USA

The US remains "dangerously vulnerable" to chemical, biological, and nuclear attacks, according to a report slated for a Wednesday release by the bipartisan Partnership for a Secure America, which includes leaders of the disbanded 9/11 Commission.

Nationally, public transit ridership surged 5.2 percent in the second quarter, according to data released Tuesday by the American Public Transportation Association. At the same time, 35 percent of transit systems say they may need to cut service as they struggle with the same soaring fuel prices that have boosted ridership.

Government secrecy is growing as more records are classified as top secret and less effort is expended on making federal documents available to the public, OpenTheGovernment.org, a coalition of government oversight groups, says in a new report. The study cites an 80 percent decline over the last decade in the number of pages of records declassified.

California prison guards hope to oust Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger by collecting 1 million signatures to put a recall question on the ballot, the guards' 30,000-member union said. The union is upset because it's gone two years without a new contract and guards have been blocked in their efforts to avoid state pay reductions.

Residents of Key West, Fla., breathed a sigh of relief Monday after hurricane Ike turned west and largely spared the island chain as it headed into the Gulf. The storm could make landfall this weekend in Texas, the National Hurricane Center warned, prompting Gov. Rick Perry to put 7,500 National Guard members on standby.

Citing research that shows raising the driving age saves lives, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is recommending that states set the minimum age for getting a license at 17 or even 18, rather than 16, which is common.

Switzerland's Roger Federer reasserted his tennis dominance Monday with a a 6-2,7-5, 6-2 win in the US Open men's final in New York. It was his fifth straight US crown and his first Grand Slam title this year.

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