Hurley's World

The main purpose of the agency, sometimes referred to as the National Institute of Finance, would be to flag problems in the industry before they spread and threaten the wider economy.

The ban, announced by House Democratic leaders, wipes out one of the most lucrative and controversial means of awarding no-bid contracts to private firms.

The question is whether the U.S. is prepared to lead or whether protectionist pressures will make it impossible to engage fully with trading partners.

The Texas school board held hearings on proposed changes to the state’s social studies curriculum that would portray conservatives in a more positive light.

Palestinian leaders meeting with Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. condemned a decision by Israel on new housing, but still spoke of participating in peace talks.

Previously undisclosed e-mail messages provide new evidence about Senator John Ensign’s efforts to steer lobbying work to the husband of his former mistress.

The new standards, which experts said could well be adopted by a majority of states, would replace the nation’s checkerboard of locally written standards.

The White House hit back against complaints from Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. about a pep-rally-like atmosphere during the President’s State of the Union message.

Senator Scott Brown has been in office barely a month, but he already has a story to tell, and HarperCollins is publishing it.

The president said he would unleash auditors in a crackdown on Medicare and Medicaid waste and fraud, a move to please both liberals and conservatives.

The state legislature approved a measure that bucks any effort by President Barack Obama and Congress to carry out a national health care overhaul in individual states.

A federal judge denied the request of former member of the Detroit City Council to withdraw her guilty plea and sentenced her to more than three years in prison.

It was the former president’s his first known direct involvement in a public policy debate since leaving the White House nearly 14 months ago.

Dan Senor, an author and adviser in the last Bush administration, is said to be seriously considering a political challenge against Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand.

President Obama made the pledge after meeting with President René Préval of Haiti on Wednesday, even as the U.S. military begins withdrawing forces.

House Democrats were desperately trying to prevent a sweeping overhaul of student loan programs from becoming a casualty of the health care battle.

Ben Quayle has a familiar last name, but he is little known in Arizona. Now he is fighting to change that.

Gary Gensler, head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, is the leading contender to oversee the instruments that played a key role in the financial crisis.

Gov. Patrick J. Quinn’s proposal to raise the tax by one percent was just one measure aimed at closing a budget deficit that some now estimate at $13 billion.

The 62 to 36 vote approved a $138 billion measure that would extend unemployment benefits and provide additional aid to states.