AP - Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said Friday he was pleased with the federal response to the massive Midwest flooding, though he acknowledged the disaster is nowhere near the scale of Katrina ? the catastrophic 2005 hurricane that strained the public"s trust in elected officials.

AP - President-elect Fernando Lugo, whose historic election ended six decades of one-party rule in Paraguay, on Friday named a former leftist militant to head his Cabinet when he takes office on Aug. 15.