Senate Republicans fired the first shot in what could turn into an ugly partisan battle over a sweeping health-care bill Democrats are trying to pass by Christmas.
With just a week left before the holiday, Republicans slowed debate to a crawl Wednesday afternoon by demanding a Senate clerk recite all 767 pages of an amendment filed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., to create a national health plan.
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Now that Democrats have removed a massive Medicare expansion from their party's health care plan, President Obama and Senate leaders are predicting passage by next week. But the bill could still be stalled by party holdouts and Republican opposition.
Obama left an afternoon meeting with Senate Democrats declaring himself to be "cautiously optimistic" that the bill he has been pressing for since taking office in January would be passed, but he also acknowledged a deal had not yet been reached to ensure support from all 60 members of their caucus.
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In early November, Democratic representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida accused House Republicans of giving women "back-of-the-hand treatment" during a parliamentary dust-up over a health care debate.
Her ridiculous rhetoric, about what amounted to a heated argument, happened to coincide with the media blitz of newly ordained press darling Dede Scozzafava, playing the role of mistreated moderate woman ousted from the Republican party by rabid conservatives because of her views on social issues.
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Taking time out from golf to focus on his family might not be enough to save Tiger Woods’ marriage. His wife Elin was spotted Saturday without her wedding ring, as more rumored mistresses and damning allegations continue to surface.
Case in point: New York single mom Cori Rist says she romped with the golf great for two and a half years, and he confided that he was unhappy with his spouse.
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In a last-ditch attempt to come up with the 60 votes needed to pass health care legislation this year, Senate Democrats appeared ready to dump plans to expand Medicare, with leaders telling their liberal faction to accept a stripped-down proposal because it is better than passing nothing at all.
Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., who is opposed to the provision to allow people as young as 55 to enroll in Medicare, told reporters after a 90-minute caucus meeting that Democratic leaders are likely to remove it.
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A new poll showing strong support for President Obama's Afghan surge policy but stronger resistance to a deadline for troop withdrawal underscores public confusion about the mission, experts said.
Obama was heading to Oslo, Norway, to collect the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize when the CBS News/New York Times poll was released. In a speech, the president described himself as "filled with difficult questions about the relationship between war and peace."
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When President Obama touches down in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, he may find some things have changed since he won the state just over a year ago.
Obama made more than 45 stops in Pennsylvania last year and defeated Republican rival John McCain there by 54.7 percent to 44.3 percent.
But politics are shifting in Pennsylvania, which is lately drawing comparisons to New Jersey and Virginia, both of which elected Republican governors this year after lining up for Obama in 2008.
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Democrats were able to easily defeat two Republican amendments to their health care overhaul, but their biggest problem remains within their own party as centrists opposed to abortion language and a government-run insurance plan threaten to derail the legislation.
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President Obama's request for tens of billions of dollars to fund a troop surge in Afghanistan was greeted with bipartisan skepticism on Capitol Hill as top administration officials made their case for the ambitious strategy.
In a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned that the deployment was critically needed to extinguish terrorist groups in both Afghanistan and Pakistan whose ultimate goal is to attack the United States.
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The first state dinner of the Obama White House had it all: Oscar-winning entertainers, Hollywood moguls, a knockout guest chef and even a wardrobe malfunction.
Traditional evening gowns vied with saris of vibrant colors Tuesday night at the high-glitz dinner in honor of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. There were turbans and bindis as well as diamonds and brocades.
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