Barack Obama | featured news

Rod Blagojevich was clearly the ringleader of the schemes for which he was convicted, a federal judge said Tuesday at the sentencing hearing for the ousted Illinois governor on corruption charges that include trying to sell or trade an appointment to President Barack Obama's former Senate seat....

Recent trends hold with the Labor Department reporting a gain of 140,000 private-sector jobs last month but a loss of another 20,000 government jobs. It's a monthly ritual in the race for the White House.

President Barack Obama on Friday pledged an aggressive push to pass an extension to the payroll tax cut for U.S. workers, saying lawmakers must not leave for their holiday break without taking action on it.

With an eye on recruiting volunteers, President Barack Obama is launching the first TV ads of his re-election campaign. Campaign officials said Tuesday the ad buy is "tiny" on national satellite TV stations but aimed at learning whether television is a good way to find volunteers. In the two 30-second ads, Obama urges viewers to call a number on the screen or visit the website , which invites people to enter their email address and zip code to become involved with the campaign. www.JoinObama.com

The 2008 election was a reminder of the demographic forces that are changing America and potentially the political balance in the country. The most diverse electorate in the nation’s history added to the favorable winds that pushed President Obama to victory. He will need the assistance of those shifts even more in 2012 if he is to avoid defeat.

A key player in implementing President Obama's health care law is stepping down in the face of Republican opposition. Don Berwick, the head of Medicare and Medicaid, was a recess appointment made by Obama after Senate Republicans had vowed to vote down his nomination.

A U.S. judge on Tuesday sentenced Antoin "Tony" Rezko, a former Chicago fundraiser for President Barack Obama, to 10-1/2 years in prison for corruption and extortion.

It's become a periodic sight: hecklers interrupting a speech by President Obama. This time, followers of the Occupy Wall Street movement began yelling at the president today as he began his speech in Manchester, N.H.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao chastised President Barack Obama for raising the issue during an Asia-Pacific leaders summit, hours after Obama told Wen the United States wants the sea lanes kept open and peaceful, capping two weeks of Sino-U.S. tensions.

An Idaho man accused of firing an assault rifle at the White House believed he was Jesus and thought President Barack Obama was the Antichrist, according to court documents and those who knew him. At one point, he even suggested to an acquaintance the president was planning to implant computer tracking chips into children.