Reid open to Social Security changes if part of big compromise

WASHINGTON — Sen. Harry Reid said Tuesday he would consider changes in Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security if they were part of a $4 trillion “grand bargain” of spending cuts and tax increases to reduce the nation’s debt.

Police: California woman cut off husband’s penis

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. — Police say a Southern California woman drugged her estranged husband, tied him to a bed, cut off his penis with a knife and threw it down a garbage disposal.

Berkley, Heller both add $1 million in donations

WASHINGTON — The bank accounts of leading candidates Shelley Berkley and Dean Heller swelled by $1 million apiece over the past three months, signalling a costly race ahead to the 2012 elections to represent Nevada in the U.S. Senate.

Panel of masters to draw Nevada voting districts

Hoping to take the politics out of redistricting — a task that proved impossible to lawmakers elected to handle such matters — a Carson City judge Tuesday decided to appoint a panel of special masters to determine how to redraw the state’s voting districts.

County official seeks to split California into two states

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — An elected official wants 13 mostly conservative California counties to break away to create a 51st state under a proposal that would have to clear major hurdles to succeed.

‘Sister Wives’ family to challenge Utah bigamy law

SALT LAKE CITY — A polygamous family made famous by the reality TV show “Sister Wives” plans to challenge the Utah bigamy law that makes their lifestyle illegal, a Washington-based attorney said Tuesday.