ATHENS — Skirmishes between demonstrators and the police broke out outside the Greek Parliament at the start of a two-day general strike on Wednesday as tens of thousands of Greeks took to the streets in the largest demonstration in Athens in months, if not years. A crowd of dozens of youths took advantage of the moment to smash several storefronts and begin looting.

A gasoline bomb thrown by demonstrators burned near riot police officers guarding the …

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The Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. disagree over the transfers, which are being requested by counterparties, said the people, who asked to remain anonymous because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly. The Fed has signaled that it favors moving the derivatives to give relief to the bank holding company, while the FDIC, which would have to pay off depositors in the event of a bank failure, is objecting, said the people. The bank …

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WASHINGTON — Democrats and Republicans alike are struggling to make sense of the Wall Street protests and figure out how to respond to the growing nationwide movement a month after young people pitched a tent in front of the New York Stock Exchange and began demonstrating against economic inequality.

The political establishment’s quandary centers on this question: Do the protests have long-lasting political consequences or are they simply a temporary reflection of voter frustration with the …

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Protesters said that late on Monday police had issued an ultimatum to return to their small original encampment by nightfall or be moved along.

Protesters’ tents have been set up in Dewey Square Park in downtown Boston all month but on Monday expanded to a larger section of the nearby Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway.

Shortly after midnight, hundreds of Boston and Transit police officers, some in riot gear, moved in, handcuffing protesters and tearing down tents.

Police said …

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With the announcement early Monday that he had outlawed the public display of handguns in California, Gov. Jerry Brown bucked a national trend toward more lenient firearms laws and placed himself in the political cross-hairs of the state’s 2nd Amendment activists.

Brown, the owner of three guns, said in a statement that he signed a bill banning the open carrying of handguns at the urging of law enforcement officials, who included Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie …

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Senate Democratic leaders are proposing a 5% surtax on those earning $1 million a year as a new way pay for President Obama’s jobs plan, turning to an issue with populist appeal as they line up support for a vote, possibly next week.

The shift is an acknowledgement that the president does not have support among his Democratic allies for taxing those earning less than $1 million. Obama’s proposal had relied on tax hikes for households …

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One in three US veterans of the post-9/11 military believes the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were not worth fighting, and a majority think that, after 10 years of combat, America should be focusing less on foreign affairs and more on domestic problems, according to an opinion poll.

The findings pose a dilemma for the Obama administration and Congress as they struggle to reduce the huge budget deficit and reconsider defence priorities while trying to bolster …

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Protesters fed up with Wall Street’s practices and influence woke up Monday to their third morning of camping outside Los Angeles City Hall.

Some of the approximately 100 activists planned to head across the street to join the throng outside the courthouse where Michael Jackson’s personal physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, is on trial.

Members of Occupy Los Angeles, as their group is called, said they hoped to attract more media attention to their cause, which draws its …

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The “Occupy Wall Street” protests, now entering their third week, are poised to get a whole lot bigger than its core of 200 to 300 people, potentially even exceeding the protesters original goals of 20,000 demonstrators, thanks to recent pledges of support from some of New York City’s largest labor unions and community groups.

On Tuesday, over 700 uniformed pilots, members of the Air Line Pilots Association, took to the streets outside of Wall Street demanding …

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Bank of America, the nation’s biggest bank, said on Thursday that it planned to start charging customers a $5 monthly fee when they used their debit cards for purchases. It was just one of several new charges expected to hit consumers as new regulations crimp banks’ profits.

Wells Fargo and Chase are testing $3 monthly debit card fees. Regions Financial, based in Birmingham, Ala., plans to start charging a $4 fee next month, while SunTrust, …

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