Washington DC

US tax agency 'targeted' conservatives

Republican lawmakers say the US tax agency's heightened scrutiny of conservative political groups has further eroded public trust in government, and a prominent senator has demanded President Barack...

US beckons for man with a plan to cure brain cancer

World-renowned Australian neurosurgeon Charlie Teo has announced a 10-year global plan to find a cure for brain cancer.

New Zealand passes gay marriage bill

New Zealand parliament has voted to make same-sex marriage legal.

Live updates: Three killed in Boston Marathon explosions

Daniel Sankey Three killed and at least 140 injured as explosions erupt near the finish line.

Accused insider trader facing 'cruel' treatment

Australian financial analyst Trent Martin is suffering ''bizarre and cruel'' treatment while languishing in abysmal conditions in a Hong Kong jail, his US lawyer says.

Last meal as Obama shoots messenger

Paul McGeough Free valet parking? An open bar - good wines and spirits? Food's free too? Yup, yup and yup. Count me in.

Algeria rescue bid over: hostages feared dead

An Algerian military operation to free a group of foreign workers being held hostage in southeastern Algeria has ended, the country's APS news agency says, citing regional authorities.

Obama's push on guns creates a ripple effect

Nick O'Malley WASHINGTON: A month after the killings in Sandy Hook, the White House and a loose coalition of activists are hoping to harness the public disgust to force Congress to pass its first significant gun...

Pride and hope at second Obama inauguration

Nick O'Malley Ann Thompson travelled from Atlanta, Georgia to Washington DC to see the President renew his oath of office on Martin Luther King Day.

Squabbling all the way to cliff edge

It was early on Friday Australian time that things really started looking grim.

Bomb threat scares town after mass shooting as gun debate continues

Nick O'Malley Worshippers hurriedly left a church on Sunday, after they were told there was a bomb threat not far from the elementary school where 20 children and six adults were massacred.

The land of the free, where children are taught to cower in store rooms

Anne Davies When my son Ben, then aged nine, came home from his second day at primary school in our middle-class neighbourhood of Chevy Chase in Washington DC, agog with news of practising code red and code...

Voting chaos promises controversy to come

Nick Allen, Richard Blackden and Mark Hughes Voting across many American states was thrown into turmoil on Tuesday as electors found themselves confronted by makeshift polling booths, four-hour queues, malfunctioning machines and even the...

Trump rant ignites Twitter

The billionaire property mogul Donald Trump delivered an extraordinary rant against Barack Obama after the president's election victory.

Election's biggest loser: Karl Rove

Julie Bykowicz and Alison Fitzgerald The Republican strategist raised and spent more than $US1 billion – with a miserable return.

No passion for power

Nigel Farndale Having read that General Colin Powell insists on punctuality, I arrive an hour before my appointment at his office - which is in a leafy part of Washington DC - planning to find a quiet corner to go...

Obama under pressure as Romney surges

Ed Pilkington, New York President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney descend on the vital swing state of Ohio, with new polls confirming that the race has tightened across the country .

Obama under pressure as Romney surges

Ed Pilkington NEW YORK: The President, Barack Obama, and Mitt Romney have descended on the vital swing state of Ohio as a slew of new polls confirmed that the race has tightened across the country in the wake of...