Jones: Bin Laden still spends time in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON (AP) — National security adviser James Jones said Sunday that al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden still spends some time inside Afghanistan. Most recent U.S. estimates have placed bin Laden inside Pakistan. But Jones, a retired general, said the best estimate is that bin Laden "is somewhere in North Waziristan, sometimes on the Pakistani side of the border, sometimes on the Afghan side of the border." Jones described it as "very, very rough, mountainous area. Generally ungoverned and we're going to have to get after that to make sure that this very, very important symbol of what al-Qaida stands for is either, once again, on the run or captured or killed."
Obama pushing health bill in Capitol stop Sunday
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is trying to rally Senate Democrats as they work through the weekend in hopes of settling differences on his broad health care overhaul. He planned to appear at a Senate Democratic caucus meeting Sunday afternoon in response to appeals from a number of lawmakers eager for him to step in and help Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., finish the job.
PROMISES, PROMISES: A closed meeting on openness
WASHINGTON (AP) — It's hardly the image of transparency the Obama administration wants to project: A workshop on government openness is closed to the public. The event Monday for federal employees is a fitting symbol of President Barack Obama's uneven record so far on the Freedom of Information Act, a big part of keeping his campaign promise to make his administration the most transparent ever. As Obama's first year in office ends, the government's actions when the public and press seek information are not yet matching up with the president's words.
How health care bills compare to lawmakers' plan
WASHINGTON (AP) — You should get the same health insurance deal that members of Congress get. That was the gist of President Barack Obama's message as he tried to drum up enthusiasm for his health care overhaul at a Minneapolis town hall meeting a few months ago. But the legislation taking shape now in Congress is no carbon copy of what lawmakers get through the federal employee plan, even if Democrats cite it as their inspiration.
Must-pass bills pile up as days wind down
WASHINGTON (AP) — Time is running out for Congress this year on must-pass legislation to pay for federal programs, allow the government to borrow more money, keep highway projects going and prevent the jobless from losing unemployment and health insurance benefits. It's become a tradition for lawmakers to reach the final weeks of a session without yet renewing programs that expired with the start of the budget year on Oct. 1 or will end on Dec. 31. But with the Senate devoting all the next two weeks to a health care bill, the year-end pileup has reached new dimensions.
Gates: 2-4 years of big Afghan role for US troops
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Robert Gates says Americans should expect a significant U.S. military presence in Afghanistan for two years to four years more. Just as in Iraq, the U.S. eventually will turn over provinces to local security forces, allowing the United States to bring the number of troops down steadily, according to Gates, who appeared on three Sunday talk shows with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to discuss President Barack Obama's new Afghan war plan.
Obama security adviser: Picture not good on Iran
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's national security adviser says the door remains open for Iran to work with other countries on its nuclear program. But James Jones also says the "picture is not a good one." Jones says the clock is ticking toward the end of the year. That's when Obama has said it would be clear whether Iran was ready to work with the United States, other U.N. Security Council members and Germany to assure the world it was not trying to build a nuclear weapon.
Obama aide: July 2011 Afghan pullout not `a cliff'
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's national security adviser says the July 2011 date for the beginning of a U.S. troop withdrawal in Afghanistan is "not a cliff." Instead, James Jones calls it "a guide slope."
Gates: Pakistan now putting pressure on Taliban
WASHINGTON (AP) — Pakistan has acknowledged a growing threat from within its borders and is changing its attitude toward fighting terrorists, U.S. officials say. "The Taliban in Pakistan have been attacking Pakistani civilians, Pakistani government officials, military officials, trying to destabilize the government of Pakistan," said Defense Secretary Robert Gates, joined on three Sunday talk shows by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
McCain troubled by Afghan pullout target date
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. John McCain says President Barack Obama's announcement that U.S. troops will begin to leave Afghanistan in July 2011 sends the wrong message to the Taliban and has confused countries in the region. The Arizona Republican says the U.S. can make significant progress in Afghanistan in the next 12 months to 18 months. But he says the U.S. should be signaling that it will pull its troops from that country once it has won and broken the Taliban's will.
