Senator McCain attacks Putin on Russian website
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Senator John McCain accused Vladimir Putin on Thursday of allying himself with tyrants and ruling through violence and repression, in a retort to a New York Times editorial by the Russian President earlier this month.
Memories of JFK, ‘Uncle Ted’ at Kennedy hearing for Japan post
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Caroline Kennedy faced a friendly U.S. Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday on her nomination as President Barack Obama’s next ambassador to Japan, amid memories of her father, the late U.S. President John F. Kennedy, and uncl…
Republicans have votes for U.S. government funding, Obamacare measure: Boehner
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner said he was confident that majority Republicans in the chamber would pass a stop-gap U.S. funding measure on Friday that denies money for “Obamacare” health insurance reforms.
White House says Obama would veto House Republican budget bill
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama would veto a stop-gap government funding plan from Republicans in the House of Representatives that defunds Obamacare health reforms, the White House said on Thursday.
Arizona expands ban denying driver’s licenses to immigrants
PHOENIX (Reuters) – Arizona, long at odds with President Barack Obama’s administration over immigration reform, is expanding a ban on giving driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants to include all those who have been granted relief from deportation, in …
White House official says Yellen front-runner for Fed chief
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A White House official said on Wednesday that Federal Reserve Vice Chair Janet Yellen was front-runner for the top job at the U.S. central bank when Ben Bernanke steps down, a shift in strategy after former economic adviser Lawre…
Labor Dept: same-sex spouses can participate in benefit plans
(Reuters) – The Department of Labor on Wednesday said same-sex couples in legal marriages can participate in employee benefit plans, even if the state they live in does not recognize gay marriage.
IRS chief says backlog from ‘Tea Party’ affair reduced
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has reduced a backlog of applications for tax-exempt status from political groups that accumulated while the agency was giving extra scrutiny to some of the forms, the acting IRS chief said on We…
Hagel says ‘red flags’ missed before Navy Yard shooting
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on Wednesday the suspected Washington Navy Yard gunman’s background presented some “red flags” easy to spot in hindsight and ordered a broad review of security worldwide, including clearances.
Republican nominee to FCC says favors ‘light hand’ on regulation
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A Republican nominee for a seat on the Federal Communications Commission, Michael O’Rielly, said on Wednesday that he favors an “extremely light” hand on regulation, drawing sharp remarks from some Democratic senators.