July 18, 2011 in Sports As part of a new continuing series – funded in part by the Smithsonian Institution, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Heritage Foundation, the Center for Strategic and International Studies …

July 18, 2011 in Sports If the Mariners don’t improve soon, they could turn out to be one of the worst offensive teams since the designated hitter was added to the A.L. in 1973.

July 18, 2011 in Sports David Salinas, founder of a strong Houston AAU basketball program and an investment adviser whose clients included Gonzaga assistant coach Ray Giacoletti, committed suicide Sunday, according to Houston authorities. 3

July 18, 2011 in News, City A four-vehicle crash involving two tractor trailers spilled about 50 gallons of fuel on Interstate 90 Monday evening. 1

July 18, 2011 in News, Sports, Nation/World A nation reeling from months of tragedy united in joyous celebration Monday after its women’s soccer team — nicknamed “Nadeshiko” for a pink mountain flower — won the World Cup … 1

July 18, 2011 in City A woman killed in a fire at her northeast Spokane home died of smoke in inhalation after a cigarette ignited her oxygen tanks, fire officials said Monday. 3

July 18, 2011 in News, Region, Environmental quality A new oil spill involving hundreds of gallons of crude has been discovered in Montana 350 miles from where cleanup crews are mopping up a larger one on the Yellowstone … 8

July 18, 2011 in Idaho Former Idaho Transportation Department Director Dave Ekern was secretly fired after a whistleblower’s complaint in 2006 and allowed to “gracefully” depart, claiming he was leaving for another job, according to … 1

July 18, 2011 in News, Nation/World Republican presidential contenders may be feeling nostalgic for the days when a candidate could focus on just one pledge: the oath of office. With pledges spreading like kudzu on the … 12

July 18, 2011 in News, City Two environmental groups have filed notice of intent to sue the Environmental Protection Agency for failing to require Washington state to prepare a plan to rid the Spokane River of …

July 18, 2011 in News More than half of emerging nonprofit news sites produce content with a clear ideological bent, according to a study released Monday by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in … 13

July 18, 2011 in News, Nation/World Police say Sean Hoare, the whistleblower reporter who alleged widespread hacking at the News of the World, has been found dead. 9

July 18, 2011 in News, Region Frontier Airlines is canceling flights for the fifth straight day with many of its large planes still out of service because of hail damage.

July 18, 2011 in City, Idaho One more day of summer-like weather will remain over the Inland Northwest, but a new low pressure system is threatening showers and cooler temperatures starting Tuesday. 4

July 18, 2011 in City on Page A1 A soldier from Colville died following an attack in Afghanistan by insurgents firing rocket-propelled grenades, the U.S Department of Defense announced Sunday. Army Staff Sgt. Wyatt A. Goldsmith, 28, died …

July 18, 2011 in City, Idaho on Page A1 A proposal to build more sidewalks and create safer bicycle routes in Spokane Valley is headed for action before the City Council this summer. Because Spokane Valley grew up under … 2

July 18, 2011 in City on Page A1 A Newport, Wash., man narrowly escaped a watery grave this weekend after his car rolled upside down into the Pend Oreille River near the Idaho state line and he became … 3

July 18, 2011 in Nation/World on Page A2 OKLAHOMA CITY – As temperatures climbed into the 90s Sunday in Steele, N.D., a small window air conditioner in Paul and Betty Smokov’s ranch home just couldn’t keep up. “It’s … 2

July 18, 2011 in Nation/World on Page A3 WASHINGTON – Reigniting a partisan fight over banking regulations, President Barack Obama intends to nominate former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray to lead a consumer protection bureau that was a … 4

July 18, 2011 in Nation/World on Page A3 MINNEAPOLIS – Four days after the announcement of a budget deal, fresh signs emerged Sunday that the agreement is not coming together as hoped and that Republican legislative leaders are …

July 18, 2011 in Nation/World on Page A3 BATH, N.Y. – A tour bus traveling from Washington, D.C., to Niagara Falls crashed in a wooded median in western New York on Sunday afternoon, killing two people and injuring …

July 18, 2011 in Nation/World on Page A3 WASHINGTON – Hoping to break the impasse over the nation’s debt limit, White House and congressional leaders and aides continued their private discussions Sunday to exchange possible proposals to keep … 1