AP - President-elect Barack Obama plunged into rare pre-inaugural crisis talks with congressional leaders Monday, declaring the national economy was "bad and getting worse" and embracing tax cuts now expected to reach $300 billion. He predicted lawmakers would approve a mammoth revitalization package within two weeks of his taking office.

AP - President-elect Barack Obama's decision to fill the nation's top intelligence jobs with two men short on direct experience in intelligence gathering surprised the spy community and signaled the Democrat's intention for a clean break from Bush administration policies.

AP - GAZA CITY, Gaza — Israel ignored mounting international calls for a cease-fire Monday and said it won't stop its crippling 10-day assault until "peace and tranquility" are achieved in southern Israeli towns in the line of Palestinian rocket fire.

AP - Republican and Democratic House members said Monday that the alleged $50 billion fraud involving Wall Street figure Bernard Madoff reflects deep, systemic problems at the Securities and Exchange Commission.

AP - Chrysler LLC's December U.S. sales plunged by more than half and it sold 30 percent fewer vehicles in 2008, dwarfing the steep declines at the other major automakers as consumers remained uncertain about the economy and their jobs.

AP - Waterford Wedgwood PLC, the maker of classic china and crystal, filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday after attempts to restructure the struggling business or find a buyer failed.

AP - India handed Pakistan detailed evidence on the Mumbai attacks on Monday that included information on interrogations, weapons, and data gleaned from satellite phones that officials said proved Pakistani "elements" were behind the deadly siege.

AP - The United States inaugurated its largest embassy ever on Monday, a fortress-like compound in the heart of the Green Zone — and the most visible sign of what U.S. officials call a new chapter in relations between America and a more sovereign Iraq.

Reuters - Tiny diamonds sprinkled across North America suggest a "swarm" of comets hit the Earth around 13,000 years ago, kicking up enough disruption to send the planet into a cold spell and drive mammoths and other creatures into extinction, scientists reported on Friday.

AP - Doctors in the Bahamas conducted an autopsy Monday on John Travolta's 16-year-old son, but authorities did not immediately disclose the results.

AP - Defiant and upbeat, Illinois U.S. Senate appointee Roland Burris said Monday that upon arriving in Washington, he plans to tell Democratic leaders: "I'm here to take my seat." But Burris faces an uphill battle on Capitol Hill, where his fellow Democrats have pledged not to accept anyone appointed by embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich to fill the seat left vacant by Barack Obama's election as president.

AP - A Minnesota board on Monday certified results showing Democrat Al Franken winning the state's U.S. Senate recount over Republican Norm Coleman, whose lawyer promised a legal challenge that probably will keep the race in limbo for months.

AP - Take that, Andromeda! For decades, astronomers thought when it came to the major galaxies in Earth's cosmic neighborhood, our Milky Way was a weak sister to the larger Andromeda. Not anymore. The Milky Way is considerably larger, bulkier and spinning faster than astronomers once thought, Andromeda's equal.

Reuters - U.S. prosecutors asked a judge to revoke the bail terms for alleged swindler Bernard Madoff and detain him on Monday, claiming he was a flight risk.

AP - President-elect Barack Obama describes the economy as "bad and getting worse."

AP - Two Democratic officials say President-elect Barack Obama has chosen former Clinton White House chief of staff Leon Panetta to run the CIA. Panetta was a surprise pick for the post, with no experience in the intelligence world. An Obama transition official and another Democrat disclosed his nomination on a condition of anonymity since it was not yet public.