Chicago, Dec. 13 : US President-elect Barack Obama''s economic team is considering an economic-stimulus program that could be in excess of 600 billion dollars to be used over a period of two years.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, sources close to the Obama camp said with the unemployment rate now expected to hit nine percent without aggressive intervention, Obama aides and advisers have set $600 billion over two years as "a very low-end estimate."

The final number is expected to be significantly higher, possibly between 700 billion dollars and a trillion dollars over two years.

Washington, Dec 13: US President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration ceremony will apparently be a star-studded event in history.

Celebrities from all over the entertainment industry are expected to fly down to Washington D. C. for welcoming the new President of the United States.

The inauguration ball on Jan. 20 will be headlined by musicians Sting, Elvis Costello and Sam Moore, reports People.

Washington, Dec. 13: A close associate of US President-elect Barack Obama, Senator John Kerry, will soon visit Pakistan to discuss anti-terrorism strategies.

Senator Kerry will also visit India and Afghanistan, the Dawn reports.

Kerry is due to become chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee next month.

Brooke Anderson, a spokeswoman for Obama, said the president-elect “will be very interested to hear about the trip from Senator Kerry, whose insight he values greatly”.

Lahore, Dec. 13 : US President-elect Barack Obama's key adviser on South Asian affairs, Bruce Reidel has described Pakistan as the most dangerous country in the world and predicted that the next nuclear war could take place in South Asia.

Chicago, Dec. 13: Rahm Emanuel, US President-elect Barack Obama's designated Chief of Staff, is reportedly facing claims that he had repeated conversations with Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, who has been accused of trying to sell Obama''s US Senate seat.

Sources close to the investigation were quoted by The Telegraph as saying that Emanuelhad conversations about the issue with both Blagojevich and his chief of staff John Harris, who is also facing corruption charges.

Washington  - The scandal surrounding Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has placed president-elect Barack Obama and his advisors on the defensive, as they face questions about their contacts with the embattled governor.

While there have been no indications that Obama or any of his staff engaged in wrongdoing, the intense media interest in the scandal has been an early distraction as Obama - only weeks from taking office - assembles his team and tries to focus on the economic crisis and other problems facing the United States.