WASHINGTON – When the U.S. overthrew Saddam Hussein seven years ago, the Bush administration envisioned a liberated Iraq that was rich, stable, democratic and a shining example to the rest of the Arab world.

Now, with the end of U.S.-led combat operations in Iraq, the Obama administration is predicting more or less the same thing.

Both U.S. presidents pinned their hopes on Iraq's vast but underdeveloped oil resources, calculating that petroleum-fueled prosperity fed by a wave of foreign investment would give Iraqis the tools and motivation to build a modern, Western-oriented state.

WASHINGTON – Vice President Joe Biden says Republican assertions that small businesses would suffer if all of the expiring Bush tax cuts aren't extended are a 'bunch of malarkey.'

A series of sweeping tax cuts enacted under President George W. Bush are set to expire in January.

The Obama administration wants to renew only those tax breaks that affect middle-class and lower income taxpayers, those with incomes under $250,000. Republicans want the tax cuts extended for all wage-earners.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is working the phones to prod Israel and the Palestinians into direct peace talks.

The State Department said Friday that Clinton had called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the foreign ministers of Jordan and Egypt to discuss remaining obstacles to getting the talks under way.

Her calls late Thursday followed a visit to the region by U.S. Mideast peace envoy George Mitchell, who wanted to get direct negotiations started next month. The Obama administration remains hopeful that several months of indirect talks mediated by Mitchell can soon be parlayed into face-to-face discussions. But to date, the two sides have balked at direct talks for different reasons.

WASHINGTON – Government officials are defending the credibility of a new report that much of the oil spilled in the Gulf of Mexico is gone.

Nearly three-quarters of the oil has been collected, dispersed, evaporated or dissolved, according to a report by the Interior Department and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. President Barack Obama and other government officials hailed the news as an important, positive development.

Given earlier troubles with government estimates, NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco was asked Wednesday about the credibility of the numbers.

WASHINGTON – The Environmental Protection Agency says a new study shows that dispersants used to break up oil in the Gulf of Mexico are no more toxic to aquatic life than oil alone.

The EPA says the tests also show that when mixed with oil, the dispersant used in the Gulf, Corexit 9500A, is no more or less toxic than oil mixtures with available alternative chemicals.

The test results were released Monday as the Obama administration defends itself against assertions that officials allowed oil giant BP to use excessive amounts of chemical dispersants whose threat to sea life remains unknown. Congressional investigators say the Coast Guard routinely approved BP requests to use thousands of gallons of Corexit despite a federal directive to use the chemical sparingly.

WASHINGTON – Mexico's aviation safety rating was downgraded Friday due to concerns about the country's safety oversight, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The action won't stop flights between the two countries, but it will prevent Mexican airlines like AeroMexico from expanding service to the United States, FAA said..

Mexican airlines also will not be able to carry passengers to or from the United States in so-called code-sharing agreements with U.S. airlines. Code-sharing means one airline puts its code or symbol on another carrier's flight and sells the seats as if the plane were one of its own.

WASHINGTON – The White House says whether BP replaces its CEO is up to BP, but says the company can't change its responsibility to plug its oil well, clean up the damage in the Gulf of Mexico and compensate those who've suffered as a result.

Spokesman Robert Gibbs declined comment Monday on reports that BP is replacing its embattled chief executive, Tony Hayward.

Gibbs says that regardless of who leads the company, BP still has a responsibility to restore the Gulf and compensate its residents.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is taking his own advice and taking his family to the Gulf Coast on vacation next month, something he and first lady Michelle Obama have been urging others to do to help the area's suffering economy.

The White House said the Obamas will visit an undisclosed section of Florida's coast the weekend of Aug. 14.

Obama has made four trips to the Gulf region, including an overnight stay, since an underwater well exploded in April and began spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico. First lady Michelle Obama was scheduled to make her second visit the area on Friday.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is thanking senators for acting to restore unemployment benefits to 2.5 million people who began losing their checks weeks ago.

Senators voted 60-40 to overcome Republican delaying tactics and clear the way for a final vote later Tuesday.

Three earlier votes to move the bill had stalled. Republicans want the spending to be offset by cuts elsewhere in the budget and Obama wants to continue treating the extension as emergency spending, meaning it will increase the deficit.

WASHINGTON – Vice President Joe Biden is returning to the oil-marred Gulf Coast region.

The White House says Biden will visit Theodore, Ala., on Thursday to assess the government's and BP's efforts to respond to the company's disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and to meet with affected residents.

Biden made his first trip to the region in late June.

Source: Biden to visit ...