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Obama rides high in US poll, despite scandals

Agence France-PresseMay 19, 2013 11:00

President Barack Obama was riding high in a new opinion poll released Sunday showing that 53 percent of Americans approve of the way he's doing his job, despite a flurry of recent scandals. The survey of 923 adults by CNN and the ORC International polling organization found that 45 percent of respondents disapprove of Obama's job performance.

His political problems boiling in capital, Obama takes a road trip to promote a jobs agenda

The Canadian PressMay 17, 2013 04:45

BALTIMORE - President Barack Obama tried on Friday to leave behind the political battles that have overshadowed his second-term agenda, saying lawmakers should work on creating more middle-class jobs in the slowly growing economy. "Our work is not done, and our focus cannot drift," Obama said.

Obama says had no prior knowledge of tax abuses

Agence France-PresseMay 16, 2013 18:45

US President Barack Obama said Thursday he had not known about abuses by tax officials who targeted conservative groups until a report into the affair was leaked to the press last week. "I promise you this. The minute I found out about it, then my focus has been about making sure we get the thing fixed," Obama told reporters. The president spoke just a day after sacking acting Internal Revenue Service chief Steven Miller over reports that some agents had singled out groups affiliated with the ultra-conservative Tea Party and other right-wing causes.

Obama takes arms against a sea of scandal

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 23:00

President Barack Obama launched a multipronged counterattack Wednesday at Republicans who had painted a trio of alleged scandals as flagrant evidence of abuses of power and cover-ups. Obama seized the initiative after days of incoming fire over the assault on a US mission in Libya, the targeting of conservative groups by tax officials and a Justice Department trawl of reporters' phone records.

AFP 0100 GMT News Advisory

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 21:30

Duty Editor: James Hossack Tel: +852 2829 6211 -- TOP STORIES -- + Obama launches counter-attack against Republicans + UN condemns Syria's Assad for 'escalation' of war + Myanmar, Bangladesh brace for approaching cyclone + Google takes on streaming-music rivals on Android US-politics-Obama,WRAP WASHINGTON

Obama fires head of US tax agency over scandal

Agence France-PresseMay 15, 2013 19:15

An angry President Barack Obama sacked the acting head of the US Internal Revenue Service on Wednesday over a fast moving scandal sparked when officials unfairly targeted conservative groups. Obama said Treasury Secretary Jack Lew had asked for and received the resignation of tax agency chief Steven Miller and promised a new system of checks and safeguards to make sure the episode was not repeated. "Given the controversy surrounding this audit, it's important to institute new leadership that can help restore confidence going forward," Obama said.

AFP Americas News Agenda for May 9

Agence France-PresseMay 10, 2013 15:36

Duty Editor: Jim Mannion Tel: + 1 202 414 0541 What's happening in the Americas on Thursday: + US agents probe Cleveland kidnap drama + Britain's Prince Harry starts US visit CLEVELAND, Ohio: US investigators continue to probe how three women kidnapped over a decade ago in separate abductions in Cleveland were held for so long without detection. Picture. Video. Graphic (US-CRIME-KIDNAP)

U.S. economy "poised for progress," Obama says

Agencia EFEMay 9, 2013 19:46

Washington, May 9 (EFE).- The U.S. economy is "poised for progress," President Barack Obama said Thursday in Texas as he embarked on what the White House calls a "Middle-Class Jobs and Opportunity Tour." Obama gave a speech to students at Manor New Technology High School in Austin and after that he was scheduled to visit a microchip factory in the Texas capital. "Our economy can't succeed unless our young people have the skills that they need to succeed," the president told students and teachers.

Obama declares health care law 'is here to stay,' launches effort to sell expanded coverage

The Canadian PressMay 9, 2013 06:30

WASHINGTON - Caught between nervous Democrats and emboldened Republicans, President Barack Obama on Friday stepped up the sales pitch on his health care overhaul as the final elements of his top domestic achievement go into effect. With his legacy and the law's success at stake, Obama said: "The law is here to stay."

Obama urges graduates to blunt special interests by getting involved

Thomson ReutersMay 9, 2013 03:58

By Roberta Rampton COLUMBUS, Ohio (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Sunday urged college graduates to participate in politics and said that without broad public involvement special interest groups can defeat legislation supported by the majority. Obama, who said he is "obsessed with this issue" of inspiring citizens to engage with the political system, in a commencement address to Ohio State University was indirectly referring to the recent defeat of a proposal to expand background checks for gun purchases.