COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Essie Mae Washington-Williams, the mixed-race daughter of one-time segregationist Sen. Strom Thurmond who kept her parentage secret for more than 70 years, has died. She was 87.
Vann Dozier of Leevy's Funeral Home in Columbia said Washington-Williams died Sunday. A cause of death was not given.
LAS VEGAS (AP) - President Barack Obama is hailing bipartisan Senate efforts to overhaul the nation's patchwork immigration laws, welcoming "a genuine desire" to tackle an issue that has been stalled for years.
Obama was appearing at a campaign-style rally where he will seek to animate public support for his immigration principles. The president's proposals largely mirror plans released a day earlier by eight senators, four Democrats and four Republicans.
PHOENIX (AP) - Arizona's new Legislature is more White, more male, and more Republican than the people who live here, an analysis of the makeup of the 51st Legislature shows.
And while they are from many walks of life, from real-estate agents to a pharmacy technician, and retirees to recently returned combat vets, the legislators elected to represent the people do not, as a group, reflect the demographics of the state population, according to data analyzed by The Arizona Republic.
WASHINGTON (AP) - More than 6 in 10 Americans now favor allowing illegal immigrants to eventually become U.S. citizens, a major increase in support driven by a turnaround in Republicans' opinions after the 2012 elections.
The finding, in a new Associated Press-GfK poll, comes as the Republican Party seeks to increase its meager support among Latino voters, who turned out in large numbers to help-re-elect President Barack Obama in November.
