Mitt Romney's campaign will allow its senior aides to speak at fundraising events for an outside political group raising millions of dollars on its behalf.

The chairman of the House Financial Services Committee says he's cooperating with an Office of Government Ethics investigation into his stock trades and expects to be exonerated.

Turkey's foreign minister says he will propose new ways to increase pressure on Syria when he meets Monday with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Ten states now have President Barack Obama's OK to scrap one of the most rigorous and unpopular mandates in American education - that all students measure up in reading and math by 2014. In exchange, the states had to promise they would raise standards and develop more creative ways to measure what students are learning.

President Barack Obama is making a strong election-year push for an economic revival "built on American manufacturing." But he faces an uphill slog, with little consensus even within his own party on how to do it.

Money pouring into the presidential election from super political action committees and nonprofit campaign groups appears so far to be strictly American in origin, donated by U.S. companies, unions and millionaires. But it's easier than ever to conceal the source of money and the identities of contributors, making conditions ripe for illegal donations from foreigners, overseas companies or governments attempting to help a favored candidate for the White House.

Money pouring into the presidential election from super political action committees appears so far to be strictly American, donated by U.S. companies, unions and millionaires. But U.S. officials and tax law experts warn the growth of super PACs has made conditions ripe for illegal foreign donations.

All of a sudden, abortion, contraception and gay marriage are at the center of American political discourse, with the struggling - though improving - economy pushed to the background.

New orders from the Pentagon: The military on Thursday formally opened thousands of jobs to women in units that are closer to the front lines than ever before, reflecting what's already been going on as female American soldiers fight and die next to their male comrades.

A political tip sheet for the rest of us outside the Washington Beltway, Thursday, Feb. 9:

State and federal regulators on Thursday announced a settlement worth at least $25 billion with Bank of America and four other large banks, ending several years of litigation over alleged foreclosure abuses. The deal offers some help to struggling homeowners, but experts view it more as a moral victory with limited impact on the broader housing market.

All the people outraged about the Mississippi bill to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America" have missed its satirical intent, the sponsor said Thursday.

A decade after the United States launched two wars that put women at the front lines of unconventional fighting, the Pentagon crept closer Thursday to formally allowing them to serve in combat by announcing an additional 14,000 combat-related jobs for female service members.

President Barack Obama told gay and lesbian supporters at a big-ticket fundraiser Thursday that there's more work to do to ensure fairness for all, but he said he "couldn't be prouder" of his track record for them.

Rushing to end a political uproar, President Barack Obama on Friday will announce that religious employers will not have to cover birth control for their employees after all, The Associated Press has learned. The administration instead will demand that insurance companies will be the ones directly responsible for providing free contraception.

Three of the four GOP presidential candidates are addressing a major conservative gathering in Washington, giving them a high-profile stage to reshape their messages at a moment of uncertainty in the contest.

A federal judge who was vilified by Republican presidential hopefuls for banning prayer at a Texas high school graduation delivered a scathing and unusually personal response Thursday, saying those who used the case to further political goals "should be ashamed."

FBI background interviews of some people who knew Apple co-founder Steve Jobs reveal a man driven by power and alienating some of the people who worked with him.

Mitt Romney is in danger of losing his fourth straight state in Saturday's caucuses in Maine, where he and his allies have been all but absent from TV.

Death row inmates are suing to stop the importation of a drug used in executions.

Vice President Joe Biden says he believes the Obama administration can address concerns raised by the Catholic church and religious groups about a new birth control policy that says church-affiliated employers must provide contraceptive coverage for their employees.

Eager for Europe to contain its economic troubles, President Barack Obama praised Italian Premier Mario Monti on Thursday for his efforts to lead Italy out of its fiscal quagmire. The president said Monti has boosted confidence in Italy throughout Europe and in the marketplace.

The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill Thursday to curb insider trading by members of Congress and the executive branch, but not without the usual political acrimony that's become a staple of Capitol Hill.

Vice President Joe Biden says he's convinced America is better positioned than other nations to continue to lead the world's economy - whether or not his boss is still in charge.