By Elaine Donnelly
Extending sexual misconduct to combat units
Independent voices from the TWT Communities
Barack Obama says he is angry about the Internal Revenue Service singling out conservative and Tea Party groups for rough treatment, even though it may or may not have something to do with an anti-Muslim video.
Secretary of State John F. Kerry will stare down the barrel of North Korea's recent nuclear threats when he arrives here Friday on his first trip to Asia as America's top diplomat — a trip that analysts say will be defined by efforts to persuade China to influence Pyongyang away from making further provocations.
SEOUL — Secretary of State John F. Kerry arrived here Friday, within range of North Korea's recent nuclear threats on his first trip to Asia as America's top diplomat -- an expedition that analysts say will be defined by efforts to persuade China to influence Pyongyang away from making further provocations.
American gun rights advocates said Thursday that they remain determined to block a far-reaching U.S. agreement on international arms sales, warning that the pact could lead to a national firearms registry and disrupt the U.S. gun market, even as the accord ran into an unexpected last-minute snag in negotiations in New York.
For proof that President Obama is getting serious about climate change in his second term, look no further than his pick Monday to head the Environmental Protection Agency.
It's pile-on time. "Republican party implodes" has been a popular headline with news organizations and pundits since November, and they continue to use it -- with zest. Critics are also fond of these phrases: Republican failure, Republican disgrace, Republican suicide, Republican-assisted suicide and Republican misery, among other dire descriptions in recent coverage.
Democrats pressed ahead Wednesday with Chuck Hagel's nomination to be secretary of defense, scheduling a showdown vote for Friday even as top Republicans signaled that they need more information before confirming him for the Pentagon's top civilian post.
Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta on Thursday revealed he personally broke the news to President Obama that the U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, was under attack last year — but he and the president didn't speak the rest of the night as the assault on the compound unfolded.
Former Sen. Chuck Hagel appears to face an even steeper climb to become the next defense secretary after a rocky confirmation hearing Thursday in which his fellow Republicans blasted him for positions on issues and for what they called his willingness to alter positions "for the sake of political expediency."
The Senate confirmed the nomination of John F. Kerry to be secretary of state by a near-unanimous vote on Tuesday, with just three Republicans refusing to join an otherwise bipartisan chorus of support for the five-term Democratic senator from Massachusetts.
The United States is set to sell 30 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters to Taiwan this year, along with 60 Blackhawk helicopters next year and additional Patriot PAC-3 anti-missile systems in 2015, according to Sen. James M. Inhofe, who led a congressional delegation to Taiwan last week and met with key leaders including President Ma Ying-jeou and the speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Wang Jin-pyng.
The United States is set to sell 30 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters to Taiwan this year, along with 60 Blackhawk helicopters next year and additional Patriot PAC-3 anti-missile systems in 2015, according to Sen. James M. Inhofe, who led a congressional delegation to Taiwan last week and met with key leaders including President Ma Ying-jeou and the speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Wang Jin-pyng.
A hero to the environmental movement and a constant thorn in the sides of Republicans and the energy sector, outgoing Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson presided over one of the most controversial and dramatic periods in the agency's history.
Forget the "fiscal cliff." Some Republicans and business groups see signs of a "regulatory cliff" that they say could be just as damaging to the economy.
With congressional opposition softening, U.N. Ambassador Susan E. Rice could find her name in contention as early as this week to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of state. It's a step that may signal greater U.S. willingness to intervene in world crises during President Obama's second term.
"We've seen this in Africa," said Mr. Inhofe, the committee's ranking member. "Every time we have any type of a void that takes place in Africa, China moves in, and they seem to have the resources to do that."
China holds key as Kerry arrives in Asia to temper threats from North Korea →
"My concern is, could it be that we will cease to become the partner of choice to our allies if this trend continues?" he said during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Tuesday.
China holds key as Kerry arrives in Asia to temper threats from North Korea →
