UPDATE: Tornado Watch Issued For Central, Eastern Oklahoma

Credit NOAA/National Weather Service / Storm Prediction Center
A Tornado Watch is in effect until 10:00 p.m. for counties inside the red boundary.

The National Weather Service has issued a Tornado Watch for most of Central and Eastern Oklahoma.

Authorities in Oklahoma are spending Monday searching through debris left behind by tornadoes responsible for at least two deaths.

A tornado that started near Norman Sunday afternoon swept the landscape, destroying as many as 35 mobile homes as it moved east toward Shawnee. 

Oklahoma's state medical examiner's office spokeswoman Amy Elliot identified the two people who are confirmed to have been killed during Sunday's storms as 79-year-old Glen Irish and 76-year-old Billy Hutchinson. Both men were from Shawnee.

Another storm that first hit Edmond produced a tornado that tracked through the north-central part of the state, hitting the town of Carney, destroying as many as 20 homes.

The National Weather Service says preliminary information from a damage survey team near Shawnee indicates EF4 intensity.

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It's All Politics
5:10 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

Christie's Post-Sandy Remarks About House GOP Behind Non-Invite To CPAC

Credit Mel Evans / AP
Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie speaks with reporters in Trenton, N.J., this month. Christie was not invited to this year's CPAC conference.

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 6:17 pm

If New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was hoping for a return invite to the big CPAC convention this year, he probably should have thought of that before he bad-mouthed House Speaker John Boehner a couple of months back.

Christie was incensed by the House's failure to pass a relief bill helping victims of Superstorm Sandy, which hammered New Jersey and the rest of the Northeast last autumn. In typical Christie style, he did not pull any punches.

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It's All Politics
4:42 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

Some Political Lessons From The Violence Against Women Act Vote

Credit Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights / Flickr
Supporters of the Violence Against Women Act rally in front of the U.S. Capitol last June. On Thursday, the House passed a reauthorization measure.

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 6:22 pm

The fight over reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act is now behind us. But like much of what happens in Washington, the process wasn't pretty.

In the debate leading up to Thursday's House vote, you had Democrats accusing Republicans of continuing a "war on women," and Republicans accusing Democrats of crass political pandering.

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Law
4:41 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

Obama Administration To File Brief Urging Supreme Court To Strike Down Prop. 8

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 5:30 pm

The Obama administration is set to file a friend-of-the-court brief Thursday urging the Supreme Court to overturn California's Proposition 8, which banned gay marriage. Nina Totenberg talks to Audie Cornish.

It's All Politics
4:39 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

After Tough 2012, Conservative Koch Brothers Regroup

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 5:30 pm

The network of political groups headed by conservative industrialists David and Charles Koch spent millions of undisclosed dollars in last year's elections. Now, after failing to help Republicans win the White House or the Senate, the Koch brothers are re-examining the network, its goals and strategies.

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The Two-Way
4:37 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

Iceland's Plan To Ban Online Porn Spurs Outrage

Credit Stoyan Nenov / Reuters /Landov
Iceland's government is drafting plans to ban pornography online and in print. Supporters say it's an attempt to shield children.

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 4:53 pm

File this one under Sisyphean tasks: The government of Iceland is drafting plans to ban pornography both online and in print.

Supporters of the ban, proposed by Interior Minister Ogmundur Jonasson, says it will shield children from harm.

Writing in the Guardian, Halla Gunnarsdottir, political adviser to Jonasson, said:

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Shots - Health News
4:32 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

Change In Law May Spur Campus Action On Sexual Assaults

Credit Jacquelyn Martin / AP
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi discusses the Violence Against Women Act on Capitol Hill on Thursday. The House passed the measure, which could help curb violence on campus.

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 8:41 pm

Most cases of sexual assault or harassment on school campuses don't attract national attention.

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A Blog Supreme
4:15 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

A List Of 5 Songs About... Lists

Originally published on Fri March 1, 2013 10:42 am

Over the past few years, Take Five's theme-based jazz lists have covered a wide variety of subjects. We've covered the careers of legends, the cutting-edge work of up-and-coming artists, styles, periods, holidays, regional scenes and more. Today, Take Five goes "meta" and presents a list of songs about... lists.

The lyrical conceits of these five songs are simply to list things. And, of course, feel free to suggest your favorite songs about lists that weren't included here. ("What, no 'Route 66'? Really?")

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It's All Politics
4:13 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

Justice Department Warns Of 'Pain' From Looming Cuts

Credit Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP
Attorney General Eric Holder speaks before a meeting of the National Association of Attorneys General on Tuesday.

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 5:30 pm

President Obama minced no words when he talked about how the looming budget cuts known as sequestration could hurt the Justice Department.

"FBI agents will be furloughed. Federal prosecutors will have to close cases and let criminals go," Obama said.

Starting late Friday, if Congress and the White House can't come to an agreement, the Justice Department will face $1.6 billion in cuts — about 9 percent of its budget. Attorney General Eric Holder told a group of state law enforcement officials who met in Washington this week that the situation looks ugly.

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Shots - Health News
4:06 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

Strategy To Prevent HIV In Newborns Sparks Enthusiasm And Skepticism

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 6:52 pm

There's great enthusiasm among some global health leaders about a bold – some say radical — strategy to prevent pregnant women from transmitting HIV to their newborns.

But skeptics worry that the approach, dubbed Option B+, will pit pregnant women with HIV against others infected with the virus, diverting resources from the broader struggle against the pandemic.

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Asia
3:34 pm
Thu February 28, 2013

At A Pakistani Mobile Library, Kids Can Check Out Books, And Hope

Originally published on Thu February 28, 2013 5:30 pm

On a cold, rainy morning, a van pulls up outside a rural elementary school on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan's capital. The fluorescent green vehicle provides a flash of color on this otherwise gray day. There's a picture of children reading books under a large apple tree, and the words "Reading is fun" are painted in English and Urdu, the national language in Pakistan.

This is the weekly visit of the Bright Star Mobile Library.

Volunteer Ameena Khan starts pulling books from shelves on either side of the van.

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