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and Afghanistan have largely defined his foreign policy for much of his presidency. But he's at times struggled to articulate how his response to a new set of challenges in places like Syria, Ukraine and Iran fit into an overarching foreign policy philosophy.
• That's left Obama open to intense criticism from opponents who argue he has squandered America's global leadership and lacks the credible threat of action that can stop international foes. That criticism has deeply frustrated the president and is a driving factor in his decision to deliver Wednesday's speech.
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Tricks some VA clinics used to hide wait times for veterans seeking health care
• WASHINGTON (AP) -- Fake appointments, unofficial logs kept on the sly and appointments made without telling the patient are among tricks used to disguise delays in seeing and treating veterans at Veterans Affairs hospitals and clinics.
• They're not a new phenomenon. VA officials, veteran service organizations and members of Congress have known about them for years.
• The "gaming strategies" were used to make it appear veterans were getting appointments within target times set by the department, according to a 2010 department memo to VA facility managers aimed at fighting the practices.
• The memo from William Schoenhard, then the VA's deputy undersecretary for health operations and management, said that when a medical appointment wasn't available within the 30-day target time then used by VA, some schedulers would:
• -- Make a fake appointment within the 30-day period but not tell the patient. The appointment would be canceled later and a new appointment would be made to meet a new 30-day target.
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Lawmakers, mourners talk guns, victims, mental illness as California rampage shakes state
• GOLETA, Calif. (AP) -- Thousands mourned the deaths of their classmates at a California university, lawmakers proposed ways to prevent the next round of deaths, and the rampant presence of guns were at the forefront of both discussions as a rampage that left seven dead reverberated across the state.
• Richard Martinez, whose son, Christopher Michaels-Martinez, 20, died in the attacks, spoke at Tuesday's memorial on the campus of the University of California, (Continued on page 28)
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