Washington  - President-elect Barack Obama's pick for treasury secretary could face tough questions in his confirmation hearing after problems arose Tuesday with his taxes and the immigration status of his former housekeeper.

Timothy Geithner, who now heads the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, apparently briefly employed a housekeeper whose immigration papers had expired while she worked for him, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

New York  - Many US newspapers are planning special commemorative issues to mark the January 20 inauguration of Barack Obama as president, the trade journal Editor and Publisher reported Tuesday.

The Washington Post is to cover the event with more than 70 reporters and plans to put out a special afternoon edition of the paper on the day of the inauguration. The paper will hit newsstands by 6 pm and will sell for two dollars.

Washington, January 13 : Knowing martial arts may be the best way to prevent thugs from laying their hands on US President-elect Barack Obama's Inauguration tickets.

Capitol Hill, a metonym for the United States Congress, was said to have been flooded with calls for the tickets almost as soon Obama won the election in November.

And now, with the 10 official inauguration balls beginning on January 18, the tickets were selling "like crack cocaine", potentially bearing a similar street value, according to a Congressional aide.

New York, January 13 : A high-profile lineup is set to dominate the stage at US President-elect Barack Obama's pre-inauguration ball.

Washington - The US civil rights movement of the 1960s opened up economic and social opportunities for African Americans, but it was accompanied by an erosion of the black family that continues to cause debate in the US.

On January 20, Barack Obama, the nation's first black president, will move into the White House with a traditional nuclear family: First lady Michelle, an accomplished professional; daughters Malia (10) and Sasha (7); his mother-in-law Marian Robinson; and even the promise of a first dog.

Washington - No US president in recent memory has entered office facing such huge crises or such enormous expectations as Barack Obama.

The Democratic president-elect is to be inaugurated January 20 as the country's 44th president, elected with a strong 53 per cent majority by voters disillusioned with eight years of Republican George W Bush.