http://www.mail.com/subjects/3004-elections.html Mail.com - the best personalized free web-based Email en en http://sec-s.uicdn.com/mail.com/2.20/img/mailcom_logo_rss.png http://www.mail.com/subjects/3004-elections.html http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1764746-reset-cliff-talks-waiting-game.html It's an anxiety-filled waiting game for most in Congress, one likely to stretch well into the holidays. President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner clearly hold most cards in the "fiscal-cliff" negotiations and they're playing them extremely close to the vest. So far, little can be gleaned on progress of the talks ahead of a Dec. 31 deadline. ... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 17:25:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1764746-reset-cliff-talks-waiting-game.html 2012-12-13T17:25:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763722-carter-center-wont-monitor-egypts-vote.html CAIRO (AP) — Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter's center said Thursday it will not deploy monitors for Egypt's constitutional referendum, amid deepening polarization over the process of adopting a document guiding how the country is to be governed following its 2011 revolution. The Center was the main international group monitoring earlier Egyptian votes,... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:54:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763722-carter-center-wont-monitor-egypts-vote.html 2012-12-13T16:54:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763296-speaker-obama-resists-curbing-federal-spending.html WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker John Boehner accused President Barack Obama of being so resistant to curbing federal spending that he risks an agreement to avoid the "fiscal cliff" of wide-ranging tax increases and spending cuts that will be automatically triggered in less than three weeks. "Unfortunately, the White House is so unserious about cutting spe... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:27:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763296-speaker-obama-resists-curbing-federal-spending.html 2012-12-13T16:27:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763660-ukraine-parliament-speaker-elected-amid-brawls.html KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's newly elected parliament on Thursday approved two presidential allies for the posts of prime minister and parliament speaker, but the vote was nearly overshadowed by a violent brawl between government supporters and opposition lawmakers. The Party of Regions led by President Viktor Yanukovych and its allies secured a majorit... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 15:08:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763660-ukraine-parliament-speaker-elected-amid-brawls.html 2012-12-13T15:08:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1763564-moroccos-biggest-opposition-leader-dies.html RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Sheikh Abdessalam Yassine, the charismatic religious leader of Morocco's largest opposition movement and longtime opponent of two Moroccan kings, died Thursday. He was 84. Yassine, who founded Adl wal Ihsan (Justice and Spirituality), accused the monarchy of being corrupt and dictatorial and questioned its claim to religious legitima... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 11:52:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1763564-moroccos-biggest-opposition-leader-dies.html 2012-12-13T11:52:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763312-election-over-administration-unleashes-rules.html WASHINGTON (AP) — While the "fiscal cliff" of looming tax increases and spending cuts dominates political conversation in Washington, some Republicans and business groups see signs of a "regulatory cliff" that they say could be just as damaging to the economy. For months, federal agencies and the White House have sidetracked dozens of major regulations th... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 07:23:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763312-election-over-administration-unleashes-rules.html 2012-12-13T07:23:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1763184-aides-chavez-tough-fight-swearing-in.html CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Somber confidants of President Hugo Chavez say he is going through a difficult recovery after cancer surgery in Cuba, and one close ally is warning Venezuelans that their leader may not make it back for his swearing-in next month. Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said Wednesday night that Chavez was in "stable condition" and... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 06:05:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1763184-aides-chavez-tough-fight-swearing-in.html 2012-12-13T06:05:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763102-nkorea-policy-seoul-to-soften-despite-rocket.html SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — It is not too early to predict one sure winner of South Korea's presidential election next week: North Korea. President Lee Myung-bak's hardline approach to Pyongyang is going away, no matter who replaces him. The question is: Just how soft will Seoul go? Not even Pyongyang's successful launch of a long-range rocket Wednesday has... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 04:54:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1763102-nkorea-policy-seoul-to-soften-despite-rocket.html 2012-12-13T04:54:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1761740-government-chavez-well-inauguration.html CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The government warned Venezuelans on Wednesday that ailing President Hugo Chavez may not be well enough after his fourth cancer-related surgery in Cuba to be inaugurated on Jan. 10. Moving to prepare the public for the possibility of more bad news, Vice President Nicolas Maduro looked grim earlier in the day when he acknowledged ... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 01:37:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1761740-government-chavez-well-inauguration.html 2012-12-13T01:37:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1762776-egypts-opposition-urges-no-vote-referendum.html CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's opposition called on its followers Wednesday to vote "no" in a crucial referendum on a disputed constitution drafted by Islamist supporters of President Mohammed Morsi. The decision came as Morsi's government forged ahead with its own plan, starting overseas voting in diplomatic missions for expatriates. The moves reinforced the atmos... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 23:44:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1762776-egypts-opposition-urges-no-vote-referendum.html 2012-12-12T23:44:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761144-census-whites-longer-majority-us-2043.html WASHINGTON (AP) — White people will no longer make up a majority of Americans by 2043, according to new census projections. That's part of a historic shift that already is reshaping the nation's schools, workforce and electorate, and is redefining long-held notions of race. The official projection, released Wednesday by the Census Bureau, now places the t... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 21:43:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761144-census-whites-longer-majority-us-2043.html 2012-12-12T21:43:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761854-senate-intern-sex-offender-faces-deportation.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Robert Menendez employed as an unpaid intern in his Senate office an illegal immigrant who was a registered sex offender, now under arrest by immigration authorities, The Associated Press has learned. The Homeland Security Department instructed federal agents not to arrest him until after Election Day, a U.S. official involved in the case told the AP. ... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 21:01:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761854-senate-intern-sex-offender-faces-deportation.html 2012-12-12T21:01:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1760950-googled-2012-whitney-psy-sandy.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — The world's attention wavered between the tragic and the silly in 2012, and along the way, millions of people searched the Web to find out about a royal princess, the latest iPad, and a record-breaking skydiver. Whitney Houston was the "top trending" search of the year, according to Google Inc.'s year-end "zeitgeist" report. Google's 12... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 20:03:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1760950-googled-2012-whitney-psy-sandy.html 2012-12-12T20:03:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761994-lieberman-urges-compromise-final-senate-speech.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Retiring Sen. Joe Lieberman on Wednesday used his final Senate floor speech to urge Congress to put partisan rancor aside to break Washington's gridlock. "It requires reaching across the aisle and finding partners from the opposite party," said Lieberman. "That is what is desperately needed in Washington now." The Democrat-turned-indepen... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 19:19:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761994-lieberman-urges-compromise-final-senate-speech.html 2012-12-12T19:19:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761738-reset-fed-forges-ahead-with-easy-money-policy.html As President Barack Obama and Congress agonize over strengthening the economy without fattening the $16 trillion national debt, the Federal Reserve chugs steadily along on its own course of keeping interest rates low and printing money to stimulate growth. The central bank's impact on the economy is huge. Yet it doesn't get as much attention as the fiery ... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:48:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761738-reset-fed-forges-ahead-with-easy-money-policy.html 2012-12-12T17:48:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761802-obama-to-match-fdrs-record-4-swearing-ins.html WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is poised to match Franklin Roosevelt's record of being sworn in as the nation's leader four times. While FDR served four terms, Obama is getting double swearing-in ceremonies for each of his two terms. He's planning a private oath at the White House on Jan. 20, when the Constitution requires that his second term b... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:43:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761802-obama-to-match-fdrs-record-4-swearing-ins.html 2012-12-12T17:43:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760412-obamas-fiscal-cliff-strategy-tricky-balance.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Playing both sides, President Barack Obama is trying to balance his public pressure campaign on Republicans over the looming "fiscal cliff" with his private negotiations with GOP leaders. The White House is loath to abandon the two-pronged strategy even as the Dec. 31 deadline nears. Obama's advisers see the carrot-and-stick approach as ... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:18:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760412-obamas-fiscal-cliff-strategy-tricky-balance.html 2012-12-12T17:18:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761576-ap-interview-romanian-pm-reappointment.html BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta should feel like his political battles will become much easier, after his center-left alliance won a sweeping majority in last weekend's parliamentary elections. With 68 percent of seats in Parliament, the alliance could expect the president to quickly reappoint Ponta, letting the government g... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 16:30:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761576-ap-interview-romanian-pm-reappointment.html 2012-12-12T16:30:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1760446-egypt-opposition-urges-no-vote-constitution.html CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's main opposition alliance called for a "No" vote in the referendum on a disputed constitution rather than a boycott, hours after Islamist President Mohammed Morsi's government forged ahead by starting overseas voting in diplomatic missions for expatriates. The opposition's decision did not dispel the atmosphere of a nation in crisis, d... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 16:23:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1760446-egypt-opposition-urges-no-vote-constitution.html 2012-12-12T16:23:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761358-purple-tunnel-doom-to-closed-inaugural.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Inaugural security teams are trying to prevent another "purple tunnel of doom" from President Barack Obama's first swearing-in. The head of the District of Columbia National Guard said Wednesday that police will close the Third Street tunnel under the National Mall, where thousands of inaugural ticketholders were trapped in 2009. ... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 15:48:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1761358-purple-tunnel-doom-to-closed-inaugural.html 2012-12-12T15:48:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760708-mandelas-fading-presence-worries-south-africa.html JOHANNESBURG (AP) — As South Africa's governing party moves closer to picking its next leader, it will do so without the man widely viewed as the country's moral compass. Nelson Mandela, who remains hospitalized with a lung infection, led the African National Congress political party to victory in the nation's first truly democratic election in 1994 throu... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 15:45:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760708-mandelas-fading-presence-worries-south-africa.html 2012-12-12T15:45:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760526-kuwait-names-government-with-major-changes.html KUWAIT CITY (AP) — Kuwait's ruler has named a new Cabinet that makes no major changes in membership and reinstates the finance minister who resigned earlier this year under pressure from opposition lawmakers. The failure to make even nominal changes is seen as a slap at the opposition. It comes less than two weeks after parliamentary elections boycotted b... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 15:16:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760526-kuwait-names-government-with-major-changes.html 2012-12-12T15:16:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760868-guinea-commission-sets-13-elections.html CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) — Guinea's national electoral commission says it plans to hold long-awaited legislative elections in May. Commission President Bakary Fofana made the announcement on national television late Tuesday. But opposition spokesman Mouctar Diallo expressed disapproval, calling the May 13 date a unilateral decision by the commission president... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 12:22:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760868-guinea-commission-sets-13-elections.html 2012-12-12T12:22:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760656-ghana-police-raid-opposition-office.html ACCRA, Ghana (AP) — Police and soldiers have raided an office where the opposition party is re-tabulating votes in their preparation to contest the results of last week's presidential poll, which handed a slim victory to the incumbent. African statesmen have urged opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo to concede defeat to President John Dramani Mahama in orde... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 10:06:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760656-ghana-police-raid-opposition-office.html 2012-12-12T10:06:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760562-nkorea-rocket-gift-to-leaders-warning-to-world.html Why would North Korea launch a rocket into space now? The act invites additional sanctions for a country where the U.N. says millions are going hungry, and the bitter cold had only increased the risk of the launch becoming the latest of several embarrassing failures. Some of Pyongyang's reasons are calendar-related: It's been 100 years since the birth of ... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 09:35:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1760562-nkorea-rocket-gift-to-leaders-warning-to-world.html 2012-12-12T09:35:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1758418-venezuela-vp-hugo-chavez-recovering-surgery.html CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was recovering in Cuba on Tuesday after an operation targeting an aggressive cancer that has defied multiple treatments and has prompted the socialist leader to name a political successor. Vice President Nicolas Maduro spoke on Venezuelan television after the surgery, saying that "it's been a comp... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 04:04:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1758418-venezuela-vp-hugo-chavez-recovering-surgery.html 2012-12-12T04:04:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1759738-cliff-movement-obama-boehner-trade-proposals.html WASHINGTON (AP) — In a test of divided government, President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner sought an elusive compromise Tuesday to prevent economy-damaging tax increases on the middle class at year's end, conferring by phone after a secretive exchange of proposals. Details were sparse and evidence of significant progress scarcer still, altho... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 01:41:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1759738-cliff-movement-obama-boehner-trade-proposals.html 2012-12-12T01:41:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1757742-egypt-judges-will-boycott-referendum.html CAIRO (AP) — Most Egyptian judges rejected any role Tuesday in overseeing the country's constitutional referendum, a move likely to cast further doubt on the legitimacy of the disputed charter. The nation's worst crisis since Hosni Mubarak's ouster nearly two years ago also forced the government to put off a crucial deal with the International Monetary Fu... Tue, 11 Dec 2012 22:38:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1757742-egypt-judges-will-boycott-referendum.html 2012-12-11T22:38:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1758366-fiscal-cliff-private-bargaining-public-wrangling.html WASHINGTON (AP) — In a test of divided government, the White House and congressional Republicans bargained in secret and sparred in public Tuesday over a deal to prevent year-end tax increases for middle class millions and spending cuts to the military as well as other federal programs. Officials disclosed that President Barack Obama and House Speaker Joh... Tue, 11 Dec 2012 21:35:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1758366-fiscal-cliff-private-bargaining-public-wrangling.html 2012-12-11T21:35:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1757648-fiscal-cliff-looms-voter-angst-palpable.html HOOKSETT, N.H. (AP) — Five hundred miles from Washington, the lunch crowd at Robie's Country Store and Deli is filled with angst over America's elected leaders and their latest struggle to prevent a fiscal crisis. "I don't know if I know all the ins and outs," says Kimberlee Roux of nearby Manchester as she waits for her lunch order at the popular New Ham... Tue, 11 Dec 2012 18:47:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1757648-fiscal-cliff-looms-voter-angst-palpable.html 2012-12-11T18:47:00Z