Barack Obama

Democratic strategist Jimmy Williams joins NewsNation to discuss concerns by some Democrats that President Barack Obama may have acted too negatively too soon.

The businessman and reality show star is still stirring up controversy, insisting that he’s just sure if President Barack Obama was born in America. The Obama campaign has released an ad calling on Mitt Romney to repudiate Trump’s remarks.

On Tuesday President Barack Obama awarded the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Medal of Freedom, to a new group of recipients that included Bob Dylan.  NBC’s Brian Williams reports.

WASHINGTON President Barack Obama called Mitt Romney to congratulate him on winning the Republican nomination on Wednesday, just as the Democrat's campaign opened a new critique of Romney by focusing attention on his economic record as governor of Massachusetts.The president told Romney 'he looked forward to an important and healthy debate about America's future,' Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt said. Romney's campaign said the call was 'brief and cordial.' Both men wished each other's families well during the upcoming race.Romney's primary win in Texas on Tuesday pushed him past the 1,144-delegate threshold he needed to claim the nomination.Obama took the formal step of congratulating his opponent even as his team looked to shift to the Massachusetts story under Romney. Romney's campaign, meanwhile, was bringing attention to failed stimulus projects under Obama and federal money given to green energy companies like Solyndra, a solar firm that received hundreds of millions of dollars from the government only to go bankrupt.The competing attack-lines came as Romney pivoted from a long primary slog to the Republican nomination and a new summertime window to sway voters who have not yet fully tuned into the presidential campaign. Romney hopes to present himself as a worthy replacement for Obama who can help revitalize a slow-moving economy, the most important issue for voters.The country is 'just beginning a general election, we've gone through a primary ... not a lot of people focus time on the characteristics of a new candidate like myself, and people will get to know me better. My guess is they're going to get to know more about me than they'd like to by the time we're finished,' Romney said in an interview on Fox News that aired Wednesday but was taped over the weekend.For months, Obama and his allies have signaled plans to target Romney's Massachusetts record, with advisers

Democratic strategist Jimmy Williams joins NewsNation to discuss concerns by some Democrats that President Barack Obama may have acted too negatively too soon.

Donald Trump reveals Barack Obama's birthplace, and Mitt Romney must win over America's Sasquatch hunters and alien abductees.

-- Donald Trump may have briefly sidetracked Mitt Romney's campaign message in Las Vegas with his renewed 'birther' talk, but it isn't the first time an opinionated supporter has put a candidate in an awkward position.In 2008, candidate Barack Obama had to distance himself from his former longtime pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, following the Chicago clergyman's incendiary rhetoric and contentious public appearances. Obama also faced questions about his relationships with 1960s radical Bill Ayers and convicted Chicago businessman Antoin 'Tony' Rezko.John McCain had pastor troubles, too. The 2008 GOP nominee secured primary endorsements from pastors John Hagee of Texas and Rod Parsley of Ohio, but later disavowed them because of their controversial sermons.McCain also was partly upstaged by his lightly vetted running mate, then-Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.Earlier this month, Newark, N.J., Mayor Cory Booker put Obama in a tough spot when he described as 'nauseating' Obama campaign attack ads against Bain Capital, the private equity firm co-founded by Romney. Booker subsequently backed off.Trump hasn't backtracked from his suggestion that Obama wasn't born in the United States despite solid evidence that he was. He discussed it anew in TV interviews as Romney savored the Texas primary victory that put him over the top.Romney doesn't subscribe to Trump's claims, his aides say, but he hasn't taken a public stance on them or spurned the real-estate mogul's fundraising help.Another ex-rival, Newt Gingrich, has also endorsed Romney. But, like Trump, the former House speaker isn't known for an eagerness to share the spotlight.Obama on Wednesday signed a bill reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank, a measure he said would help American businesses create jobs.Romney was continuing his push to raise money with fundraisers in wealthy California enclaves. This time, Trump won't be along.__A picture

In the tug-of-war for women's votes, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney appears to be gaining some ground. A new ABC News/Washington Post poll, conducted from May 23-27, shows female voters' support for Romney spiking a full 13 points this week, from 27 to 40 percent. President Barack Obama's favorability ratings fell from 58 to 51 percent in the same poll, further narrowing the gender gap between him and the GOP hopeful.Most of Romney's gains, the poll finds, are among unmarried women -- a bloc of voters who have overwhelmingly registered their disapproval of Romney in polls conducted throughout the past several months.'Whatever variations cropped up in this holiday weekend poll, the fact is that Mitt Romney has the lowest favorable rating of any candidate of either party at this point in the race, according to ABC's own polling,' said a spokesperson for the Obama campaign.The gender gap was a major factor in propelling Obama to victory over Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in 2008, and both Romney and Obama have made very clear efforts over the past couple months to secure the women's vote for 2012. The Obama campaign rolled out the 'Life of Julia' online tool, which walks users through an average woman's life and points out the various ways Obama's policies would benefit her more at every age than those supported by Romney.Obama's team has slammed Romney on his desire to 'get rid of' funding for Planned Parenthood and his failure to answer a question about whether he would have signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.Romney, meanwhile, has deployed his wife to court female voters and report back on what issues they care about. His campaign has also organized 'Women for Romney' grassroots groups in several battleground states and started planning more events aimed at women, all the while arguing that female voters care more about the economy than they do about social issues lik

Fuente: NotimexWashington.- Grupos conservadores planean gastar mil millones de d lares en anuncios pol ticos a fin de derrotar al presidente Barack Obama y a los dem cratas en las elecciones de noviembre, revel la publicaci n Pol tico.Las organizaciones incluyen a American Crossroads, encabezada por Karl Rove, el llamado arquitecto de la presidencia de George W. Bush, as como al presidente de la C mara de Comercio de Estados Unidos (USCC), Tom Donohue, y a los millonarios hermanos Koch. Los mil millones de d lares superan los 750 millones de d lares que Barack Obama, uno de los m s prol ficos recaudadores de fondos de la historia, recolect para su campa a presidencial de 2008 , se al la publicaci n pol tica.En comparaci n, el ex candidato presidencial John McCain recaud 370 millones de d lares en el pasado ciclo electoral.Entre los planes de gasto que los grupos conservadores planean usar para recuperar la Casa Blanca y desbancar a los dem cratas del Control del Senado, figura un gasto de 400 millones de d lares en operaciones condado por condado en todo el pa s.El in dito nivel de gasto por los llamados S per Comit s de Acci n Pol tica (S per PAC s) es posible gracias a la decisi n de la Suprema Corte de Justicia de 2010 de permitir un uso ilimitado de propaganda por parte de empresas y sindicatos.La resoluci n del m ximo tribunal provino del caso del grupo Citizens United, debido a que la Comisi n Federal Electoral (FEC) prohibi divulgar un documental contra Hillary Clinton en el ciclo electoral 2008.Bajo las leyes actuales, una persona s lo puede aportar dos mil 500 d lares para las elecciones primarias y/o dos mil 500 d lares para la elecci n general, es decir que las contribuciones personales a candidatos no pueden exceder los cinco mil d lares en 2012.La ley permite a los estadunidenses aportar 30 mil d lares extras a los partidos pol ticos nacionales.Adem s cada persona puede contribuir con cinco mil d lares a los llamados Comit s de Acci n Pol tica

DONALD TRUMP'S CREATIVE TRUTH & MITT ROMNEY'S POLL NUMBERSDonald Trump reveals Barack Obama's birthplace, and Mitt Romney must win over America's sasquatch hunters and alien abductees.

FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate spoke to reporters after he briefed President Barack Obama on the upcoming hurricane forecast. Hurricane season officially begins on June 1. (May 30)

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama has signed legislation that renews the charter of the Export-Import Bank for three years and increases the bank s lending cap to $140 billion from the current $100 billion. The bank is the government s vehicle for promoting U.S. export sales.Obama says the move will help thousands of businesses sell their products and services overseas and help them create jobs at home. The president says the independent federal agency is a key factor toward reaching his goal of doubling exports over five years.Lawmakers passed the legislation earlier this month amid resistance from conservatives who argued that the bank distorts the market. The bank had support from numerous business groups. Last year it provided about $32 billion in loans, loan guarantees and credit financing, helping support 290,000 jobs.THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama is set to sign the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank, the government's vehicle for promoting U.S. export sales.The bank survived a challenge earlier this month from conservatives in Congress who said it is market-distorting and should be abolished. Without congressional action, the bank's charter would have expired at the end of May.Obama backed the bank's renewal, saying it plays an important role in helping U.S. businesses create American jobs and sell their products around the world. The White House says the bank supports thousands of U.S. companies.Obama will sign the reauthorization bill at the White House Wednesday morning.Also on HuffPost: