The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill Thursday to curb insider trading by members of Congress and the executive branch, but not without the usual political acrimony that's become a staple of Capitol Hill.

Vice President Joe Biden says he's convinced America is better positioned than other nations to continue to lead the world's economy - whether or not his boss is still in charge.

The Obama administration is working with its European and Arab allies to organize the inaugural meeting of the "Friends of Syria" to explore ways to further isolate President Bashar Assad, support his foes and end ongoing violence.

President Barack Obama says his decision to free 10 states from the No Child Left Behind education law will give the flexibility they need to set high standards for students and hold schools accountable.

The campaign finance system is so broken that legislative changes, including a constitutional amendment, are needed to rein in runaway, secret spending in elections, congressional Democrats said Thursday.

Wild arm swings, sharp robotic turns, pulsing fist pumps.

President Barack Obama says a $25 billion settlement between mortgage lenders and states over foreclosure abuses "will begin to turn the page on an era of recklessness that has left so much damage in its wake."

The State Department's internal watchdog cleared the agency Thursday of any impropriety in its review of a permit for a controversial pipeline that that would carry Canadian oil produced from tar sands to refineries along the Texas Gulf coast.

The following recall has been announced:

Ron Barber was always the behind-the-scenes man for his boss, Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum on Thursday accused President Barack Obama of actively seeking ways to allow Iran to gain a nuclear weapon and suggested that the administration had betrayed Israel by publicly disclosing what may be a plan to attack the Muslim nation.

Don't have the slightest clue what your health insurance covers?

The White House is lauding a rosier election-year economic forecast, predicting the economy could add two million jobs this year. But the upbeat projection is based partly on the shaky premise that Congress will sign off on President Barack Obama's jobs agenda.

House-Senate negotiations on extending jobless benefits and a two percentage point cut in the payroll tax remained stalled Thursday, despite a proposal in which Democrats urged a modest six-week cut in the maximum time unemployed workers can receive jobless benefits.

Teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, the U.S. Postal Service's quarterly loss ballooned to $3.3 billion amid declining mail volume and the soaring costs of health benefits for future retirees.

Joseph Kennedy III has moved to a different Boston suburb ahead of an expected congressional bid to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Barney Frank.

Sen. John McCain says the United States should find ways to help the Syrian people under siege from President Bashar Assad, without putting American "boots on the ground."

Home-brewed coffee lovers, take note: More than a million popular coffee makers are being recalled after dozens of reports of the brewers spraying hot liquid, coffee grounds or tea leaves onto people.

Hold the mystery meat: Military mess halls soon will be serving more fruits, vegetables and low-fat dishes under the first program in 20 years to improve nutrition standards across the armed services.

It could be the beginning of the end for No Child Left Behind.

President Barack Obama hosts the prime minister of Italy this afternoon at the White House.

The Georgia presidential primary may not be a slam dunk for Republican hopeful Newt Gingrich, a congressman from the state for two decades. Rival Mitt Romney is signaling that the biggest prize on Super Tuesday could be up for grabs.

Newt Gingrich, suddenly in danger of losing his perch as Mitt Romney's strongest GOP challenger, is fine-tuning his presidential campaign to place more emphasis on raising money, guarding his home turf and trying to avoid nasty quarrels with the front-runner.

The nation's first new nuclear power plant in a generation won approval Thursday as federal regulators voted to grant a license for two new reactors at a site in eastern Georgia.

The House on Thursday joined the Senate in voting to explicitly prohibit members of Congress and other top officials from making investments on insider information. But an effort to bridle purveyors of Capitol Hill political intelligence could delay the bill's enactment.

Some senior officials at the Federal Air Marshal service made fun of veterans, homosexuals and minorities, creating what employees described as an unpleasant work environment at an agency with a mission that requires operating mostly under the radar, government investigators found.

The United States and its allies believe the window to stop Iran from building a bomb is quickly closing, pushing conflict with the Islamic republic to the top of the Obama administration's national security worries in the midst of an election year.

The college student accused of "glitter bombing" Mitt Romney after the Colorado caucuses has been fired from his unpaid internship with state Senate Democrats.

Squeezed by a tight job market, young Americans are especially struggling. They have suffered bigger income losses than other age groups and are less likely to be employed than at any time since World War II.

Facing domestic political pressures, the Bush and Obama administrations released or transferred 600 terror suspects deemed an acceptable threat from the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, only to find that 27 percent re-engaged in terrorist or insurgent activities, according to a report by Republicans on the investigations panel of the House Armed Services Committee.

New orders from the Pentagon: The military on Thursday formally opened thousands of jobs to women in units that are closer to the front lines than ever before, reflecting what's already been going on as female American soldiers fight and die next to their male comrades.

Republican presidential contender Rick Santorum filed Wednesday to get on Indiana's primary ballot even though he has not been certified by local election officials.

A political tip sheet for the rest of us outside the Washington Beltway, Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012:

The White House insisted Wednesday that the president's commitment to contraceptive access for women is "absolutely firm," even as Republicans from Capitol Hill to the presidential campaign trail assailed the policy as an attack on religious liberty.

Republican presidential contender Rick Santorum is filing to get on Indiana's ballot even though he has not been certified by local election officials.

Mitt Romney's carefully plotted path to the Republican presidential nomination is now a long, unpredictable journey that could last months.

A national group of Latino public officeholders is projecting that 12.2 million Hispanics will vote in the general election this November.

Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are the undisputed favorites in Maine, the next state weighing in on the Republican presidential race. They're the only candidates who have made much of an effort here.

The 254-173 roll call Wednesday by which the House passed a bill that gives the president the line-item veto, or authority to pick out specific items in spending bills for elimination.

A new passenger screening program to make check-in more convenient for certain travelers is being expanded to 28 more major U.S. airports, the government said Wednesday. There will be no cost to eligible passengers, who would no longer have to remove their shoes and belts before they board flights.