Obama says FBI nominee Comey will balance privacy, security
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – In nominating Jim Comey to be the next FBI director on Friday, President Barack Obama said the former Justice Department official will help strike a balance between the need for information on terrorist plots and respecting Ameri…
Defense chief Hagel expresses regret over Taliban joke
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has expressed regret to an Indian-born college professor for jokingly asking, “you’re not a member of the Taliban, are you?” seconds before the professor rose to ask a question.
Obama taps former IMF official as national security deputy
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama on Friday appointed Caroline Atkinson, a former journalist who has worked at the International Monetary Fund, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Bank of England, to be deputy national security adviser for…
Insight – It takes an army: Tens of thousands of workers roll out Obamacare
From the chief actuary at the California health insurance exchange that President Barack Obama’s healthcare reform law established to the legions of call center staffers who will help people trying to buy insurance through such state exchanges, the num…
Analysis: At U.S. high court, high anxiety over big cases
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Chief Justice John Roberts clutched a sheaf of papers when he and his black-robed colleagues ascended the mahogany bench on Thursday for one of the last days of the U.S. Supreme Court term.
The judges who preside over America’s secret court
WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Twelve of the 14 judges who have served this year on the most secret court in America are Republicans and half are former prosecutors.
Senate immigration deal would double number of U.S. border agents
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Federal agents on the U.S.-Mexican border would double to about 40,000 under a deal reached on Thursday in the Democratic-led Senate to draw more Republicans to a landmark immigration bill headed toward anticipated passage.
Senators urge inclusion of food safety in Smithfield review
(Reuters) – A bipartisan group of 15 U.S. senators urged the Obama administration on Thursday to consider whether the proposed sale of Smithfield Foods Inc to the Chinese meat company Shuanghui International posed a threat to the U.S. food supply that …
Combative Maine governor sparks firestorm with Vaseline jab
BOWDOINHAM, Maine (Reuters) – Maine’s Republican Governor, Paul LePage, touched off a round of criticism on Thursday when he made a vulgar remark about a Democratic state senator.
Analysis: Tough fight for Obama housing nominee may be win-win for White House
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama’s pick to oversee mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will face stiff resistance in the Senate confirmation process but the White House could still win if he is rejected by labeling Republican se…
