Washington  - US President George W Bush said Monday he was hopeful that Lithuanians will be able to travel to the United States as early as next month without getting a visa.

"You can take back to your people a very positive report about this very important initiative," Bush said during a meeting with Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus. "And you and your government deserve a lot of credit for it."

Washington  - The Phoenix Mars lander has found snow falling from clouds above Mars, NASA said Monday.

The snow evaporated before it reached the ground, Phoenix's instruments showed.

"Nothing like this view has ever been seen on Mars," researcher Jim Whiteway of York University in Toronto said. "We'll be looking for signs that the snow may even reach the ground."

Scientists also said they had found calcium carbonate - the main component of chalk - and possibly clay, both of which form only in the presence of liquid water.

Washington  - US President George W Bush on Monday vowed to move forward on a strategy to resolve the nation's financial crisis after the House of Representatives delivered a stinging defeat to his 700-billion-dollar bail-out package.

"We put forth a plan that was big because we've got a big problem," Bush said, adding he planned to tackle the crisis "head on."

"We'll be working to develop a strategy that will enable us to move forward," he said.

Washington  - Democratic and Republican leaders of the House of Representatives traded accusations over the failure of a massive rescue plan for the US financial industry, but promised to go back to the drawing table to find a workable compromise.

"We delivered on our side of the bargain," said Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, pointing out that 60 per cent of majority Democrats voted for a bill proposed by Republican President George W Bush.

Washington  - US stocks plunged more than 5 per cent Monday after the US House of Representatives rejected a hotly debated 700- billion-dollar rescue plan for the US financial system.

Stocks were already sliding on the news of the collapse of the country's fourth-largest bank, Wachovia Corp, and banking giant Citigroup's intervention to buy up the bulk of its operations.

But investor uncertainty increased after the early afternoon vote in the House, which voted 228-205 against the bill. Republicans led the opposition, voting by 2-1.

Washington  - The White House, reeling from the congressional defeat of its 700-billion-dollar plan to bail out Wall Street on Monday, was evaluating what to do next to stave off a broader economic collapse.

"It's a disappointment," Tony Fratto, a White House spokesman, told CNN. "We thought there would be enough support for this legislation."