BARACK OBAMA

General Motors Corp cleared a key obstacle in its restructuring on Thursday as the United Auto Workers agreed to cut labor costs and accept new terms for a $20 billion union retiree healthcare obligation.

Xerox Corp said on Thursday Anne Mulcahy, who has been credited with revitalizing the world's top supplier of digital printers and document management services, will retire as chief executive in July and be replaced by Ursula Burns.

The consequences of Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon would be calamitous and major powers must act together to prevent it, the top U.S. military officer said on Thursday.

New York's mayor and police chief sought to calm Jewish worshipers on Thursday, the morning after authorities said they foiled a plot to blow up two synagogues and simultaneously shoot down military planes.

President Barack Obama sought on Thursday to quell a domestic backlash against his efforts to close the internationally condemned U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay and roll back some of the most divisive Bush-era anti-terrorism policies.

Israeli police broke up an unauthorized settler outpost in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, bulldozing makeshift cabins, police said.

President Barack Obama on Thursday will discuss his plan for closing the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in an effort to stop a revolt by lawmakers concerned that some of the detainees could be set free in the United States.

The U.S. administration of President Barack Obama will not force Israel to state publicly whether it has nuclear weapons, an Israeli official said on Thursday.

News reports about Pakistan's nuclear arsenal, including questions about its safety, are part of a malicious campaign that is counter-productive to efforts to defeat terrorism, a Pakistani spokesman said on Thursday.

President Barack Obama on Thursday will outline his strategy for closing the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, hoping to defuse a revolt by lawmakers over the fate of an internationally reviled symbol of Bush-era detainee policy.

A bill restricting credit card practices won the final approval of the U.S. congress and is now expected to be signed into law by President Barack Obama as soon as Friday.

President Barack Obama concluded said Wednesday there is an impressive consensus among members of his Economic Recovery Advisory Board for getting the United States to take the lead on clean energy issues.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is surrounding himself with former aides to President Bill Clinton as he attempts to rebound from a rocky start even as top-tier vacancies have slowed decision-making.

President Barack Obama was expected to sign into law on Friday a package of sweeping new limits on credit card interest rates and fees that won final approval from the U.S. Congress on Wednesday .

President Barack Obama, speaking to a high-level advisory panel of economic experts, said on Wednesday that U.S. financial markets had improved recently but he was concerned the country would face higher unemployment for some time.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to approve legislation to curb sudden credit card interest rate hikes and hidden fees, with President Barack Obama expected to sign it within days.

The U.S. Congress on Tuesday sent President Barack Obama a housing rescue bill that aims to save 400,000 homeowners from foreclosure and will spend $2.2 billion on programs to aid the homeless.

Americans could face higher unemployment for some time to come, President Barack Obama warned on Wednesday, underscoring the tough challenges the country faces even as the economy shows signs of stabilizing.

Israel is ready to open peace talks with Syria immediately and without preconditions, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday after talks with U.S. President Barack Obama.

The U.S. Congress on Wednesday gave final approval to a bill that would impose sweeping new limits on the credit card industry, with President Barack Obama expected to sign it into law within days.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday the Obama administration was making headway in settling financial markets and said a program to cleanse so-called toxic assets from banks' balance sheets will start operating over the next six weeks.