Ari Shapiro

Organized labor is traditionally one of the strongest sources of money and organizing power for Democrats, but lately union leaders have strongly criticized President Obama.

While Libya's ultimate fate is still unclear, the past week has marked a decisive change. In a speech to the American Legion in Minneapolis Tuesday, President Obama praised "our brave forces who helped the Libyan people finally break free from the grip of Moammar Gadhafi."

The last five months brought a great deal of controversy and criticism to the White House's handling of Libya. Now the administration is claiming some vindication.

The memorial to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., opened on the National Mall this week. NPR's Ari Shapiro introduces us to one man for whom this moment caps a long family story.

President Obama is getting criticized from all sides lately, and the African-American community is no exception. In an op-ed piece in Friday's New York Times, Princeton professor Cornel West condemned the president for ignoring homeowners, workers and poor people and, instead, giving "us bailouts for banks, record profits for Wall Street and giant budget cuts on the backs of the vulnerable."

Gov. Rick Perry made a splash the size of Texas into the Republican presidential field this week. He plunged in with events in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, demonstrating each step of the way that he's not shying away from controversy, or attention.

On Monday in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Perry showed he is more than happy to attack even the chairman of the Federal Reserve.

"If this guy prints more money between now and the election," Perry said, "I don't know what y'all would do to him in Iowa, but we would treat him pretty ugly down in Texas.

On a balmy August evening in Concord, N.H., the smells of summer float through the air: cooking meat, freshly cut grass and bug spray. A few hundred Ron Paul supporters have gathered under a white tent to hear their candidate speak at the opening of his state campaign headquarters.

They're excited about the Texas congressman's close second-place finish at the Republican presidential straw poll in Ames, Iowa. They're also a little frustrated that it hasn't been getting more attention.

"The Beast" has a new big brother.

"The Beast" is the nickname for the hulking limousine that carries the leader of the free world. Next to the new bus that the Secret Service debuted today for President Obama's Midwestern tour, though, the Beast looks downright puny.

When Air Force One arrived in Saint Paul, Minn., the vehicle was waiting at the bottom of the stairs. It has pitch black windows, Washington, D.C. tags, and communications equipment sprouting off the top like weeds.

Call it "Beast Bus,"or perhaps, "Mega-Beast."

President Obama likes to say that the American economy is facing headwinds: turmoil in Europe, the Arab spring and the tsunami in Japan. His reelection campaign is facing headwinds too: 9 percent unemployment, a U.S. credit downgrade, and a presidential approval rating slipping toward 40 percent.

Despite those daunting numbers, the President plans to convince Americans that he deserves another four years.

During the 2010 midterm campaign, Obama often told audiences that Republicans drove the economy into a ditch, and now they want the keys to the car back.

On Monday morning, U.S. markets opened for the first time since Standard & Poor's downgraded America's credit rating. Stocks went over the edge like an Olympic diver.

A few hours later, President Obama stepped in front of a microphone at the White House to proclaim his confidence in the U.S.

"No matter what some agency may say, we've always been and always will be a AAA country," he said.

He left the podium, and the financial plunge continued.

So, does having the biggest megaphone in the country do the president any good?

President Obama added a trip to Dover Air Force Base to his schedule Tuesday. He was on hand — with top military leaders — for the return of the remains of U.S. military personnel killed in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan.

There's no such thing as an uneventful week at the White House. Yet even by the climactic standards of this presidency, the past week has been a big one.

President Obama might have hoped the biggest news story of the week would be his 50th birthday. Not even close.

When Monday dawned, it was still unclear whether the U.S. would run out of money to pay its bills. With hours to go until the deadline Tuesday, Congress finally passed a deal to raise the debt ceiling.

Obama announced the resolution in the White House Rose Garden.

When White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley joined President Obama's team at the beginning of the year, he was expected to bring stability and a centrist approach to managing a sometimes chaotic White House.

His close connection to the business world was one of the strongest selling points as chief of staff. Daley built close friendships with business leaders during his years at JP Morgan Chase, and the White House hoped he could undo some of the bad blood that developed between Obama and business leaders during the first two years of the term.