Obama struggles to shine again in Rust Belt

Barack Obama became the first Democrat in 44 years to end the Republican stranglehold on the southwestern corner of Ohio in the 2008 election, winning in Hamilton County, which includes Cincinnati and its conservative suburbs.

President tells of trade complaint against China on Ohio tour

President Obama's two-day bus tour headed to northern Ohio on Thursday, where he touted a new U.S. complaint with the World Trade Organization against China for imposing more than $3 billion in duties on American-produced automobiles.

Despite Supreme Court setback, prosecutors again target D.C. nightclub owner

He made U.S. Supreme Court history, but former D.C. nightclub owner Antoine Jones remains behind bars even after winning a landmark decision and reversal of his drug conviction.

College grads find big degree of debt, difficulty

The Great Recession sent millions of Americans scurrying back to school to improve their chances of securing jobs. But the difficulty that recent college graduates have had finding work - after taking on unprecedented loads of debt - has sparked a lively debate about whether a college degree opens doors the way it once did in the job market.

From bullets to ballot box: Libyans freely cast votes

When the uprising erupted in Libya last year, Adam Sbati closed his schoolbooks and left the secure campus of George Mason University in Fairfax County to rush to his parents' homeland and join ragtag rebels fighting Moammar Gadhafi.

Grassley letter to Holder demands 'Fast and Furious' accountability

The ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee wants to know who at the Justice Department saw a memo from a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent in Phoenix outlining questionable tactics in the Fast and Furious gunrunning operation, which was forwarded to ATF headquarters and possibly to Justice a day before the department denied that any weapons had been "walked" to Mexico.

Health care law 'here to stay,' president insists

President Obama defiantly insisted Thursday that his health care law is "here to stay" — and so, apparently, is the controversy over whether the massive plan is enforced by a penalty or a tax.

Countrywide's loans bought clout on Hill

Countrywide Financial Corp., the former mortgage lending giant whose subprime loans helped spark the country's foreclosure crisis, bought influence on Capitol Hill by giving discounted loans to lawmakers and key policymakers, according to a nearly four-year House-led investigation that wrapped up this week.

Inside the Beltway: Romney's Mount Olympic

As the mainstream news media ramps up reports of Republican disunity over Mitt Romney's campaign style, it's interesting to note that the nominee has been photographed multiple times recently in what could be his favorite summer wear: A navy blue casual shirt with a "Salt Lake City 2002" logo. Lucky shirt? Maybe. Reminder? Perhaps.

D.C. takes steps to make cabs more rider-friendly

The District has selected Verifone Systems to install credit card readers, GPS tracking and news programming in the city's taxicabs as part of promised reforms to make the system as rider-friendly as those in cities like New York, officials said Thursday.

Bryce Harper comes up short in All-Star Final Vote election

Bryce Harper will not be making the trip to Kansas City for Tuesday night's All-Star Game.

Time not on clockmaker's side

Think of him as Grandfather Time. David Lindow is one of the last manufacturers in the country of grandfather clocks. As he practices a venerable craft dating back to the 17th century, the clock may be ticking on yet another American industry battling competition from foreign rivals and from technological innovation that has put market pressure even on the wristwatch.

Zimmerman's bail set at $1M in Martin case

A Florida judge ruled Thursday that George Zimmerman can be released from jail a second time on $1 million bond, saying he set the bail amount significantly higher because Mr. Zimmerman may have been hiding money as part of a plot to flee the country.

N. Korea a grim picture of deprivation

Millions of North Korean children are not getting the food, medicine or health care they need to develop physically or mentally, leaving many stunted and malnourished, a report from the United Nations says.

Al Qaeda fighters filtering into Syria, top diplomat says

Iraq's top diplomat said Thursday he had "solid information" that al Qaeda militants were crossing from Iraq to Syria to carry out attacks, warning of a violent spillover that could shake the Middle East.

Clinton goes to France for Syria talks, then Asia

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has escaped sweltering Washington, but she won't be getting much of a respite from the heat as she crisscrosses Europe, Asia and the Mideast to deal with some of the world's most inflamed crises.

Commentary

BOEHNER: Congressional Republicans resolved to repeal Obamacare

There's no doubt that the president's health care law is hurting our economy. Even before the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling on Obamacare, the president's law was driving up health costs and making it harder for small businesses to hire.

MCCONNELL: Senate donkeys must join elephants to get rid of law

Two-and-a-half years ago, President Obama teamed up with Democrats in Congress to pass a health care bill they knew most Americans didn't want. Americans weren't shy about expressing their bad opinion of the bill, so Democrats settled on a dishonest sales pitch aimed at changing their minds.

NUGENT: Turncoat Roberts

Yogi Berra said that when you come to a fork in the road, take it. When supposed-conservative Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. came to a judicial conservative-liberal fork in the road, he veered left.

MILLER: Gunning for D.C.

The District's refusal to recognize the full meaning of the Second Amendment may not last much longer. A Supreme Court decision in 2008 forced Washington to allow residents to keep arms, and now Congress is pressuring the city to recognize the next part of that constitutional mandate: the right to bear them.

EDITORIAL: The U.N. is coming for your guns

The United Nations is deliberating over a treaty that will place comprehensive limits on the international weapons trade. The language of the draft agreement is so expansive it wouldn't take an Obama-appointed judge very long to extend the treaty to cover the domestic firearms market as well.