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No sooner had President Obama proposed a new regulatory road map for the country's financial system on Wednesday than senior lawmakers expressed reservations about one of the plan's central elements -- to broadly expand the reach of the Federal Reserve to regulate financial risk across the entire system. Mr. Obama said that the plan would protect consumers, impose new restraints on financial behemoths and guard against the murky practices that caused the market crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Robert M. Groves, a former census official and now a sociology professor at the University of Michigan, was nominated Thursday by President Obama to run the Census Bureau, a choice that instantly made Republicans nervous. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke described Mr. Grove as ''a respected social scientist who will run the Census Bureau with integrity and independence.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Al Franken, the comedian turned politician, won a potentially decisive court ruling on Tuesday in his bid to replace Norm Coleman, a Minnesota Republican trying to hold on to his Senate seat. A three-judge panel ruled that only 400 absentee ballots -- far fewer than Mr. Coleman had sought -- should be examined for possible counting. If the ruling stands, it could be devastating for Mr. Coleman, who trailed his Democratic challenger by 225 votes out of some 2.9 million cast and had hoped that nearly 1,400 absentee ballots might be recounted. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Outlining a far-reaching proposal on Thursday to rebuild the nation's broken system of financial regulation, the Treasury secretary, Timothy F. Geithner, fired the opening salvo in what is likely to be a marathon battle. ''Our system failed in fundamental ways,'' Mr. Geithner told the House Financial Services Committee. ''To address this will require comprehensive reform. Not modest repairs at the margin, but new rules of the game.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

President Obama quickly apologized for his quip on ''The Tonight Show'' on NBC on Thursday comparing his modest bowling skills to those of athletes who have disabilities. Chatting with the host, Jay Leno, the president said he had been practicing at the White House bowling alley and rolled a 129. ''It was like the Special Olympics or something,'' Mr. Obama said. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

As the markets clung to the gains of the past few days, President Obama reiterated his optimism for the long haul on Friday, while warning that a lot of work lies ahead to unclog credit streams and rebuild the economy. ''We are spending every day working through how to get credit flowing again, so that businesses large and small, as well as consumers, are able to obtain credit and we can get this economy moving again,'' the president said after meeting at the White House with his economic recovery advisory board, headed by Paul A. Volcker. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

R. Gil Kerlikowske, the chief of the Seattle Police Department, was chosen Wednesday to be the White House drug czar, signaling a shift in emphasis from arrest and prosecution to intervention and treatment. The selection of Mr. Kerlikowske, which had been expected, was announced by Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., who said Mr. Kerlikowske understood that ''combating drugs requires a comprehensive approach that includes enforcement, prevention and treatment.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

President Obama called for sweeping changes in American education on Tuesday, urging states to lift limits on charter schools and improve the quality of early childhood education while also signaling that he intends to make good on his campaign promise of linking teacher pay to performance. Having secured tens of billions of dollars in additional financing for education in the economic stimulus package and made clear his intent to seek more in his budget, Mr. Obama used a speech here to flesh out how he would use federal money and programs to influence policy at the state and local level. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

WASHINGTON -- New York City's nine-year lawsuit accusing gun makers of flooding illicit markets with their firearms came to an end on Monday, when the United States Supreme Court refused to consider a lower court's dismissal of the case. Without comment, the justices decided not to review a ruling by a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which declared on April 30 that federal law protected the manufacturers from such suits. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

As government data revealed that 651,000 more jobs disappeared in February, a sense took hold that growing joblessness may reflect a wrenching restructuring of the American economy. The unemployment rate surged to 8.1 percent, from 7.6 percent in January, its highest level in a quarter-century. In key industries -- manufacturing, financial services and retail -- layoffs have accelerated so quickly in recent months as to suggest that many companies are abandoning whole areas of business. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

President Obama will announce Monday that he is reversing Bush administration limits on federal financing for embryonic stem cell research as part of a pledge to separate science and politics, White House officials said Friday. As a presidential candidate, Mr. Obama spoke out in favor of stem cell research, so his intention to undo the curbs put in place by President George W. Bush is not surprising. But the decision is nonetheless of great interest, involving a long-controversial intersection of science and personal moral beliefs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

President Obama vowed on Thursday that there would be real improvements in the health care system ''this time around,'' and for the moment, at least, he enjoyed bipartisan agreement that something has to be done. ''I just want to figure out what works,'' the president said at the White House at the end of a day-long meeting on health care that brought together a diverse group of people, in and out of government, who have to deal with the ever-spiraling increase in care costs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, told lawmakers on Tuesday that the country faces ''a prolonged episode of economic stagnation'' if they do not address the economic crisis forcefully, but he quickly encountered deep anger, particularly over the dealings of the ailing American International Group. Mr. Bernanke told the Senate Budget Committee that the worst outlook, should action on the crisis prove inadequate, would be ''further deterioration in the fiscal situation'' and probably ''lower output, employment and incomes for an extended period.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Obama administration moved Friday to undo a last-minute Bush administration rule granting broad protections to health workers who refuse to take part in abortions or provide other health care that goes against their consciences. The Department of Health and Human Services served notice on Friday that it intended to rescind the regulation, which was originally announced on Dec. 19 and took effect on the day President Obama took office. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The president's budget assumes that some Americans will have to rely more on welfare and poverty-combating programs ''in these tough economic times,'' and accordingly calls for spending more on a variety of program. But it also foresees savings by aiming to weed out fraud, waste and abuse. To make it easier for poor families to put food on the table, the Department of Agriculture's budget includes a temporary increase in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly Food Stamps, under the recently enacted economic stimulus package. The budget also includes money for a pilot program to increase participation among low-income elderly. The budget for the Department of Housing and Urban Development includes $4.5 billion for the Community Development Block Grant program, meant to promote investments to expand economic opportunities for low-income families. Housing needs are addressed in a variety of ways, including $1 billion for a program to develop, rehabilitate and preserve affordable housing for families with very low incomes and increased financing for a program to preserve about 1.3 million rental units through contracts with owners of multi-family properties. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Senate Democratic leaders pledged Wednesday to move quickly to enact the ambitious policy agenda outlined by President Obama in his speech before Congress on Tuesday night, with Senator Harry Reid, the majority leader, saying he hoped to achieve a health care overhaul this year. ''By the end of this year, I want to do something significant dealing with health care,'' Mr. Reid, of Nevada, told reporters as he and fellow Democrats hailed what they saw as a successful address by the new president. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

President Obama appealed to the determination and optimism of the American people on Tuesday evening, telling them that it will take a long time for the teetering economy to right itself, but that better days will come if they join him in building a new economic foundation for a new century. ''Now is the time to act boldly and wisely, to not only revive this economy, but to build a new foundation for lasting prosperity,'' the president said. ''Now is the time to jump-start job creation, re-start lending, and invest in areas like energy, health care, and education that will grow our economy, even as we make hard choices to bring our deficit down.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite the huge sums the federal government is spending to aid banks and stimulate the economy, President Obama said on Monday that his administration will slash the federal budget deficit, in part by ending the ''casual dishonesty'' that has accompanied Washington budgets of late. The president said that the bank-rescue plan and the broader economic stimulus program are necessary not merely to jolt the economy but because the country has ''long-term challenges -- health care, energy, education and others -- that we can no longer afford to ignore.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

President Obama told the nation's mayors on Friday that he would hold them accountable for how they spend the money in his $787 billion economic stimulus package, which he described as ''a true partnership'' between the federal government and cities that have been too long neglected by Washington. ''I want to be clear about this: We cannot tolerate business as usual -- not in Washington, not in our state capitols, not in America's cities and towns,'' Mr. Obama told a gathering of the United States Conference of Mayors. He said he was putting them ''on notice'' that if they propose a wasteful project, ''I will call them out on it.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire abruptly withdrew Thursday as the nominee for commerce secretary, saying he had ''irresolvable conflicts'' with President Obama over his economic stimulus plan and a concern over what many fellow Republicans believe is the politicization of the 2010 census. The departure of Mr. Gregg is the latest setback to a White House that has struggled to fill several top positions and to fulfill Mr. Obama's pledge of building a bipartisan administration. He is the third prospective cabinet secretary -- the second for the Commerce Department -- to remove his name from consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The new stimulus package seemed to defy Washington's peculiar laws of physics, where numbers that go up don't often come back down. But by producing a compromise with a sticker price of about $789 billion -- less than the amount approved in either the House or the Senate -- Congress appears to have ensured quick passage. Indeed, the Senate may begin debate on the package Thursday and may even pass it before the House, which would endorse it by the end of the week. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Senate Democrats reached an agreement with Republican moderates on Friday to pare a huge economic recovery measure, clearing the way for approval of a package that President Obama said was urgently needed in light of mounting job losses. The deal, announced on the Senate floor, was a result of two days of tense negotiations and political theater. Mr. Obama dispatched his chief of staff to Capitol Hill to help conclude the talks and reassure senators in his own party, and he called three key Republicans to applaud them for their patriotism. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Tom Daschle withdrew his name on Tuesday as President Obama's nominee to lead the Health and Human Services Department, a startling decision that came only hours after the withdrawal of another candidate for a high White House office. Mr. Daschle withdrew a day after Mr. Obama unequivocally declared that he would stand behind him as his problems over income tax arrears were scrutinized on Capitol Hill. The nominee's tax issues had developed into a troublesome distraction for the president, who entered the White House pledging to hold his people to the highest ethical standards. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner will soon announce a new strategy for reviving the country's financial system while making sure that banking executives do not misuse federal money meant to assist their companies, President Obama said Saturday in his weekly address. The president said the goal of the strategy would be to get credit flowing again to families and businesses. ''We'll help lower mortgage costs and extend loans to small businesses so they can create jobs,'' Mr. Obama said. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

One of the most iconic images of American life, that of circus elephants joined trunk-to-tail as they lumber along to delight ''children of all ages,'' as the old saying goes, is about to be debated in a courtroom. Are the beasts docile because they are highly intelligent and respond well to training, reinforced with the promise of apples, carrots, water and kindness at day's end? Or do they obey because their spirits have been broken and they fear getting hit by their trainers? [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Banking institutions that are benefiting from the $700 billion federal rescue program for their industry should be pressed to better explain what they are doing with the money, a government investigative agency said Friday. A report by the Government Accountability Office, an investigative arm of Congress, said the Treasury Department had been better able to track the money flow recently by starting a monthly survey of the program's 20 biggest beneficiaries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

On yet another morning of grim economic news, President Obama sought on Friday to distance himself further from his predecessor, announcing steps that he said would strengthen organized labor and thereby improve the lot of middle-class Americans. At a White House ceremony, the president signed three executive orders that he said would ''reverse many of the policies towards organized labor that we've seen these last eight years, policies with which I've sharply disagreed.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

On yet another morning of grim economic news, President Obama sought to further distance himself from his predecessor on Friday as he announced steps that he said would strengthen organized labor and improve the lot of middle-class Americans. At a White House ceremony, the president signed three executive orders that he said would ''reverse many of the policies towards organized labor that we've seen these last eight years, policies with which I've sharply disagreed.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Obama administration hit an unexpected rough patch on Thursday in its plan to give itself time to decide how to prosecute Guantanamo detainees. A military judge in the case of one of the best-known terrorism suspects declined an administration request to delay an arraignment scheduled for Feb. 9. The decision differed from rulings by two other military judges in the war crimes system at the prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, who last week granted requests filed by military prosecutors for four-month delays so the new administration could study detainees' files and its legal options. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

President Bush on Monday commuted the sentences of two former Border Patrol agents imprisoned for shooting a Mexican drug smuggler, but he was preparing to leave office without granting clemency to any better-known figures or government officials who could face liability over administration policies. The former agents, Jose A. Compean and Ignacio Ramos, will be freed from federal prison in less than two months as a result of Mr. Bush's commutation, cutting short prison terms that were due to run at least eight more years. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Once upon a time, which is to say until the early 1930s, the president of the United States was inaugurated on March 4, and the new Congress convened on the same day. To understand why Inauguration Day is now Jan. 20, and why the new House and Senate convene two and a half weeks earlier, one should know a little about Senators George W. Norris of Nebraska and Thaddeus Horatius Caraway of Arkansas. But first, what about March 4? The Continental Congress voted on Sept. 13, 1788, that the newly ratified Constitution would take effect on ''the first Wednesday of March next,'' which happened to be March 4, 1789. The terms of the first president, George Washington, as well as members of the first Congress were also to begin on that day. So March 4 it was. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the conviction of an Alabama man on drug and weapons charges, emphasizing that the exclusionary rule, which generally bars prosecutors from using evidence obtained by the police through improper searches, is far from absolute. In a 5-to-4 opinion, the court upheld the federal conviction of Bennie Dean Herring, who from the court records appears to have been very unlucky as well as felonious in his conduct. In upholding the conviction, the court's majority came to a conclusion that will most likely please those who complain about criminals going free on ''technicalities'' and alarm those who fear that the high court is looking for ways to narrow the reach of the exclusionary rule. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Griffin B. Bell, who was considered the dean of Georgia lawyers and who was the attorney general during most of the presidency of his childhood neighbor Jimmy Carter, died in Atlanta on Monday. He was 90. His death, at Piedmont Hospital, was caused by complications of pancreatic cancer, said a spokesman for King & Spalding, the law firm where Mr. Bell was senior counsel. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Defying Senate leaders in Washington and a galaxy of political leaders here, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich of Illinois announced Tuesday that he would fill the Senate seat of President-elect Barack Obama, which he has been accused of trying to sell. Mr. Blagojevich said he would appoint Roland W. Burris, a former state attorney general who was the first African-American elected to statewide office in Illinois. The decision set off efforts to block the move by state legislators, the secretary of state, and, most significantly, Democratic leaders in the United States Senate who said they would not seat anyone Mr. Blagojevich chose. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]