President Barack Obama said Monday that the United States did not yet know who was responsible for blasts at the Boston marathon but he vowed to find those accountable and punish them. "We don't yet have all the answers," Obama said. "We still do not know who did this or why," he added, hinting that he believed the explosions were planned but stopping short of calling them a terrorist attack. col/adm

President Barack Obama ordered his administration to do whatever is necessary to respond to and investigate blasts near the finish line Monday at the Boston Marathon, a US official said. Obama was told of the incident, which killed two people and injured at least 23 others, shortly after it occurred and the White House has been in touch with state and local authorities. "He directed his administration to provide whatever assistance is necessary in the investigation and response," the official said on condition of anonymity.

By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Just hours after proposing a budget that would replace automatic spending cuts required by law, President Barack Obama on Wednesday set in motion the next $109 billion (71.1 billion pounds) of the reductions to military and domestic programs for the year starting on October 1. The White House announced that Obama signed the sequester order, which directs that total discretionary spending for fiscal year 2014 be cut by $91 billion to a total of $967 billion - the lowest level since 2004.

President Barack Obama has apologized to California's top lawyer for causing a stir when he called her "the best-looking attorney general" at a fundraiser they attended together this week.A spokesman for Kamala Harris said she had a great conversation with Obama and strongly supports him but would not say whether she had accepted his apology.