Reuters
Politics - Reuters

U.S. Army Sergeant Salei Sale (L) of A-BTRY 2/377 PFAR Task Force Steel looks on as other soldiers fire their weapons during a training session at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Tillman, November 23, 2009. REUTERS/Bruno Domingos

Obama says will "finish the job" in Afghanistan

Tue Nov 24, 6:38 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama vowed on Tuesday to "finish the job" of an unpopular and costly eight-year war in Afghanistan, and officials said he could announce an increase of around 30,000 troops next week.

  • President Barack Obama listens while India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh speaks during a welcome ceremony at the White House in Washington November 24, 2009. REUTERS/Larry Downing
    Obama seeks to reassure Singh on U.S.-India ties Tue Nov 24, 10:03 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama sought to reassure Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday of his commitment to boosting U.S. ties with India even as his administration has set its rivals, China and Pakistan, as top priorities.

  • U.S Marines check a road for explosives in Golestan district of Farah province May 4, 2009. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic
    U.S. will not join treaty banning landmines Tue Nov 24, 10:40 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has no plans to join a global treaty banning landmines because a policy review found the United States could not meet its security commitments without them, the State Department said on Tuesday.

  • Salazar blasts critics of U.S. energy policy Tue Nov 24, 5:03 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Interior Secretary Ken Salazar on Tuesday fired back at critics who claim he's not supportive enough of domestic energy production, saying their accusations have the same "poison and substance of election-year politics."

  • N.Y. governor seeks one-time authority to balance budget Tue Nov 24, 3:29 PM ET

    NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Governor David Paterson on Tuesday submitted emergency legislation that would grant him the one-time authority to balance the state budget without approval from the legislature.

  • Obama admin sees more U.S. stimulus hiring in 2010 Tue Nov 24, 6:20 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration, facing criticism its economic stimulus plans are failing to halt layoffs, on Tuesday said hiring prompted by the spending would accelerate next year.

  • U.S. senators urge Europe to act on Oracle, Sun deal Tue Nov 24, 7:00 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Fifty-nine U.S. senators, led by John Kerry and Orrin Hatch, have urged European antitrust regulators to conclude their investigation of the Oracle and Sun Microsystems merger and justify any further delay in making a decision on the deal.

  • U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (2nd L) another other cabinet members look on as President Barack Obama speaks at the end of a meeting with members of his administration in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, November 23, 2009. REUTERS/Jason Reed
    Obama says boosting jobs is a top priority Mon Nov 23, 6:14 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama assured Americans on Monday that boosting jobs was a top priority, but gave no specifics about how to meet this goal that some economists say warrants more government spending.

  • U.S. Chamber of Commerce urges Obama action on trade Mon Nov 23, 4:56 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama should look abroad for ways to boost jobs at home, the biggest U.S. business lobby group said on Monday, urging the administration to advance three pending free trade agreements.

  • South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford pauses as he speaks to the media about his secret trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina and admits to an extramarital affair at the State House in Columbia, South Carolina June 24, 2009. REUTERS/Tim Dominick/The State
    South Carolina governor faces ethics allegations Mon Nov 23, 4:53 PM ET

    MIAMI (Reuters) - Republican South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, a conservative seen as a presidential contender before a sex scandal wrecked his reputation, faces 37 possible ethics violations, the state ethics commission said on Monday.

  • President Barack Obama presents the 2009 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award to Magodonga Mahlangu of Zimbabwe and her organization Women of Zimbabwe Arise during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington November 23, 2009. REUTERS/Jason Reed
    Obama honors Mugabe foes for defying a "dictator" Tue Nov 24, 12:55 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama honored a group of women Monday who have confronted Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and said they had defied a dictator.

  • U.S. lawmakers, Chinese exiles press Obama on rights Mon Nov 23, 3:18 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers and exiled Chinese dissidents urged President Barack Obama on Monday to intervene with China's government on behalf of Jiang Tianyong, a rights activist who tried to see Obama while he was in China last week.

  • U.S. pledges new arms sales to Taiwan Tue Nov 24, 7:47 AM ET

    TAIPEI (Reuters) - The United States plans to resume arms sales to Taiwan and warned of a build-up of missiles aimed at the island by China, a top U.S. diplomat said Tuesday.

  • U.S., Russia study ways to extend START verification Mon Nov 23, 4:32 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. negotiators working to conclude a new strategic arms treaty with Russia are discussing ways to continue nuclear weapons monitoring until the new accord can be ratified, a State Department spokesman said on Monday.