DAVID ESPO

AP Special Correspondent
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No sure thing for GOP: a tight battle for Senate

Divisive Republican primaries, an out-of-nowhere GOP retirement in Maine and an unexpectedly competitive race in North Dakota add up to an unpredictable battle for control of the Senate this fall. It's confounding early forecasts that Democratic rule is inevitably coming to an end.

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No sure thing for GOP: a tight battle for Senate

Divisive Republican primaries, an out-of-nowhere GOP retirement in Maine and an unexpectedly competitive race in North Dakota add up to an unpredictable battle for control of the Senate this fall, confounding early forecasts that an era of Democratic rule was inevitably coming to an end.

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Analysis: Obama as war candidate

As slogans go, President Barack Obama's promise of the "light of a new day" in Afghanistan isn't nearly as catchy as the "Mission Accomplished" banner on the USS Abraham Lincoln the day President George W. Bush announced the end of major combat operations in Iraq in 2003.

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Gingrich to soon be an ex-presidential candidate

A presidential candidate no longer, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich departs the race for the White House as likely the most consequential and certainly the most interesting Republican of his time never to sit in the Oval Office.

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Analysis: Student loan agreement? Not so fast.

In the political campaigns still taking shape, President Barack Obama, Republican challenger Mitt Romney and lawmakers of both parties say they want to protect college students from a sharp increase in interest rates on federally subsidized loans.

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Romney sweeps 5 wins, promises 'better America'

Mitt Romney laid claim to the fiercely contested Republican presidential nomination Tuesday night with a fistful of primary triumphs, then urged all who struggle in a shaky U.S. economy to "hold on a little longer, a better America begins tonight."

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Scorching talk: Romney, Obama battle over economy

Their battle joined, challenger Mitt Romney savaged President Barack Obama's handling of the economy on Wednesday while the commander in chief commiserated up close with victims of the recession and warned that Republicans would only make matters worse.

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A Romney sweep: He takes Wisconsin, Maryland, DC

Mitt Romney tightened his grip on the Republican presidential nomination Tuesday night, sweeping primaries in Wisconsin, Maryland and Washington, D.C., with time left over to swap charges with President Barack Obama.

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Analysis: The GOP race is now lining up for Romney

It hasn't been pretty, but the Republican establishment, the delegate math, the money and more are increasingly lining up in Mitt Romney's favor in the long and grinding race for the party's presidential nomination.

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Romney pushes GOP presidential race toward a close

Mitt Romney says he's "almost there" in his six-year pursuit of the Republican presidential nomination, having defeated Rick Santorum in the Illinois GOP primary.

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Romney routs Santorum in GOP primary in Illinois

Mitt Romney took a major stride toward the Republican presidential nomination Tuesday night, routing Rick Santorum in the Illinois primary for his third big-state win in a row and padding his already-formidable lead in the race for convention delegates.

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Santorum wins Alabama, leads in Mississippi

Rick Santorum won the Alabama primary Tuesday night and clung to a lead over Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney in Mississippi, deeply conservative Southern crossroads in the struggle for the Republican presidential nomination.

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Santorum wins Alabama, leads in Mississippi

Rick Santorum won the Alabama primary Tuesday night and led Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney in a close race in Mississippi, deeply conservative Southern crossroads in the struggle for the Republican presidential nomination.

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Santorum grabs the lead in Alabama and Mississippi

Rick Santorum seized the lead in the Alabama primary Tuesday night and edged ahead of Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich in Mississippi, deeply conservative Southern crossroads in the struggle for the Republican presidential nomination.

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Santorum grabs early Alabama lead; close in Miss.

Rick Santorum grabbed an early lead in Alabama's primary election on Tuesday and battled Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich in Mississippi, deeply conservative Southern crossroads in the struggle for the Republican presidential nomination.

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Santorum grabs early Alabama lead; close in Miss.

Rick Santorum grabbed an early lead in Alabama on Tuesday and battled Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich in Mississippi, deeply conservative Southern crossroads in the struggle for the Republican presidential nomination.

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US Rep. Inslee to resign for Wash. gov. race

Rep. Jay Inslee is resigning from Congress to focus full time on running for governor of Washington state this fall.

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Santorum takes Kansas, Romney strong in Wyoming

Rick Santorum won the Kansas caucuses in a rout on Saturday and Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney showed strength in Wyoming, a weekend prelude to suddenly pivotal Southern showdowns in the week ahead.

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Romney sweeps to double Republican primary victory

Mitt Romney scored a hard-won, home state triumph in Michigan and powered to victory in Arizona Tuesday night, gaining a two-state primary sweep over Rick Santorum and precious momentum in the most turbulent Republican presidential race in a generation.

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Santorum calls himself a conservative heavyweight

Republican presidential contender Rick Santorum declared himself a conservative "heavyweight" on Tuesday as he defended his decision to court Michigan Democrats in the state's high-stakes GOP primary.

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GOP contenders face 13-state test after brief lull

A resurgent Rick Santorum hopes to spring his next big surprise in Michigan. Newt Gingrich looks for a campaign revival in the Bible Belt. Mitt Romney has his home state of Massachusetts, and the luxury of picking his spots elsewhere, if not everywhere, as the race for the Republican presidential nomination roars back to life.

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Analysis: A quiet surrender for the GOP this time

A united House Republican leadership surrendered crisply and cleanly on legislation to extend expiring payroll tax cuts for 160 million Americans, skipping most if not all of the self-defeating drama that accompanied their far noisier retreat on the same issue late last year.

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Santorum: I won and raised about $250K Tues night

Resurgent Rick Santorum said his sweep of three GOP contests earned his shoestring campaign $250,000 overnight, cash he needs to take his upstart bid for the Republican presidential nomination to Mitt Romney's turf.

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Gingrich sketches Day 1 agenda for his presidency

To hear Newt Gingrich tell it, the dramatic conservative change he promises will begin even before he is sworn in as president in 2013.

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Obama and GOP candidates offer a campaign preview

On a day that combined two campaigns into one, President Barack Obama on Wednesday challenged Republicans to raise taxes on the rich as GOP rivals Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich swiped at him on the economy and criticized each other over immigration.

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