Texas Republican Gov. Rick Perry on Thursday directed state officials to begin looking for money to keep the Medicaid Women's Health Program, even if the Obama administration revokes federal funding amid a fight over clinics affiliated with abortion providers.

Seeking to tap into the public's concern over rising gas costs, Mitt Romney on Thursday said President Barack Obama was "in part" to blame for higher prices at the pump.

STARKVILLE, Mississippi (Reuters) - Ten pardons granted to prisoners by former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour just before he left office are valid and should be carried out, a divided Mississippi Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood had asked the court to void those pardons, among some 200 issued by the former Republican governor in January, on the grounds that technical procedures set out in the state constitution had not been met. ...

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum appealed Thursday for votes in Alabama's upcoming primary, calling the state the "heart of conservatism" and casting himself as the best fit for its voters.

In a plea for protecting Americans' constitutional rights, two Democrats pushed ahead Thursday with legislation to ensure access to U.S. courts for terrorist suspects captured on American soil.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate Democrats on Thursday defeated a Republican proposal to give a permit to the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline in a vote that will give Republicans more ammunition to criticize President Barack Obama's energy policies on the campaign trail. Republicans argue the pipeline, which would ship oil from Canada and northern states to Texas, would create jobs and improve energy security at a time of surging gasoline prices. Obama put TransCanada's $7 billion project on hold earlier this year pending further environmental review. ...

Under pressure from the White House, the Democratic-controlled Senate on Thursday blocked a Republican bid to speed approval of an oil pipeline from Canada to Texas.

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama broke bread with a group of small-dollar donors to his re-election campaign on Thursday, gathering for an intimate dinner in a popular Washington neighborhood.

The Senate killed Republican-backed attempts to overturn several of President Barack Obama's environmental and energy policies Thursday as lawmakers worked against a March 31 deadline to keep aid flowing to more than 100,000 transportation construction projects around the country.

Under pressure from the White House, the Democratic-controlled Senate blocked a Republican bid Thursday to speed approval of an oil pipeline from Canada to Texas.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Republican bid to fast-track the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline was defeated by Senate Democrats on Thursday in a vote to amend the chamber's highway funding bill. The Keystone amendment needed 60 votes to pass, but received only 56 in favor. President Barack Obama put the project on hold earlier this year pending further review of part of the route. Republicans wanted to wrest the approval process from his control. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton and Thomas Ferraro; Editing by Eric Beech)

After reporting that it had found 102 more misplaced headstones or markers and 21 graves missing markers at its cemeteries, the Veterans Affairs Department told lawmakers Thursday that it's trying to prevent future errors by requiring contractors to keep headstones at gravesites undergoing renovations and by conducting daily inspections.

STARKVILLE, Mississippi (Reuters) - Some of the pardons issued by former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour before he left office are valid, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood had asked the court to void 10 pardons out of some 200 issued by the former governor and said he would challenge others later. A split Supreme Court ruled it could not set aside the pardons based solely on Hood's claim that technical procedures set out in the state constitution had not been met. ...

Newt Gingrich spent his first day under Secret Service protection Thursday campaigning in Mississippi, part of his do-or-die push in the South.

Showing that they can on occasion work together, House lawmakers on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a package of bills making it easier for small businesses and startups to raise the capital they need to grow and hire new workers.

(Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department has warned Apple and five major U.S. publishers that it plans to sue them, accusing them of colluding to raise the prices of electronic books, a person familiar with the probe said on Thursday. Several parties have held talks to settle the potential antitrust case, said the person, who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. It is not yet clear what such a settlement might look like. ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund will discuss Greece's new bailout program in a meeting tentatively scheduled for March 15, an IMF spokesman said on Thursday, although he cautioned that approval of funding for Athens depended on completion of agreed prior actions. The meeting was originally set for March 13, according to IMF board sources. ...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel has asked the United States for advanced "bunker-buster" bombs and refueling planes that could improve its ability to attack Iran's underground nuclear sites, an Israeli official said on Thursday. "Such a request was made" around the time of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington this week, the official said, confirming media reports. ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week, but not enough to change perceptions that the labor market was strengthening. Initial claims for state unemployment aid increased 8,000 to 362,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Even with the increase, new claims remained near the four-year low reached last month. They have dropped about 40,000 since the start of 2012. ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Spending at hospitals surged in the fourth quarter, government data showed on Thursday, suggesting economic growth during that period could be revised significantly higher. Hospital revenue increased a seasonally adjusted 3.5 percent after declining 1.5 percent in the third quarter, the Commerce Department said in its Quarterly Services Survey report. The figures are not adjusted for inflation. "The data point to a sizable upward revision to health-care consumption in the fourth quarter, which we think could add about 0. ...

Air fares are likely to stay high throughout this decade, as passenger travel grows but airline capacity shrinks, according to a government forecast issued Thursday.

LONDON (Reuters) - A Briton and an Italian held hostage in Nigeria were killed by their captors before they could be freed by a rescue mission, British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Thursday. Cameron said he had authorized the failed operation, conducted with the Nigerian government, after being told the men's lives were in "imminent and growing danger". Cameron said Briton Chris McManus and Italian Franco Lamolinara had been taken hostage in Northern Nigeria in May 2011. "Preparations were made to mount an operation to attempt to rescue Chris and Franco. ...

(Reuters) - The Justice Department has warned Apple and five major U.S. publishers that it plans to sue them, accusing them of colluding to raise the prices of electronic books, a person familiar with the probe said on Thursday. Several parties have held talks to settle the potential antitrust case, said the person, who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. ...

Libya's prime minister on Thursday denied Russian allegations that his government is hosting and supporting a training camp for Syrian rebels but said his country stands with the people of Syria opposed to President Bashar Assad's regime.