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RALEIGH, North Carolina (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama sought to tap into Americans' anxiety over high gasoline prices on Monday by pledging to seek a windfall profits tax on U.S. oil companies if elected.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States welcomed on Monday statements by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez urging Colombian rebels to free hostages, but Washington said Caracas should also distance itself from the rebel group.

RALEIGH, North Carolina (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said on Monday he would impose a windfall profits tax on U.S. oil companies as he sought political gain from Americans' pain over high gasoline prices.

HYANNIS PORT, Massachusetts (Reuters) - Sen. Edward Kennedy, the patriarch of America's most storied political family, returned home to Massachusetts on Monday, a week after surgery for removal of a malignant brain tumor.

LJUBLJANA (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush goes into his farewell European summit on Tuesday seeking to work with allies to ratchet up pressure on Iran over its nuclear program but still at odds with them over climate change.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush acknowledged economic concerns as he left for Europe on Monday, saying the United States was committed to a strong dollar and that energy prices were high.

MINNEAPOLIS (Reuters) - Former funnyman Al Franken hopes to convince Minnesotans that he can represent them in the buttoned-down halls of the U.S. Senate. So for now, jokes are off the record.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With Hillary Clinton out of the U.S. presidential race, Democrats on Sunday began healing wounds from a bruising nominating contest and speculated about Barack Obama's vice presidential choice.

BERLIN (Reuters) - The leader of Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) and the centre-left party's putative chancellor candidate broke with German political custom on Saturday and said he hoped the United States elects Barack Obama in November.

ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev blamed "aggressive" United States policies on Saturday for the global financial crisis and said Moscow's growing economic muscle could be part of the solution.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak discussed solving a dispute over importing American beef amid widespread fears there about food safety, the White House said on Saturday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When President George W. Bush makes his final tour of European capitals next week, he can expect a less-than-fond farewell on a continent where leaders are already looking past him to his successor.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hillary Clinton ended her presidential bid and endorsed Barack Obama on Saturday, urging her supporters to unite behind his candidacy and help recapture the White House for Democrats in November.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Thirty years after it sparked a popular tax revolt that helped sweep former governor Ronald Reagan into the White House, Californians still support the landmark Proposition 13, but critics say it has roiled the state's budgets ever since, a report released on Friday said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department said on Friday its senior Korea expert will travel to Pyongyang next week for talks with North Korean officials on completing the disablement of their nuclear complex at Yongbyon.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush on Friday said the weak May employment report was consistent with an economy facing a slow growth period.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Feminists are as determined as ever to put "women's issues" at the center of the U.S. election campaign this year despite Hillary Clinton's exit. And by that they mean the economy.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will visit Israel and the West Bank next week to try to nudge Israelis and Palestinians toward a peace deal this year despite Israel's political turmoil.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When President George W. Bush makes his final tour of European capitals next week, he can expect a less-than-fond farewell on a continent where leaders are already looking past him to his successor.

NAIROBI (Reuters) - A group of young Kenyans supporting Barack Obama launched what they called a worldwide campaign on Friday to defend the likely U.S. Democratic presidential nominee from smears by opponents.