WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday overwhelmingly voted to block the Bush administration from approving a Chinese company's attempt to acquire U.S. oil and gas producer Unocal Corp. UCL.N

AP - Legalizing more immigrants would help bolster the Social Security system, former President Bill Clinton told the nation's largest Hispanic-rights organization Friday.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's CNOOC Ltd. <0883.HK> said on Saturday its request to the U.S. government to review its plan to merge with oil and gas producer Unocal Corp. was voluntary and aimed at clearing up doubts about the deal.

washingtonpost.com - Democrats' hopes of blocking a staunchly conservative Supreme Court nominee on ideological grounds could be seriously undermined by the six-week-old bipartisan deal on judicial nominees, key senators said yesterday.

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya's investigation and prosecution of terrorism is inadequate and must be improved, the U.S. envoy to the east African country said on Monday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House will offer a fresh estimate of the 2005 budget deficit next week amid expectations from some private economists that the shortfall will be revised downward after hitting a record high last year.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A federal court judge on Wednesday extended for the fifth time an order barring a former investigator for the U.N. oil-for-food probe from turning over documents to U.S. congressional committees.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military on Thursday denied charges that health workers were broadly complicit in alleged abuse of terrorism suspects by the military in Cuba, Iraq and Afghanistan.

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Friday the U.S. budget deficit is shrinking faster than expected because of high tax revenues.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Senior U.S. officials said they had made progress in bilateral trade talks with Chinese counterparts in Beijing on Monday but called for greater market opening and follow-through on China's part.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Enron Corp agreed to put a $356.25 million price tag on government and employee claims against the fallen energy giant's retirement plans, the U.S. Labor Department said on Monday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top Democrats recommended to President Bush on Tuesday three Hispanic judges among potential Supreme Court nominees they view as able to win Senate confirmation without a partisan battle.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Thursday defeated efforts to spend an additional $1 billion to secure American mass transit systems, despite arguments that last week's London bombings underscored the need for the money.

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Rep. Randy 'Duke' Cunningham, a California Republican under federal investigation for his ties to a defense contractor, on Thursday said he would not seek re-election in 2006.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A small group of textile state lawmakers could reach a deal with the Bush administration as early as next week that would secure their vote for a free trade agreement with Central America, South Carolina Republican Rep. Bob Inglis said on Friday.

AP - Vice President Dick Cheney has a mild case of esophagitis and some small dilation of the arteries behind both knees, his office said Saturday after he completed a two-part annual physical.

AP - Journalist Robert Novak's status as a CNN contributor will remain unaffected during a federal probe into the revelation of a CIA officer's identity, executives at the news channel said Sunday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate overwhelmingly approved on Monday the nomination of Lester Crawford to be permanent commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, despite concerns over his handling of the agency as acting chief.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In picking John Roberts for the U.S. Supreme Court, President Bush turned to a solidly conservative Republican who was regarded as one of the top appellate lawyers to argue at the high court before he became a judge.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Wednesday approved a provision aimed at delaying foreign, government-owned companies from buying U.S. companies, a move directed at China's attempt to buy a U.S. oil company.

SPOKANE, Wash. (Reuters) - Retiring U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on Thursday said there was a new tendency in Congress to second-guess every decision by the high court and that has caused tension between the two branches of government.

AP - Sinclair Broadcasting did not violate federal election law by running portions of a documentary critical of John Kerry's Vietnam-era anti-war activities, the Federal Elections Commission announced Friday.

AP - President Bush is jeopardizing national security by not disciplining Karl Rove for his role in leaking the name of a CIA officer, and has hampered efforts to recruit informants in the war on terror, former U.S. intelligence officers say.

TOKYO (Reuters) - The United States told North Korea informally last month that it could consider setting up a liaison office in Pyongyang to normalize relations if North Korea abandoned its nuclear programs, Kyodo news agency quoted diplomatic sources in Beijing as saying on Monday.

AP - Vice President Dick Cheney urged the U.S. Senate on Monday to put partisan politicking aside as it considers whether to confirm Supreme Court nominee John Roberts.

AP - As a young Justice Department lawyer, John Roberts helped guide Supreme Court nominee Sandra Day O'Connor through the Senate confirmation process he now confronts as the choice to replace her.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives was set on Thursday to approve an energy bill packed with $14.5 billion in tax breaks and incentives and hailed by Republicans as a major change in U.S. energy policy.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Bush administration and Senate Democrats tangled on Thursday over whether U.N. ambassador nominee John Bolton told Congress the truth when he said he had not been involved in recent grand jury or government investigations.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate Democrats challenged the White House on Friday to provide documents stemming from U.S. Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' work as an attorney in the first Bush administration and lawmakers announced his confirmation hearings would begin on Sept. 6.

AP - John Roberts would replace the first woman on the Supreme Court at a time when interest groups are more focused than ever on the court's position on abortion. Only one female lawmaker will question Roberts publicly and then vote on whether his nomination should advance to the full Senate.