Chafee became an independent after parting ways with the Republican Party.

The meat company recalled 1.2 million pounds of pepper-coated salami on Saturday, after officials traced the outbreak to something in the salami.

Lawmakers in Rhode Island and Maryland are taking up bills to legalize gay marriage, advocates in New York are making a renewed push, and opponents are fighting for constitutional bans in Indiana and Wyoming and to re-impose bans in Iowa and Hampshire.

The move is designed to take the pressure off the downstream levees protecting New Orleans, Baton Rouge and the numerous oil refineries and chemical plants along the lower reaches of the Mississippi.

The 2003 fire killed 100 people. Settlements from the fire have reached $155 million.

The law directs child welfare officials to resolve cases of identity theft so foster children can enter adulthood with a clean slate.

State senators voted 21-16 Wednesday evening to endorse the bill.

At its peak, the storm knocked out power to about 650,000 customers.

The state House Speaker decided to stop pushing for gay marriage and offer civil unions as an alternative.

Police are continuing to search for a small boy they believe was abducted from a Rhode Island home where two bodies were found earlier in the morning.