BARACK OBAMA

Stock index futures pointed to a mixed open on Wall Street on Friday, as investors braced for key monthly jobs data.

Asian stocks dipped on Friday as investors grew cautious before a key U.S. jobs report, while the Australian dollar got only a brief lift despite signals from the central bank that interest rates could rise over time.

Judge Sonia Sotomayor won approval on Thursday to become the first Hispanic on the U.S. Supreme Court in a Senate vote that President Barack Obama said broke another social barrier.

The U.S. Senate approved and sent to the White House on Thursday a $2 billion extension of the cash for clunkers autos sales incentive program.

The U.S. Senate approved and sent to the White House on Thursday a $2 billion extension of the cash for clunkers autos sales incentive program.

Fannie Mae, the largest provider of U.S. home mortgage funding, on Thursday reported a $14.8 billion quarterly net loss that it said would force it to go to the U.S. Treasury trough a third time for money to stay in business.

The number of U.S. workers submitting new claims for jobless benefits fell sharply last week, fanning hopes the fragile labor market was on the mend and that the broader economy was stabilizing.

The U.S. Senate approved and sent to the White House on Thursday a $2 billion extension of the cash for clunkers autos sales incentive program.

President Barack Obama is unlikely to tip his hand as soon as financial markets would like on whether he plans to name Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to another term.

The United States confirmed the first Hispanic of the Supreme Court on Thursday voting 66-31 for Judge Sonia Sotomayor.

Judge Sonia Sotomayor became the first Hispanic confirmed by the Senate for the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday.

Japan's Prime Minster and Hiroshima mayor together with at least 50 thousand people including representatives from different nations gathered together on Thursday to mark the 64th anniversary of the world's first atomic bomb attack.

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton has briefed on official from the White House's National Security Council about his trip to North Korea where he met face to face meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, a White House spokesman said on Thursday.

August is do-or-die month for both President Barack Obama and his hopes of overhauling U.S. healthcare, and the battle will be fought not in Washington, but across the country.

The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on Thursday for an extension of $2 billion for the Cash for Clunkers program that is quickly consuming its first $1 billion investment sooner than expected.

U.S. presidential couple Barack and Michelle Obama, Brad Pitt and French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy all made the cut for an annual list of the world's best dressed -- and gave a few tips on where to find bargains.

Two roadside bombs in Afghanistan's most violent province killed five revelers heading to a wedding and five policemen, officials said on Thursday.

Japan's main opposition Democratic Party, which has a good shot at winning power in a general election this month, said on Thursday it backed U.S. President Barack Obama's call to rid the world of nuclear arms.

After his talks with reclusive North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, Bill Clinton sure has a story to tell.

Despite polls showing growing public doubts about his healthcare overhaul, U.S. President Barack Obama vowed on Wednesday to get a reform bill through Congress this year even without Republicans on board.

A group of small U.S. manufacturers and trade associations is endorsing a bill it says will boost the number of green manufacturing jobs in industries like wind and solar power in the United States.