Politics - Barack Obama

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is welcoming a Senate Democratic compromise on a government-run insurance, saying it clears the way for passage of an historic bill. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Wednesday expressed support for a healthcare deal reached by U.S. Senate Democratic negotiators and said it should help pave the way toward passage of legislation. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (AFP) - President Barack Obama injected almost 600 million dollars on Wednesday into US health centers, saying the move would create jobs as well as provide care for an extra 500,000 low-income patients. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - The U.S. office overseeing Afghanistan's rebuilding has failed to hire enough staff and issued too few audits and investigative reports, three senators are telling President Barack Obama. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (AFP) - A growing number of Americans have lost confidence in President Barack Obama's handling of the economy, despite the apparent beginnings of a recovery, according to a poll out Wednesday. Full Story »

TOKYO - Japan's prime minister said Wednesday that he hopes to meet with President Barack Obama next week to offer his proposals on the relocation of a major American military base in Okinawa that has led to a rift between the allies. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - Five Transportation Security Administration employees have been placed on administrative leave since it was discovered that sensitive guidelines about airport passenger screening were posted on the Internet. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two leading international human rights groups gave U.S. President Barack Obama mixed reviews on his human rights record on Wednesday, a day before he is slated to accept the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - Franklin Roosevelt, confronted with the worst economic crisis in the nation's history, wrote the book on government jobs programs. Since FDR, presidents have been less ambitious because the economic challenges they faced were less severe. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - In President Barack Obama's hands, the $700 billion financial rescue fund offers a bit of bookkeeping magic: an opportunity to pay down the deficit while also spending more — thereby adding to it. Full Story »

OSLO - Although he doesn't show up at the Copenhagen climate talks until next week, U.S. President Barack Obama won't be far from global warming issues when he lands in Oslo Thursday to collect his contentious Nobel Peace Prize. Full Story »

GENEVA (Reuters) - President Barack Obama is sticking to the U.S. refusal to negotiate monitoring of biological weapons, the top U.S. arms official said Wednesday. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration plans to announce on Wednesday that it intends to extend the life of the $700 billion financial bailout fund until next October, administration officials said on Tuesday. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama keeps his focus on economic issues Wednesday before an evening departure for Europe. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - The rapid U.S. build up in the Afghan war will include more terrorist-hunting forces to chase down militants deemed too extreme to change sides, a top U.S. general revealed on Wednesday. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - Congressional negotiators sealed agreement Tuesday night on sweeping spending legislation that boosts housing and heating subsidies but curbs President Barack Obama's requests for aid to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Full Story »

President Barack Obama will meet with chief executives of major banks on Monday and is expected to urge them face-to-face to lend more money to help promote economic recovery, banking sources tell POLITICO. Full Story »

JAKARTA, Indonesia - A statue of President Barack Obama as a 10-year-old wearing shorts and a T-shirt has been erected in a Jakarta park to inspire children in the country where he lived as a boy, officials said Wednesday. Full Story »