1. Obama quietly approves expanded U.S. role in AfghanistanOver the past few weeks, President Barack Obama reportedly gave the go-ahead on new guidelines for U.S. missions in Afghanistan. The new orders will not affect the number of U.S. troops stationed in the country — total American forces in Afghanistan are expected to be lowered to 9,800 by the end of 2014 — but they will impact the scope of the remaining troops' missions.