budget battles

Despite countless delays and budget battles, the Air Force is betting that a $12 billion program of unmanned drones is ready to gather intelligence from heights only dreamed of.

As lawmakers in cash-strapped states wrestled this year with revenues that kept on falling, both campaign promises and long-standing reform efforts got pushed to the side.

There just wasn't enough time or money to expand health care or improve education — or, in Rhode Island, finally get around to banning indoor prostitution — while also passing a budget.