WASHINGTON – A key gauge of the direction of the U.S. economy dropped 0.5 percent last month, resuming a slide that began in January after a standstill in April, the Conference Board (search) said on Monday. The New York-based private research group said its index of leading indicators (search) fell …

This is a partial transcript from “Hannity & Colmes,” June 20, 2005, that has been edited for clarity. Watch “Hannity & Colmes” weeknights at 9 p.m. ET! ALAN COLMES, CO-HOST: Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein (search) sits in prison awaiting his trial for crimes against the Iraqi people. The most …

WASHINGTON – Who would act as President Bush’s defense secretary if Pentagon chief Donald H. Rumsfeld (search) were to resign, become disabled, die or be temporarily absent due to an overseas trip, such as on the one he began Thursday? For years the answer was, quite naturally, the deputy defense …

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Somali immigrant accused of conspiring to help terrorists blow up a shopping mall is asking that his statements to investigators — including what he knew about a member of Al Qaeda (search) — be barred from his trial. Attorney Mahir T. Sherif said Nuradin Abdi (search) …

WARSAW, Poland – The Polish co-producer of the Oscar-winning film “Schindler’s List (search)” left prison Tuesday after an appeals court suspended his two-year term in a high-profile bribery scandal, citing his poor health. Lew Rywin (search), 59, who was also co-producer of “The Pianist (search),” refused to comment after his …

WASHINGTON – Public jitters about the economy persist despite recent signs of growth — with unease fueled by everything from high gasoline prices to uncertain housing costs to the growing budget deficit, according to a poll released Wednesday. Only about one in three Americans think the national economy is in …

Researchers say there may be a link between estrogen deficiency and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in men. More than 3 million U.S. adults have OCD, says the National Institute of Mental Health. The disorder involves recurrent, unwanted thoughts or rituals such as counting, checking, cleaning, or washing the hands, which people …

The following is a transcription of the June 4, 2005 edition of “FOX News Watch,” that has been edited for clarity: ERIC BURNS, HOST: This week, on “FOX News Watch,” who’s really getting trashed by this book? Hillary or the author? Can you get fired from a newspaper for being …

RICHMOND, Calif. – FBI agents and police evacuated an Amtrak (search) train, seized a passenger and X-rayed his packages Wednesday after he angrily warned the train was going to “fall into the sea,” authorities said. The packages were found to contain personal items and a laptop computer. The man, described …

Short but intensive rounds of speech therapy may be better for restoring language skills lost to a stroke than traditional methods. Researchers found stroke survivors who had difficulty speaking or understanding speech showed significant improvement in language and communication skills after a short term of intensive speech therapy. Language impairment …