Cairo: The top US military officer met Egypt's ruling generals in Cairo on Saturday and discussed the case of US pro-democracy activists charged in an investigation that has strained ties between Cairo and Washington. General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was the first senior US official to visit Cairo since the charges were brought against 43 foreign and Egyptian activists following a probe into civil society groups.

(Reuters) 12 February 2012 CAIRO - The top US military officer met Egypts ruling generals in Cairo on Saturday and discussed the case of US pro-democracy activists charged in an investigation that has strained ties between Cairo and Washington. General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was the first senior US official to visit Cairo since the charges were brought against 43 foreign and Egyptian activists following a probe into civil society groups.

Mitt Romney got a sorely needed boost in the rocky race for the Republican presidential nomination on Saturday, winning a non-binding contest in Maine and a straw poll among conservatives after a trio of unnerving losses. The former Massachusetts governor edged out Texas congressman Ron Paul by fewer than 200 votes in the Maine caucuses, and outpolled former senator Rick Santorum in the straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.

AP AP Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney speaks at a caucus in Portland, Maine, on Saturday. Mitt Romney eked out a narrow win in Maine's Republican caucuses, state party officials announced on Saturday, providing his campaign for the party's presidential nomination a much-needed boost after three straight losses earlier this week. But the former Massachusetts governor's margin of victory over Texas Rep.

As Peggy Noonan informs us, President Obama has, in effect, said to Catholics, "To hell with you" ("Obama vs. the Church," PostScript, Feb. 5). American Catholics should now send this message to Obama: We will fight you in the media, we will fight you at the Tea Parties, we will fight you in the courts, and we will fight you at the ballot box. We will never surrender. Walt Johanson, Yonkers Windy Claims? Kudos to Robert Bryce, who seems to really get it when it comes to the

Reuters | Feb 12, 2012, 04.52AM IST PORTLAND, MAINE: Republican front-runner Mitt Romney got a boost in his increasingly tough fight for the presidential nomination, winning a straw poll of conservative activists on Saturday hours before results come in from party caucuses in Maine. Romney won 38 percent support among the 3,408 who voted at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.

AP | Feb 12, 2012, 04.47AM IST Longwood(US): Gearing up for a tough political season ahead, Michelle Obama has said she's trying to get as much done as possible before the general election campaign starts to drown out everything else. "It's sort of like working before vacation - only it's not a vacation," she said in an interview with a handful of reporters.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) - With the expansion and deepening of people- to-people exchanges between China and the United States, the peoples of the two countries have been able to feel the charm of diverse cultures and experience the joy of getting to know and understand each other. "It's an amazing experience for Americans to get to know the diversified cultures of the Chinese ethnic groups," Betty McGinnis, president of the

View Photo Gallery - February 2012: Going into February with four contests behind them, the four remaining presidential contenders continue on the campaign trail. By Karen Tumulty, What in the world is the matter with the Republican Party? This is an election year when pretty much everything should be going the GOP's way. Gallery  President Obama's reelection campaign is raising money and reaching out to voters and volunteers. Gallery

By David Brown, After initially telegraphing optimism about President Obama's decision Friday to amend the religious exemption for mandatory birth-control and sterilization coverage, the U.S.