Democrats demanding action on gun control continue to stage a sit-in on the floor of the US House of Representatives with one saying she would stay "until hell freezes over".

George Clooney wants to launch a career in politics after marrying Amal Alamuddin.

US president Barack Obama brushed aside opposition in his own party today and announced an agreement with Republicans on a plan to extend expiring income tax cuts for all Americans, renew jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed and grant a one-year reduction in payroll taxes.

Barack Obama has assured Russian president Dimitry Medvedev that a US Senate vote on the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) should happen this week.

Defiant Democrats insisted today that they would be able to push through the most sweeping new controls on financial institutions since the Great Depression, following a Senate setback.

Barack Obama's bid to overhaul the US healthcare system was in doubt today as politicians rejected the quickest route for achieving it in the aftermath of this week's shock Republican Senate victory.

Barack Obama and his Democratic Party raced to re-evaluate their health care plans and electoral strategy after their stunning Massachusetts Senate defeat.

The White House is to announce that the US government's deficit is about US$262bn (€184bn) less than was predicted early this year, but still three times bigger than last year's.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “poisoned” the debate over a €487bn rescue package for the United States’ economy and caused the bill’s failure, Republicans said.

Voters in Indiana and North Carolina will choose between Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in the latest critical primary elections in the race to the White House today.

Barack Obama said he was tough enough to lift America up and out of a period of divisive and ineffective government today as he looks set to overtake Hillary Clinton in the race for delegates.

Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama shift their fight to South Carolina after a split result in Nevada's contest failed to yield a clear winner in the battle for the US Democratic presidential nomination.

US President George Bush’s stance on a Democratic agreement to set a timetable on the Iraq war has not changed: he will not accept it.

Serbian president Boris Tadic today called on pro-democratic parties to put differences aside and quickly form a coalition government to stave off gains made by ultranationalists in the weekend parliamentary election.

The White House today announced a shuffling of US military leaders in the Iraq war today as Congress' new Democratic chiefs criticised plans President George W Bush is considering to boost US troop strength in the war zone.

Set to become the US' first female speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi says Democrats are "ready to lead" in partnership with Republicans, "not in partisanship".

DOESN'T time fly? Not so long ago, the A&E issue was hardly a little crisis in Tánaiste and Health Minister Mary Harney's eye. A year and a half later, it has grown up to become a fully-blown national emergency.

Pop star Madonna has accused American citizens of being afraid of electing a female as president of the United States.

THE Republican-controlled Senate easily defeated a Democratic effort yesterday to pressure President George Bush to outline a timetable for a phased withdrawal from Iraq.

THE Democrats yesterday claimed victory in the race for Washington governor by a razor-thin margin of eight votes - after weeks of recounts following the November 2 election.

WELL, by now we’ve found out the self-styled eagle could squawk better than he could fly.

THE Rev James Dobson is endorsing a candidate for the White House for the first time. He says he had a dream.

A PRO-WESTERN reformer won Serbia’s presidential run-off vote last night, defeating a hard-line nationalist ally of former autocrat Slobodan Milosevic, an independent election monitoring group said.

Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness met with US Presidential candidate, Senator John Kerry last week.

IMAGINE the scene. President Bush is doing a dry run before his State of the Union address. Just as he is running through some problem words and phrases, the door opens. It’s Karl Rove, his key political advisor.

US president George Bush gained important new Democratic support for his war resolution, bolstering his expected margin of victory in Congress for broad authority to use force against Iraq.