Politics

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Homeland Security Secretary Janet A. Napolitano, accompanied by Transportation Security Administration Administrator John Pistole, announces the expansion of a passenger pre-screening initiative on Wednesday.

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A Syrian rebel evacuates an injured fellow rebel during an exchange of fire with army troops in Idlib, Syria, on Wednesday. The European Union will impose harsher sanctions on Syria, a senior EU official said, as Russia tried to broker talks to end the violence. (Associated Press)

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Wreckage is seen inside a room damaged by shelling by Syrian government forces in Homs. Activists reported at least 50 people were killed in military assaults targeting government opponents on Wednesday. (Associated Press)

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Henrique Capriles Radonski, governor of Miranda state, looks like the favorite to win Sunday's opposition primary to determine an opponent for President Hugo Chavez in Venezuela's Oct. 7 election. (Associated Press)

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Gov. Chris Gregoire, right, looks on at a House floor debate on gay marriage with Sen. Ed Murray, left, and Sen. Lisa Brown from the wings Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012, in Olympia, Wash. Lawmakers legalized gay marriage in Washington state, making it the seventh state in the nation to allow same-sex couples to wed. Democratic Gov. Gregoire is likely to sign the bill next week. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

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Gen. Carter Ham, the head of the U.S. African command, attends a conference on terrorism in the Sahara in Algiers, Algeria, Thursday, Sept. 8, 2011. The two-day conference on terrorism in the Sahara was originally expected to focus just on al-Qaida, but has now become inextricably tied up with the civil war in neighboring Libya. (AP Photo)

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Andrew McLees, special agent in charge with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, talks about counterfeit NFL football merchandise seized during a news conference, Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012, in Newark, N.J. Federal officials say authorities seized nearly $5 million worth of phony Super Bowl sportswear and merchandise in a nationwide sweep. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

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Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade greets supporters during a campaign rally in Dakar this week. The country's constitutional council validated Mr. Wade's bid to run for a third term, even though the revised constitution sets a limit of two terms. Mr. Wade paid an Atlanta lobbying firm more than $200,000 to ensure that the limit didn't apply to him because he was already in power when it was adopted. (Associated Press)

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People opposed to Mr. Wade remaining in office gathered in Dakar on Jan. 31 to protest the court ruling allowing the nation's elderly leader to run for a third term. (Associated Press)

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First lady Michelle Obama and comedian Jimmy Fallon compete at tug-of-war at the White House during a taping of Mr. Fallon's "Late Night" program Jan. 25. Mrs. Obama has made the talk-show rounds while promoting her "Let's Move!" fitness campaign. (The White House via Associated Press)

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Syrians gather Feb. 8, 2012, in Doha to protest the use of Russia's veto against the amended resolution on Syria in the U.N. Security Council. (Associated Press)

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Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks Feb. 7, 2012, at his Colorado caucus night rally in Denver. (Associated Press)

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Charles Tuttle, a backer of the University of North Dakota's Fighting Sioux nickname, watches Feb. 7, 2012, as a woman signs petitions supporting the nickname in front of the federal courthouse in Bismarck, N.D. (Associated Press)

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Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, accompanied by Transportation Security Administration chief John Pistole, announces the expansion of a passenger pre-screening initiative on Feb. 8, 2012, at Washington's Ronald Reagan National Airport. (Associated Press)