WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama chided Republicans on Saturday for approving a plan to ease air-traffic delays caused by federal spending cuts while leaving budget cuts that affect children and the elderly untouched.

The Senate and the House of Representatives backed a plan this week to give the Department of Transportation flexibility to cover immediate salaries of air traffic controllers at the Federal Aviation Administration who had been furloughed as part of budget cuts known as “sequester.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama warned Syria on Friday that its use of chemical weapons would be a “game changer” for the United States but made clear he was in no rush to intervene in the civil war there on the basis of evidence he said was still preliminary.

Speaking a day after the disclosure of U.S. intelligence that Syria had likely used chemical weapons against its own people, Obama talked tough while calling for patience as he sought to fend off pressure for a swift response against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama warned President Bashar al-Assad on Friday that any use of chemical weapons in Syria’s civil war would be a “game changer” but cautioned that intelligence assessments that such weapons had been deployed were still preliminary.

Speaking a day after the White House said for the first time that Assad’s government had likely used chemical weapons on a small scale, Obama talked tough while appealing for patience as he sought to fend off pressure at home and abroad for a swift U.S. response.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama is close to choosing White House deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs Mike Froman to be the next U.S. trade representative, sources familiar with the situation told Reuters.

After a long vetting process, Chicago businesswoman and Obama fundraiser Penny Pritzker is still in line to be nominated as Commerce secretary, the sources said.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama said on Thursday he would pick Howard Shelanski, an antitrust expert, as his new regulatory czar, a powerful White House position charged with reviewing regulations proposed by government departments.

Shelanski, who is both an economist and a lawyer, is currently in charge of a team of economists that reviews competition and consumer protection issues at the Federal Trade Commission.