Nearly four years after Barack Obama was elected to the most powerful office in the most powerful country in the world, the question remains: Who is he? Long before Mitt Romney became the millionaire candidate from Massachusetts, he was his father'...

Editor's note: Part of a series of profiles of the major figures in this year's presidential race. Long before Mitt Romney became the millionaire candidate from Massachusetts, he was his father's son, weeding the garden in the upscale suburb of Detr...

Editor's note: Part of a series of profiles of the major figures in this year's presidential race. After Joe Biden tripped up his boss by voicing support for same-sex marriage while the president remained on the fence, speculation was rampant about ...

Since his youth, Paul Ryan has shown a knack for eliciting mixed feelings. Classmates at Joseph A. Craig High School in Janesville, Wis., bestowed on him the dubious title of “Biggest Brown-Noser.” They also elected him class president and anointed ...

Daniel Ray Carter Jr. logged on to Facebook and did what millions do each day: He “liked” a page by clicking the site’s thumbs up icon. The problem was that the page was for a candidate who was challenging his boss, the sheriff of Hampton, Va. That ...

A big part of the Cubs' future arrived, quite literally and figuratively, Sunday in Los Angeles. Brett Jackson and Josh Vitters made their much-awaited major-league debuts in the Cubs' 7-6 loss to the Dodgers. Jackson went 2-for-4 with a walk, a st...

WASHINGTON — A trio of female firsts and three former GOP presidential contenders are among the first speakers disclosed for the Republican National Convention at the end of the month in Tampa, Fla. The convention schedule is packed with high-profil...

LOS ANGELES — Gore Vidal, the author, playwright, politician and commentator whose novels, essays, plays and opinions were stamped by his immodest wit and unconventional wisdom, died Tuesday at age 86, his nephew said. Vidal died at his home in the ...