Army Sgt. Salvatore Giunta is the first living soldier to be awarded the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War. The following are images from the ceremony, his service in Afghanistan and his family life. 

A drop in the unemployment rate is always good economic news, but those of all political stripes say .. it's not as good as it looks.

Pressure is building on Google. On Friday, the European Union asked Google to the delay the rollout of its new privacy policy, scheduled for March 1, until the E.U. can work out whether it is in line with Europe's data protection laws. 

With election season in full swing, the Labor Department reports are bound to serve as a political football every month until November, and with his administration under fire on the campaign trail for slow economic growth despite stimulus funding and other measures, Obama is eager for some good news.

Washington Post report is the first to use such a specific timeframe, after Fox News previously reported concerns from former members of Obama's national security team that a unilateral strike from Israel could occur sometime in 2012.

Proposed legislation in the state of Ohio would ban the purchase of lions, bears, gorillas and other exotic animals, but it also would allow current owners of such animals to keep the pets if they meet strict new requirements.

The Air Force says it will cut the service by nearly 10,000 active, National Guard and Reserve airmen next year, as part of a broad move to downsize and shift capabilities around the country to be better prepared for wars of the future.

Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich showed no interest in going easy on each other heading into Saturday's Nevada caucuses, despite polls that show the former Massachusetts governor well ahead in the contest. 

Reclusive Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar wrote to President Obama last year indicating an interest in talks key to ending the war in Afghanistan, current and former U.S. officials told The Associated Press. 

A four-year blueprint for aviation programs that hastens the transition to a new air traffic control system based on GPS technology was given final approval by the House on Friday despite last-minute objections from organized labor. 

The head of a beleaguered federal program charged with securing dangerous chemicals vowed Friday to swiftly address a mountain of problems that were exposed in a recent internal report, as lawmakers grilled the official over everything from staffing to red tape. 

Susan G. Komen for the Cure on Friday announced it was reversing its decision to end grants to Planned Parenthood, after facing mounting pressure from pro-choice lawmakers and accusations that the breast cancer awareness organization had bowed to political influences. 

President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama will host the British prime minister and his wife for an official visit and state dinner in March. 

One of Washington's top trade groups for adult beverages is seeking to put on ice a provision within a House transportation bill that would require states to mandate ignition interlock devices for convicted drunk drivers.

The unemployment rate dropped to 8.3 percent in January, marking the fifth straight month of decline thanks in part to a hiring spree in the private sector. 

In a profanity-laced tirade, a Memphis DJ last week used an on-air interview to berate a local Republican congressional candidate -- calling her a "token negro" who is doing the bidding of "white folk." The outrage? The fury? In Memphis, it's crickets. 

A bill by Rep. Scott DesJarlais, R-Tenn., would prohibit federal money from going toward ad campaigns against foodstuffs and beverages that the feds consider safe and legal. 

The U.S. Justice Department says it has indicted Switzerland's oldest private bank, claiming it conspired with Americans and others to hide more than $1.2 billion in client assets from the Internal Revenue Service.

The Obama administration is calling for a new $1 billion program to put thousands of veterans to work repairing trails, restoring habitats and making other conservation improvements on public lands. 

U.S. officials say they believe Iran recently gave new freedoms to as many as five top Al Qaeda operatives who have been under house arrest, including the option to leave the country, and may have provided some material aid to the terrorist group.