RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Federal regulators said Wednesday that they are conducting a special inspection of a nuclear power plant outside North Carolina's capital city that was forced to shut down last week after operators discovered corrosion and cracking in the reactor vessel's covering.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's nominee for transportation secretary is getting a friendly reception from senators of both parties laced with warnings that the nation needs to make a host of transportation improvements with no clear way to pay for them.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A new push to thwart Iran's nuclear ambitions by crippling the country's economy gathered momentum on Capitol Hill Wednesday with approval of legislation by the House Foreign Affairs Committee that would impose even tougher economic sanctions against Tehran.

SWARTHMORE, Pa. (AP) — Student activists at more than 200 colleges are trying a new tactic in hopes of slowing the pace of climate change: They are asking their schools to stop investing in fossil fuel companies

House Republicans plan Wednesday to pass their latest bill to approve the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline from Canada, seeking to increase pressure on Senate Democrats and President Barack Obama.

For now, Obama is holding fast against the GOP's latest gambit to take away his authority to approve or deny a permit for the project. But the author of the Northern Route Approval Act said he hopes House passage will entice Senate Democratic backers to get their bipartisan bill to the Senate floor, where they have already had preliminary success.

WACO, Texas (AP) — Federal agents and the state fire marshal have effectively barred a federal safety panel from the site of a Texas fertilizer plant blast that killed 15 people and injured about 200 others, hampering its investigation, the panel's chairman said.