POL-Senate-Hawaii-Schatz

Hawaii's newest senator was nominated, appointed, and sworn into his seat so quickly he had to scramble to get himself ready for the red-eye flight to Washington. "I bought this coat yesterday," Brian Schatz told reporters after landing on the mainland dressed in an overcoat - hardly necessary in Hawaii, where temperatures were in the low 70s on Thursday. Hours later, he was sworn in by the Senate's top officer, Vice President Joe Biden.

POL-Markey-Senate-Massachusetts

Rep. Ed Markey of Massachusetts said Thursday he will seek the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. John Kerry, who was nominated to become the next secretary of state last week.

POL-Clinton-Back-To-Work

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will return to work next week after a nasty bout with stomach flu and a concussion sidelined her for three weeks.

POL-Kerry-Confirmation-Preparations

It's better to be Santa than Scrooge, as Sen. John Kerry's staff realized belatedly. They backed off asking senior managers to work over the holiday weekend and Christmas Eve as they scramble to prepare their boss for his confirmation hearing to become the next secretary of state.

POL-Bush-Hospital-Update

The family of George H.W. Bush expressed confidence Thursday that the former president will be released shortly from an intensive care unit at a Houston hospital, where he is being treated for an elevated fever.

MONEY

MONEY-dinosaur-smuggler

A dinosaur smuggler has pleaded guilty and now faces 17 years in prison.

MONEY-stocks-markets

U.S. stocks erased sharp losses Thursday as lawmakers scrambled to come up with a solution to the fast-approaching fiscal crisis.

MONEY-spain-bankia-shares

Shares in Spain's Bankia plunged Thursday as private investors ditched the stock before an imminent EU-backed rescue wipes out much of their holdings.

FEATURES AND COMMENTARY

TECH-top-tech-stories-2012

The top 12 tech stories of 2012

ENT-Patrick-Dempsey-Coffee-Chain

"Grey's Anatomy" star Patrick Dempsey believes he and a group of investors are just what the doctor ordered for a struggling Seattle-based coffee chain. Dempsey said the group wants to save 500 jobs by purchasing Tully's Coffee, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October. The company, citing "rising commodity prices and challenging lease economics," said it planned to close a number of underperforming coffee shop locations as part of its reorganization.

ENT-archery-pop-culture-2012

Starting with the success of "The Hunger Games," archery was big in 2012