President Obama's energy adviser has suggested all the world's roofs should be painted white as part of efforts to slow global warming. [more]

President Barack Obama nominated Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, selecting a woman who would be the court's first Hispanic justice and a liberal who is unlikely to change its ideological balance. [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - House Democrats on Thursday defeated a Republican push to investigate House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's claims that the CIA misled her in 2002 about whether waterboarding had been used against terrorism suspects [more]

Charge your iPod, kill a polar bear [more]

In his first quarterly report on implementing the stimulus, Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday that the recovery program is "ahead of schedule in most programs and, due to efficiencies and sound management, many projects are coming in under budget." [more]

PRINCETON, NJ -- President Barack Obama appears to be slightly more popular with Americans at the start of his second 100 days in office than he was, on average, during his first 100. Gallup Poll Daily tracking from May 7-9 finds [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Casting aside their president's misgivings, Democrats are racing into hearings to criticize newly released Bush administration memos justifying harsh terrorism interrogations. [more]

The U.S. government is pouring billions into General Motors in hopes of reviving the domestic economy, but when the automaker completes its restructuring plan, many of the company's new jobs will be filled by workers overseas. [more]

The Obama administration threatens to rescind billions in stimulus money if Gov. Schwarzenegger and lawmakers do not restore wage cuts to unionized home healthcare workers. [more]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says Congress should stay out of the gay marriage debate, adding that it wasn’t the right time for Congress to decide whether married gay couples should have the right to federal benefits. [more]

Due to the defection of Senator Arlen Specter from the Republican Party, all that stands between Senate Democrats and the coveted 60-seat supermajority are a few half-baked lawyers - [more]

The House Republican campaign operation released a new series of radio ads targeting five members of the Blue Dogs—a faction of moderate and fiscally conservative House Democrats. [more]

WASHINGTON -- A congressman who wants to see college football adopt a playoff system is comparing the Bowl Championship Series to communism. [more]

Supreme Court Justice David Souter's impending retirement gives President Obama an opportunity to put an early stamp on how he will approach judicial nominations. [more]

ISTANBUL, May 1 (Reuters) - May Day protesters clashed with riot police in Germany, Turkey and Greece on Friday while thousands angry at the government's responses to the global financial crisis took to the streets in France. [more]

BERLIN (AP) — The United States and its allies must make sacrifices to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said Wednesday in a high-profile appeal for Europe's help. [more]

Obama's signature campaign slogan, Yes We Can, has been replicated by the Iranian president in a promotional video issued for Iran's presidential poll on 12 June, when Ahmadinejad is seeking reelection. [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Congressional Democrats turned up the pressure on the Obama administration Tuesday to start a criminal investigation by a special counsel into harsh interrogations of terrorism suspects. [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Veteran Republican Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania disclosed plans Tuesday to switch parties, a move intended to boost his chances of winning re-election next year that also will push Democrats within one seat of a 60-vote filibuster-resistant majority. [more]

WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - What's in a name? U.S. pork producers are finding that the name of the virus spreading from Mexico is affecting their business, prompting U.S. officials to argue for changing the name from swine flu. [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - For the first time in years, more Americans than not say the country is headed in the right direction, a sign that Barack Obama has used the first 100 days of his presidency to lift the public's mood and inspire hopes for a brighter future. [more]

How much CO2 does a Google Search produce? Servers need electrical power. According to recent studies [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Calling on Americans to volunteer, President Barack Obama signed a $5.7 billion national service bill Tuesday that triples the size of the AmeriCorps service program [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama left the door open Tuesday to prosecuting Bush administration officials who devised the legal authority for gruesome terror-suspect interrogations [more]

LONDON (Reuters) - Overweight people eat more than thin people and are more likely to travel by car, making excess body weight doubly bad for the environment [more]

WASHINGTON - President Obama’s top economic advisers have determined that they can shore up the nation’s banking system without having to ask Congress for more money [more]

Thirty-one percent (31%) of Texas voters say that their state has the right to secede from the United States and form an independent country. [more]

SAN FRANCISCO -- Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, saying that the American people are demanding "discipline and accountability" after the multibillion-dollar federal bailouts, promised Wednesday to create a legislative commission with broad oversight to investigate the causes of Wall Street irregularities and their full costs to taxpayers. [more]

The Department of Homeland Security is warning law enforcement officials about a rise in "rightwing extremist activity," saying the economic recession, the election of America's first black president and the return of a few disgruntled war veterans could swell the ranks of white-power militias [more]

WASHINGTON – A newly unclassified Department of Homeland Security report warns against the possibility of violence by unnamed "right-wing extremists" concerned about illegal immigration, increasing federal power, restrictions on firearms, abortion and the loss of U.S. sovereignty and singles out returning war veterans as particular threats. [more]

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration and its European allies are preparing proposals that would shift strategy toward Iran by dropping a longstanding American insistence that Tehran rapidly shut down nuclear facilities [more]

Lawmakers there are considering a bill that would make it legal for teenagers 18 and under to exchange explicit photos and videos of themselves – an act that's come to be known by teens as "sexting." [more]

Who let the dog out?
That's the Washington mystery du jour. [more]

[more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - The president's new science adviser said Wednesday that global warming is so dire, the Obama administration is discussing radical technologies to cool Earth's air. [more]

For the second time in four days and with less than three months in office, President Barack Obama has received the "3 a.m. phone call" that Clinton warned about. [more]

WASHINGTON, April 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama declined to answer reporters' questions on Thursday on a hostage crisis off the coast of Somalia, [more]

Key members of the Congressional Black Caucus are calling for an end to U.S. prohibition on travel to Cuba, just hours after a meeting with former Cuban president Fidel Castro in Havana. [more]

How's this for hope and change: U.S. officials flying to Cuba, not to interrogate prisoners at Guantanamo Bay but to meet with the Castro brothers in order to ease the 50-year tensions between the two nations. [more]

A small but growing number of cash-strapped communities are printing their own money. [more]

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - Barack Obama, making his first visit to a Muslim nation as president, declared Monday the United States "is not and will never be at war with Islam." [more]

Chafing at the regulatory constraints that the federal government wants to impose on them, some of the nation's biggest banks that were the recipients of federal bailout money are seeking to return the payouts. [more]

After three hours of closed-door talks, the UN Security Council failed to reach agreement on how to respond to North Korea's long-range rocket launch seen by most Western nations as a clear violation of UN resolutions. [more]

LONDON (AFP) - - Russia's Dmitry Medvedev hailed Barack Obama as "my new comrade" Thursday after their first face-to-face talks, saying the US president "can listen" -- even if little progress was made on substance. [more]

Days after GM's CEO Rick Wagoner was forced out by the Obama administration, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner left open the possibility that such moves could happen again. [more]

London - US President Barack Obama spoke Wednesday of the rift between the US and Russia, but expressed hope that a new US- Russian nuclear arms reduction deal could open the way to a new dialogue between the two countries, after a period of tension. [more]

There are already too many people living on Planet Earth, according to one of most influential science advisors in the US government. [more]

Washington - Al Franken, the comedian turned politician, won a potentially decisive court ruling on Tuesday in his bid to replace Norm Coleman, a Minnesota Republican trying to hold on to his Senate seat. [more]

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - After a frenzied, bruising special election, a New York congressional race that became linked to President Barack Obama's economic recovery efforts won't be decided for at least two more weeks. [more]

It was nearly two weeks ago that the House of Representatives, acting in a near-frenzy after the disclosure of bonuses paid to executives of AIG, passed a bill that would impose a 90 percent retroactive tax on those bonuses. Despite the overwhelming 328-93 vote, support for the measure began to collapse almost immediately. [more]

NEW YORK (Reuters) - PepsiCo Inc is testing greener vending machines, a move that helps the soft drink maker reduce its environmental footprint and gives businesses a little relief on their electric bills. [more]

The Environmental Protection Agency has sent a proposal to the White House that would label carbon dioxide a danger to public welfare [more]

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged fellow leaders at the Conference on Afghanistan in The Hague to offer some "form of reconciliation" to Taliban militants who renounce violence and break with al Qaeda. [more]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- As Barack Obama takes off for his first overseas trip as president, a new national poll indicates that more than eight in 10 Americans think he will do a good job representing the United States to the world. [more]

Who’s going to ignore an e-mail from “President Barack Obama”? [more]

This guide provides practical advice on how to deal with the effects financial difficulties can have on your physical and mental health -- it covers: [more]

President Obama asserted unprecedented government control over the auto industry Monday, rejecting turnaround plans from General Motors and Chrysler and raising the prospect of controlled bankruptcy for either ailing auto giant. [more]

WASHINGTON - People who collect Social Security or disability benefits will share $13 billion in federal money, each receiving a one-time, $250 payment beginning in May, Vice President Joe Biden said Thursday. [more]

The first 100 days of the Obama administration will be and have been consumed with the economy and the budget; the second 100 days will feature, among other things, a significant and detailed negotiation with Congress on health care reform. [more]

CNN) -- In an appeal to the tech-savvy public, the White House's Web site opened itself to questions for President Obama's town hall meeting, which streamed online starting at 11:30 a.m. ET on Thursday. [more]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A key congressional committee on Wednesday approved a $3.45 trillion budget framework for next year that embraces many of President Barack Obama's priorities but spends slightly less than he sought. [more]

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - Want government assistance? Just say no to drugs. [more]

MEXICO CITY (AP) - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Wednesday warned North Korea that firing a missile for any purpose would be a "provocative act" that would have consequences. [more]

March 26 (Bloomberg) -- A special U.S. congressional election in Upstate New York may provide an early referendum on a politician who’s not on the ballot: President Barack Obama. [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Everyone from President Barack Obama on down to fans has criticized how college football determines its top team. Now senators are getting off the sidelines to examine antitrust issues involving the Bowl Champion Series. [more]

In an attempt to change the way Americans view coordinated attacks aimed at killing mass numbers of civilians, new Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has decided the word terrorism is not nearly as effective as the words man-caused disasters. [more]

WASHINGTON -- The White House said it would launch a search for new tax revenues, as Congressional leaders moved to scale back proposed spending increases and tax cuts in President Barack Obama's ambitious budget. [more]

Despite a wounded economy and public furor aimed at Wall Street, a new CBS poll finds President Obama's approval rating has actually gone up. [more]

Whole Foods Market Inc. is one of three national retail companies that introduced a proposed compromise over the weekend to a bill before Congress that would make it easier to create unions. [more]

The Obama administration is considering asking Congress to give the Treasury secretary unprecedented powers to initiate the seizure of non-bank financial companies, such as large insurers, investment firms and hedge funds, whose collapse would damage the broader economy, according to an administration document. [more]

Stocks extend rally on gov't plan to soak up bad bank assets; home sales show surprise gain [more]

The Financial Stability Plan - Progress So Far: Over the past six weeks, the Treasury Department has implemented a series of initiatives as part of its Financial Stability Plan that - alongside the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act - lay the foundations for economic recovery: [more]

Obama has said sending U.S troops into Afghanistan must be part of a strategy that includes an exit plan. [more]

The exiled leader of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on Sunday hailed the "new lexicon" being used by US President Barack Obama towards foreign policy issues the Middle East. [more]

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- In getting the nation's economy back on its feet and pursuing an agenda aimed at keeping it there for the next 40 years, the White House has to do two things at once: implement effective policies and keep the public behind the president long enough to keep implementing them until they work. [more]

In a long profile by WWD's Jacob Bernstein, Suze Orman sounds off on George Bush and blames the ex-president for the financial crisis [more]

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said on Friday he hoped Iran would pay close attention to a videotaped appeal for a "new beginning" in ties with Iran by U.S. President Barack Obama. [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Acting with lightning speed, the Democratic-led House has approved a bill to slap punishing taxes on big employee bonuses from firms bailed out by taxpayers. [more]

While on the campaign trail, Barack Obama pledged to end the war in Iraq within 16 months of taking office. [more]

After two months filled with deference to Congress, President Obama is finally playing a little hardball with the Republicans and right-leaning Democrats who are threatening to attenuate his ambitious budget proposals. [more]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Attorney General Eric Holder signaled a change on medical marijuana policy Wednesday, saying federal agents will target marijuana distributors only when they violate both federal and state law. [more]

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama renewed his campaign promise to tackle the immigration system in a meeting with Hispanic lawmakers Wednesday. [more]

Barack Obama will become the first sitting U.S. president to appear on a late night chat show tomorrow when he is a guest of comedian and writer Jay Leno. [more]

Wasn't it the conservative view that the world was flat and that the planets evolved around the Earth? Didn't conservatives usher in the Spanish Inquisition and persecute people on thought crimes? And modern capitalism has only offered us strife, social problems, and mental and emotional problems in this dog-eat-dog world. [more]

President Obama yesterday made his first judicial appointment, naming U.S. District Judge David F. Hamilton to the federal appeals court, a choice excoriated by some conservatives even as the White House touted him as the type of moderate who could cool the nation's long-simmering judicial battles. [more]

The Kremlin published its priorities Monday for an upcoming meeting of the G20, calling for the creation of a supranational reserve currency to be issued by international institutions as part of a reform of the global financial system. [more]

President Obama renewed his vow today to uphold the "sacred trust" with those serving in harm's way abroad. [more]

The Senate yesterday approved the first step of a Democratic plan designed to get the omnibus public lands, water and natural resources bill to the White House. [more]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, worried about the fate of The Chronicle and other financially struggling newspapers, urged the Justice Department Monday to consider giving Bay Area papers more leeway to merge or consolidate business operations to stay afloat. [more]

WASHINGTON - The economy is fundamentally sound despite the temporary "mess" it's in, the White House said Sunday in the kind of upbeat assessment [more]

President’s approval rating remains above 60 percent in most polls. [more]

(CBS/AP) The Obama administration is looking for ways to recoup at least some of the $165 million American International Group, Inc. paid out in bonuses over the weekend, despite accepting billions in government aid to stay afloat, reports CBS News correspondent Peter Maer. [more]

A leading US senator warned on Wednesday that deferring potentially costly actions to combat climate change because of the global economic slump amounted to "a mutual suicide pact." [more]

US Attorney General Eric Holder appointed legal and security experts to head two high-powered task forces reviewing US policies on detention, interrogation and rendition. [more]

(CNN) -- President Obama on Wednesday will talk about new guidelines aimed at cutting down the number of earmarks in appropriations legislation, one day after the Senate passed a spending bill with nearly 9,000 earmarks, his administration said. [more]

The U.S. Congress has approved a spending bill that includes easing trade and travel restrictions against Cuba. [more]

After weeks of pleasing Democrats by overturning policies set by the previous administration, President Barack Obama Tuesday for the first time confronted a powerful constituency in his own party: teachers’ unions. [more]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday she is open to introducing a second stimulus bill, but it's too early to determine the size of such a package and the timing on another major economic measure. [more]

Passage of the $410 billion, leftover-from-last-year omnibus spending bill was supposed to be a perfunctory, pro forma task. Instead, it’s become a congressional CT scan, diagnosing some serious maladies afflicting Senate Democrats and complicating House-Senate relations. [more]

KABUL (AP) - President Hamid Karzai on Sunday welcomed President Barack Obama's call to identify moderate elements of the Taliban and encourage them to reconcile with the Afghan government. [more]

President Obama was so concerned that he had appeared to dismiss a question from New York Times reporters about whether he was a socialist that he called the newspaper from the Oval Office to clarify his policies. [more]

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - On Capitol Hill, a $1.7 million earmark for pig odor research in Iowa has become a big, fat joke among Republicans, a Grade A example of pork. But the people who live cheek by jowl with hog farms in the No. 1 pig-producing state aren't laughing. [more]

Two of the administration's top economic officials defended President Obama's $3.6 trillion budget plan yesterday, arguing that the proposal would finance a historic investment in critical economic priorities while restoring balance to a tax code tipped in favor of the wealthy. [more]

More than 2,000 clean-energy activists converged at a coal-fired power plant on Capitol Hill on Monday for a protest they billed as the largest display of civil disobedience on the climate crisis in U.S. history. [more]

Should the United States adopt a nationalized health insurance plan in which doctors, hospitals and the health care delivery system would be under the control of the federal government? [more]