Northwest News

All four U.S. Senators from Oregon and Washington and 20 of their colleagues are asking the Obama administration for an expedited end to the war in Afghanistan. Two Republicans and one Independent Senator are part of the group. Some Democratic Senators declined to sign the letter.

SEATTLE -- Small airplanes are the leading source of lead pollution in the nation’s air. Activists are suing the EPA to get the lead out of aviation fuel. KUOW's John Ryan reports.

RICHLAND, Wash. – Hibernating bears do things that doctors tell humans not to do. They eat fatty foods, lay around for months on end and get high cholesterol. Yet they don’t suffer the same ill effects we would.

Washington State University researchers have teamed up with a biotech company. They’ve begun a $200,000 study on how grizzly bears can gain so much fat each year and sleep through the winter. But each spring they emerge without diabetes or heart disease.

Researchers are monitoring eight bears’ heart rates, blood pressure, blood chemistry and overall health.

OLYMPIA, Wash. – Last fall we brought you a series of stories on failures in how the Northwest treats mentally ill youth. Now, a landmark legal agreement announced Wednesday aims to bring about better treatment options for nearly 20,000 Washington kids. These are children who suffer from depression, schizophrenia and other mental illnesses.

OLYMPIA, Wash. – Washington Governor Chris Gregoire acknowledged Wednesday afternoon that a special session of the legislature will be necessary to re-balance the state budget. But Gregoire says she’s still trying to keep the pressure on lawmakers to come to an agreement.

Springfield Democrat Peter DeFazio will face a father and son in his bid for re-election to Oregon's 4th District seat in the House of Representatives.

BOISE - Idaho Republicans held their first presidential caucus Tuesday. Mitt Romney won big and it was mostly smooth sailing.