He has made bold decisions, but that’s not the same as being a good leader, as his motives have been to consolidate his own power in the US, says Scott Cowen.

He felt stung by the politics that helped define his life - but in death, the Rev Billy Graham received a rare tribute from America's top political leaders under the Capitol Rotunda in Washington DC.

‘Black Friday’ is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to changing consumer buying habits

Handing the immigration hot potato to a chaotic, factionalised majority party on Capitol Hill

The flood waters from Tropical Storm Harvey are beginning to drop across much of the Houston area, emergency officials said.

The National Hurricane Centre says Harvey is back on land after coming ashore early today just west of Cameron, Louisiana.

Catch up on some of the stories and issues highlighted on irishexaminer.com this morning.

No one-was hurt - but the road had to be closed.

It is ironic that, on the day the Irish Hunger Memorial, which faces the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, reopened, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, introduced legislation sponsored by two Republican senators, which will “... favour applicants who can speak English, financially support themselves and their families, and demonstrate skills that will contribute to our economy.”

A rapper whose concert in Little Rock, Arkansas, became the site of a shooting that left 28 people injured has been arrested on unrelated assault charges.

A man has crashed his vehicle into the new Ten Commandments monument in Arkansas, nearly three years after he was arrested over the destruction of Oklahoma's monument at its state Capitol, authorities said.

With arrests of illegal immigrants in the US on the rise, more and more cities and college campuses are becoming sanctuaries, writes Bette Browne

A US sheriff's deputy has been shot dead and two other people have been found dead in rural Arkansas.

Nine executions in Ohio, including that of a child killer, have been delayed due to a court fight over the constitutionality of the state’s lethal injection process.

At least 14 people have been killed in severe storms rolling across the US.

Latest: At least 10 people have been killed in severe storms rolling across the US.

The UN human rights office has said it is "deeply troubled" by four executions over eight days in Arkansas under an accelerated timetable based on the looming expiration of a sedative used in the procedure.

Here's your morning news bulletin.

The US Supreme Court has spared the life of an Arkansas inmate at the last minute, scuttling efforts to resume the death penalty in the state after nearly 12 years with a plan to carry out four double executions before its supply of a lethal injection drug expired.

Despite its reluctance to fly, the roadrunner is not in danger and Richard Collins tells us how the grounded bird keeps thriving.

There is a long history of the CIA briefing presidents-elect on foreign policy. Donald Trump has rebuffed the agency’s advice. Tim Weiner asks why

A 1980 election defeat for her husband set in motion a process of endless revision, by herself and her opponents, that defined her career, writes Robert Draper.

Here is an analysis of some of the claims made in the second presidential debate.

Donald Trump met women who accused former US president Bill Clinton of rape and other unwanted sexual advances just over an hour before he faced Hillary Clinton in a televised debate.

The clock is ticking all to quickly towards polling day and the first presidential debate with Trump is on Monday, writes Alison O’Connor.

Hilary Clinton, who will be the first female candidate for the White House, has been accused of being too ambitious in her lust for power. How else would she have got this far, asks Jocelyn Noveck

Poor Kristen Tuff Scott is at the end of her tether over the mobile phone game sensation Pokémon Go.

Hillary Clinton might be off the hook after the FBI email probe but Americans still distrust her as a result of her defensiveness and the lack of transparency around her, says Bette Browne

Some of the stranger stories from around the world

US: An American Twitter user has been sent dozens of messages meant for England coach Roy Hodgson — because his user name on the site is @woy.

ENGLAND: A seaside resort has axed a Punch and Judy show over fears it trivialises domestic violence.

SCOTLAND: Members of the public have been warned not to approach an escaped raccoon caught on camera.

Rivals candidates vow to fight on despite Super Tuesday setbacks

Fresh off a runaway win in the South Carolina primary, Democrat Hillary Clinton turned her sights to a possible match-up with Republican frontrunner Donald Trump in the November 8 presidential election.

Rick Santorum, the conservative former senator who won nearly a dozen contests in the 2012 race for the Republican nomination, was due to suspend his latest and long-struggling run for the presidency last night.

New Hampshire the next stop for candidates seeking delegates’ votes

A travel ban for the New York area was lifted but Washington was still at a standstill after a blizzard paralysed the north-eastern United States, killing at least 24 people.