WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States said on Wednesday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was losing control of his country and urged Russia and the international community to get behind a political transition plan to avert sectarian civil war.

U.S. President Barack Obama called Russian President Vladimir Putin – Assad’s main international supporter – after a Damascus bomb blast killed Syria’s defense minister and Assad’s brother-in-law, throwing the 16-month old rebellion onto an unpredictable new path.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States said on Wednesday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was losing control of his country, and with an eye on Russia, urged the international community to get behind a political transition plan to avert a sectarian civil war.

U.S. President Barack Obama called Russian President Vladimir Putin – Assad’s main international ally – after a Damascus bomb blast killed Syria’s defense minister and Assad’s brother-in-law, throwing the 16-month old rebellion onto an unpredictable new path.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Virginia (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama took his pitch for a second White House term to Virginia on Friday, reminding supporters that the election battleground state could secure him victory over Republican challenger Mitt Romney.

The Democratic president painted himself as a champion of ordinary Americans as his re-election team stepped up attacks on Romney over his business record and wealth.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama used an Independence Day ceremony in which immigrants serving in the U.S. military became citizens on Wednesday to renew his election-year call for new immigration laws popular with an important part of his political base.

Wearing a red tie to celebrate the July 4th holiday at the White House, Obama addressed about two dozen foreign-born military personnel who were taking advantage of a program that offers them citizenship in return for their service.

LOS CABOS, Mexico/BEIRUT (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on Monday that the violence in Syria must stop but gave no sign of agreeing on how to do it even as Syrian security forces pounded opposition areas across the country.

Intense artillery fire was reported in Douma, a town 15 km (9 miles) outside the Syrian capital Damascus that for weeks has been under the partial control of rebels who have joined the 15-month-old revolt against President Bashar al-Assad.

LOS CABOS, Mexico (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on Monday on the need to end violence in Syria but they showed no concrete signs of narrowing their differences on tougher sanctions against Damascus.

After a week of Cold War-style recriminations between U.S. and Russian diplomats, the talks at a Group of 20 summit in Mexico tested whether the two leaders could forge a working relationship and find common ground on Syria and other festering disputes.

LOS CABOS, Mexico (Reuters) – President Barack Obama will press Vladimir Putin over Russia’s role in the Syrian crisis when they meet on Monday but appears to have little chance of persuading him to budge on Moscow’s resistance to tougher U.N. action against Damascus.

After a week of Cold War-style recriminations between U.S. and Russian diplomats, the talks at a Group of 20 summit in Mexico will test whether the two leaders can forge a working relationship and find common ground on Syria and other festering disputes.

WASHINGTON/MOSCOW (Reuters) – An escalating crisis in Syria, echoing with Cold War-style recriminations, has badly frayed U.S.-Russian relations at a delicate time, just as U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin try to renew their relationship.

U.S. charges that Russia is arming the Syrian government as it attacks its opponents with lethal force, and Moscow’s blocking of tougher action against Damascus, appear to indicate that tough times are ahead for Putin’s relationship with Obama and, perhaps, his successor.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and Republican groups raised more than $76.8 million in May, his campaign said on Thursday, topping the more than $60 million President Barack Obama and his Democratic allies hauled in.

Romney’s campaign and the Republican National Committee have $107 million in cash on hand, the campaign said. Obama’s cash on hand figure was not immediately available.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama and his Democratic allies together hauled in more than $60 million for his re-election campaign in May, a large jump as he struggles to maintain a fundraising edge against Republican challenger Mitt Romney.

The new totals, boosted by money raked in from glitzy Hollywood events, helped Obama easily surpass April’s donations of $43.6 million, which had marked a decline from the month before as Romney closed the contributions gap.