Aides to President Barack Obama are disputing reports that he is sending lawmakers a scaled-down plan to avoid the "fiscal cliff."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says the government appears headed over the so-called fiscal cliff because of a lack of progress in bipartisan negotiations.

President Obama and lawmakers are running out of time to work out an agreement to stave off the across-the-board tax increases and budget cuts that are set to take effect next week.

Lt. Gov. Brian Schatz of Hawaii has been appointed to succeed the late U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye.

A spokesman says former President George H.W. Bush is in the intensive care unit at a Houston hospital.

A spokesman says the fever that kept former President George H.W. Bush in a Houston hospital over Christmas has worsened, and doctors have put him on a liquids-only diet.

Starbucks is using its coffee cups to jump into the political fray in Washington.

Ben Affleck is taking his name off the list of possible candidates for U.S. Sen. John Kerry's seat, which would be open if the Democratic senator from Massachusetts is confirmed as secretary of state.

President Barack Obama is cutting short his traditional Christmas holiday in Hawaii, planning to leave for Washington on Wednesday evening as he and lawmakers consider how to prevent the economy from going over the so-called fiscal cliff.

Former President George H.W. Bush will spend Christmas in a Houston hospital after developing a fever and weakness following a monthlong, bronchitis-like cough.

A Marine veteran jailed for months in Mexico after trying to carry an heirloom shotgun across the border had to be hospitalized on his way home to Florida.

The late U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye is being praised as a humble leader who embodied honor, dignity and duty during a public visitation at Hawaii's state Capitol.

Sweden's royal family says Princess Madeleine's wedding will take place on Saturday, June 8, at the Royal Palace chapel in downtown Stockholm.

Complete President Obama's speech on the Fiscal Cliff, Dec. 21, 2012.

President Barack Obama has nominated Sen. John Kerry as his next secretary of state, saying Kerry's entire life "has prepared him for this role."

President Barack Obama's top Democratic ally in the Senate is calling for the House to vote on the president's plan to raise top tax rates on households making more than $250,000 a year.

Sen. John Kerry, President Barack Obama's pick for secretary of state, will need no introduction with the world leaders vital to American interests.

The House Ethics Committee has concluded that congresswoman Shelley Berkley of Nevada violated House rules and laws by using her official position to benefit her husband's medical practice.

In the "fiscal cliff" standoff, President Barack Obama wants to raise taxes by about $20 billion a year more than House Speaker John Boehner. The president wants to spend about that much more yearly than Boehner does, too.

The Internal Revenue Service says up to 100 million taxpayers - about two-thirds of all filers - won't be able to file their 2012 tax returns until late March if Congress doesn't adjust the alternative minimum tax by the end of the year.

Today's lawmakers might be excused for thinking they've seen this movie: A recently re-elected president spars with a quarrelsome Congress over an issue that roils the nation.

The "fiscal cliff" talks are at a partisan standoff.

House Speaker John Boehner says President Barack Obama should support a Republican plan to avoid January tax increases on everyone but those earning over $1 million. Boehner says if Obama doesn't support the measure, the president will be responsible for what he calls "the largest tax increase in history."

President Barack Obama is asking a team led by Vice President Joe Biden to offer "concrete proposals" to curb gun violence no later than January, in the aftermath of the horrific massacre at a Connecticut elementary school.

The White House says President Barack Obama would veto House Speaker John Boehner's 'Plan B' proposal for extending tax cuts for people making up to $1 million.