WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Congress will likely act to extend tax cuts for the middle class to avoid choking off the fragile economic recovery, key congressional Democrats said on Tuesday.

House Democratic Leader Steny Hoyer said he expected the House of Representatives to push to extend middle class tax cuts before they expire at year end, but suggested cutting taxes for the wealthy is less urgent.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama is facing the stiffest political headwinds he has experienced since taking office 18 months ago as Americans sour on his handling of the U.S. economy.

Two opinion polls published on Tuesday painted a grim picture as the U.S. economy emerges from the financial crisis and its worst downturn since the 1930s.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Congress will likely act to extend tax cuts for the middle class to avoid choking off the fragile economic recovery, key congressional Democrats said on Tuesday.

House Democratic Leader Steny Hoyer said he expected the House of Representatives to push to extend middle class tax cuts before they expire at year end, but suggested cutting taxes for the wealthy is less urgent.

A little matter of math is hanging over Democrats these days, in the four-month sprint that could determine control of Congress.

The stark admission by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs today -- that there is 'no doubt' that enough seats are in play to cost Democrats the House -- reflects a reality that will color the national political scene over the next four months.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Some business groups, upset about budget and regulatory policies they say are costing jobs, are accusing President Barack Obama of pursuing an agenda that is hurting the U.S. economic recovery.

The criticism comes amid a tepid pace of private-sector job creation and the White House is responding by saying a lack of regulations triggered the economic crisis and that a balance is needed to protect Americans.

BOSTON – The heads of President Barack Obama's national debt commission painted a gloomy picture Sunday as the United States struggles to get its spending under control.

Republican Alan Simpson and Democrat Erskine Bowles told a meeting of the National Governors Association that everything needs to be considered — including curtailing popular tax breaks, such as the home mortgage deduction, and instituting a financial trigger mechanism for gaining Medicare coverage.

LAS VEGAS, Nevada (AFP) – US President Barack Obama said Friday his policies had pulled America out of the most vicious economic dive since the 1930s, setting battle lines for mid-term elections in November.

Obama put the Republicans on notice he will vigorously defend his record, despite the fact many Americans do not yet feel the recovery he is touting, while economic data hints that the rebound may be slowing.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Republicans should not use problems at mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as an excuse to vote against sweeping changes to the rules of Wall Street, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said on Sunday.

"We are going to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac," Gibbs said on NBC's Meet the Press.

NEW ORLEANS – Oil was spewing largely unchecked into the Gulf of Mexico as BP crews claimed progress Sunday in the first stages of replacing a leaky cap with a new containment system they hope will finally catch all the crude from the busted well.

There's no guarantee for such a delicate operation nearly a mile below the water's surface, officials said, and the permanent fix of plugging the well from the bottom remains slated for mid-August.

WASHINGTON – A senior adviser to President Barack Obama says the administration is confident that BP's latest effort to contain the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico will work.

At the same time, Obama adviser David Axelrod acknowledges that BP's engineers are in 'uncharted waters' when it comes to dealing with the leak.