CONGRESS

China has given a go-ahead for its first major tender of oil and gas blocks in the South China Sea, close on the heels of Beijing establishing a military garrison on a disputed island in the waters.

The U.S. Postal Service went broke on Wednesday, for the first time defaulting on a payment due to the U.S. Treasury to finance postal pensioners' future health care costs.

Disclosure of another lavish party thrown by the U.S. government's buildings and procurement agency prompted fresh attacks on Thursday from Republican lawmakers on wasteful Washington spending under President Barack Obama.

Celebrated author, playwright, politician and commentator Gore Vidal breathed his last Tuesday and left behind a repository of published works and remarks that were famous for their unconventional wit and wisdom.

The jobless rate in the U.S. has stubbornly remained above 8 percent for more than three years, and the labor market likely saw little improvement in July, economists say in anticipation of the July nonfarm payrolls report due Friday.

Congress prepared its own sanctions against Tehran as well, and both the House and Senate will vote on the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act on Wednesday.

Democrats and Republicans in Congress reached a deal on Tuesday to fund federal government activities through next March and eliminate any threat of agency shutdowns that could upset voters ahead of the November 6 presidential and congressional elections.

India is still a Third World country and needs to spend mightily on infrastructure to become the superpower it aspires to.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is attending the South American trading bloc Mercosur summit in Brazil, where his country has been inducted as an official member of the group after a six-year wait. But not every Venezuelan is pleased

The U.S. Postal Service affirmed Tuesday that it will not make a required $5.5 billion payment due Wednesday to the U.S. Treasury for future retirees' health care costs, according to a published report.

It looks like Apple isn?t the only company rolling out Retina display. Court documents made public in the Apple vs. Samsung trial reveal that the Korea-based company is working on a tablet of its very own that incorporates this display technology.

An independent U.S. government auditor gives a dismal assessment of American efforts at infrastructure building in Afghanistan.

Support for same-sex marriage is poised to become an official part of the Democratic Party's platform, according to a report in the Washington Post.

The Indian activist Anna Hazare began his fifth hunger strike in 16 months on Sunday to pressurize the government to set up an anti-graft agency and tougher laws to abate the unbridled corruption in India.

If every American were legally required to show up at the ballot box, perhaps political candidates could pursue their campaigns differently.

If gun control is truly the issue that sealed Bloomberg’s endorsement, how could he have not gone with Elizabeth Warren?

Ethnic violence in India's northeastern state of Assam, which has left 58 dead and 200,000 displaced so far, was a tragedy waiting to happen, affected by the influx of immigrants who mostly came from the former East Pakistan before it became Bangladesh in 1971.

De Klerk reserved particular venom for current ANC leader, President Jacob Zuma, who spoke of the “white control” of South Africa’s economy during a June policy speech.

Du Toit will be sentenced at a later date.

China's biggest political scandal in recent years is raising eyebrows again, after months of quiet and guesswork -- and may usher in a major political development

India's much-awaited "second wave" of reforms is likely to be delayed due to the dilly-dallying monsoon. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who doubles as the finance minister, is expected to hold the crucial policy decisions on allowing the FDI in retail sector and hike in diesel prices until at least the second week of September, Reuters has reported quoting official sources.