(CNSNews.com) - A middle school in Portland, Maine, has decided to provide birth control pills and patches to its students, ages 11 to 13, and under the policy, parents may never know if their children get the birth control. Cybercast News Service hit Capitol Hill on Thursday to ask members of Congress whether the federal government should fund public school districts that provide such contraception to kids without parental notification.

(CNSNews.com) - Advocates on both sides of the debate over illegal immigration on Monday threatened a political backlash against elected officials who support the Senate's compromise on comprehensive immigration reform.The Secure Borders, Economic Opportunities and Immigration Reform Act of 2007, presented to members of Congress in draft form late last week, has sparked harsh criticism from groups on all sides of the debate.

(CNSNews.com) - House Republicans said Thursday they hope to block provisions of a Democratic bill to expand health care coverage for poor children that could open up the coverage to illegal immigrants.The Children's Health and Medicare Protection (CHAMP) Act would expand the existing State Children's Health Insurance Program - more than doubling it in size - and "improve beneficiary protections under the Medicare, Medicaid and the [SCHIP] program."

(CNSNews.com) - Sens. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.) said during the Democratic presidential debate Wednesday that combat troops may have to continue fighting in Iraq throughout the next president's first term. When asked by debate moderator Tim Russert if they would have combat troops out of Iraq by the end of their first term, both Clinton and Obama avoided commitment, arguing that troops may remain in a fighting capacity through 2013.

(CNSNews.com) - The U.S. Senate on Wednesday rejected a bill that would have established a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants who were brought into the United States as children and who make an effort to contribute to society.The DREAM Act, sponsored by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) would have rewarded illegal immigrants who were brought into the United States by their parents and who seek a college education or enlist in the military.

(CNSNews.com) - A panel discussion on global climate change Tuesday found Sen. John McCain's (R-Ariz.) staff agreeing with representatives for the leading Democratic presidential contenders. A cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions, they agreed, is the most promising solution to "global warming."

(CNSNews.com) - A fact-finding trip to Greenland has renewed Sen. Barbara Boxer's desire to pass legislation aimed at reducing carbon dioxide emissions, according to the senator who has been promising such legislation since early in her term as chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee.

On the Spot (CNSNews.com) - Radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh is under fire from liberal media critics and some Democrats in Congress for using the term "phony soldiers" to describe Jesse Macbeth, who was sentenced to five months in prison for falsifying his military records.Macbeth claimed to be the recipient of several medals, including the Purple Heart, and further claimed in Internet videos to have witnessed U.S. soldiers committing atrocities. It was later revealed that Macbeth had served for only six weeks and never saw combat in Iraq or Afghanistan.

(CNSNews.com) - Republicans in the House of Representatives on Thursday accused Democrats of using the fires burning in Southern California as a distraction so they can reintroduce a contentious children's health care bill.Democratic leaders in the House have scheduled a vote on the bill for Thursday afternoon. The bill had already passed, but supporters were unable to override President Bush's veto of the reauthorization and $35 billion expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).