Congress

Distancing himself from Republicans on housing issues, President Obama pitched a $5-billion to $10-billion plan to help a key segment of struggling homeowners — those still making monthly payments, but on underwater mortgages. Obama proposed Wednesday to help about 3.5 million people with good credit who are unable to refinance at historically low rates because their homes are worth less than their mortgages. He argued that those homeowners — and the country — couldn't afford to let the housing market bottom out, as many Republicans, including presidential candidate Mitt Romney, have advocated.

Although Mitt Romney wants to focus on jobs and economic growth, the House GOP leadership seems determined to make the coming election a referendum on the federal budget. That's a debate at least some Democrats believe is a winner for them as well: It's an opportunity to talk about Republicans' unwillingness to raise taxes on "millionaires and billionaires." It's also a chance to try to define the Republicans' approach in a newly unflattering way: "austerity." A good example comes from Rep.

First of three parts Tiffany Lee wanted a car. She was weary of the two-hour bus ride to her job at a UCLA Health System clinic. She hated having to ask friends to drive her 7-year-old son to his asthma treatments. But as a single mother with three children, bad credit and a $27,000-a-year salary, she couldn't find a bank or dealership willing to give her a loan. Then a friend steered her to Repossess Auto Sales in Hawthorne. Another buyer might have balked at the deal she was offered.

WASHINGTON -- If it sounds like the debates in Congress have devolved to that of teenagers, it's because they have. The level of discourse in the House and Senate has dropped a full grade level -- to the equivalent of a sophomore in high school, according to a new study. Call this the dumbing down of Congress in a partisan age. Or a shift to plain-spoken populism ignited by the new class of tea party Republicans. But what has become clear in the new research is that the soaring oratory that once filled the floors of the House and Senate with million-dollar diction and sophisticated syntax is making way for a more modest approach.

RENO -- Although the announcement on same-sex marriage became the focus the week after President Obama officially kicked off his reelection campaign, his trip to Nevada was a reminder of the pocketbook issues that are more likely to swing voter attitudes.  And so Obama visited with a middle-class family in one of the battlegrounds that will determine his fate to highlight what his administration sees as a success in its attempts to subdue a...

Want to fool merchants with a fake ID? Hack someone's text messages? Or how about tracking where your co-workers are, without their knowing it? There's an app for that. The explosion in smartphone and tablet applications that enable people to check the weather, follow their stocks and play Words With Friends has a dark side: apps that facilitate questionable if not outright illegal behavior. Apple's App Store, for example, offers Drivers License software that promises "unlimited access to realistic-looking licenses" for all 50 states.

Most voters have by now received their sample ballots, and those who plan to vote by mail are sending in their applications. The June 5 election is underway right now. It is noteworthy for several reasons. Los Angeles County voters will be selecting a new district attorney, and this is the first time since 1964 that there is no incumbent trying to hold onto the seat. The field is wide open. To win outright in this nonpartisan race, a candidate must get more than 50% of the vote.

Start-up companies generally get their money from two sources: professional venture investors and, a few years down the road, stock market investors. What's the difference? Here's how one of the smartest high-tech entrepreneurs I know puts it: "Venture money is expensive money, but it's smart money. Stock market money is cheap money, but it's dumb money. " Facebook is about to cannonball itself into a vast pool of dumb money. The big social media company is expected to announce its initial public offering as soon as Wednesday.

Like many other spouses of undocumented immigrants, Gina Pope constantly worries that her husband suddenly could be deported and that she would be left to raise their two children by herself. Pope, a U.S. citizen, wants to apply for him to get a green card but knows that would mean his traveling to his native Peru, with the risk of not returning for months or years. Now, after more than a decade of waiting for the immigration rules to change, Pope is cautiously optimistic that her husband, who owns a residential construction business and has a temporary work permit, may finally be able to become a legal resident.

Acting with minutes to spare, President Obama approved a four-year extension of expiring provisions of the Patriot Act, after Congress overcame mounting opposition from both parties to narrowly avoid a lapse in the terrorist surveillance law. Obama, attending an international summit in France, awoke early Friday to review and approve the bill, directing that it be signed in Washington by automatic pen before the provisions expired at midnight Thursday...

Re "Alternative presidential bid falters," May 16 It always seemed quixotic to launch a grass-roots movement from the top. In the unlikely scenario that a candidate was elected president, what sort of clout would she or he have in a Congress that lacked even a single supporter? By contrast, consider the "tea party. " Whether or not you agree with its agenda, it is undeniable that the dozens of representatives it helped elect have made their presence felt. Americans Elect should endorse candidates already running for Congress - whether Democratic or Republican - who meet its criteria, and put up candidates of its own in districts where none do. H.A. Drake Santa Barbara ALSO: Letters: Eugenics in America's past Letters: The media and Mitt Romney Letters: California courts feel the cuts

WASHINGTON - Aiming squarely at GOP critics of Wall Street reform, President Obama said Saturday that investment bank JPMorgan's stunning $2-billion loss serves as a reminder of the importance of Washington's role in preventing another financial crisis. The 2010 financial overhaul law counts among Obama's signature legislative achievements, but it continues to come under attack by Republicans in Congress and on the campaign trail, including likely presidential nominee Mitt Romney, as an example of government overreach.

WASHINGTON — As President Obama welcomed congressional leaders for a White House chat over hoagies about setting aside differences to improve the economy, a far different scenario was unfolding at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue. Republicans in the House and Senate were conducting a series of partisan maneuvers Wednesday on legislation that has no chance of reaching the president's desk. The votes in the Senate on budget measures, which would slash social programs and revamp Medicare, were designed to underscore the GOP's alternatives to Obama's policies in advance of the November election.

WASHINGTON - Overcoming objections from conservatives, Congress gave final approval to legislation to reauthorize the nation's Export-Import Bank, sending to President Obama a key legislative priority for the business community. The Senate passed the measure 78 to 20 after turning back several proposed GOP amendments to do away with the bank or scale back its lending authority. Conservatives in the House and Senate have fought the bank as a form of corporate welfare. The bank subsidizes the sale of U.S. exports, which critics said props up some companies and harms others through unfair competition.

President Obama did the right thing last week by (finally) coming out in favor of marriage equality for all people. Gays and lesbians should have the same rights as heterosexuals to marry, and the president's explicit support should further that goal. But if the Supreme Court forces that change on the American people (through litigation over California's Proposition 8 or other cases), the probable backlash would be substantial and might well do more damage than good to the future of gay rights and other important causes.

RENO -- Although the announcement on same-sex marriage became the focus the week after President Obama officially kicked off his reelection campaign, his trip to Nevada was a reminder of the pocketbook issues that are more likely to swing voter attitudes.  And so Obama visited with a middle-class family in one of the battlegrounds that will determine his fate to highlight what his administration sees as a success in its attempts to subdue a...

Despite entrenched opposition in Congress to immigration reform, President Obama in the State of the Union speech asked both chambers to resurrect the Dream Act, a bill that would create a path to citizenship for young illegal immigrants who are college students and military service members. He also encouraged lawmakers to increase the number of visas for highly skilled immigrants, many of whom complete graduate degrees in the U.S. but are not authorized to work here. The U.S. currently awards about 140,000 highly skilled visas per year.

Did President Obama break the law when he ordered U.S. planes to bomb Moammar Kadafi's forces in Libya? Some critics think so. But as with all discussions of the wartime powers of Congress and the president, the law is less clear than partisans would like to admit. The principal legal argument against Obama is that he should have obtained a declaration of war or its equivalent from Congress. But even some critics of presidential power acknowledge that a president must have the flexibility to respond to emergencies.