Politics Headlines
Congress officially declares Obama next president
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 10:41 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Congress has officially declared Barack Obama the next President of the United States after tallying electoral college votes in a centuries old tradition....
Obama warns of dire consequences without stimulus
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 10:30 A.M.
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama warned of dire and long-lasting consequences if Congress doesn't pump unprecedented dollars into the national economy, making an urgent pitch Thursday for his mammoth spending proposal in his first speech since the election....
Obama tax plan runs into opposition in Senate
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 10:29 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama's proposed tax cuts ran into opposition Thursday from senators in his own party who said they wouldn't do much to stimulate the economy or create jobs....
Obama plans to overhaul counterterrorism apparatus
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 10:22 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama is laying plans to dissolve a White House security panel created in the wake of 9/11 and restructure counterterrorism policy under intelligence veteran John Brennan....
Clinton State Department team takes shape
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 10:01 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Secretary of State-designate Hillary Rodham Clinton isn't waiting to be confirmed to name her team, settling already on several senior positions, say Democratic sources and officials familiar with the transition....
Obama's pick to lead on health care gets hearing
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 9:45 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Expensive, mediocre and too often unavailable. That about sums up the nation's health care system, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, President-elect Barack Obama's choice to head health and human services, said Thursday....
Bush wants education law kept after he leaves
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 9:25 A.M.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Delivering one final policy speech, President George W. Bush defended his signature education law on Thursday and warned that it should not be weakened when he leaves office because it has "forever changed America's school systems."...
Congress asks judge to keep Bush records at WH
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 9:09 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The new Congress on Thursday asked a federal judge to force the Bush White House to keep documents on the controversial firings of nine federal prosecutors instead of turning them over to the National Archives....
Missouri Sen. Kit Bond won't seek re-election
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 9:06 A.M.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Republican Sen. Kit Bond announced Thursday that he will not seek re-election in 2010, saying he does not "aspire to become Missouri's oldest senator."...
Panel poised to back Blagojevich impeachment vote
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 8:39 A.M.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) -- The Illinois House committee investigating Gov. Rod Blagojevich released a draft report Thursday saying the panel believes the Democratic governor has abused his power and recommending the full chamber vote on impeachment....
Obama seeks new 'foundation' for economic growth
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 8:35 A.M.
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama is spelling out the key elements of an "American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan" that he is touting to treat a sick economy....
Obama vows to keep pet projects out
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 8:34 A.M.
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama is again vowing to keep "earmarks and pet projects" out of an economic recovery plan....
Mukasey says farewell to Justice Dept.
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 8:18 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Attorney General Michael Mukasey said farewell to Justice Department employees Thursday, praising their dedication and poking fun at himself for a health scare last year....
Obama, security aides, still debating Blackberry
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 8:03 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- For President-elect Barack Obama, parting with his Blackberry is such sweet sorrow....
Key Fla. Senate race a toss-up without Jeb Bush
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 7:36 A.M.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- It's likely Jeb Bush could have tapped his reputation as governor and an extensive fundraising network to keep a key U.S. Senate seat - and possibly a filibuster-proof majority - out of Democratic hands in 2010....
INSIDE WASHINGTON: GOP lays down marker on Holder
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 6:38 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Eric Holder Jr., President-elect Barack Obama's pick for attorney general, brings to his confirmation hearing next week a dream resume and a bull's-eye target with his picture in the middle....
Merkley And Schrader Receive Committee Assignments
OPB NEWS - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 5:46 A.M.
Oregon’s newly-minted representatives in Washington have received their committee assignments.
NY lawmaker sworn in amid assault investigation
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 3:58 A.M.
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- A former police officer and councilman was sworn in as a new state senator, despite facing charges that he slashed his girlfriend's face with a piece of broken glass in a jealous rage....
Israelis arrive in Egypt for cease-fire talks
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 2:19 A.M.
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) -- Israeli representatives arrived in Cairo Thursday for Egyptian-brokered talks on a cease-fire proposal after the U.N. Security Council failed to agree on action to end the escalating crisis in Gaza....
Ill. sec. of state feels the heat in Burris flap
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 1:52 A.M.
CHICAGO (AP) -- Until recently, Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White may have been best known on the national stage for establishing an inner city tumbling team. No longer....
Obama's performance czar has tried to improve IRS
AP - THURSDAY, JANUARY 8, 2009 1:37 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Nancy Killefer, the management consultant chosen by President-elect Barack Obama to make federal agencies work better for the public, has a lot of experience trying to improve the agency taxpayers love to hate, the Internal Revenue Service....
Feds say inauguration attractive terrorist target
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:30 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The upcoming inauguration of Barack Obama is an attractive target for international and domestic terrorists, but U.S. intelligence officials have no information about specific threats to the Jan. 20 event....
Obama hails 'extraordinary' moment with presidents
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:22 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Confronting a grim economy and a Middle East on fire, Barack Obama turned Wednesday to perhaps the only people on the planet who understand what he's in for: the four living members of the U.S. presidents' club. In an image bound to go down in history, every living U.S. president came together at the White House on Wednesday to hash over the world's challenges with the president-elect. There they stood, shoulder-to-shoulder in the Oval Office: George H.W. Bush, Obama,...
Senate Democrats yield to Obama, retreat on Burris
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:21 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Democrats beat a hasty retreat Wednesday from their rejection of Roland Burris as President-elect Barack Obama's successor, yielding to pressure from Obama himself and from senators irked that the standoff was draining attention and putting them in a bad light. Burris said with a smile he expected to join them "very shortly."...
Richardson adviser worked for firm feds probing
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 8:36 P.M.
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) -- One of Gov. Bill Richardson's close friends and advisers worked as a consultant for the California firm at the center of a federal pay-to-play probe that derailed the governor's appointment as commerce secretary....
Bridges, streets being closed for inauguration
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 8:23 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Police are blocking off all bridges crossing the Potomac River into Washington and a huge chunk of downtown when Barack Obama takes the oath of office Jan. 20, securing the largest area of the nation's capital for any inauguration....
Major lab discloses problem with vitamin D testing
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 6:55 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's largest medical lab company says it recently discovered and fixed a problem that led to inaccuracies in a small number of tests for vitamin D deficiency....
Matthews says he won't run for Pa. Senate seat
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 6:18 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- MSNBC political commentator Chris Matthews has told his colleagues he won't be leaving television to run for a U.S. Senate seat from Pennsylvania....
Tax compliance costly for individuals, businesses
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 3:55 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's tax code is so complex that taxpayers spend nearly $200 billion a year on the work required to comply with requirements, the government's taxpayer advocate said in a report released Wednesday....
GAO: Dolphins, whales lack protection from fishing
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 3:13 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration has failed to provide protections required by law to more than a dozen marine mammals potentially at risk of death or injury due to commercial fishing, congressional investigators said Wednesday....
Detainees in Afghanistan want to sue for release
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 2:57 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A federal judge sought Wednesday to compare four terror suspects being held at a U.S. base in Afghanistan to others detained at Guantanamo Bay to decide if all have the right to sue for their freedom....
House requires info on presidential library donors
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 2:12 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Future donations to presidential libraries would have to be publicly disclosed, the House decided Wednesday....
Obama wants to cut energy use in federal buildings
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 2 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama wants to use his economic aid plan to cut energy use in federal buildings, a long-sought goal that has achieved mixed success....
House Dems to vote on Obama-favored health plan
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 1:21 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Democrats plan to give President-elect Barack Obama an early victory on health care, specifically children's health care, next week....
Army apologizes for hurtful message to survivors
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 1:08 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Army said Wednesday that 7,000 family members of soldiers killed in the Iraq or Afghan wars mistakenly were sent letters addressing them as "John Doe." Army Chief of Staff Gen. George W. Casey, Jr., was sending a personal letter to all the families who received the improperly addressed letters as the result of a printing error, the Army said....
Colo. 1st state with 2 black legislative leaders
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 12:08 P.M.
DENVER (AP) -- Sharecropper's grandson Terrance Carroll was chosen Wednesday as speaker of Colorado's House of Representatives, making the state the first in the nation where blacks lead both chambers of its Legislature....
Conservative group sues Senate for barring Burris
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:53 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A conservative watchdog group has sued the Senate for refusing to immediately seat Roland Burris as the new senator from Illinois....
Congressional Black Caucus wants Burris seated
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:46 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Congressional Black Caucus is calling for Illinois Democrat Roland Burris to be allowed to fill President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat....
CBO projects $1.2 trillion deficit for 2009
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:45 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The federal budget deficit will nearly triple to an unprecedented $1.2 trillion for the 2009 budget year, according to grim new Congressional Budget Office figures....
'Everyday Americans' invited to whistle stop tour
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:36 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama has invited a group of "everyday Americans" to join him and Vice President-elect Joe Biden on their Whistle Stop Tour to the nation's capital on the Saturday before Inauguration Day....
Administration won't finalize fuel economy rules
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 11:31 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration said Wednesday it won't finish implementing new vehicle fuel-economy rules, leaving the issue to the incoming Obama administration....
No serious objections expected to Hillary Clinton
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 10:49 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Hillary Rodham Clinton has held lengthy private discussions with leaders of the Senate committee reviewing her nomination to be secretary of state and will face a public hearing Tuesday....
US official: NKorea will challenge Obama
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 10:39 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration said Wednesday that nuclear-armed North Korea will be an early test for President-elect Barack Obama's new administration, conceding that one of President George W. Bush's top foreign policy initiatives is unlikely to be resolved before Obama takes office Jan. 20....
Bush headed to Midland, Texas, after presidency
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 10:19 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The White House settled one post-presidential mystery on Wednesday, answering the question of where will George W. Bush go when his term as president ends on the afternoon of Jan. 20?...
Rights group prods Obama to lift Cuba travel ban
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 9:53 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A human rights group is asking President-elect Barack Obama to end immediately a ban on most American travel to Cuba....
Projected deficits put Obama stimulus in new light
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 9:39 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama said Wednesday he'll have to juggle the competing interests of economic stimulus and deficit control, but that restoring general business health must come first....
End to Minn. Senate race pushed even further out
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 8:27 A.M.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Minnesota's grueling U.S. Senate race, already dragging on two months past Election Day, has now moved even further from the voters - and into the hands of lawyers....
Obama refuses to take stand on seating Burris
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 8:05 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama has declined to support giving his vacated Senate seat to former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris....
Obama to address entitlement spending
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 8:03 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama says spiraling entitlement spending will be a central part of the discussion on controlling the federal deficit in the future....
Obama: US must speak with single voice on Gaza
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 7:58 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama says he is concerned about the violence in Gaza, but also is wary of sending conflicting messages about American foreign policy....
Obama names Killefer to performance job
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 7:50 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama has chosen a former Clinton Treasury Department official to head up a new office that will closely follow how well federal programs are working....
Rain douses Rose Garden presidential class picture
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 6:01 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- That photographers' dream shot of the current president, the next president and the still-living presidents posing for a picture in the Rose Garden? Forget it! An unrelenting rain has forced the class picture inside....
Former Australian leader has Blair House reserved
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 3:06 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- It's a D.C. property so exclusive that even the president-elect couldn't reserve it. So who's staying at Blair House, the White House's guest quarters across Pennsylvania Avenue?...
CNN: Gupta approached about surgeon general post
AP - WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2009 12:15 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama's reported choice for surgeon general, CNN medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta, could bring a dose of star power to a job that hasn't had that much clout in decades....
New Congress opens pledging to rescue economy
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 6:29 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Capitol rang loud with vows to fix the crisis-ridden economy Tuesday as Congress opened for business at the dawn of a new Democratic era. "We need action and we need action now," said Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Republicans agreed, and pledged cooperation in Congress as well as with President-elect Barack Obama - to a point....
Ex-Fla. Gov. Jeb Bush won't run for Senate in 2010
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 6:28 P.M.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Former Gov. Jeb Bush announced Tuesday that he won't run for the U.S. Senate in 2010 to replace the retiring Mel Martinez, saying that it was not the right time to return to elected office....
Ex-eBay CEO largely unknown amid Calif. gov.'s bid
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 6:22 P.M.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- Former eBay executive Meg Whitman brings intrigue and a big bank account to California's beleaguered Republican Party....
Former Blackwater guards plead not guilty
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 5:56 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Five former Blackwater Worldwide security guards pleaded not guilty Tuesday to federal manslaughter and gun charges resulting from a 2007 shooting in a crowded Baghdad square that killed 17 Iraqi civilians and injured dozens of others....
Businessman linked to Richardson donated to Obama
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 5:13 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A prominent businessman caught up in a grand jury probe whose political donations ended any role for New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson in the Obama administration also was a generous contributor in support of the president-elect....
IRS agents soften heart for delinquent taxpayers
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 3:44 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- As the nation sinks deeper into recession, the IRS is offering to waive late penalties, negotiate new payment plans and postpone asset seizures for delinquent taxpayers who are financially strapped, but make a good-faith effort to settle their tax debts....
Wyden Backs Panetta For CIA Post
OPB NEWS - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 2:59 P.M.
Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden is standing up for the man Barack Obama picked to lead the CIA.
Shinseki pledges to fix gaps in veterans' care
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 2:04 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Retired Gen. Eric K. Shinseki pledged to move quickly to fix gaps in health care if confirmed as Veterans Affairs secretary, saying he will reopen benefits to hundreds of thousands of middle-income veterans denied during the Bush administration....
Social Security unveils new online application
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 1:16 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Social Security Administration, envisaging the near-future prospect of 10,000 baby boomers applying for benefits every day, has put together a new online service that will allow people to get their benefits without ever traveling to a Social Security field office....
Obama seen making more aggressive effort on terror
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 1:09 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama apparently plans a more aggressive approach than the Bush administration to helping friendly nations get better at fighting terrorism within their own borders, the State Department's top counterterrorism official said Tuesday....
VP-elect Biden sworn in for 7th Senate term
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 12:42 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate put Washington's massive shift of power on public display Tuesday when senators convened for the opening of the 111th session of Congress....
Schrader And Merkley Sworn In At U.S. Capitol
OPB NEWS - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 12:35 P.M.
Oregon's newest members of Congress were sworn in Tuesday at the nation's capitol.
New House members sworn in
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 11:24 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The new members of the U.S. House of Representatives have been sworn-in, as the 111th Congress begins its work....
Obama bans earmarks from big economic package
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 10:18 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama says he will bar pork-barrel projects from the massive economic stimulus bill he wants Congress to pass....
Rice traveling to UN to push Gaza cease-fire
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 9:59 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will travel to New York and the United Nations on Tuesday in a bid to broker a sustainable cease-fire as soon as possible to end the crisis in Gaza....
Obama adds 'Youth Ball' to festivities
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 5:11 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama is adding a "Youth Ball" to the parties planned to celebrate his Jan. 20 inauguration....
Colo.'s new senator relatively unknown to voters
AP - TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2009 2:43 A.M.
DENVER (AP) -- Barack Obama knows Colorado's new senator better than most state voters do....
Congressmen sound off against SEC in Madoff affair
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 10:40 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republican and Democratic House members said Monday that the alleged $50 billion fraud involving Wall Street figure Bernard Madoff reflects deep, systemic problems at the Securities and Exchange Commission....
Kennedy missteps might not trip her up in the end
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 9:18 P.M.
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- Caroline Kennedy's missteps and halting speech patterns have been replayed endlessly since she announced her bid to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton in the U.S. Senate....
Biden to head to Asia for congressional trip
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 7:54 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Joe Biden is heading to Southwest Asia just days before becoming vice president, a visit that signals the new administration's plans to make the troubled region an immediate priority....
Kaine says he'll limit time spent as party leader
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 7:40 P.M.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Gov. Tim Kaine said Monday he will manage a Virginia budget crisis $3 billion and growing and head the Democratic National Committee in his spare time, largely as "an electronic gig."...
Obama says his plan with tax cuts to get quick OK
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 6:43 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama plunged into rare pre-inaugural crisis talks with congressional leaders Monday, declaring the national economy was "bad and getting worse" and embracing tax cuts now expected to reach $300 billion. He predicted lawmakers would approve a mammoth revitalization package within two weeks of his taking office....
AP source: Ex-eBay CEO to run for Calif. governor
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 6:38 P.M.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- Former eBay Inc. chief executive Meg Whitman plans to run for governor of California, a person with knowledge of her political aspirations said Monday....
Bush to establish 3 marine monuments in Pacific
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 6:25 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Parts of three remote and uninhabited Pacific island chains are being set aside by President George W. Bush as national monuments to protect them from oil and gas extraction and commercial fishing in what will be the largest marine conservation effort in history....
New House rules reflect Democrats' election win
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 4:22 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Democrats unveiled internal rules Monday that would end Republican-imposed, six-year term limits on committee chairmen and make it harder for GOP lawmakers to offer alternative legislation....
US suggests conditions of a Gaza cease-fire
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 3:58 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration stuck to its defense of Israel's expanding offensive in the Gaza Strip on Monday and pushed for a cease-fire including a lasting halt to Hamas' rocket attacks on Israel and a reopening of border crossings that are Gaza's economic lifeline....
Scribner to publish first lady Laura Bush's memoir
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 11 A.M.
NEW YORK (AP) -- First lady Laura Bush, among the most reserved and enigmatic public figures of recent times, will, at last, tell her story....
Obama's girls enroll for classes at private school
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 9:35 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- First things first: President-elect Barack Obama's two daughters have checked into their new school in Washington....
Obama adds 'Neighborhood Ball' to festivities
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 4:59 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama is adding a "Neighborhood Ball" to the list of inaugural parties planned just over two weeks from now....
Richardson withdrawal leaves gap in Cabinet picks
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 4:14 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Cabinet that President-elect Barack Obama picked on a fast track has an unexpected opening, with New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Obama's choice for commerce secretary, withdrawing under pressure of a federal investigation into how his political donors landed a lucrative transportation contract....
Richardson's public life imperfect but resilient
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 2:09 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- When he ran for president, Bill Richardson touted more than an adventurous style and impressive resume. He was the guy who embraced flaws as a strength, the one who said the American people "don't want blow-dried candidates with perfection."...
Analysis: Can Uncle Sam spend cash fast enough?
AP - MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2009 1:03 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Washington bureaucrats have a reputation for being able to spend taxpayer money real fast. But, believe it or not, spending it fast enough is one of the biggest tasks President-elect Barack Obama's economic team faces in putting together an economic recovery measure....
Hoyer: Stimulus unlikely before inauguration
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 9:27 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama received a rude welcome to Washington on Sunday as congressional Democrats dashed his hopes for a speedy response to the worst economic crisis in decades....
Obama bids Midwest goodbye, lands in Washington
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 8:45 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President-elect Barack Obama rejoined his family in Washington on Sunday evening after bidding a poignant farewell to his Chicago home as he begins final preparations for his Jan. 20 inauguration....
Former President Bush touts son Jeb for top job
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 11:46 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Another President Bush?...
Colo. Senate choice new to politics but has smarts
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 8:07 A.M.
DENVER (AP) -- A whip-smart lawyer who has turned successively to the worlds of business and education, Denver Superintendent Michael Bennet won't have much trouble adjusting to the biggest promotion of his life: to U.S. senator....
Former DNC chief announces Va. gov run
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 8:04 A.M.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Former Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe said on Saturday he intends to run for governor of Virginia....
Good luck getting around D.C. on Inauguration Day
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 7:49 A.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- On a typical weekday, hundreds of thousands of people commute to the nation's capital, snarling roads and packing subway trains and buses during peak hours....
Illinois Senate appointee Burris plans busy Sunday
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 5:50 A.M.
CHICAGO (AP) -- Senate appointee Roland Burris plans to speak before Chicago ministers and supporters before he departs for Washington....
Denver schools chief named to fill Senate vacancy
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 4:13 A.M.
DENVER (AP) -- Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter on Saturday named Denver's public schools superintendent as his choice to fill a Senate vacancy that will be created by the promotion of Sen. Ken Salazar to interior secretary in the Obama administration....
Diplomats say US blocks UN statement on Gaza
AP - SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2009 2:04 A.M.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) -- The United States has blocked approval of a U.N. Security Council statement calling for an immediate cease-fire between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers, diplomats said....
Analysis: Bush's personality shapes his legacy
AP - SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 2009 11:12 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President George W. Bush will be judged on what he did. He will also be remembered for what he's like: a fast-moving, phrase-mangling Texan who stays upbeat even though his country is not....
Navy to consider closing case of missing pilot
AP - SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 2009 6:25 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The family of a Navy pilot missing since his plane was shot down during the first Gulf war isn't ready to give up hope that he is alive and say they will oppose any decision to declare him killed in action....
Michelle Obama, daughters arrive in Washington
AP - SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 2009 5:44 P.M.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Michelle Obama and her two daughters arrived Saturday in Washington, ahead of President-elect Barack Obama who was expected to make the trip the next day....
Minn. recount nearly done; next up, the lawsuits
AP - SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 2009 4:58 P.M.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- This coming week, Minnesota's Canvassing Board will declare what everyone's been waiting for in the state's prolonged U.S. Senate race: A winner....
Bushisms over the years
AP - SATURDAY, JANUARY 3, 2009 8:06 A.M.
President George W. Bush will leave behind a legacy of Bushisms, the label stamped on the commander in chief's original speaking style. Some of the president's more notable malaprops and mangled statements:...
