A day after Mitt Romney regained some momentum in the Republican presidential contest, his rival Rick Santorum went on the attack, calling the front-runner “desperate” while promising to compete aggressively to win the state where Romney grew up.

WITH support from a lone Republican, a key Senate committee yesterday approved a middle-of-the-road healthcare plan that moves President Barack Obama’s goal of wider and affordable coverage a giant step closer to becoming law.

Four months after the September 11 commission urged drastic changes to protect the United States from another terror attack, Congress today neared final passage of far-reaching legislation overhauling the US intelligence network and instituting new border and aviation security safeguards.