Obama pledged change, picks insiders

President-elect Barack Obama promised the voters change but has started his Cabinet selection process by naming several Washington insiders to top posts.

Ariz. Gov. Napolitano is pick for DHS

Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano is President-elect Barack Obama's choice to serve as secretary of homeland security, Democratic sources said late Wednesday.

Report: Economy is sickening U.S. hospitals
The dismal economy has U.S. hospitals ailing, with new data showing declines in overall admissions and elective procedures, plus a big jump in patients who can't pay for care.

Bush set to relax rules protecting species
Animals in danger of becoming extinct could lose the protection of government experts who make sure that dams and other projects don't pose a threat, under a regulation the Bush administration is set to put in place.

Blast kills 1, wounds 23 at Thai PM's office

A grenade attack on anti-government protesters occupying the Thai prime minister's office killed one person and wounded at least 23 early Thursday, an army official and protesters said.

Teen lives 118 days without a heart
An American teenager survived for nearly four months without a heart, kept alive by a custom-built artificial blood-pumping device, until she was able to have a heart transplant.

NYT: Daschle poses conflict-of-interest test

The choice of Tom Daschle for secretary of health and human services poses questions about how broadly Barack Obama will apply campaign promises to limit conflicts of interest among appointees.

Calif. court takes up gay marriage ban
California's highest court agreed Wednesday to hear several legal challenges to the state's new ban on same-sex marriage but refused to allow gay couples to resume marrying before it rules.

McDonald's courts moms as emissaries

McDonald's has recruited mothers to go behind the scenes of the company's operations, meet senior executives and then communicate what they see via the Web in a bid to brighten its image.