The latest local news, weather and high school sports in and around Columbia and Jefferson City

Monday, September 27, 2010  How well did the White House react to the Gulf oil spill disaster? A federal panel appointed by President Barack Obama starts its investigation Monday.

Wednesday, August 04, 2010  White House energy adviser Carol Browner said on morning TV talk shows that a new assessment found that about 75 percent of the oil has either been captured, burned off, evaporated or broken down in the Gulf.

Monday, July 19, 2010  The federal government Monday allowed BP to keep the cap shut tight on its ruptured Gulf of Mexico oil well for another day despite news the well is leaking at the top and something is seeping from the sea floor nearby.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010  BP's work to cap its Gulf of Mexico gusher was in limbo Wednesday after the federal government raised concerns the operation could put damaging pressure on the busted well and make the leak worse.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010  The Louisiana judge who struck down the Obama administration's six-month ban on deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico has reported extensive investments in the oil and gas industry, according to financial disclosure reports.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010  A federal judge struck down the Obama administration's six-month ban on deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday, saying the government rashly concluded that because one rig failed, the others are in immediate danger, too.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010  The owner of the broken Deepwater Horizon rig that is spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico has criticized the U.S. government's six-month ban on deepwater drilling in the area.

Monday, June 21, 2010  Companies that ferry people and supplies to offshore oil rigs asked a federal judge Monday to lift a six-month moratorium on new deepwater drilling projects imposed in the aftermath of the massive Gulf spill.

Monday, June 21, 2010  A White House spokesman says the whole country benefits when President Barack Obama takes time to go golfing and "clear his mind."

Wednesday, June 16, 2010  Obama, speaking alone in the State Dining Room of the White House, also announced that BP had voluntarily agreed to establish a $100 million fund to compensate laid-off oil right workers affected by his six-month drilling moratorium.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010  After 50 years of watching wetlands created by the fertile Mississippi River turn into open water, Louisiana residents finally got what they'd long awaited: A U.S. president saying he'll fight to save what little is left along their eroding coast.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010  Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele is accusing President Barack Obama of exploiting for his own political gain the crisis created by the Gulf oil spill.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010  President Barack Obama is meeting with BP executives for the first time -- a day after his speech to the nation on the calamitous oil spill from the company's well.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010  The White House announced Tuesday that a former assistant U.S. attorney and Justice Department inspector general, Michael Bromwich, will lead a planned reorganization of the Minerals Management Service.

Monday, June 14, 2010  UPDATED 3:30 p.m. CDT. President Barack Obama is promising Gulf Coast residents that the region will be left in better shape than it was before the massive BP oil spill that fouled the waters and threatened their way of life.