Elections

WASHINGTON - The third anniversary of the signing of the U.S.-Colombia free trade pact came and went this month with the Obama administration still negotiating the fine print, Congress showing little interest and business groups frustrated by the lack of action on trade deals.

WASHINGTON - Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday it will replace accelerator pedals on 3.8 million recalled vehicles in the United States to address problems with the pedals becoming jammed in the floor mat.

WASHINGTON - Traditional evening gowns and vibrantly colored saris mixed with banded-collar dinner jackets and tuxedos at President Barack Obama's first state dinner.

David Broder has never been a big fan of Harry Reid.

WASHINGTON - Celebrities, major Democratic fundraisers and prominent Indian businessmen were among those scoring coveted invitations to President Barack Obama's first state dinner.

WASHINGTON - Seeking firmer footing for U.S.-India relations, President Barack Obama tried Tuesday to calm India's fears about Asian rival China, salving bruised feelings in the world's largest democracy with an elaborate state visit and assurances of India's "rightful place as a global leader."

WASHINGTON - Holiday shoppers should look out for toy hazards such as small parts, loud sounds, soft plastics and lead contamination, consumer advocates warned Tuesday.

WASHINGTON - A grand jury in Philadelphia indicted four men Tuesday for an alleged plot to support the Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah through illegal schemes, including buying the group more than a thousand machine guns.

CHICAGO - The White House and Illinois Democrats said Tuesday that their bid to hold on to President Barack Obama's old Senate seat won't be easy and their difficulties aren't just because of the scandal that engulfed ousted Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

LONDON (AFP) - Britain remains stuck in a record recession, official data showed on Wednesday, but economists forecast a return to growth before the end of the year ahead of a general election.

AMPATUAN, Philippines (Reuters) - Philippine security forces found 11 more bodies Wednesday at the site of an election-related massacre in the south of the country, taking the toll to 57 dead, officials said.

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will publicly pardon a turkey in a Rose Garden ceremony Wednesday, honoring a Thanksgiving season tradition that dates to Harry Truman's presidency.

The Obama White House is addicted to the “unprecedented.”

MANILA, Philippines (AFP) - Philippine police on Wednesday named a political ally of President Gloria Arroyo as the prime suspect in an election-linked massacre of 46 people.

WASHINGTON - The head of the Consumer Product Safety Commission on Tuesday promised swift action to get dangerous products off the market, acknowledging that the agency didn't move quickly enough on a record recall of more than 2 million cribs linked to four deaths.

Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) -- The Obama administration and two major lobbying groups are seeking to spur momentum for a health- care overhaul after the U.S. Senate cleared the way for a floor debate that is likely to extend to Christmas or beyond.

THE VILLAGES, Fla. - Sarah Palin, who says the 2012 presidential election isn't on her radar, took her "Going Rogue" book tour to the biggest of the battleground states Tuesday, including a stop in the retirement community where tens of thousands of people gave her star treatment in the 2008 presidential election.

ALBANY, N.Y. - The Conservative Party candidate conceded a race in upstate New York for a U.S. House of Representatives seat for the second time Tuesday, saying he doesn't have enough votes.

WASHINGTON - The official uniforms for NBA players could soon be made in Asia, a move drawing sharp criticism from a New York Democratic senator.

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."

WASHINGTON - Congressional Republicans are investigating e-mails stolen from a British climate change research center that they say show scientists attempting to suppress data that does not support man-made global warming.

WASHINGTON - The government is imposing fines for the first time against airlines for stranding passengers on an airport tarmac, the Transportation Department said Tuesday.

Doug Hoffman will not contest the results of New York's 23rd District special election, the state Conservative Party candidate announced in a release Tuesday afternoon.

WASHINGTON - In the history of U.S.-India relations, there's been plenty of broken bread and even a few crumbled Triscuits.

Democratic Rep. John M. Spratt Jr. is in his 14th term representing South Carolina's 5th District and usually has little trouble winning re-election. But it appears that national Republicans are set on giving the Budget Committee chairman more than simply a token challenge this cycle.

BAGHDAD (AFP) - The United States upped pressure on Iraqi politicians on Tuesday to reach a deal on holding elections as Washington sought to avoid delays on the pullout of thousands of troops from the country.

WASHINGTON - Big banks are roaring back.

HOUSTON - An indisputable Washington insider, Kay Bailey Hutchison has been so close to the federal government's levers of power in her three Senate terms that former Vice President Dick Cheney has endorsed her over another Republican.

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.