Ken Thomas, The Associated Press

  • Syrian firefighters try put out a fire in a building that was hit by reported Russian airstrikes in the rebel-hold town of Jadraya, about 35 kilometers southwest of the city of Idlib, on Sept. 4, 2018. (Omar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty Images)
    White House warns Syria against chemical weapons use

    The White House warned Syria's President Bashar Assad on Tuesday that if he chooses to use chemical weapons the U.S. and its allies "will respond swiftly and appropriately" pushing back against an expected Syrian government offensive against an opposition stronghold.

  • President Donald Trump meets with members of Congress on immigration in the Cabinet Room of the White House, June 20, 2018, in Washington, D.C. The White House is expected to announce a proposed merger between the departments of Education and Labor on Thursday. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
    White House to propose merging Education and Labor departments

    The Trump administration is planning to propose merging the education and labor departments as part of a broader overhaul to be announced on Thursday that would make good on President Donald Trump’s pledges to streamline the federal government.

  • In this May 9, 2018, file photo provided by the North Korean government, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a meeting at Workers' Party of Korea headquarters in Pyongyang, North Korea. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
    Pompeo: US will need to give Kim Jong Un security assurances

    Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday that the United States will need to “provide security assurances” to North Korea’s Kim Jong Un if the adversaries are to reach a nuclear deal, describing the stakes of President Donald Trump’s upcoming summit with Kim.

  • In this July 29, 2014, file photo, then-House Veterans' Affairs Chairman Jeff Miller, R-Fla., speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington. The White House is considering a number of candidates to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs after White House physician Ronny Jackson withdrew his nomination for the post. White House aides were meeting May 2, 2018, with Miller. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)
    White House meets with VA candidates after Jackson withdraws

    The White House is considering a number of candidates to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs after White House physician Ronny Jackson withdrew his nomination for the post.

  • Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson, President Donald Trump's choice to be secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, leaves a Senate office building after meeting individually with some members of the committee that would vet him for the post, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, April 24, 2018. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)
    His nomination in peril, Jackson fights for VA post

    Veterans Affairs nominee Ronny Jackson fought Tuesday to convince lawmakers of his leadership abilities as more details emerged over his alleged misconduct, ranging from repeated drunkenness to a toxic work environment, as he served as a top White House doctor.

  • President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron shake hands during a joint news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, April 24, 2018. (Andrew Harnik/AP)
    Trump warns: Iran will pay if it restarts nuclear program

    Weighing U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear accord, President Donald Trump declared on Tuesday that if the Iranians “restart their nuclear program, they will have bigger problems than they’ve ever had before.”

  • U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks during a press conference at the Summit of the Americas in Lima, Peru, Saturday, April 14, 2018. (Karel Navarro/AP)
    In Peru for summit, Pence offers support for Syrian strike

    Thousands of miles from home, Vice President Mike Pence was thrust into a new, more immediate, role on the world stage Saturday: explaining President Donald Trump’s military strike in Syria to a summit of Latin America leaders.