Search results for

Only 10 years ago, the French were derided in Washington political circles for their rejection of plans to invade Iraq. Now the so-called "cheese-eating surrender monkeys" are standing by the U.S. on Syria — while the country's closest European ally, Britain, has rejected military action.

Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., had sent a letter to President Obama urging him to seek congressional approval before any military action against Syria. Surprisingly, on Saturday, Obama agreed. Cole talks about what comes next.

Lawmakers from both parties in the House and Senate are praising President Obama for seeking their authorization for any military action in Syria. Still, Congress isn't even scheduled to return to Washington until Sept. 9. And how might they vote? It's "kind of a gamble" says NPR congressional reporter Ailsa Chang.

President Obama said Saturday he believes the United States should take military action against Syria, in response to last week's deadly chemical weapons attack. But in an about-face, Obama has decided to first seek a vote in Congress authorizing a military strike. It's a gamble. While approval from Congress would strengthen the president's hand, he could also suffer a stinging rebuke from lawmakers, much as British Prime Minister David Cameron did.

In his new book, The Woman Who Lost Her Soul, Bob Shacochis returns to Haiti, but also takes the reader across continents and generations. The 700-page book has been compared to the work of Joseph Conrad, Graham Greene and Norman Mailer.

This Labor Day weekend, more than 1,000 athletes have gathered in Washington, D.C., to play a street version of volleyball known as "9-man." The game became popular generations ago in Chinatowns across the U.S. and Canada. Only players of Asian descent are allowed to compete in the national tournament.

Measles was declared eliminated in the U.S. more than a decade ago, but the disease has cropped up again in communities with low vaccination rates. In North Texas, 21 people got the disease.

"I can share with you today that blood and hair samples that have come to us through an appropriate chain of custody from east Damascus, from first responders, it has tested positive for signatures of sarin," Secretary of State John Kerry told CNN on Sunday.

The plant that was badly damaged in the 2011 earthquake and tsunami was found to be leaking contaminated water last month.

Jiang Jeimin, who oversees China's state-run companies, is being investigated for a "serious violation of discipline."