US Politics News

New sign-up numbers Wednesday showed progress for President Barack Obama's health care law, but not enough to guarantee that Americans who want and need coverage by Jan. 1 will be able to get it.

George H.W. Bush has joined Twitter and in his first tweet the former U.S. president said he wished he could have attended the memorial service for Nelson Mandela in South Africa.

Ryan Loskarn, a longtime aide to GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, was arrested by postal inspectors on child pornography charges.

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday were falling in line behind a two-year budget deal negotiated behind closed doors, indicating that this normally rambunctious group of lawmakers is not spoiling for a year-end fiscal fight.

Law enforcement agents are searching the home of a top aide to Republican Senator Lamar Alexander in connection with child pornography allegations, the Tennessee lawmaker said in a statement on Wednesday.

"For pulling the papacy out of the palace and into the streets, for committing the world's largest church to confronting its deepest needs, and for balancing judgment with mercy, Pope Francis is Time's 2013 Person of the Year," Time said in its announcement.

"All I did was follow the law. The law says that if you have committee staff, leadership staff, they stay where they are.

Sen. Chuck Schumer will buck the White House and back more sanctions on Iran despite a pending deal to curb its nuclear program, sources said Tuesday.

In this June 7 file photo, Shannon Guess Richardson is placed into a Titus County, Texas, Sheriff's car after an initial appearance at the federal building Texarkana, Texas.

Remember when Bill Clinton was twice elected President as a "New Democrat" who wanted to get along with people in the private economy? Nowadays even writing in favor of ideas that Mr. Clinton supported can get you branded a heretic and banished from impolite liberal society.

After more than seven months of delays , a special election for North Carolina's 12th District will begin in earnest now that the Senate confirmed Rep. Melvin Watt, D-N.C., to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency on Tuesday.

The lead sponsor of an ambitious proposal to overhaul how the Pentagon handles allegations of sexual assault and rape says she's pushing to hold a vote on the plan before the end of the year.

Welcome to Wonkbook, Ezra Klein and Evan Soltas's morning policy news primer. Send comments, criticism, or ideas to Wonkbook at Gmail dot com.

Rep. Steve Stockman surprised the political world Monday when he filed at the last minute to challenge Sen. John Cornyn , complicating the senator's reelection bid just when it looked to be virtually problem-free .

Signing off : Two of Washington's longtime radio fixtures are leaving town. DC101 WWDC morning personality Elliot Segal is picking up stakes and moving to New York to host "Elliot in the Morning" for a morning news station starting next month.

John D. Podesta, who was chief of staff to President Bill Clinton and is one of the Democratic Party's most experienced strategists, is joining the White House to help President Obama salvage what has become a difficult second term.

A campaign by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand to reform how the military addresses the epidemic of sexual assaults in its ranks suffered a setback Monday.

Chinese hackers eavesdropped on the computers of five European foreign ministries before last September's G20 Summit, which was dominated by the Syrian crisis, according to research by computer security firm FireEye Inc The hackers infiltrated the ministries' computer networks by sending emails to staff containing tainted files with titles such as ... (more)

McKeon said negotiators met last week to work out agreements on amendments. Top defense authorizers held a news conference Monday afternoon to announce they have a deal on the NDAA.

Republican operatives cede Dold's race will be tough in 2014, but they also argue that if any Republican can win in Illinois' 10th District, it's him.