Ken Stanford

Invigorated by back-to-back political conventions, Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama grappled for the mantle of change Friday as the fall race for the presidency took off in states teeming with the independent voters they needed to win.

The nation's unemployment rate zoomed to a five-year high of 6.1 percent in August as employers slashed 84,000 jobs, dramatic proof of the mounting damage a deeply troubled economy is inflicting on workers and businesses alike.

A divided Forsyth County Commission voted Thursday night to fire the county manager.

The new executive director of the Northeast Georgia chapter of the American Red Cross says he is no stranger to community service.

Gov. Sonny Perdue is exploring how the state could have more authority to intervene with troubled school districts.

Oregon voters in November will be asked to approve a meason limiting the amount of time students can spend in English-as-a-second-language classes, one of a handful of immigration-related measures up for a vote this fall, nationwide.

One of two water filters at the water plant in Dahlonega has failed, creating what city manager Bill Lewis calls "a serious situation with the potential to become more serious."

On the same day Dawson County reopened one of its boat ramps, the level of Lake Lanier began dropping again.

The government says orders to U.S. factories rose by a larger-than-expected amount in July.

Shares of Regions Financial Corporation jumped today after the bank assumed $900 million in deposits from a failed Atlanta area bank.