NATION IN BRIEF: Governor gets abortion bill

Kansas legislators approved an anti-abortion bill Tuesday that would ensure that women and girls seeking abortions are able to see ultrasound images or hear their fetus’ heartbeat before the procedure. The bill now needs the approval of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, who has repeatedly vetoed anti-abortion bills in the past. Anti-abortion groups are opposing her appointment by President Barack Obama to serve as U.S. secretary of health and human services, but the bill’s backers are hopeful she’ll sign it to ease her confirmation in the Senate.

Shuttle delivers space post parts

Space shuttle Discovery arrived at the international space station Tuesday, delivering a last set of solar wings to boost the orbiting complex to full power.

Senators reject annual pay hikes

The Senate on Tuesday voted to scrap the system that awards members of Congress an automatic cost-of-living pay raise every year. But that doesn’t mean the raise is dead. Earlier Tuesday, Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), the No. 2 Democrat in the House, came out in opposition to the bill. Still, with the economy in a recession, pressure is certain to build on the House to vote on the measure.

Military nurse charged in deaths

An Air Force nurse in Texas has been accused of giving lethal amounts of medication to three terminally ill patients, military officials at Lackland Air Force Base said Tuesday. Capt. Michael Fontana, 35, was charged in military court with deliberately giving three Wilford Hall Medical Center patients lethal amounts of medication, and with conduct unbecoming an officer for allegedly changing a medical document. Wilford Hall, the Air Force’s largest hospital, primarily serves military personnel and retirees but also provides emergency and trauma care to some civilians.

‘Smart drug’ may be dumb risk

A so-called “smart drug” popular with young people may carry more of an addiction risk than thought, a small government study suggests. Scans of 10 healthy men showed that the prescription drug Provigil, also known by the generic name Modafinil, caused changes in the brain’s pleasure center, very much like potentially habit-forming classic stimulants, according to the study, appearing in today’s Journal of the American Medical Association. Modafinil’s reputation as a brain enhancer stems from an Air Force study that found it improved the performance of sleep-deprived fighter pilots. College students buy and sell it illegally to stay alert while studying.

New use floated for stimulus funds

South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford is making a second bid to use $700 million in federal stimulus cash for debt payments —- this time for school construction. The Republican governor’s request to the White House on Tuesday came a day after the Obama administration told Sanford the cash is intended to spare jobs and educate children, denying permission to use it to pay down other state obligations. Sanford’s new request seeks approval to use federal cash to repay $577 million in school bonds to free up millions in debt payments.