Obama's Economic Circle Keeps Tensions Simmering  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama was getting his daily economic briefing one recent morning when a fly distracted him.  The president swatted and missed, just as the pest buzzed near the shoes of Lawrence H. Summers, the chief White House economic adviser.

US Unemployment Rate Gallops Ahead of Expectations  —  The White House says America's employment picture is worse than the Obama administration had anticipated just a few months ago.  The somber admission follows the latest jobless report showing the highest unemployment rate the United States has seen in more than 25 years.

Palin versus GOP  —  Sarah Palin's on-again, off-again appearance at Monday night's gala GOP fundraising dinner is off — again.  —  After being invited — for a second time — to speak to the annual joint fundraiser for the National Republican Congressional Committee and the National …

N. Korea Convicts 2 U.S. Journalists  —  A North Korean court sentenced two U.S. journalists to 12 years in a labor camp Monday, as the government of Kim Jong Il continued to ratchet up tension with the United States and its neighbors.  —  Laura Ling and Euna Lee, television reporters detained …

Suspect in abortion doctor death warns of violence  —  WICHITA, Kan. — The man charged with murdering a high-profile abortion doctor claimed from his jail cell Sunday that similar violence was planned around the nation for as long as the procedure remained legal, a threat that comes days …

In Iraq, Colbert Does His Shtick for the Troops  —  CAMP VICTORY, Iraq — It was Sunday night in Baghdad, and President Obama was ordering Gen. Ray Odierno, the commander of the American troops here, to shave Stephen Colbert's head.  (Not to give everything away, but the general is not as brutal …

U.S. to Propose Wider Oversight of Compensation  —  The Obama administration plans to require banks and corporations that have received two rounds of federal bailouts to submit any major executive pay changes for approval by a new federal official who will monitor pay, according to two government officials.

Ailing Kennedy Key to Health Bill  —  With Cancer Keeping Senator at Home, Legislation Could Take Different Form  —  WASHINGTON — The future shape of the U.S. health-care system could hang on the uncertain health of one very prominent American.  —  Sen. Edward Kennedy (D., Mass.) …

Sotomayor and the Politics of Race  —  Americans thought they were electing a president who would transcend grievance.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  President Obama's nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court points to a dilemma that will likely plague his presidency: How does a …

Corruption trial set over money in the freezer  —  Former Rep. William Jefferson's (D-La.) corruption trial is set to begin Tuesday after two years of intense legal wrangling that at one point involved evidence gathered during an FBI raid of his congressional office.

EXCLUSIVE: Recently Released Gitmo Detainee Talks to ABC News  —  Held Seven Years, Former Aid Worker Tells ABC News He Was Tortured  —  For 7½ years, Lakhdar Boumediene was known simply by a number: “10005.”  —  These were the digits assigned to him when he arrived at the detention center …

In Iran, Harsh Talk as Election Nears  —  TEHRAN — The leading candidates are accusing each other of corruption, bribery and torture.  The wife of the strongest challenger to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has threatened to sue him for defaming her.  And every night, parts of the capital become …

President Obama's French food tested by ‘taster’ … A US “taster” tested the food being dished up to President Barack Obama at a dinner in a French restaurant, a waiter said on Sunday.  —  “They have someone who tastes the dishes,” said waiter Gabriel de Carvalho from the “La Fontaine de Mars” …

Dr. Goolsbee gets it wrong on the auto loans  —  This morning on Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace moderated a discussion about the auto industry.  One of his guests was Dr. Austan Goolsbee, who is a Member of President Obama's Council of Economic Advisers and chief economist on the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board.

U.S. Will Let Some Banks Repay Aid  —  Move Doesn't Signal Economic Recovery, Officials Caution  —  The Obama administration plans to announce as soon as today that some of the nation's largest banks can repay billions in federal aid, but some officials caution that the show of progress …

A Prosecutor Gets Personal  —  From the magazine issue dated Jun 15, 2009  —  Patrick Fitzgerald may be the most feared prosecutor in the country, but even as he's racked up headlines for big-name convictions (Scooter Libby) and indictments (Rod Blagojevich), the hard-charging U.S. attorney …

Group Linked to Al Qaeda May Have Killed Minnesota Man Recruited in Somalia  —  A Minnesota man recruited to join an Al Qaeda-linked terrorist group overseas may have been assassinated in Somalia by the very terrorist group he went there to help.  —  The Federal Bureau of Investigation …