
Arizona to tax hospitals to pay for Medicaid
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer has built a political career in standing up to the federal government over everything from immigration to health care. So she ...

Chefs hail first foodies with inauguration salute
Some of Washington's top chefs came together to salute the president ahead of the inauguration, in part because of the first family's influence on the ...

Iran courts restart of nuke talks, but snubs UN
Iran has floated specific dates for reopening talks with the U.S. and other world powers about its nuclear program. At the same time, Tehran has left ...

Same-sex military couples struggle for recognition
Sgt. Karen Alexander fought for her country in Iraq, but back home she often feels the U.S. Army is fighting against her. Married to another female ...

Unexpected inaugural moments make history, too
The inauguration of a U.S. president is traditionally a highly scripted celebration, with seating charts, schedules, dress rehearsals and planning ...

Analysis: Can Obama fulfill wish on Asia outreach?
President Barack Obama wants Asia to be a growing focus of his second-term foreign policy, but whether that happens could depend on his ability to ...

Big party for Democrats, quiet reflection for GOP
For many Republicans, this is a good weekend to get away from it all. With hundreds of thousands of Democrats traveling to nation's capital for ...

Address: Obama looks to turn a page on first term
President Barack Obama has been looking to historians for guidance on how to shape his second inaugural's words into a speech for the ages, eager to ...

GOP leader: House to vote on debt limit increase
House Republican leaders Friday offered President Barack Obama a three-month reprieve to a looming, market-rattling debt crisis, backing off demands ...

Obama backers aim to outflank NRA on gun control
Supporters of President Barack Obama's gun-control proposals are planning a methodical, state-by-state campaign to try to persuade key lawmakers that ...

Inauguration Day marks rare intersection with King
President Barack Obama plans to use a Bible that belonged to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. as he takes his oath of office on the holiday honoring ...

New nonprofit to promote Obama agenda
In an unprecedented move, President Barack Obama's vaunted political organization is being turned into a nonprofit group — funded in part by corporate ...

Hagel pick test of Senate on presidential choices
In the middle of a bitter fight over a Republican president's nominee for defense secretary, a former White House occupant pleaded with senators to ...

Beyond Obama's oath, what to see and taste in DC
Whether visitors want to try one of the first family's favorite restaurants, discover a sense of history or escape from the crowd to find a museum off ...

Can Obama keep warmer inauguration weather pledge?
It will be the first up or down fact check of a Barack Obama campaign pledge for his second term: Promised warmer Inauguration Day weather. Will he ...

Four years in, shifts in Obama strategy, outlook
Four years ago he was the fifth-youngest president to take the oath of office. Now Barack Obama is 51, his hair more gray, his face more lined.
By the numbers: Obama's second-term inauguration
Before President Barack Obama can march from his swearing-in at the U.S. Capitol to the White House, D.C. transportation crews will have to remove the ...

Obama's gun measures face a tough road in Congress
President Barack Obama's sweeping gun-control package faces an uncertain future on Capitol Hill, where majority House Republicans are rejecting his ...

AP sources: McDonough likely for chief of staff
President Barack Obama is likely to name Denis McDonough, one of his closest national security advisers, as his next chief of staff, according to ...

Inaugural transit options all have drawbacks
If you want to get to the National Mall on Inauguration Day, you're probably better off not driving. The hundreds of thousands of people spilling into ...
Obama, Netanyahu seem headed for US-Israel clash
Israel's premier on Wednesday dismissed President Barack Obama's reported displeasure with his hard-line policies toward the Palestinians, a sisgn ...

Obama unveils gun plan, concedes tough fight ahead
Conceding "this will be difficult," President Barack Obama urged a reluctant Congress on Wednesday to require background checks for all gun sales and ...

Military leaders warn Congress of 'hollow' force
The nation's top military leaders warned Congress in unusually stark terms that its failure to pass a 2013 defense budget — coupled with the threat ...

Interior chief Salazar stepping down in March
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, who oversaw a moratorium on offshore drilling after the BP oil spill and promoted alternative energy sources ...

Egypt's Morsi tries to defuse flap over Jews slur
Egypt's Islamist president sought Wednesday to defuse Washington's anger over his past remarks urging hatred of Jews and calling Zionists "pigs" and ...