The lifting of the decades-old ban was announced on Instagram by Michelle Obama. The White House urged people to share their experience using the hashtag #WhiteHouseTour. Selfie sticks aren't allowed.
While the Obama administration maintains it will not negotiate with terrorists, it will allow families to negotiate on their own for release of loved ones.
After a shooting at a Charleston, S.C., church left nine dead, President Obama noted, "Mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries," but tighter gun controls in the U.S. were unlikely.
Omar Gonzalez, 43, has been in prison since last September, when he ran onto the grounds of the presidential residence and entered a White House door on a Friday evening.
The 12 countries in the Trans-Pacific Partnership account for almost 36 percent of the world's economy, which would make TPP by far the largest U.S. trade pact.
Three key provisions of the act sunset on June 1. The Senate has scheduled a rare Sunday session to try to pass a House measure that modifies some of the provisions.