Bush claims success...Anti-war protests...Nine dead in severe weather

PENTAGON (AP) The fifth anniversary of the launching of the invasion of Iraq is bringing some of President Bush's broadest claims of success there. In a speech at the Pentagon this morning, Bush said last year's increase of 30,000 troops has cleared the way for a "major strategic victory in the broader war on terror."


Washington (AP) Police in Washington are arresting anti-war protesters who have crossed barricades and blocked streets.

Demonstrations are being held across the country to mark the fifth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war. Organizers say many people are just now becoming actively involved in the protests.

PIEDMONT, Mo. (AP) Flooding in the nation's midsection has left at least nine people dead and forced hundreds from their homes. Four deaths are linked to the flooding in Missouri and five people were killed in a highway crash caused by rain in Kentucky. A teenager is missing in flash flooding in Texas and two motorists are missing after their vehicles were swept away in ArKansas.

WASHINGTON (AP) The National Archives and Bill CLinton's presidential library have jointly released thousands of pages of schedules showing Hillary Rodham Clinton's day-to-day activities when she was first lady. Critics had been pressuring the Clintons for months to disclose the schedules. In all, more than 11,000 pages have been made public.

ATLANTA (AP) The man who was once engaged to the runaway bride has gotten married to another woman. John Mason's father, in an online People magazine story, says his son got married Saturday at his parents' home in Duluth, Georgia. In 2005, Mason's then-fiancee Jennifer Wilbanks made headlines when she disappeared days before their wedding. After she first claimed to have been kidnapped, she later admitted she had run away.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 03-19-08 1044CDT | save this article / add to your favorites list