WASHINGTON (AP) — At a time when polls suggest that most Americans oppose the war in Afghanistan and believe that it's not worth fighting, President Barack Obama is ready to make the case for a troop buildup. But a spokesman says Obama's speech Tuesday night from West Point will also focus on an eventual pullout from Afghanistan. Still, the troop surge will be Obama's second since taking office, and liberal Democrats are lining up against it.

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks have finished the pre-holiday session higher, following a drop in weekly unemployment claims to the lowest level of the year and a rise in new home sales. The government says new claims for unemployment insurance fell last week to 466,000. That's the fewest claims since September 2008. New home sales rose 6.2 percent in September, more than economists had expected.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The mothers of three Americans held captive in Iran have recorded video messages they hope Iranian authorities will deliver to their children. In the video, the woman ask their kids to stay positive, and express hope that Iranian authorities will take mercy on them. The three were detained in July after straying across the border from Iraq.

ATLANTA (AP) — A nurse anesthetist in the Atlanta area is charged with molesting and sexually assaulting patients who were under anesthesia in dental and medical offices. Police say there could be 100 or more victims. They say they've found videotapes of some of the assaults.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cutting global warming pollution might not just make the planet healthier. New research suggests it would make people healthier too. Studies published in the British medical journal The Lancet say cuts in carbon dioxide emissions could save millions of lives, mostly by reducing preventable deaths from heart and lung diseases.