"I enjoyed the book and she and I are dear friends. I talked to her on the phone yesterday. We got along fine," said McCain in an interview Saturday with The Associated Press on the sidelines of the Halifax International Security Forum.

In "Going Rogue," Palin confirms reports of discord between her aides and those of McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential candidate. The former vice presidential candidate says she was kept "bottled up" from reporters during the campaign and denied the chance to deliver her own concession speech on Election Night last November.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia - President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia chided officials in the ruling Kremlin-backed party with unprecedented bluntness yesterday, saying they should stop trying to manipulate elections and learn to win fairly.

The statement was Medvedev's strongest criticism yet of the United Russia party led by his predecessor and mentor, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. United Russia controls parliament and serves as a power base for Putin, who has not ruled out a return to the presidency in 2012.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Saturday that he enjoyed reading running mate Sarah Palin's new memoir and downplayed any tension between their campaign aides as "no big deal."

"I enjoyed the book, and she and I are dear friends. I talked to her on the phone yesterday. We got along fine," said McCain in an interview Saturday with the Associated Press on the sidelines of the Halifax International Security Forum in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

WASHINGTON—The Senate has begun voting on whether to move ahead on a sweeping health care bill.

The roll call began with many of the 100 members seated in their chairs and rising to vote. Such formal voting is common with Supreme Court nominations.

Hours earlier, Democratic leaders had sealed the 60 votes necessary to proceed on the legislation, a win for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and the White House. The last two holdouts -- Sens. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana -- said they would vote to advance the bill.

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Vice President Joe Biden told Iowa Democrats on Saturday that the Senate handed the president a big victory with its decision to move forward with debate on sweeping legislation to overhaul the nation's health care system.

"Tonight we have more momentum than we've ever had in the history of health care discussions,'" Biden told about 1,000 Democrats in Des Moines.

Biden's comments at the Iowa Democratic Party's largest fundraiser, the Jefferson Jackson Dinner, came shortly after the 60-39 vote in the Senate that cleared the way for a full-scale debate on the health care bill. Biden said his speech was delayed as he worked the phone to lobby swing lawmakers.

BAGHDAD - Iraq's parliament is discussing ways to end a dispute over an election law after a vice president vetoed the bill, throwing national polls slated for January into question.

Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi vetoed the legislation earlier this week. He wants more votes allocated for Iraqis living abroad, most of whom are Sunnis like him.

Lawmakers plan to vote Saturday on whether to send the same law back to the presidency council — where it is likely to be vetoed again — or to amend the bill to address al-Hashemi's concerns.

WASHINGTON -- Sweeping health care legislation has cleared its first hurdle in the full Senate on a party-line vote.

The 60-39 vote clears the way for a historic debate after Thanksgiving on the legislation. The measure is designed to extend coverage to an estimated 31 million Americans who lack it and crack down on insurance industry practices that deny benefits.

The White House released a statement saying, "The President is gratified that the Senate has acted to begin consideration of health insurance reform legislation...

WASHINGTON -Invoking the memory of Edward M. Kennedy, Democrats united Saturday night to push historic health care legislation past a key Senate hurdle over the opposition of Republicans eager to inflict a punishing defeat on President Barack Obama. There was not a vote to spare.

The 60-39 vote cleared the way for a bruising, full-scale debate beginning after Thanksgiving on the legislation, which is designed to extend coverage to roughly 31 million who lack it, crack down on insurance company practices that deny or dilute benefits and curtail the growth of spending on medical care nationally.

Democratic Sen. Mary L. Landrieu said Saturday afternoon she will vote yes on a critical procedural vote to keep the health care bill alive.

With the Louisiana senator's commitment of support, Democrats appear only one vote shy of the 60 needed to advance the bill.

Mrs. Landrieu, who announced her decision on the Senate floor hours before the scheduled 8 p.m. vote, said her vote is to move forward but that work still needs to be done on the bill.

Democratic leaders secured the last two votes to move ahead on historic health care legislation, clearing the way for a Saturday night showdown on President Barack Obama's top domestic initiative.

In long-awaited speeches, centrist Sens. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana said they would stand with their party and vote "yes" on the crucial test vote despite deep reservations with elements of the 2,074-page bill to remake the nation's health care system.

WASHINGTON - Democratic senators called an overhaul of the U.S. health care system long overdue as historic legislation advanced toward a crucial first vote Saturday night, an early test of party unity on President Barack Obama's top domestic initiative

Democratic leaders are optimistic of success, but they need every Democrat and both independents to vote "yes," in the face of solid Republican opposition.

Washington (CNN) -- Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana said Saturday she has decided to support a floor debate on the Senate's health care reform bill.

But she added a caveat on the floor of the Senate: "My vote today to move forward on this important debate should in no way be construed by the supporters of this current framework as an indication of how I might vote as this debate comes to an end.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A broad healthcare overhaul moved closer to clearing its first U.S. Senate hurdle on Saturday when one of two wavering Democrats said she would vote to begin debate on the landmark legislation.

Senator Mary Landrieu ended days of uncertainty when she said she would support a procedural motion on Saturday to open debate to reform the $2.5 trillion healthcare system -- the bill's first crucial test vote.

WASHINGTON -Democratic leaders secured the last two votes to move ahead on historic health care legislation, clearing the way for a Saturday night showdown on President Barack Obama's top domestic initiative.

In long-awaited speeches, centrist Sens. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana said they would stand with their party and vote "yes" on the crucial test vote despite deep reservations with elements of the 2,074-page bill to remake the nation's health care system.

As US Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan faces his first court hearing in a San Antonio hospital, America is split over a fundamental question: Is Hasan an Islamic terrorist?

Maj. Hasan, who allegedly killed 13 and wounded dozens during a Nov. 5 rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, is charged with 13 counts of murder, which could lead to a death penalty conviction at an Army court martial. Terror charges have not been filed.

MOSCOW — President Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia accused the governing party, United Russia, of "backwardness" on Saturday, warning its leaders that they must learn to win elections honestly if it is to survive.

Some regional branches of the party "show signs of this backwardness and reduce political activities to bureaucratic intrigues and games," he said at the party's annual congress in St. Petersburg. "Elections, which are intended to express the national will and present competing ideas and programs, are sometimes turned into scenarios in which democratic processes are confused with administrative ones."

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia -- U.S. Sen. John McCain said Saturday that he enjoyed reading running mate Sarah Palin's new memoir and downplayed any tension between their campaign aides as "no big deal."

"I enjoyed the book and she and I are dear friends. I talked to her on the phone yesterday. We got along fine," said McCain in an interview Saturday with The Associated Press on the sidelines of the Halifax International Security Forum.

ST.PETERSBURG, Russia — Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev on Saturday harshly criticized officials in the ruling Kremlin-backed party for abusing their positions in order to win elections, saying the party must learn to win fairly.

The statement was Medvedev's strongest criticism yet of the United Russia party led by his predecessor and mentor, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. United Russia controls parliament and serves as a power base for Putin, who has not ruled out a return to the presidency in 2012.

WASHINGTON -The federal courts and military tribunals that will prosecute suspected terrorists vary sharply in their independence, public stature and use of evidence. But the Obama administration has so far offered no clear-cut rationale for how it chooses which system will try a detainee.

The fuzzy line drawn by the administration has made it easier for critics on both the left and right to assert that no firm legal principle is guiding the choices.

Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia’s hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party’s annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods “backwards” and saying it must “get rid of bad political habits”.

It was the most direct criticism of Russia’s political system yet made by Mr Medvedev and the latest in a string of condemnations of the status quo. It is also likely to be interpreted in Russian political circles as putting further distance between Mr Medvedev and Vladimir Putin, the prime minister and chairman of United Russia, and widely recognised as the most powerful figure in the land.