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United States government

House passes bill normalizing Russian trade
The House showed some bipartisan cooperation Friday by voting overwhelmingly to end Soviet-era trade restrictions so that American companies and ...
White House calls fiscal cliff talks constructive
The White House says President Barack Obama had a constructive meeting with congressional leaders on the looming "fiscal cliff" that could undermine ...
Medicare premiums going up $5 a month for 2013
Medicare premiums are going up $5 a month in 2013, the government said Friday. It's less than expected, but still enough to eat up about one-fourth ...
Fire out at Gulf oil rig; 4 hurt, 2 may be missing
An oil rig explosion off the coast of Louisiana sent four people to hospital Friday and two others were believed to be missing, Coast Guard officials ...
Petraeus on Capitol Hill to discuss Libya attack
Former CIA Director David Petraeus arrived early Friday for closed hearings on Capitol Hill as lawmakers seek details from the retired general about ...
Defense lawyers say BP rig workers are scapegoats
While BP has resolved a sweeping criminal probe of its role in the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, two company employees charged in the ...
FedEx, UPS investigated for online drug shipments
The nation's two largest shipping companies said they are targets of a criminal probe related to their dealings with online pharmacies at the center ...
Panetta in Cambodia for talks on US-Asia security
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Friday that the U.S. would participate in three Southeast Asian military exercises next year. Panetta was in ...
4 dead, 17 hurt when train hits Texas vets parade
A freight train slammed into a parade float carrying wounded veterans on Thursday, killing four people and injuring 17 others as the float tried to ...
Xi takes China's helm with many tough challenges
Long-anointed successor Xi Jinping assumes the leadership of China at a time when the ruling Communist Party is confronting slower economic growth, ...
Feds probe FedEx, UPS over online drug shipments
FedEx and UPS have disclosed they are targets of a federal criminal investigation related to their dealings with online pharmacies, which are at the ...
US court strikes down Mich. affirmative action ban
Michigan's ban on affirmative action in college admissions was declared unconstitutional Thursday by a deeply divided federal appeals court, six years ...
Tenn. GOP congressman's ex-wife had 2 abortions
Republican U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais, who opposes abortion rights, testified during divorce proceedings that he and his former wife made a mutual ...
BP agrees to pay $4.5B; 3 employees charged
A day of reckoning arrived for BP on Thursday as the oil giant agreed to plead guilty to a raft of charges in the deadly Gulf of Mexico spill and pay ...
Army suicides for 2012 surpass last year's numbers
Ten months into 2012, the number of suspected suicides by active-duty soldiers has surpassed last year's total, even as the Pentagon struggles to stem ...
Questions on sex scandal: Top officials testify
Top national security officials trudged to Capitol Hill on Thursday to grapple with fallout from the David Petraeus sex scandal as Defense Secretary ...
Panel: Credit raters, regulators failed MF Global
A House panel says credit rating agencies and federal regulators contributed to MF Global's collapse last year. But it pinned most of the blame on ...
GOP-led states start warming up to health care law
From the South to the heartland, cracks are appearing in the once-solid wall of Republican resistance to President Barack Obama's health care law.
Obama aides: Myanmar visit not a 'victory' lap
White House officials cautioned Thursday that President Barack Obama's historic trip to Myanmar, a onetime U.S. adversary, should not be viewed as a ...
Marijuana law introduced to Uruguay congress
Uruguay came one step closer to turning the government into the country's leading pot dealer on Thursday, as lawmakers formally introduced to Congress ...
Senate health chair wants new drug compound rules
The chairman of the Senate's health committee pledged Thursday to move ahead with legislation to tighten oversight of compounding pharmacies, amid a ...
FDA probe: Were deaths linked to energy drink?
Federal health authorities are investigating reports of 13 deaths possibly linked to so-called energy shots and cautioning consumers to talk to their ...
Obama vows not to forget storm victims rebuilding
President Barack Obama vowed Thursday to stick with New Yorkers still struggling 17 days after Superstorm Sandy "until the rebuilding is complete" ...
Bernanke: Banks' tight standards hurting economy
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that banks' overly tight lending standards may be holding back the U.S. economy by preventing ...
Post office reports record loss of $15.9B for year
The struggling U.S. Postal Service on Thursday reported an annual loss of a record $15.9 billion and forecast more red ink in 2013, capping a ...