AP - The former Alabama Supreme Court justice who was ousted for refusing to remove a Ten Commandments monument from court property denied rumors Tuesday that he would switch parties in his race for governor.

AP - The Republican committee that handles Senate campaigns picked up the pace in fundraising in February, but still trails its rival Democratic committee by almost a 2-1 margin.

AP - With their party reeling from scandal and infighting, five Republican candidates competed Tuesday for the nomination for governor of Illinois.

AP - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the state GOP collected an estimated $2.5 million Monday at a fundraiser headlined by Sen. John McCain, as scores of union members protested outside the event calling for the governor's ouster in November.

AP - State Sen. Raymond Meier announced his candidacy Monday for the GOP nomination for the congressional seat being vacated by fellow Republican Sherwood Boehlert.

AP - A candidate for the GOP nomination for governor proposed a game of chance to determine who will face the front-runner in Tuesday's primary, asking two of his opponents to draw straws to decide who will stay in the race.

AP - With an eye toward the 2008 presidential campaign, GOP Sen. John McCain of Arizona has hired one of President Bush's top re-election advisers to help run his political action committee.

AP - The top adviser to Kathleen Troia "KT" McFarland said Friday that her rival for the Republican Senate nomination, former Yonkers Mayor John Spencer, lacked the credentials, knowledge and financial backing to mount a credible challenge to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

AP - Vice President Dick Cheney told a crowd of more than 300 people at a fundraiser for a GOP candidate on Friday that party leaders hope they can finally unseat Democratic U.S. Rep. John Spratt.

AP - The top adviser to Kathleen Troia "KT" McFarland said Friday that her rival for the Republican Senate nomination, former Yonkers Mayor John Spencer, lacked the credentials, knowledge and financial backing to mount a credible challenge to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

AP - A $2.8 trillion election-year budget blueprint that narrowly passed the Senate forsakes President Bush's tax cuts and Medicare curbs and smashes his cap on spending, disappointing GOP loyalists anxious to see their party stem the flow of federal red ink.

AP - Four moderate Senate Republicans introduced a bill Thursday that they hope will end the furor over President Bush's surveillance program by writing it into law.

AP - The House Republicans' campaign committee expected to raise $8 million Thursday night at a fundraiser headlined by President Bush, evidence that despite his sagging poll numbers the chief executive is still a top GOP draw.

AP - The Senate Commerce Committee voted Thursday to recommend confirmation of Robert McDowell to the Federal Communications Commission, a move that would restore the agency's 3-2 GOP majority.

AP - Jessica Simpson loves President Bush. She's just not a big fan of Republican fundraisers.

AP - Jessica Simpson loves President Bush. She's just not a big fan of Republican fundraisers. The Hollywood starlet and tabloid cover girl was in Congress on Thursday to lobby for Operation Smile, a nonprofit organization that provides reconstructive surgery to children with facial deformities. Everyone was asking, however, why she turned down an invitation to attend a Republican fundraiser with Washington's top star, the president.

AP - President Bush gets much of what he requested in a $92 billion House measure for wars and hurricane cleanup, despite a newfound willingness by GOP leaders to challenge the president.

AP - The government could borrow an additional $781 billion, raising the federal debt to almost $9 trillion, to finance its addiction to budget deficits, under a bill nearing a Senate vote.

AP - Senate Republicans are trying to show their support for politically sensitive programs like education and veterans' benefits, distancing themselves from President Bush's budget for next year.