JAY CARNEY: "Spending a number of hours together in that kind of environment, I think, can only help improve the chances of bipartisan cooperation. It certainly cannot hurt it. Unless someone wins really big, and then ... [Laughter]"

Don Van Natta wrote a book about American presidents and their golf games. He says it is highly unusual for a president to invite a political opponent to join him on the golf links.

DON VAN NATTA: "The closest example in history is Lyndon Baines Johnson, who played with senators from the opposing party who he wanted to lobby to vote for the civil rights legislation in the mid-sixties."

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

Contributing: Parke Brewer and Dan Robinson