News

02.06 19:19 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. senators began debating on Tuesday whether to grant the Food and Drug Administration new power to regulate tobacco products, a proposal that has divided the cigarette industry.

02.06 19:06 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Enhanced trade with China could boost employment in the United States, U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said Tuesday, noting the Obama administration hopes to ease trade frictions with China.

02.06 19:01 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, is expected to travel to the region again soon as part of the Obama administration's pledge to work on Arab-Israeli peace, U.S. officials said on Tuesday.

02.06 18:17 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is creating a position of chief operating officer to help manage the agency and improve internal operations, SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro said on Tuesday.

02.06 18:12 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have reached a deal to include President Barack Obama's request for more aid for the International Monetary Fund in a roughly $95 billion war bill, a congressional source said on Tuesday.

02.06 17:10 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama plans to nominate Republican congressman John McHugh as secretary of the Army, an administration official said on Tuesday.

02.06 15:43 PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia accused the United States of meddling in its internal affairs on Tuesday after Washington's ambassador said the impoverished nation was losing up to $500 million a year through corruption.

02.06 14:42 CAIRO (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama must challenge Egypt's rights record during his visit to Cairo or risk lending legitimacy to harsh tactics of an authoritarian government, rights activists say.

02.06 05:27 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Ambassador Richard Holbrooke said on Monday he will visit Pakistan this week to assess relief efforts to help the estimated 2 million people who have fled a Pakistani offensive against the Taliban and said more may become homeless if the conflict widens.

02.06 04:47 LONDON (Reuters) - The United States can be a "role model" to the Muslim world, President Barack Obama said in an interview broadcast on Tuesday.

02.06 03:13 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee is considering requiring the U.S. Air Force to study the viability of creating an export version of the Lockheed Martin Corp F-22 fighter jet, a source closely following the issue told Reuters on Monday.

02.06 02:39 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Monday struck back at one of his toughest critics, saying former Vice President Dick Cheney was wrong when he criticized White House plans to close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay.

02.06 01:36 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's nominee to command U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan should face questions about detainee abuse in Iraq at his confirmation hearing, human rights groups say.

02.06 01:32 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A coalition of U.S. health industry groups on Monday outlined how they plan meet President Barack Obama's goal of cutting $2 trillion in costs industrywide over the next decade.

01.06 23:19 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Ambassador Richard Holbrooke visits Pakistan this week to assess the government's wider plans to win over areas that have fallen under Taliban influence following its Swat Valley offensive against the Islamist militants, a U.S. official said Monday.

01.06 22:39 MIAMI (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has accepted an invitation to be honorary chairman of this year's Presidents Cup, the PGA Tour said on Monday.