Flap over Quran burning an unwelcome distraction from Obama's efforts to keep focus on economy. First came the outrage over plans for a mosque near ground zero. Now there's anger over a Florida church's plan to burn copies of the Quran.

Obama: Emanuel to decide on Chicago mayoral bid after Nov. elections, would be 'terrific'. President Barack Obama says his chief of staff would make a "terrific mayor" of Chicago. But Obama says he expects Rahm Emanuel to hold off on deciding whether to enter the race until after the midterm elections.

Obama calls Florida minister's Quran-burning plan a 'stunt'; Tells him to call it off. President Barack Obama is exhorting a Florida minister to "listen to those better angels" and call off his plan to engage in a Quran-burning protest this weekend.

Number of people killed on roadways falls to lowest level in 6 decades. The number of people dying on the nation's roads has fallen to its lowest level in six decades, helped by a combination of seat belts, safer cars and tougher enforcement of drunken driving laws.

Obama calls Florida minister's Quran-burning plan a 'stunt'; Tells him to call it off. President Barack Obama is exhorting a Florida minister to "listen to those better angels" and call off his plan to engage in a Quran-burning protest this weekend.

PROMISES, PROMISES: Despite vows of swift action, pilot fatigue rules are slow in coming. After a regional airliner crashed in western New York a year and a half ago, killing 50 people, the Obama administration promised swift action to prevent similar tragedies. High on the list: new rules governing the number of hours pilots may work, to prevent tired flight crews from making fatal errors.

Obama meets with senior advisers, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Thursday. President Barack Obama has a day of meetings on his schedule Thursday.

The nation's health care tab will go up ? not down ? as a result of President Barack Obama's sweeping overhaul. That's the conclusion of a government forecast released Thursday, which also finds the increase will be modest.

Number of people killed on roadways falls to lowest level in 6 decades. The government says the number of people dying on the nation's roads has reached its lowest level in six decades.

Police accuse aide to Sen. Barbara Boxer of carrying marijuana into Senate office building. An aide to Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer has been arrested on charges that he brought marijuana into a Senate office building.

Pakistan official says TV host Glenn Beck should renounce Quran burning, show US is tolerant. Pakistan's ambassador to the United States is calling on conservative radio and television host Glenn Beck to denounce the planned burning of the Quran to show that Americans are tolerant of other faiths.

State Department tells US embassies to brace for protests over Quran burnings. The State Department has ordered U.S. embassies around the world to assess their security ahead of a Florida church group's planned weekend burning of the Muslim holy book amid fears it could spark anti-American violence.

Clinton, Gates denounce planned Quran burning, warn of risks to Americans. The top two national security advisers in President Barack Obama's Cabinet on Wednesday denounced plans by a small church in Florida to burn the Muslim holy book to commemorate the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, saying it would inflame tensions and put Americans abroad at risk.

AP Interview: Pakistani official says flooding stretches military, will hurt anti-terror fight. Massive flooding that has submerged vast swaths of Pakistan has stretched thin the Pakistani military and will hamper its fight against terrorists, the country's ambassador to the U.S. said Wednesday.

Federal agency tells lawmakers it will increase staffing at off-road races on federal lands. The agency charged with monitoring off-road racing on federal lands is promising to increase staffing and crack down on violations of racing permits.

Clinton, Gates denounce planned Quran burning, warn of risks to Americans. The top two national security advisers in President Barack Obama's Cabinet on Wednesday denounced plans by a small church in Florida to burn the Muslim holy book to commemorate the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, saying it would inflame tensions and put Americans abroad at risk.

Clinton says Mexican drug cartels look more like the insurgency seen in Columbia 20 years ago. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says drug cartels in Mexico and Central America are looking more like insurgencies, and the threat they pose is growing.

Correction: Oval Office Rug story. In a story Sept. 7 about the new rug in the Oval Office, The Associated Press erroneously reported the first name of a 19th-century abolitionist who inspired the late civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. The individual is Theodore Parker, not Thomas Parker.

The Obama administration is asking a U.S. appeals court to lift an order blocking federal funding for some stem cell research, a day after being turned down by the judge who issued the order.

Justice Department asks appeals court for stay on judge's stem cell research order. The Obama administration is asking a federal appeals court to lift an order blocking federal funding for some stem cell research, a day after being turned down by the judge who issued the order.

The Obama administration is asking a federal appeals court to lift an order blocking federal funding for some stem cell research, a day after being turned down by the judge who issued the order.

US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,418 Wednesday, according to Associated Press count. As of Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2010, at least 4,418 members of the U.S. military had died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

Product recalls: spotlights, toy vegetables, wading staffs. The following recalls have been announced:

Obama administration to hire more inspectors, increase enforcement at drilling agency. The Obama administration said Wednesday it will spend $29 million to increase the number and training of offshore drilling inspectors, upgrade enforcement and take others steps to improve the beleaguered agency that oversees offshore drilling.

Consumer borrowing falls again in July as credit card use falls for 23rd straight month. Consumer borrowing fell again in July as households cut back on their credit card use for a 23rd consecutive month, adding more drag on an economy struggling to mount a sustained rebound.

Military bases ban sale of video game that lets player 'shoot' US troops. Military bases across the U.S. have banned the sale of a new video game that lets a player pretend to be a Taliban fighter and "shoot" U.S. troops.

AP Exclusive: Owner of peanut company linked to 9 salmonella deaths is back in business. The peanut industry executive whose filthy processing plants were blamed in a salmonella outbreak two years ago that killed nine people and sickened hundreds more is back in the business.

Odd hump found on back of meat-eating 20-foot-long dinosaur from Spain with birdlike features. The weird world of dinosaurs has just gotten a tad more bizarre. Scientists found a nearly complete fossil of a new dinosaur that sports a noticeable hump, maybe as possible advertising.

Fed survey: More parts of country report slower growth as economy loses momentum. More regions of the country reported slower growth as the U.S. economy lost momentum in the late summer.

Gibbs says Emanuel will take time to weigh plans on Chicago mayoral race; Focus on White House. White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs says that being mayor of Chicago isn't something that rolls around often and he's sure chief of staff Rahm Emanuel will take some time to weigh his options.

US expands military training in Yemen, reflecting a broader counterterror program. Seldom visible in the Yemeni mountains, the elite U.S. commandos training the Yemen's military represent the Obama administration's quest to fight terrorism without inflaming anti-American sentiment.

Somali man pleads guilty in DC to piracy conspiracy charges in attack on Danish ship. An accused Somali pirate has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy from a November 2008 attack in the Gulf of Aden on a Danish ship carrying cargo from a U.S. company.

Odd hump found on back of meat-eating 20-foot-long dinosaur from Spain with bird like features. Scientists have found a nearly complete fossil of a new dinosaur that sports a noticeable hump, which it may have used to draw attention to itself.

Clinton says 'outrageous' plans by Florida church to burn Quran does not represent America. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday that plans by a small church in Florida to burn the Muslim holy book are "outrageous" and "aberrational" and do not represent America.

Gates adds voice to those condemning planned Quran burning as a risk to US troops. Defense Secretary Robert Gates is adding his voice to those of top U.S. generals and others who say that a Florida church's plan to burn the Quran could endanger U.S. forces in the field.

Gates says any Russian cheating on nuclear arms treaty would have political ramifications. Defense Secretary Robert Gates assured lawmakers Wednesday he expects Russia to abide by a new nuclear arms treaty, but that even if Moscow cheats it won't gain any military advantage.

Clinton's message to whoever is in charge in NK: give up nuke ambitions. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the U.S. message to North Korea is the same, whoever leads the country: Give up your nuclear ambitions.

PROMISES, PROMISES: For blacks, Coast Guard Academy numbers lag despite decades of effort. At his inaugural parade a half-century ago, President John F. Kennedy watched the U.S. Coast Guard Academy's marching unit pass him on Pennsylvania Avenue and declared it unacceptable. Not one cadet was black, he told an aide, and something ought be done about it.

A look at potential increases if Congress lets Bush administration tax cuts expire.

Child car booster seats show improvement, insurance industry finds. Car booster seats have made strides in ensuring a proper fit for children in the back seat, according to a review by the insurance industry, though just over 10 percent of those evaluated weren't recommended.

BP Investigator: Sequence of 8 events together caused largest offshore oil spill. The lead BP PLC investigator is saying that eight separate failures had to occur for the company's deepwater well to unleash the largest offshore oil spill in history.

After years of war, Clinton says US must seize an `American Moment' to exercise leadership. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton asserted Wednesday that the Obama administration's approach to foreign policy is beginning to pay important dividends.

Countering Obama, House GOP Leader Boehner proposes spending freeze, keeping tax rates intact. House Republican Leader John Boehner onWednesday proposed a two-year freeze on all tax rates and a cut in government spending to the levels of 2008, before a deep recession took hold of the economy.

Looking to show action on economy, Obama to promote trio of proposals for growth Wednesday. President Barack Obama is pitching a trio of economic proposals Wednesday in an effort to show the public he's taking action to spur economic growth.

List of child booster seats evaluated by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The list of booster seats reviewed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The insurance industry group gave its top marks to 21 of 72 booster seats it evaluated for properly restraining children, or about 30 percent, according to results released on Wednesday. The seats were evaluated based on how well the booster seat position children to fit in their seat belts in the back seat.

AP sources: Fire aboard UPS plane that crashed in Dubai may have started in cargo compartment. The fire that broke out in a UPS plane that crashed last week in Dubai, killing both pilots, appears to have begun in a cargo compartment, according to people familiar with the accident investigation.

Clinton condemns Fla. pastor's plan to burn Quran a 'disrespectful, disgraceful act'. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday called a Florida church's threat to burn copies of the Muslim holy book to mark the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks a "disrespectful, disgraceful act."

Clinton condemns Fla. pastor's plan to burn Quran a 'disrespectful, disgraceful act'. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday called a Florida church's threat to burn copies of the Muslim holy book to mark the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks a "disrespectful, disgraceful act."

Two months before election, Obama proposing new business tax cuts, some previous GOP ideas. President Barack Obama's proposed tax breaks for business sound like ideas that have enjoyed broad Republican backing in the past. But in today's toxic political atmosphere, he's unlikely to get much ? if any ? GOP help.

NATO Secretary-General says Afghan troops likely to take control next year. U.S.-led NATO troops in Afghanistan should be able to start handing off responsibility for security to the Kabul government sometime next year, Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Tuesday.