NATION BRIEFLY

He spoke at a credit-counseling agency in Arkansas that helps people saddled with debt.

Senate leaders hope soon to get back to the bill after their weeklong break; it has been snagged over an unrelated dispute about tax breaks and renewable energy.

GM, Toyota, Ford all post big U.S. June sales drops

DETROIT - General Motors Corp. soundly beat Toyota Motor Corp. in June to retain its traditional U.S. sales lead, but GM sales still dropped 18.2 percent during a dismal month for large automakers.

Toyota's U.S. sales fell 21.4 percent, while Ford Motor Co. said it sales tumbled nearly 28 percent. Chrysler LLC took a huge hit for the month with sales down 35.9 percent.

GM's shares bounced more than 2 percent higher in late trading Tuesday after sinking to their lowest level in more than a half century during Monday's session.




Read More