David R. Sands

Kiev sees payoff for Russian naval deal

Ukraine's controversial decision to allow a Russian naval fleet to remain in the country for another 25 years should bring a big payoff for the country's finances, help secure a critical new funding package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and even deepen Kiev's ties to Western Europe, a top Ukrainian official said in an interview.

April 26, 2010

Ukraine sees payoff to Russia fleet deal

A top Ukrainian official said in an interview Friday that the government's controversial decision to allow a Russian naval fleet to remain in the country for another 25 years will help unlock a string of deals to boost the country's economy.

April 23, 2010

DNC tops Steele’s record March for donations

Hours after the Republican National Committee announced a record haul -- $11.4 million in March -- the rival Democratic group revealed an even bigger collection. Both credit the health care battle as fundraising fuel.

April 8, 2010

Is use of interns abuse of labor?

It's a Washington tradition as deeply rooted as the cherry blossoms, as predictable as a recess appointment. But as hordes of student interns descend on the capital seeking experience and contacts, some labor market analysts are questioning the fairness and legality of the entire practice.

April 7, 2010

Politics hurting sound policy, exec says

A desire to score political points at the expense of sound policy is undermining the drive to reform the nation's health care system, one of the health insurance industry's top executives said in an interview Tuesday.

January 27, 2010

Veto by Obama raises questions

The first veto of the Obama presidency was not supposed to be a big deal, but President Obama's rejection of an obscure spending bill late last month is raising some unexpected constitutional questions.

January 12, 2010

The decade’s 10 best political plays

As political decades go, the Aughts represented something of a split decision.

December 27, 2009

House, not Senate, makes life easy for Obama

If it were just up to the House of Representatives, Barack Obama already would rank as one of the most transformative presidents of the past half-century.

December 15, 2009

Inside Politics

Given her own recent statements and the national political landscape, "it's tempting for some Beltway players to presume [Secretary of State Hillary Rodham] Clinton's greatest prospects are behind her," writes David Paul Kuhn of RealClearPolitics.com. "Tempting, but hardly assured."

October 28, 2009

GOP provides backing for Obama’s war effort

Facing fire from his own party over the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan, President Obama is getting cover from an unlikely source: Republicans.

September 12, 2009

Florida’s Gov. Crist accused of ‘cronyism’

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist on Friday selected his closest political confidant to serve out the term of retiring Republican Sen. Mel Martinez for 16 months, until the Republican governor himself hopes to take over the seat.

August 29, 2009

Political columnist Robert Novak has died at age 78

UPDATED: Robert D. "Bob" Novak, for many decades one of conservatives' most trusted and beloved political columnists, died at his Washington home early Tuesday after a long illness.

August 18, 2009

Famed lobbyist Anne Wexler dead

Anne Wexler, a former Carter administration official long considered one of the most powerful and well-connected Democratic lobbyists in Washington, died Friday after a long battle with cancer. She was 79.

August 8, 2009

Famed lobbyist Anne Wexler dies of cancer

Anne Wexler, a former Carter administration official long considered one of the most powerful and well-connected Democratic lobbyists in Washington, passed away Friday after a long battle with cancer. She was 79.

August 7, 2009

Obama calls officer in bid to calm flap

President Obama on Friday spoke directly with the Boston police sergeant he had criticized in the arrest of a black Harvard professor in a bid to cool an escalating racial controversy that the president admitted he had helped fuel.

July 25, 2009

Obama calls Crowley; tries to end Gates storm

President Obama Friday called the Boston police sergeant who arrested a black Harvard professor in a bid to clear the air in what has become a growing national racial controversy.

July 24, 2009

GOP lawmaker: Dems shut down debate in House

A Republican lawmaker accused House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and congressional Democrats of "shutting down the process" in the House of Representatives to block his effort to investigate the national community organizing group ACORN.

June 22, 2009

House votes against releasing terror photos

In a rare victory for minority Republicans, the House of Representatives Thursday went on record against releasing photographs of prisoner abuse by U.S. military and security forces after the September 11 attacks.

June 11, 2009

Pelosi demands probe of nuke leak

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday called for an official investigation into the accidental posting on the Internet of sensitive details on hundreds of U.S. nuclear weapons-related facilities, laboratories, research sites and reactors, including the location of fuel for nuclear bombs.

June 3, 2009

Steele urges GOP to focus on the future

Embattled Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele plans to tell a special gathering of state party officials Tuesday that the party is through apologizing for past mistakes and will take the initiative as it tries to rebound with voters.

May 19, 2009