WASHINGTON - The White House and a top Republican lawmaker are sparring over economic policy, a little more than two months before the country’s midterm elections.
The top Republican in the House of Representatives, John Boehner from the state of Ohio, called Tuesday for President Barack Obama’s entire economic team to resign. Boehner criticized the administration […]

WASHINGTON - The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance has increased to its highest level since November.
The U.S. Labor Department said Thursday there were 500,000 first-time applications for the week ending August 14 — 12,000 more than the week before.
The Labor Department’s report also said the number of Americans getting extended or […]

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama has become embroiled in a political controversy involving a mosque and Islamic center being built near the site of the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City. 
The president recently expressed support for the right of organizers to build the Islamic center in lower Manhattan, and those comments have intensified a […]

WASHINGTON - A new voter opinion poll shows public confidence in U.S. President Barack Obama has hit a new low.
The new survey, conducted jointly by the Washington Post and ABC News, says nearly six in 10 voters say they lack faith in the president’s ability to lead the nation.
At the start of his presidency nearly […]

WASHINGTON - BP officials said Monday that they are close to installing a new cap on its leaking oil well in the Gulf of Mexico that has befouled beaches in four U.S. states and spread plumes of crude oil over a large are of the water.  BP says full containment of the leak could come […]

NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has denied a request by the Obama administration to overturn a judicial ruling that allows oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. 
The Obama administration had imposed a six-month moratorium on all deepwater drilling following the massive oil spill in the Gulf. 
However, U.S. District Court Judge Martin Feldman on Tuesday […]

NEW ORLEANS - A U.S. federal judge has blocked a six-month moratorium on offshore oil drilling ordered by the Obama administration, and the White House says it will immediately appeal the ruling.
New Orleans Judge Martin Feldman made the ruling on Tuesday.  He is reversing a ban imposed by U.S. President Barack Obama May 27 in […]

HOUSTON - In Louisiana and other states on the Gulf of Mexico there is frustration over what many residents see as a slow response by the U.S. government to protecting coastal areas.  Some critics of the Obama administration cite offers by the Netherlands in April to supply sophisticated skimmers and dredging devices, and the administration’s […]

HOUSTON - The catastrophic oil leak from a BP-operated rig off the coast of the U.S. state of Louisiana and the Obama administration’s six-month moratorium on further deepwater drilling threaten one of the nation’s most vital industries. Oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico have become an important source of jobs as well […]

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is under more pressure regarding his administration’s actions to deal with the month-long Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Much of Thursday’s briefing by the president’s spokesman was taken up with questions about the scope of the disaster and the response by BP.
With oil still spewing from the well some 1,500 […]

WASHINGTON - American voters appear to have taken out their anger and frustration at Washington, D.C, voting for the challenger over the incumbent in three of four major congressional races across the country.  Analysts say this is likely to be a very tough year for current officeholders in the November congressional elections.
Democratic Senator Arlen Specter […]

WASHINGTON - A new law in the southwestern state of Arizona aimed at cracking down on illegal immigration has sparked an intense national debate over the issue that could have enormous political consequences for both U.S. political parties.
The new Arizona law goes into effect in a few months and requires law enforcement officials to question […]

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama faces a major political test later this year when U.S. voters go to the polls in the November midterm congressional elections.  Public opinion polls and political experts suggest Republicans will make gains in November, and that would have a significant impact on how Mr. Obama is able to govern over […]

WASHINGTON - The United States on Tuesday announced a new nuclear weapons policy that gives top priority to fighting terrorism and proliferation, rather than deterring or responding to a nuclear attack by a foreign country. 
The policy promises not to use atomic weapons against non-nuclear states, but issues a stern warning for countries that ignore global […]

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration is reported to be pressing key members of the U.S. Congress to allow more time before taking final action on legislation that would impose tough, unilateral sanctions on Iran.  The president says he believes there can be success within weeks, rather than months, in building a tough sanctions resolution in […]

WASHINGTON - The focus of U.S. health-care reform now shifts to the Senate, where members are debating a package of revisions, or fixes, to a bill President Barack Obama signed into law Tuesday.
Senators are considering legislation that the House of Representatives has approved to modify the health care bill passed on Sunday.  Some Democratic House […]

WASHINGTON - The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a sweeping overhaul of the U.S. health care system, with majority Democrats handing President Barack Obama a victory on his top domestic priority.
The House approved a Senate-passed health care bill late Sunday by a vote of 219 to 212.  Minority Republicans were unanimous in opposition, and […]

WASHINGTON - In U.S. politics, 2010 is shaping up to be a good year to be a conservative.  Poll ratings for President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress are down, and opposition Republicans are hoping that energized conservatives will carry the party to victory in the November congressional elections.  But the conservative movement is not […]

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will lay out what White House officials call the “final act” in his efforts and those of the Democratic majority in Congress to pass health care reform legislation. The president will use a statement on Wednesday to offer a revised proposal that might contain more ideas from minority Republicans lawmakers […]

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Barack Obama has urged Democratic and Republican lawmakers to bridge their differences on health care reform, at a special televised summit aimed at reviving legislation that has stalled in Congress.
Opening the meeting Thursday, President Obama said he hoped leaders on both sides would focus on issues of agreement, and avoid what […]

WASHINGTON - New public opinion polls show that President Barack Obama and both major U.S. political parties face a challenging political climate in the months ahead.
Two recent surveys - one by ABC News and The Washington Post newspaper, the other by the Gallup organization - show President Obama’s job approval rating at 51 percent.  Another […]

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration says no decision has been reached on where to hold trials for accused terrorists, including the self-proclaimed mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.  The issue resurfaced after the administration backed away from plans to hold civilian trials in New York City.
Last year, U.S. Attorney General […]

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Barack Obama appears to be at a political turning point as he prepares to deliver the annual State of the Union Address on Wednesday before a Joint Session of Congress and a national television audience.  The recent Republican victory in the special Senate election in the heavily Democratic northeastern U.S. state […]

WASHINGTON - Minority Republicans in Congress are claiming a major victory in Tuesday’s Massachusetts special election, which put Republican Scott Brown in the U.S. Senate seat once occupied by the late Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy. 
Republicans describe the result, giving them 41 of 100 seats in the Senate, as a rejection of the way President Barack […]