WASHINGTON (AP) — Rick Santorum won crucial primaries in Alabama and Mississippi in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, dealing a devastating blow to Newt Gingrich and securing his position as the chief conservative alternative to front-runner Mitt Romney. Tuesday’s results were a setback for Romney, who had hoped to show he could muster the support of evangelical Christian voters in America’s Deep South in his quest to be his party’s choice to challenge President Barack Obama in November’s... Read more

Voters going to the polls for the closely divided GOP primaries in Mississippi and Alabama expressed strong support for their chosen candidate, according to preliminary exit polls. And those polls suggested the ongoing nomination battle would not lead to a major fracture in the party come November. IDEOLOGY AND SATISFACTION: Half of voters in both states said Mitt Romney’s positions on the issues were generally not conservative enough, while most voters in each state said Newt Gingrich’s positions were ideologically... Read more

WASHINGTON (AP) — Early results of voter exit polls in Republican presidential primaries in Mississippi and Alabama show born-again and evangelical Christians dominating the contests with unusually high numbers. About 8 in 10 Mississippians participating in Tuesday’s contest were white evangelical or born-again Christians, a larger share than any state so far where voters have been polled. White evangelical or born-again Christians accounted for nearly three-quarters of those surveyed in Alabama. As in every state so far, the economy was... Read more

WASHINGTON (AP) — Early results from exit polls of Alabama and Mississippi voters show Rick Santorum leading among evangelical and born-again Christians saying a candidate’s religious beliefs deeply affected their choice. Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich are faring better with such voters who said religion mattered less. Santorum and Gingrich are running well among the strongest conservatives as both states hold contests for the Republican presidential nomination. Romney is doing strongly among more moderate voters and those most focused on... Read more

WASHINGTON (AP) — White born-again and evangelical Christians were dominating Alabama’s and Mississippi’s Republican presidential primaries on Tuesday, showing up in numbers unsurpassed by any state where voters have been polled so far this year, according to preliminary results of exit polls of voters. Around 8 in 10 Mississippians participating in Tuesday’s contest were white evangelical or born-again Christians, the largest share measured in any state so far. Those same voters accounted for nearly three-quarters of those surveyed in Alabama,... Read more

CHEYENNE, Wyoming (AP) — Court records show the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has agreed to give an American Indian tribe a rare permit to kill two bald eagles this year for religious purposes. The Northern Arapaho Tribe in Wyoming filed a lawsuit against the agency last year, charging that its refusal to issue eagle permits violated tribal members’ religious freedom. Tribe lawyer Andy Baldwin says he believes the agency issued the permit in response to the lawsuit. The Fish... Read more

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has taken the unusual step of issuing a permit allowing an American Indian tribe in Wyoming to kill two bald eagles for religious purposes. The agency’s decision comes after the Northern Arapaho Tribe filed a federal lawsuit last year contending the refusal to issue such permits violates tribal members’ religious freedom. Although thousands of American Indians apply for eagle feathers and carcasses from a federal repository, permits allowing the killing... Read more

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Federal court records show the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has agreed to give an American Indian tribe in Wyoming a permit to kill two bald eagles this year for religious purposes. The Northern Arapaho Tribe filed a lawsuit against the federal agency last year charging that its refusal to issue eagle permits violated tribal members’ religious freedom. Tribe lawyer Andy Baldwin says he believes the agency issued the permit in response to the lawsuit. The... Read more

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. (AP) — The soaring, glass-paned megachurch built decades ago by the Rev. Robert H. Schuller will keep airing its weekly “Hour of Power” television broadcast and hold services, despite a dispute between its board and its 85-year-old founder that has torn apart the storied congregation. In a statement released Tuesday, Crystal Cathedral Ministries said it will hold regular worship services on Sunday and continue to air the television program both domestically and internationally, although Schuller and his... Read more

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. (AP) — The soaring, glass-paned megachurch built decades ago by the Rev. Robert H. Schuller will keep airing its weekly “Hour of Power” television broadcast and hold services, despite a bitter breach of contract dispute that has torn the storied congregation apart. In a statement Tuesday, Crystal Cathedral Ministries said it would hold regular worship services on Sunday and air the television program both domestically and internationally, although Schuller and his family have been fired or have... Read more