Environment Bush May Scale Back Plans For Marine Reserve December 8, 2008 • The White House is considering the designation of a new marine reserve in the Northern Mariana Islands, but it may not get the same amount of protection as an area created two years ago near Hawaii. The same could be true for other sites in the Pacific that are also under consideration.
Politics Obama Visits White House For Meeting With Bush November 10, 2008 • President George W. Bush welcomed President-elect Barack Obama to the White House on Monday. While the two men met to discuss affairs of state, first lady Laura Bush gave Michelle Obama a tour of the second-floor residence of the Executive Mansion.
Politics Emanuel Is Obama's Chief Of Staff November 6, 2008 • Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel has accepted the position of president-elect Barack Obama's chief of staff. Meanwhile, President Bush and Obama are to meet Monday for talks as part of the Democrat's transition to the White House.
Law Fresh Details Emerge In Special Counsel's Ouster October 28, 2008 • New details are emerging about the White House's dismissal of Scott Bloch as special counsel, head of the office that protects federal whistle-blowers from mistreatment. Bloch has been under investigation amid allegations he violated the rights of his own employees.
Financial Turmoil Grips World Markets Bush To Unveil Expanded Bank Bailout Details October 13, 2008 • The Bush administration plans to spend as much as $250 billion of the $700 billion bailout buying stock in private banks, greatly expanding protections for the U.S. financial system out of deep concern for the faltering economy.
World Bush Seeks Free Trade With Latin America September 24, 2008 • President Bush has talked about free trade with Western Hemisphere leaders, but the comments follow an address to the U.N. General Assembly by Bolivian President Evo Morales, who decried capitalism as the worst friend of humanity.
Bush Makes Final Address As President To U.N. September 23, 2008 • President Bush has made his final address to the U.N. General Assembly. He leaves behind many problems for the next U.S. president: unfinished wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and a tarnished image that has undercut America's moral authority in the world.
Politics 'Angler' Takes Measure Of Cheney's Influence Fresh Air September 16, 2008 • Dick Cheney is arguably one of the most powerful vice presidents in American history, but much of his work is done behind the scenes. In his new book, Angler, journalist Barton Gellman details the forty-year political career of Bush's second in command.
The Impact of War Bob Woodward Details A White House Divided Fresh Air September 9, 2008 • The surge in Iraq is one of the issues that divides the presidential candidates, but Bob Woodward's new book, The War Within, reveals that it also divided the Bush administration and the military.
Politics House Panel Scrutinizes 'Imperial Presidency' July 25, 2008 • The House Judiciary Committee has convened a session on "the Imperial Presidency." Democrats accuse the administration of overstepping its authority and the subject has repeatedly turned to whether it is guilty of "high crimes and misdemeanors."
Politics Farewell Themes in the State of the Union January 28, 2008 • President Bush delivers the final State of the Union speech of his two-term presidency Monday night. If similar speeches by Presidents Reagan and Clinton are any indication, Bush will highlight his accomplishments and set the agenda for his last year in office.
Politics Pulitzer Winner Explains 'Signing Statements' Story Fresh Air April 17, 2007 • Journalist Charlie Savage of the Boston Globe just won a Pulitzer Prize for national-affairs reporting. In an April 2006 article, he detailed how often President Bush has used "signing statements" to assert the right to bypass provisions of new laws; Savage's article prompted Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) to call for hearings investigating the matter. Rebroadcast from May 9, 2006.
Politics Is Alaska Primary a Preview of GOP's November? August 23, 2006 • Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski suffered a huge defeat in the state's Republican primary on Tuesday, finishing third in the three-way race with just 18 percent of the vote. Does Murkowski's loss signal trouble ahead for GOP incumbents in November's midterm elections?
Locating the Source of the Plame Leak Libby Pleads Not Guilty in CIA Leak Case November 3, 2005 • I. Lewis Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's former top aide, pleads not guilty to charges against him in a case probing who revealed the identity of a covert CIA agent. He was arraigned in federal court in Washington, D.C., on charges of obstructing justice, perjury and making false statements.
Opinion 'Next Attack' Charges Bush with Failure Fresh Air November 1, 2005 • Writers Daniel Benjamin and Steven Simon are the co-authors of The Next Attack: The Failure Of The War On Terror and a Strategy For Getting it Right. The book criticizes the Bush administration's responses to the terror attacks of Sept 11, 2001.
Politics Samuel Alito: Another Nominee, Another Fight October 31, 2005 • The nomination of Samuel Alito, a proven conservative with a track record of opposing abortion, will help President Bush regain some of the political capital he lost amid the failed Supreme Court nomination of Harriet Miers. But he will almost surely have to spend some of it pushing Alito's nomination through the Senate.
Law Bush Taps Alito for Supreme Court Vacancy October 31, 2005 • President Bush nominates New Jersey's Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. The conservative federal judge would replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a moderate.
Locating the Source of the Plame Leak Libby Indicted in CIA Leak Case, Resigns October 28, 2005 • I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, resigns after he is indicted on five counts for obstruction of justice, perjury and making false statements in the CIA leak case. Karl Rove, President Bush's top adviser, remains under investigation.
Political Analysis Q & A: Miers Withdraws; What's Next? October 27, 2005 • From the outset, President Bush's nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court revealed a public rift with his conservative base. Mara Liasson looks at how Miers' withdrawal will affect the president politically and what qualifications he might seek in the next high court nominee
Locating the Source of the Plame Leak From Niger to Grand Jury: A Plame Case Timeline October 26, 2005 • The road to potential indictments in the Valerie Plame investigation started with a claim that Iraq was seeking to buy uranium from Africa. Newsweek magazine investigative correspondent Michael Isikoff lays out the timeline of events leading up to the grand jury.
Politics Poll: Bush's Ratings Drop on Nearly All Fronts October 13, 2005 • A new poll shows President Bush's approval ratings are at an all-time low. Only 38 percent of Americans think he is doing a good job; also, most think Bush will be seen by history as unsuccessful.
Economy Estimates Show Tax Revenues Lowering Deficit August 15, 2005 • The federal budget deficit has declined somewhat, according to new numbers released by the Congressional Budget Office. An increase in tax revenues caused the latest 2005 budget projections to cut the estimated deficit by $88 billion.