President Barack Obama and President Francois Hollande

President Barack Obama and President Francois Hollande

 

[caption id="attachment_12261" align="alignnone" width="538"] (Photo AFP - JEWEL SAMAD)[/caption]

 

Press conference

 

Barack Obama and Francois Hollande hold a press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington.

 

(AFP - JEWEL SAMAD)

 

(Agence France-Presse, 11 Tuesday February 2014 The Roman)

 

Hollande and Obama confirm strong Franco-US friendship

Hollande and Obama confirm strong Franco-US friendship

 

The presidents of France and the United States have confirmed the strong friendship between the two countries at a press conference in Washington on Tuesday.

 

Obama and Hollande said they were both in agreement on foreign policy, trade and the environment.

 

On the subject of Iran, Obama said sanctions would continue for now.

 

“President Hollande and I agree on the need to continue enforcing existing sanctions even as we believe that new sanctions during these negotiations would endanger the possibility of a diplomatic solution.”

 

After the press conference, a state dinner will be held in honour of Hollande.

 

The next time the two will meet will be in June.

 

Copyright © 2014 euronews

 

(euronews, 11 Monday February 2014 The Roman)

 

Obama y Hollande revisan las raíces de la amistad franco-estadounidense Obama and Hollande review the roots of Franco-American friendship

Obama y Hollande revisan las raíces de la amistad franco-estadounidense

 

Washington (AFP)

 

Barack Obama y François Hollande efectuarán este lunes un peregrinaje a las fuentes de la amistad entre Washington y París, en el primero de los tres días de una visita de Estado del mandatario francés a EEUU.

 

Vuelo en el Air Force One, honores militares y cenas fastuosas: EEUU agasajará a Hollande en la primera visita en su primera etapa a Washington y en la primera de este género por parte de un jefe de Estado en 18 años, en la que Hollande viajará solo, tras su reciente separación de Valérie Trierweiler.

 

Antes de una jornada protocolaria el martes en la Casa Blanca, Obama y Hollande viajarán a la zona de Monticello, tierras del tercer presidente estadounidense, Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809), una referencia histórica para ambos países.

 

Esta escapada permitirá a ambos mandatarios encontrarse en un ambiente más informal para "charlar de las relaciones (franco-estadounidenses) en un entorno que evoca su historia y de las posibilidades que detentan", explicó un responsable del Gobierno de Obama a la AFP.

 

En el ámbito económico, Hollande cenará este lunes en la casa de Francia con la directora general del Fondo Monetario Internacional.

 

El martes, la jornada será mucho más solemne, con himnos nacionales, cañonazos y una entrevista en el Despacho Oval antes de una rueda de prensa en la que se tratarán seguramente cuestiones internacionales ( Irán, Ucrania, Sáhara y Libia) y económicas.

 

Tras una comida oficial con el secretario de Estado estadounidense, John Kerry, y un homenaje a los militares del país, Hollande será el martes por la noche el invitado de honor de una cena de Estado que reunirá a centenares de invitados selectamente escogidos por la Casa Blanca y donde será obligatorio el esmoquin y la etiqueta.

 

La visita concluirá el miércoles con una escala en San Francisco, región que alberga empresas punteras en materia informática.

 

(Agence France-Presse, 10 lunes febrero 2014 la Roman)

 

Obama and Hollande review the roots of Franco-American friendship

 

Washington (AFP)

 

François Hollande and Barack Obama on Monday made ​​a pilgrimage to the sources of the friendship between Washington and Paris in the first of three days of a state visit by French president to the United States.

 

Flight on Air Force One, military honors and lavish dinners : USA regale Hollande in the first visit in the first stage to Washington and the first of its kind by a head of state in 18 years, in which Hollande travel only, after his recent separation Valérie Trierweiler.

 

Before a protocol day on Tuesday at the White House, Obama and Hollande will travel to the Monticello, land of the third U.S. President Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809), a historical reference to both countries.

 

This package will enable the two leaders meet in a more informal setting for "chat relations (Franco-American) in a setting that evokes the history and the possibilities they hold," the Obama government official told AFP.

 

On the economic front, Hollande dine Monday in the House of France with the general director of the International Monetary Fund.

 

On Tuesday, the day will be much more solemn, national hymns, gunfire and an interview in the Oval Office before a press conference on international economic issues that will surely (Iran, Ukraine, Sahara, Libya) and treated.

 

After an official dinner with Secretary of State, John Kerry, and a tribute to the country's military, Hollande will be Tuesday night the guest of honor at a state dinner bringing together hundreds of guests selectamente chosen by the House white tuxedo and where the label is mandatory.

 

The visit will conclude on Wednesday with a stop in San Francisco, region harboring leading companies in IT field.

 

(Agence France-Presse, 10 Monday February 2014 The Roman)

(Translated: R.S.F. toshiki speed news press, Agence France-Presse, 10 Monday February 2014 The Roman)

 

Yellen inherits US Federal Reserve chairman as Bernanke departs

Yellen inherits US Federal Reserve chairman as Bernanke departs

 

Washington (AFP)

 

Respected economist Ms. Janet Yellen was sworn in Monday as the first woman chair of the Federal Reserve, taking on the burden of winding down the Federal Reserve's stimulus without spurring more turmoil.

 

Ms. Janet Yellen inherits the mantle of the world's most powerful central banker from Ben Bernanke, who guided the US and the global financial system through its deepest crisis since the 1930s during his eight years in the job.

 

Nominated to the job last October by President Barack Obama, she will serve a four-year term concurrent to her ongoing 14 year term on the Federal Reserve's board of governors.

 

The respected economist has worked closely with Bernanke during her three-plus years as Federal Reserve vice-chair, and is not expected to depart from his policies aimed at helping lower still-high unemployment levels as long as inflation remains tamed.

 

Janet Yellen, 67, has served in a number of positions in the Federal Reserve, including head of its San Francisco branch, and also has held academic positions at Harvard University and University of California at Berkeley.

 

She is married to economics Nobel prize winner George Akerlof.

 

Bernanke will return to academia, meanwhile, including joining the washington-based think tank the Brookings Institution as a resident fellow.

 

"He will be a major contributor to the task of understanding the momentous events of the past eight years and crafting imaginative, pragmatic strategies to ensure the stability of the national and global economy," said Brookings president Strobe Talbott.

 

(Agence France-Presse, 3 Monday February 2014 The Roman)

Hungría asegura haber sido víctima de las escuchas de la NSA Hungary claims to have been the victim of NSA tracks

Hungría asegura haber sido víctima de las escuchas de la NSA

 

(AFP)

 

[caption id="attachment_11560" align="alignnone" width="512"] (El primer ministro húngaro, Viktor Orban, da una rueda de prensa en el Parlamento, en Budapest, el 29 de miércoles de enero de 2014 la Roman (AFP, Attila Kisbenedek)) (Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban gives a press conference in the Parliament in Budapest on 29 Wednesday January 2014 The Roman (AFP, Attila Kisbenedek))[/caption]

 

Budapest — Hungría aseguró este jueves que había sido víctima de las escuchas de EEUU y amenazó con posibles cambios "profundos" en sus relaciones con Washington.

 

"Es evidente que el servicio de inteligencia estadounidense posee informaciones sobre Hungría", declaró ante la prensa el secretario de Estado, Janos Lazar.

 

"El escándalo de las escuchas estadounidenses podría modificar profundamente la naturaleza de las relaciones entre Hungría y EEUU", añadió Lazar, encargado del gabinete del primer ministro, Viktor Orban.

 

El ministro húngaro de Asuntos Exteriores, Janos Martonyi, dijo por su parte que esperaba "poder restablecer el nivel de confianza" entre Hungría y EEUU, dos países "aliados" y "amigos".

 

Ambas autoridades hicieron estas declaraciones tras una reunión de la comisión parlamentaria creada para estudiar las eventuales actividades en Hungría de la Agencia Nacional de Seguridad (NSA) estadounidense, encargada de interceptar comunicaciones.

 

La comisión, cuyos debates son confidenciales, se estableció en diciembre, después de que salieran a la luz las revelaciones del exagente de la NSA Edward Snowden.

 

La próxima embajadora estadounidense en Budapest, Colleen Bell, ya ha sido convocada a declarar ante la comisión.

 

El programa de espionaje de la NSA y las protestas que desencadenó su revelación en Europa serán tratadas en la 50ª Conferencia de Seguridad de Múnich, que reunirá a finales de semana en el sur de Alemania a los nombres principales de la defensa y la diplomacia.

 

Copyright © 2014 AFP. Todos los derechos reservados.

 

(Agence France-Presse, 30 Thursday January 2014 The Roman)

 

 

Hungary claims to have been the victim of NSA tracks

 

(AFP)

 

Budapest - Hungary said Thursday they was the victim of tracks the United States and threatened with possible "profound" changes in its relations with Washington.

 

"It is clear that  the United States intelligence has information on Hungary," he told the press secretary of state, Janos Lazar.

 

"The scandal of the United States tracks could profoundly change the nature of relations between Hungary and  the United States," said Lazar, head of the cabinet of Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

 

Hungarian Foreign Minister Janos Martonyi said on his part that he hoped "to restore the level of trust" between Hungary and  the United States, two countries "allies" and "friends".

 

Both officials were speaking after a meeting of the committee set up to study the possible activities in Hungary of  the United States National Security Agency (NSA), responsible for intercepting communications.

 

The commission, whose proceedings are confidential, was established in December, after which came to light of the revelations of the NSA exagente Edward Snowden.

 

The next  the United States ambassador to Budapest, Colleen Bell, has been called to testify before the commission.

 

The spy program of the NSA and the protests that triggered disclosure in Europe will be discussed at the 50th Security Conference in Munich, who meet later this week in southern Germany to the leading names of the defense and diplomacy.

 

Copyright © 2014 AFP. All rights reserved.

 

(Agence France- Presse, Thursday 30 January 2014 The Roman)

(Translated: R.S.F. toshiki speed news press, Agence France-Presse, 31 Friday January 2014 The Roman)

Swift snowstorm rolls through northeastern US

Swift snowstorm rolls through northeastern US

 

[caption id="attachment_11237" align="alignnone" width="400"] (A view down 5th Avenue in the snow as New Yorkers get hit with a winter storm on 21 January 2014 The Roman (AFP, Timothy A. Clary))[/caption]

 

By Robert MacPherson (AFP)

 

Washington — A major snowstorm rolled across the northeastern United States, with forecasters calling for as much as a foot (30 centimeters) of snow in some places before it leaves a cold snap in its wake.

 

Downtown Washington fell virtually silent after the federal government, seeing the swift-moving cold front approaching, closed its doors and told civil servants -- who Monday had the day off for the Martin Luther King holiday -- to stay home.

 

Many offices and schools followed suit, as 20 mile (32 kilometer) per hour winds whipped the falling snow through the unusually quiet streets.

 

Washington's Metro system reported half as many riders as a typical weekday, and business was so slow that many restaurants used Twitter to woo customers with bargain-priced drinks.

 

Enough snow was expected to fall on the US capital to turn the evening rush hour into a Beltway traffic nightmare, as the storm churned its way into New York and the northeastern New England states.

 

"The storm along the Mid-Atlantic Coast will deepen rapidly while moving northeastward to the Canadian Maritimes paralleling the coast by Wednesday evening," the National Weather Service said.

 

"The system will produce moderate to heavy snow over the mid-Atlantic coast into southern New England that will move into the Gulf of Maine by Wednesday morning."

 

In its wake, the storm will see temperatures drop as low as eight degrees Fahrenheit (minus 13 Celsius) in Washington overnight -- with the mercury unlikely to climb back above freezing before Saturday.

 

FlightAware, a website that monitors air traffic in real time, said nearly 3,000 flights into, out of or within the United States had been cancelled Tuesday.

 

The lion's share of affected flights involved busy airports in the New York, Philadelphia and Washington areas.

 

National passenger rail operator Amtrak said it would operate "a normal Tuesday schedule," but it warned passengers to "anticipate some weather-related delays."

 

Private forecasting service AccuWeather call for snowfalls to be heaviest along a band stretching from the Canadian province of Nova Scotia and the northeasternmost state of Maine down the Atlantic seaboard into Virginia.

 

"Travel conditions will deteriorate rapidly due to slippery roads and diminishing visibility," AccuWeather said.

 

"As the air turns colder, the snow will become dry and powdery. Increasing winds will cause extensive blowing and drifting snow."

 

The Washington Post's popular Capital Weather Gang blog forecast up to 10 inches of snow in and around the US capital, ahead of a return of sub-freezing temperatures later this week.

 

Organizers of Wednesday's annual March for Life rally on the National Mall, which typically draws tens of thousands of Americans who oppose abortion, said they were going ahead with the event.

 

In New York, a storm alert remained in effect until 6:00 am (1100 GMT) Wednesday with as much as a foot (30 centimeters) forecast for the metropolitan region.

 

Temperatures were set to fall below normal, to as low as 10 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 12 Celsius) with winds gusting to 35 miles (56 kilometers) per hour.

 

Dozens of schools either closed for the day or told parents to expect their youngsters to be dismissed from class earlier than usual.

 

Courthouses called off proceedings in the afternoon.

 

Across the Hudson River, New Jersey went ahead with its mid-day inauguration ceremony for re-elected governor Chris Christie, who is battling allegations he used his office to bully political foes.

 

But an evening gala on historic Ellis Island in New York Harbor to mark the start of his new term in office was cancelled due to the storm.

 

What the National Weather Service called a "fast moving but potent" snowstorm had earlier dumped seven inches of snow on airports the Chicago area, before temperatures fell to the freezing level.

 

Copyright © 2014 AFP. All rights reserved.

 

(Agence France-Presse, 21 Tuesday January 2014 The Roman)

News: Oath

News: Oath

 

[caption id="attachment_9921" align="alignnone" width="400"] (Photo AFP - Brendan Smialowski)[/caption]

 

Serment

 

Janet Yellen, prochaine présidente de la Banque centrale américaine (Fed), prête serment devant la Commission bancaire du Sénat, le 14 novembre 2013 à Washington DC.

 

Oath

 

Janet Yellen, the next president of the U.S. Central Bank (Fed), the oath before the Senate Banking Committee, November 14, 2013 in Washington DC.

 

(AFP - Brendan Smialowski)

 

(Agence France-Presse, 15 Friday November 2013 TheRoman)

(Translated: R.S.F. toshiki speed news press, Agence France-Presse, 15 Friday November 2013 The Roman)

 

 

Here’s how people are changing their Internet habits to avoid NSA snooping

Here’s how people are changing their Internet habits to avoid NSA snooping

 

[caption id="attachment_9766" align="alignnone" width="384"] (NSA headquarters at Fort Meade. (NSA))[/caption]

 

This year's revelations of domestic surveillance by the National Security Agency have caused Washington Post readers to take new steps to protect their privacy online, the results of an online survey show.

 

"I've begun educating myself on internet security and privacy," one reader wrote.

 

In an atmosphere of increased concern about surveillance, users have adopted privacy-enhancing technologies, ditched services they deemed to have inadequate privacy protections, and even cut back on using the Internet for sensitive communications altogether.

 

The survey was not based on a random sample, so it may not be representative of all visitors to washingtonpost.com, to say nothing of all Americans.

 

But the 81 readers who provided in-depth responses provided a fascinating glimpse of how privacy-conscious users have reacted to Ed Snowden's revelations.

 

The privacy-enhancing tactic mentioned by the most readers was to avoid the use of mainstream cloud computing services, especially Gmail.

 

"I deleted everything from my gmail account and switched to an account that comes with a domain I own," wrote one reader.

 

The individual uses a desktop e-mail client and avoids "leaving my e-mail on [the] server any longer than necessary."

 

About 17 other users took similar precautions, halting or reducing their use of Dropbox, Yahoo Mail, and other cloud computing services.

 

These precautions were presumably a reaction to the revelations of the NSA's PRISM program, which gives the NSA access to the contents of Gmail and other cloud Internet services.

 

Almost a dozen users also reported that they had switched from mainstream search engines like Google or Yahoo to DuckDuckGo.

 

Unlike its larger competitors, this independent search engine doesn't track its users.

 

That means the company wouldn't have much information to share if the NSA came knocking.

 

Several users reported installing privacy-enhancing software on their computers.

 

Leading the list was Tor, a network of servers that helps users anonymize their online activity.

 

Also popular is HTTPS Everywhere, an extension for the Firefox and Chrome browsers that causes these browsers to always use the encrypted "https" version of the web's fundamental protocol when accessing Web sites that support encryption.

 

Several users mentioned using Ghostery, a sophisticated tool for managing and blocking the third-party cookies that Web sites use to track users from site to site.

 

A few readers also reported that they had started experimenting with using PGP software to encrypt their e-mail communications.

 

The irony of asking for full names and e-mail addresses in a survey about online privacy was not lost on Switch readers.

 

"The questionnaire can't be for real. I thought I inadvertently connected to 'the Onion,'" one reader wrote in the comment section.

 

Other commenters described the survey as "bizarre" and "creepy."

 

Some survey respondants indicated that they had cut back on using the Internet to send sensitive personal information.

 

But a much larger group told us that they hadn't changed their Internet habits at all.

 

"If the NSA wants to know I spend too much time researching fantasy football, hotels in Las Vegas, and the best way to roast pumpkin seeds, so be it," one wrote.

 

"You only have something to fear if you are looking up things that the NSA would consider dangerous to US citizens."

 

Other respondents haven't changed their habits because they believe doing so is hopeless.

 

"There is simply no defense against the NSA if they are targeting you," one reader claimed.

 

"I accept that I am a minnow swimming in a pool full of sharks," wrote another.

 

Added a third respondent: "I always add the following to my emails 'Hey NSA, go f--k yourselves.'"

 

(The Washington Post, 7 Thursday November 2013 The Roman)

 

NSA intercepting Google and Yahoo traffic, report says

NSA intercepting Google and Yahoo traffic, report says

 

(Reuters, SAN FRANCISCO)

 

The US National Security Agency (NSA) has tapped directly into communications links used by Google and Yahoo to move huge amounts of e-mail and other user information among overseas data centers, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

 

The report, based on secret NSA documents leaked by former contractor Edward Snowden, appears to show the agency has used weak restrictions on its overseas activities to exploit major US companies’ data to a far greater extent than realized.

 

Previously reported programs included those that allowed easy searches of Google’s, Yahoo’s and other Internet giants’ material based on court orders, but since the interception in the newly disclosed effort, code named MUSCULAR, occurs outside the US there is no oversight by the secret intelligence court.

 

The Post said the operation gained access to a cable or switch that relayed the traffic through an unnamed telecommunications provider.

 

“We are outraged at the lengths to which the government seems to have gone to intercept data from our private fiber networks and it underscores the need for urgent reform,” Google chief legal officer David Drummond said.

 

Google said it had not been aware of the program, although it recently began speeding its efforts to encrypt internal traffic.

 

Like other companies, Google and Yahoo constantly send data over leased and shared or exclusive international fiber-optic telecommunication lines as they synchronize information.

 

The newly disclosed program, operated jointly with Britain’s Government Communications Headquarters, or GCHQ, amassed 181 million records in one recent 30-day span, according to one document reported by the Post.

 

An NSA spokesperson said in a statement the suggestion in the Post article that the agency relies on a presidential order on foreign intelligence gathering to skirt domestic restrictions imposed by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and other laws “is not true.”

 

“The assertion that we collect vast quantities of US persons’ data from this type of collection is also not true,” the statement said.

 

“NSA is a foreign intelligence agency, and we’re focused on discovering and developing intelligence about valid foreign intelligence targets only.”

 

Asked at an event in Washington about the latest report, NSA Director Keith Alexander said that he had not read the report, but that the agency did not have unfettered access to the firm’s servers.

 

“I can tell you factually we do not have access to Google servers, Yahoo servers,” Alexander said.

 

“We go through a court order.”

 

Yahoo in January will begin encrypting users’ e-mail as it moves to the company, but it declined to say whether it would go further and keep e-mail encrypted as it moves within Yahoo.

 

The report is likely to add to growing tensions between the US intelligence establishment and the technology companies, which have been struggling to assure customers overseas that they need not fear US spying.

 

US Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy said he would ask for a briefing.

 

“I will be asking whether this report is accurate, what legal authority the government is using and how they are protecting the privacy rights of law-abiding Americans,” Leahy said.

 

(TAIPEI TIMES, 1 Friday November 2013 The Roman)

 

 

Germany summons US envoy amid rage over Merkel spy claims

Germany summons US envoy amid rage over Merkel spy claims

 

Berlin (AFP)

 

Germany summoned the US ambassador Thursday amid outrage over suspicions that Washington tapped Chancellor Angela Merkel's mobile phone, as she faced allegations she had naively played down the NSA spying scandal.

 

Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle will meet US envoy John B. Emerson later Thursday, a foreign ministry spokeswoman told AFP, adding: "The position of the German government will be presented clearly."

 

The ministry could not confirm that the step was unprecedented in US-German post-war relations but it was seen as a highly unusual move between the close allies.

 

Merkel was to discuss strategies for confronting covert US surveillance in Europe with French President Francois Hollande on Thursday on the margins of an EU summit, a French diplomatic source said.

 

The German leader called US President Barack Obama Wednesday demanding answers after learning the National Security Agency may have monitored her phone, warning this would be "breach of trust" between international partners.

 

A White House spokesman said it is not now listening in on Merkel, but did not deny the possibility her communications may have been intercepted in the past.

 

The allegations sparked anger in Germany and Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said in a statement that she had "made clear that she unequivocally disapproves of such practices, should they be confirmed, and regards them as completely unacceptable".

 

Berlin daily Der Tagesspiegel, citing government sources, reported that the alleged tapping targeted not Merkel's official mobile phone but a separate device she uses for conducting business for her Christian Democratic Union party.

 

German and US intelligence agencies cooperate closely on counter-terrorism efforts and other matters related to espionage.

 

But the latest revelations threaten the personal trust and close cooperation between Obama and Merkel, which saw the US leader pay a long-awaited visit to Berlin earlier this year.

 

As the NSA scandal raged in Germany during the campaign for the September election, Obama indicated in July that his personal ties with Merkel meant he had no need to spy on her.

 

"If I want to know what Chancellor Merkel is thinking, I will call Chancellor Merkel," he said then.

 

Merkel grew up in communist East Germany, where state spying on citizens was rampant.

 

Germans also carry the trauma of mass abuses by the security services under the Nazi regime.

 

'Diplomatic bomb'

 

News of the eavesdropping suspicion and the German protest came first from Spiegel Online, whose parent magazine reported many of the US surveillance claims made by fugitive intelligence contractor Edward Snowden.

 

The conservative daily Die Welt called the alleged snooping a "diplomatic bomb" and "a punch in the face of German security agencies", while a Sueddeutsche Zeitung headline labelled it "the worst imaginable insult".

 

"If it is true what we are hearing then it would be very bad indeed," Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere told ARD public television.

 

"The Americans are and remain our best friends but that is not on," he said.

 

"I have assumed for years that my mobile phone is being tapped but I didn't suspect the Americans."

 

However the opposition Greens party attacked Merkel's government itself for having declared the NSA spying scandal -- centred on charges of surveillance of millions of citizens' phone calls, emails, chats and other communications -- effectively over several months ago.

 

"It's scandalous that the government appeased and obscured throughout the entire NSA affair, but that now, when it comes to confidentiality of communications of the chancellor, Merkel voices personal indignation in a phone call to the American president," Greens lawmaker Konstantin von Notz told the Handelsblatt daily's website.

 

"It apparently had to come to this, the chancellor's mobile phone becoming a target," Die Welt said.

 

"Now we're seeing the protest that was missing when the population was being spied on."

 

Merkel had offered assurances during her campaign for a third term -- which she handily won last month -- that she had taken up the most serious allegations of mass NSA spying with Washington and was confident she would receive a thorough answer.

 

The Social Democrats, her chief rivals, were unable to harness public anger over the snooping reports in the election and are now in negotiations to become Merkel's junior partner in her next administration.

 

(Agence France-Presse, 24 Thursday October 2013 The Roman)

 

 

Shutdown Over, Government Slowly Gets Back to Normal

Shutdown Over, Government Slowly Gets Back to Normal

 

[caption id="attachment_9468" align="alignnone" width="600"] (President Obama chastised lawmakers on Thursday over the crisis while outlining the budget challenges ahead (The New York Times))[/caption]

 

WASHINGTON — The United States government sputtered back to life Thursday morning after President Obama and Congress ended a 16-day shutdown, clearing the way for federal agencies to again deliver services, reopen public facilities and welcome hundreds of thousands of furloughed employees returning to work.

 

The political standoff in the nation’s capital ended just minutes before a midnight deadline when the government’s ability to borrow money would have expired.

 

Republicans conceded defeat on Wednesday by agreeing to finance the operations of government until Jan. 15 and raise the nation’s debt limit through the middle of February.

 

The Senate passed the legislation first, and the House followed around 10:15 p.m.

 

The agreement paves the way for another series of budget negotiations in the weeks ahead, even as conservative Republicans in the House and Senate vowed to renew their fight for cuts in spending and changes to the Affordable Care Act.

 

Just hours after President Obama signed the temporary spending measure into law around 12:30 a.m., agencies in Washington and across the country prepared to reopen offices, public parks, research projects and community programs that have been mothballed for more than two weeks.

 

The government’s top personnel officer announced that officials should restart normal functions “in a prompt and orderly manner.”

 

In Washington, the city’s subway trains were once again packed with federal workers streaming in from the suburbs, government IDs dangling from lanyards around their necks.

 

At the Lincoln Memorial, tourists waited nearby as a park ranger cut down the signs announcing that the memorial was closed.

 

Robert Lagana said Thursday morning he was eager to get back to his job at the International Trade Commission.

 

“It beats climbing the walls, wondering where your next paycheck is going to be and how you’re going to make your bills,” Mr. Lagana said as he made his way to his office near L’Enfant Plaza.

 

But he also expressed frustration with lawmakers who held up the budget over the new health care law.

 

“They really need to come up with a law where this never happens again,” he said, adding later, “You just feel like you don’t have a voice.”

 

At the Environmental Protection Agency headquarters in Washington, Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. showed up to see workers who had been furloughed.

 

“I brought some muffins!” Mr. Biden said as he arrived at the security desk.

 

When he was asked about the shutdown, he said: “I’m happy it’s ended. It was unnecessary to begin with. I’m happy it’s ended.”

 

He greeted returning workers with handshakes and hugs.

 

Reporting was contributed  by Jess Bidgood from Boston; Alan Blinder from Oak Ridge, Tenn.; J. David Goodman from New York; Emmarie Huetteman from Washington; and Steven Yaccino from Chicago.

 

(The New York Times, 17 Thursday October 2013 The Roman)