Obama honors fallen Americans at Dover
8:12
Hours after a personal encounter with the grim cost of war, President Barack Obama said Thursday the sight of 18 flag-covered cases holding the remains of Americans killed this week in Afghanistan can't help but...
Alabama doctor confirmed as US surgeon general
8:04
The Senate on Thursday confirmed Dr. Regina Benjamin to be the U.S. surgeon general, elevating a well-known Alabama family physician to be the nation's top doctor. Benjamin, 53, was approved by voice vote. Benjamin...
Clinton to meet Abbas, Netanyahu over weekend
7:50
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will meet Israeli and Palestinian leaders over the weekend to push ahead with flagging efforts to restart peace talks, the State Department said Thursday. Clinton, along...
White House garden has 2nd major harvest
7:42
Cupboards at a soup kitchen near the White House will be spilling over for several days after a donation of fresh produce harvested Thursday from first lady Michelle Obama's vegetable garden. Mrs. Obama invited about...
Obama considers 'McChrystal Light' Afghan war plan
7:19
President Barack Obama is considering sending large numbers of additional U.S. forces to Afghanistan next year but fewer than his war commander, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, prefers, U.S. officials said. Such a narrowed...
How fat am I? NJ's GOP gov hopeful jokes on weight
6:47
The Republican in New Jersey's race for governor wants the incumbent to weigh in more candidly about the challenger's heft. Chris Christie says Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine should quit hinting at his weight with...
Iraqi election delay could stall US troop pullout
6:37
U.S. troops could leave Iraq later than currently planned if the fragile nation's elections are delayed, the Pentagon said Thursday. Military commanders have said they want to keep the 117,000 soldiers now in Iraq in...
Obama to welcome Turkish prime minister on Dec. 7
6:35
President Barack Obama will meet with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (REH'-jehp TY'-ihp UR'-doh-wahn) on Dec. 7. The White House announced the meeting Thursday. Press secretary Robert Gibbs says Obama...
Financial overhaul bill gets wary reception
6:30
An Obama administration plan to dissolve large, struggling financial firms rather than bail them out is encountering Republican resistance, Democratic doubts and only qualified support from regulators. At a House...
Floridians try nutty way to save post office
6:30
The folks in Lantana, Fla. think the Postal Service would have to be nuts to close their post office and they're trying a coco-nutty way to prove it. Lantana's post office is one of more than 350 being studied for...
Military notified too late to launch fighter jets
5:45
The U.S. military would have launched fighter jets to track down an errant Northwest Airlines flight that overshot the Minneapolis airport if officials had been notified sooner, a top commander said Thursday as federal...
Race re-emerges in tight Atlanta mayoral election
5:14
Three of Atlanta's prominent political personalities are colliding in the race for mayor, which is on course for a runoff that could polarize the Southern capital along racial lines. With two formidable black...
Accused spy scientist held without bond
4:35
A space scientist accused of attempted espionage was ordered held without bond Thursday after prosecutors said he was a "walking safe deposit box" of government secrets who claimed to have already passed some of them to...
Nevada construction deaths prompt safety review
4:02
Federal officials will investigate workplace safety programs across the country after the deaths of 25 workers in construction accidents in Las Vegas over an 18-month period. A federal review of Nevada's workplace...
Corruption stings color elections in New Jersey
2:58
Did you hear the one about the best way to identify public officials in New Jersey? Check for the handcuff marks on their wrists. A massive federal corruption sting over the summer again made New Jersey a punch line...
Obama says Dover visit was 'a sobering reminder'
2:27
President Barack Obama says his middle-of-the-night visit to greet the remains of fallen U.S. soldiers is "a sobering reminder" of the sacrifices of war. He told reporters Thursday that the burden of such sacrifices by...
US official: Homemade bombs pose worldwide threat
1:58
The use of homemade bombs extends well beyond Afghanistan and Iraq, making the weapons a global problem that requires an international solution, a senior U.S. military official said Thursday. In congressional...
Obama restores private intel board's key power
1:51
President Barack Obama Thursday restored an independent intelligence advisory agency's authority to tell the attorney general if it thinks that a U.S. intelligence agency may have broken the law, a move intended to...
US judge: Russia defaults on Jewish document suit
12:06
A federal judge has issued a default order against Russia in a lawsuit seeking to force the country to hand over historic Jewish documents. Judge Royce Lamberth issued the order after Russia refused to participate in...
PROMISES, PROMISES: Obama keeps word on hate crime
12:01
For this accomplishment, President Barack Obama sought maximum publicity. There was a bill signing at a wooden desk set up in the East Room, with the media invited, followed by a reception for joyous, champagne-sipping...
Clinton to meet Abbas, Netanyahu in Middle East
10:31
The State Department says U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will meet Israeli and Palestinian leaders over the weekend to push ahead with efforts to restart stalled peace talks. Spokesman P.J. Crowley told...
Health care issues: Incentives for staying healthy
9:39
A look at key issues in the health care debate: THE ISSUE: Should private employers offer incentives that encourage their workers to stay healthy? THE POLITICS: The health care bill moving through the Senate would...
Book: Obama seriously considered Hillary for VP
9:18
Barack Obama seriously considered Hillary Rodham Clinton for the vice presidency, even though his top aides weren't enthusiastic about it, his presidential campaign manager says in a new memoir. "Neither Ax (top-level...
Obama to lay out plans to help small businesses
3:23
President Barack Obama speaks Thursday morning to small business leaders about the administration's plans to offer them assistance. Those plans include increased access to capital and a health care overhaul proposal...
Turmoil from climate change poses security risks
8:56
An island in the Indian Ocean, vital to the U.S. military, disappears as the sea level rises. Rivers critical to India and Pakistan shrink, increasing military tensions in South Asia. Drought, famine and disease forces...
White House ready to showcase classical music
8:26
After showcasing jazz, country and Latin music, the White House is going classical next week. The Nov. 4 lineup for an evening concert in the East Room includes Grammy-winning violinist Joshua Bell, Grammy-winning...
Obama revives military trials at Guantanamo
7:22
President Barack Obama brought back Bush-era military trials for terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay on Wednesday by signing new rules into law that will give detainees stronger legal rights in court. Obama approved the...
Obama unhappy with criticism of his NYC date night
6:35
President Barack Obama says only once since Jan. 20 has White House life annoyed him. It was the Saturday in May when, trying to be a good husband, he kept a campaign promise to take his wife, Michelle, to New York...
GOP at odds over support for NY House candidates
6:16
Prominent Republicans like Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin are bucking the GOP to back a conservative candidate for a House seat in New York, opting to defend what they see...
End of rule allowing expulsion of grieving spouses
5:59
President Barack Obama has signed into law a bill that ends a rule that made newly married foreigners subject to expulsion if their American spouses died within two years of marriage and before their applications for...
House committee OKs tighter Iran sanctions bill
5:32
A bill that would tighten U.S. sanctions against the export of refined petroleum products to Iran was approved overwhelmingly Wednesday by the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Iran is a major exporter of crude oil but...
Adm: Afghan attack won't disrupt Nov. 7 runoff
5:06
The White House says Wednesday's deadly attack on a guest house used by the U.N. in the Afghan capital is an attempt by extremists to disrupt the Nov. 7 runoff presidential election. Press secretary Robert Gibbs said...
Congress awards high honor to former Sen. Brooke
4:54
With Democrats and Republicans engaged in a heated debate over health care, former Sen. Edward Brooke, the first black man elected by popular vote to the U.S. Senate, pointedly suggested Wednesday that lawmakers put...
Capuano runs as Washington insider in Senate bid
3:35
In the race to replace the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, Rep. Michael Capuano is embracing a label most politicians shun: Washington insider. It's a strategic twist that could leave the six-term Democrat vulnerable to...
Obama names Hagel, Boren as intel board leaders
2:03
President Barack Obama says two former senators will lead an advisory board charged with giving him unvarnished counsel about the nation's intelligence. The president on Wednesday introduced Republican Chuck Hagel of...
Panel: $11 million air safety study not worth much
12:34
An $11 million air safety study sponsored by NASA that asked pilots to reveal mishaps and problems they encountered was so riddled with flaws that it could not provide useful insights about U.S. flight safety, according...
Medicare, Medicaid fraud summit being considered
12:31
The Obama administration is considering a way to bring together patients, doctors, insurers and law officers to combat fraud in Medicare and Medicaid, a Health and Human Services official said Wednesday. The summit,...
McCain exhorts Obama to make Afghan decision now
12:23
Sen. John McCain is exhorting President Barack Obama to make a decision quickly on sending additional troops to Afghanistan, saying U.S allies are nervous and military commanders are frustrated. McCain said in a...
Health care issues: The cost of health insurance
9:59
A look at key issues in the health care debate: THE ISSUE: How much do Americans who have employer-sponsored health insurance pay in premiums? What do their employers pay? Would that change if the system is overhauled?...
Obama has Capitol Hill visit on busy agenda Wed.
3:07
President Barack Obama speaks this morning at a Congressional Gold Medal Ceremony in honor of former Massachusetts Sen. Edward Brooke at the U.S. Capitol. Afterward, Obama and Vice President Joe Biden lunch together at...
Census: 'Brain gains' for high-tech cities
1:43
Many college graduates are passing up industrial centers and former hotspots in the Southwest, which have been hit hard by the recession, in favor of life in urban, high-tech meccas. Their moves are fueling a resurgence...
Report: Afghan president's brother gets CIA pay
11:58
Ahmed Wali Karzai, the brother of the president of Afghanistan, gets regular payments from the CIA and has for much of the past eight years, The New York Times reported Tuesday. The newspaper said that according to...
DEA identifies 3 agents killed in Afghanistan
8:30
The Drug Enforcement Administration has identified the three agents killed Monday in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan, the agency's first fatalities in its counter-narcotics operations in that country. They were...
Chamber to begin ads against health care overhaul
7:54
Looking to build pressure on moderate Democrats, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce says it will begin airing new TV ads in seven states and on national cable television attacking the emerging legislation, including a...
Obama on Va. governor's race: It's not over yet
7:36
President Barack Obama urged Virginians Tuesday to elect a Democrat as governor next week, but party officials braced for a defeat that could take some sheen off Obama's first year in office. Last fall, Obama became...
Review finds 9/11 Potomac exercise was ill-advised
7:33
Holding a training exercise near the Pentagon on Sept. 11 this year was ill-advised, but it did not violate Coast Guard policies, an internal review found. The Coast Guard review, obtained by The Associated Press,...
Obama girls get swine flu shots, Obama will wait
7:24
President Barack Obama's daughters, Malia and Sasha, have received their swine flu shots. The White House announced on its Web site Tuesday that Malia, 11, and Sasha, 8, got the shots from a White House doctor last...
Deal struck on Great Lakes ship pollution
6:37
Congressional negotiators reached formal agreement Tuesday on a deal that would effectively exempt 13 Great Lakes steamships from a proposed federal rule meant to reduce air pollution. The Environmental Protection...
Gibbs: Obama closer to decision on Afghanistan
6:22
The White House said Tuesday that President Barack Obama has nearly finished gathering information and advice on how to proceed in Afghanistan, but he will weigh his options before announcing a plan on U.S. troop...
Judge dismisses lawsuit challenging stem cell rule
5:46
A judge on Tuesday dismissed a Christian adoption agency's challenge to Obama administration regulations expanding stem cell research. The case arose from a decision by President Barack Obama to lift restraints on...