of their money was protected, preventing lines of angry accountholders from forming Saturday.

SAN DIEGO - "Terminator Salvation" won't hit theaters until next summer, but thousands of fans got an early look at a portion of the film Saturday.

GREEN BAY, Wis. - Even Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy isn't quite sure how the Brett Favre unretirement saga will play out over the next few days. But he does know this much: Favre or no Favre, Aaron Rodgers is his starting quarterback.

BRECKSVILLE, Ohio - It was Roto-Rooter to the rescue for an unlucky black kitten that got stuck in an outdoor drainage pipe near Cleveland.

TEHRAN, Iran - Iran's president said Saturday his country now possesses 6,000 centrifuges, a significant increase in its nuclear program that is certain to further rankle the United States and others who fear Tehran is intent on developing weapons.

LOS ANGELES - Aerospace engineers have been holed up in a Mojave Desert hangar for four years, fashioning a commercial spaceship to loft rich tourists some 62 miles above Earth. Now the wraps come partially off the top-secret project.

LONDON - Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama brushed aside Republican criticism of his overseas trip on Saturday and stood outside the famed 10 Downing Street to say that both President Bush and Sen. John McCain were moving his way on the key issues of Iraq and Afghanistan.

CHICAGO - Jeremy Hermida hit two homers and scored the decisive run on Jorge Cantu's 12th-inning double to lead the Florida Marlins over the Chicago Cubs 3-2 on Saturday.

WASHINGTON - Sen. Jack Reed says America can't afford the Republican strategy of continuing to write blank checks for the Iraq war.

PARIS - Jazz saxophonist Johnny Griffin, who played with America's greats from Thelonious Monk to Lionel Hampton but chose to live in France, died hours before a concert, his agent said Saturday. He was 80.

TORONTO - Alex Rios homered twice, David Purcey earned his first major league win and the streaking Toronto Blue Jays beat Seattle 8-3 on Saturday, handing the Mariners their seventh consecutive defeat.

NEWARK, Texas - Here in the gentle hills of north Texas, televangelist Kenneth Copeland has built a religious empire teaching that God wants his followers to prosper.

WASHINGTON - Republicans on Saturday blocked the Senate from considering a bill next week that would nearly double federal aid to help the poor pay heating and air-conditioning bills.

CLEVELAND - "The Price Is Right" host Drew Carey is ready to showcase his Shakespearean side in a concert appearance with the Cleveland Orchestra.

INDIANAPOLIS - Mark Martin picked Indianapolis Motor Speedway as the spot he plans to end his 97-race winless streak.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. - To police, Steven Hirschfield was violent and out of control when he clambered aboard a patrol boat sent to rescue him in the San Diego Bay during a gay pride party.

WASHINGTON - President Bush said Saturday he's eager to sign legislation that triples money to fight AIDS and other diseases around the world — an initiative that has won him praise from some of his harshest critics.

SAN FRANCISCO - A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by conservative radio talk show host Michael Savage against an Islamic civil rights group over its use of a portion of his show in which he called the Quran a "book of hate."

MANILA, Philippines - Australian investigators on Saturday began examining a Qantas jumbo jet which had to make an emergency landing after a large hole opened on its fuselage, a Philippine aviation official said.

WASHINGTON - Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.'s $3.3 billion buyout of rival XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. will mean millions of subscribers will be able to receive programming from both services, while executives say it will create huge cost savings for the industry.

BEIJING - Polluted Beijing is usually shrouded in gray, so for the Olympics, Beijing city officials have tried to add some color.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - California on Friday became the first state to ban trans fats from restaurant food, following several cities and major fast-food chains in erasing the notorious artery-clogger from menus.