Politics - Reuters

CINCINNATI (Reuters) - The morning after the most anticipated vice-presidential debate in American history, U.S. voters seemed to share a common reaction: Republican Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin wasn't that bad after all.

CINCINNATI (Reuters) - President George W. Bush said on Monday it would take time for the $700 billion rescue plan to have an effect on the U.S. financial system but that in the long run the American economy will be "just fine".

ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - Republican Sarah Palin and Democrat Joe Biden clashed on the economy and Iraq during a lively but polite debate on Thursday, and aimed the most criticism at their rivals at the top of the ticket.

ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain is withdrawing staff and resources from Michigan in order to concentrate on other states where his prospects are stronger, a campaign aide said on Thursday.

ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - Equal rights for gay couples, a divisive issue in the 2004 U.S. presidential election, produced a rare moment of agreement in Thursday's vice presidential debate between Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Sarah Palin.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Joe Biden and Sarah Palin agreed that climate change is real, but differed on whether human activity was its root cause in Thursday's U.S. vice presidential debate.

ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - The $700 billion Wall Street bailout might force Democrat Barack Obama to reassess his promise to double foreign aid if elected president, his vice presidential running mate Sen. Joe Biden said on Thursday.

ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - Britain's U.S. ambassador, in a confidential report, mixed praise with criticism of Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama, calling him a highly intelligent quick learner who can seem aloof, a London newspaper reported on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A senior adviser to Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama praised U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates Thursday, saying he could be an even better Pentagon chief in an Obama administration.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Friday urged the House of Representatives to swiftly pass a $700 billion financial rescue package, saying it expects "much, if not all" of that amount to ultimately be recouped.

ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - The White House race turned back to the ailing economy on Friday, with Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain praising the vote in Congress to pass a Wall Street bailout but pushing for further action.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A majority of the House of Representatives on Friday has voted in favor of a $700 billion financial industry bailout bill.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House of Representatives on Friday began voting on final passage of a $700 billion Wall Street bailout bill.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House of Representatives on Friday passed a rule allowing debate and a final vote on a $700 billion Wall Street bailout bill.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. House Democratic leaders expressed optimism on Thursday that a revised $700 billion financial industry rescue bill passed by the Senate will clear the House of Representatives, which rejected the bailout earlier in the week and rocked financial markets worldwide.

ATLANTA (Reuters) - Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin can draw on a tradition of popular support for politicians who portray themselves as anti-elitist when she debates her Democratic rival Joe Biden on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The next U.S. president must revamp policy toward Pakistan, mixing deft diplomacy, security support and economic aid to help Islamabad defeat a grave threat from extremists, an experts' report said on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A controversial bill to provide $700 billion to help bail out Wall Street will be sent to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives on Friday for debate and a vote, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. House of Representatives Whip James Clyburn on Thursday said he "feels good" about prospects for passing a financial industry bailout bill, saying that "Democratic support is up" since Monday's failed attempt at passage of a previous bill.