iraq war

Members of America's military face threats around the world every day, but it's a domestic threat that has the top brass on the offensive on the home front -- predatory lenders. Here's how the Department of Defense is fighting back.

The Tea Party says everything is on the table regarding its goal to cut federal spending and balance the budget -- including defense spending. If the political faction succeeds in cutting military spending, not only would the U.S. economy benefit, national security could well be strengthened.

The Ninth Circuit Appeals Court that put the decision ordering the military to stop enforcing "Don't Ask Don't Tell" on hold is a brief win for the government. But don't assume it means the policy will survive: The stay just means that the judges want time to think.

U.S. District Court Judge Virginia A. Phillips's order that the government stop enforcing the unconstitutional Don't Ask Don't Tell law has generated much chatter on both sides of the debate. But it's worth looking beyond the noise to the actual reasoning in her ruling.

It's an ugly case about ugly actions, but it defends some of America's dearest constitutional principles. And when the Supreme Court rules in Snyder v. Phelps, a church that holds anti-gay protests at the funerals of fallen U.S. soldiers will help define the rights of everyone.

What happens when companies pollute? Sometimes -- though not always -- they have to pay. BP's $20 billion fund to compensate for damages to the Gulf of Mexico ranks as the biggest environmental payout of all time. What other industrial giants make the list?

Even as Xe -- formerly know as Blackwater, the infamous private security firm that provided mercenaries for the U.S. war in Iraq -- puts itself up for sale, it's opening a new line of "Blackwater Pro Shops" offering all the gear your local paramilitary may need. What's behind their move into retail?

President Barack Obama releases his proposed $3.8 trillion federal budget for fiscal year 2011 and immediately the hue and cry is one of "$1 trillion structural deficits," "a nation going broke" and "an unserviceable debt."

Last year, some 307 American soldiers died in Iraq -- nearly twice the number killed in Afghanistan. But the home front was far deadlier for veterans: an estimated 2,266 U.S. military veterans died last year -- not from combat but from lack of health insurance, Harvard Medical School researchers...

The Iraq war is getting too expensive, according to Defense Department auditors, and KBR is part of the problem. The contractor faces close to $200 million in penalties for keeping too many bodies on its payroll in Iraq, and it is being pressured to cut back. For six years, KBR has increased its...