Tim Pawlenty declined to be the attack dog against front-runner Mitt Romney in Monday's GOP presidential debate. Critics assailed him, but there are risks to going negative so early in the race.

Flag Day doesn't cause many Americans to buy the Stars and Stripes. But other unique events beyond Flag Day are boosting flag sales in 2011.

After guiding Liberia to stability after years of civil war, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf hopes to take advantage of the country's natural resources to transform it into a middle-income nation.

AP - President Barack Obama told Puerto Ricans Tuesday that he's committed to the success and self-determination of the U.S. island territory, welcome words that could help him with Puerto Rican voters back home as the 2012 election approaches.

AP - Consumers are spending cautiously in the face of still-high gasoline and grocery-store prices and restraining the economy's growth.

AP - Workers raced Tuesday to add several feet to a temporary levee that is now the only barrier between the small town of Hamburg and the menace of the rising Missouri River.