President Obama on Friday stressed that the United States is not at war with Islam, blasting a Florida pastor who's threatening to burn copies of the Koran for potentially endangering American forces serving in Muslim lands.

"You don't play games" with the lives of U.S. troops, an animated Mr. Obama ...

President Obama used his first press conference in months to draw a sharp line with congressional Republicans on economic policy and the fate of expiring tax cuts passed under predecessor President George W. Bush.

Mr. Obama said he remained strongly opposed to extending tax cuts for wealthy taxpayers when they ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Obama insisted Friday that the U.S. economy is showing improvement from the deepest recession in decades but conceded the "progress has been painfully slow." He said he understands that many voters in November's elections may blame the weak recovery on him.

"For all the progress we've ...

Republicans this fall are hoping that what doesn't tear them apart will only make them stronger.

In a year in which the polls are pointing to major gains in Congress and the states, one of the few sources of GOP anxiety is the lingering bad blood from a string of ...

D.C. mayoral candidate Vincent C. Gray attended a picnic last month organized by a small nonprofit that works with ex-offenders and is run by a man who was once one of Washington, D.C.'s most notorious underworld figures.

That much no one disputes.

The group, called Returning Citizens United, held a ...

A federal appeals court on Thursday struck down a Pennsylvania town's immigration ordinances as infringing on the federal government's right to control immigration rules, adding more fuel to the heated battle over how far states and localities can go in trying to push out illegal immigrants.

The 3rd U.S. Circuit ...

The nation's health care tab will go up - not down - as a result of President Obama's sweeping overhaul. That's the conclusion of a new government forecast released Thursday, which also predicts the increase will be modest while millions of uninsured Americans will be able to obtain health care ...

After a regional airliner crashed in western New York a year and a half ago, killing 50 people, the Obama administration promised swift action to prevent similar tragedies. High on the list: new rules governing the number of hours pilots may work in order to prevent tired flight crews from ...

D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray said Thursday that he will ask authorities to investigate allegations that his opponent, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, offered jobs to some people if they cast ballots for him in early voting.

Mr. Fenty's campaign questioned the credibility of the allegations.

At a press conference ...

BURNING ISSUES

The media frenzy over a minister in Gainesville, Fla., and the unusual trajectory of his activities has distracted the public momentarily from its growing dismay over President Obama and the Democratic Party - a welcome respite for the White House perhaps. The blame-America-first crowd remains in full cry. ...

WHITE HOUSE

Obama: Referendum bad case for party

President Obama conceded Thursday that if the midterm elections turn out to be mostly a referendum on the sluggish economy, his fellow Democrats are "not going to do well."

In an interview with ABC News aired Thursday, Mr. Obama said the party ...

WASHINGTON | D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray said Thursday that he will ask authorities to investigate allegations that his opponent, Mayor Adrian Fenty, offered jobs to some people if they cast ballots for him in early voting.

Fenty's campaign questioned the credibility of the allegations.

At a news conference outside ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Obama is conceding that if the midterm election turns out to be mostly a referendum on the sluggish economy, Democrats are "not going to do well."

In an interview with ABC News aired Thursday, Mr. Obama said the party should be able to maintain control of ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court on Thursday permitted federal funding of stem cell research to proceed for now, while it considers a judge's ruling that had temporarily shut off the funds.

The government is asking the appeals court in Washington to strike down a preliminary order by U.S. ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people signing up for unemployment benefits dropped to the lowest level in two months, an encouraging sign that companies aren't resorting to deeper layoffs even as the economy has lost momentum.

The Labor Department reported Thursday that new claims for unemployment aid plunged ...

President Obama says the federal government needs more revenue, while House Minority Leader John A. Boehner says it needs to spend less. One of them could walk out of this year's congressional elections with a mandate to handle one of the most intractable problems facing the country.

Spending has risen ...

Using his strongest political rhetoric yet, President Obama said Wednesday that Republicans are banking on the calculation that "if I fail, they win," and he told Congress to make a clean break with the Bush-era tax policies by letting the tax cuts for the wealthiest expire.

In a stump-style speech ...

Republican Governors Association Chairman Haley Barbour says the GOP is lucky that the "tea party" movement didn't form a third party, and describes Democrats as running from President Obama like "scalded dogs."

The Mississippi governor also is confident in his party's gubernatorial candidates and their ability to get out the ...

NEW YORK | Kelsey Grammer is an investor and public face supporting a network that launched Wednesday with entertainment designed to appeal to political conservatives.

RightNetwork, whose first series, "Running," follows the fortunes of some "tea party"-backed candidates for public office, also is trying a new model to establish itself. ...

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel might want to return to Chicago to become mayor, but his connection to a presidency with a sinking approval rating and his association to convicted former Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich could have voters thinking otherwise.

He also faces a crowded field of ...