Pope Francis, The Choice  —  With a focus on compassion, the leader of the Catholic Church has become a new voice of conscience.  Managing Editor Nancy Gibbs explains why Francis is TIME's choice for Person of the Year 2013  —  Once there was a boy so meek and modest, he was awarded a Most Humble badge.

House prepares to vote on budget deal  —  House Republicans are planning a Thursday vote on a bipartisan budget deal, one of their last legislative acts before leaving Washington for the rest of 2013.  —  Despite some conservative opposition inside and outside the Capitol …

Lamar Alexander top aide investigated for child porn  —  Law enforcement agents have searched the home of GOP Sen. Lamar Alexander's chief of staff over allegations of child pornography, according to a statement released by the senator's office.  —  Jesse Ryan Loskarn, who goes by his middle name …

NBC/WSJ poll: Obama ends year on low note  —  President Barak Obama attends Nelson Mandela's public memorial in Johannesburg, South Africa.  —  By Mark Murray, Senior Political Editor, NBC News  —  A year that began with President Barack Obama riding high after his re-election victory …

Cruz Says He Walked Out of Mandela Service When Raul Castro Spoke  —  Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, walked out of former South African President Nelson Mandela's memorial service Tuesday when Cuban President Raul Castro gave a speech, a spokeswoman for Cruz said.  —  “Sen. Cruz very much hopes …

Building On Our Progress and Moving Forward: Three Initial Steps  —  As more Americans give HealthCare.gov a second look, they are finding that the consumer experience is night and day compared to what it was back in October.  While more work remains, HealthCare.gov is working smoothly for the vast majority of users.

Since October, 1.2 million have gained Obamacare coverage  —  Just about 1.2 million people have gained health coverage through Obamacare, according to new federal data released Wednesday morning.  —  Approximately 365,000 of those people have purchased private insurance and 803,000 …

Cantor's Pediatric Research Bill Has Democrats Fuming  —  While the House ties up some legislative loose ends this week before adjourning for the year, there is one suspension bill the public — and House Republicans — might be surprised to find many Democrats opposing …

Court Restores India's Ban on Gay Sex  —  NEW DELHI — Gay sex became illegal again in India Wednesday after the Indian Supreme Court ruled that a colonial-era law banning gay sex should not have been struck down.  —  The ruling reverses a landmark judgment by a lower court …

Landrieu's First TV Ad Highlights Her Obamacare Fix  —  Landrieu is a top GOP target in 2014.  (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo)  —  Louisiana Sen. Mary L. Landrieu launched the first TV ad of her re-election campaign on Wednesday, highlighting her bill that would allow individual health …

GOP could shake up 2016 campaign  —  Washington (CNN) — A handful of Republican Party officials is quietly advancing a new batch of rules aimed at streamlining a chaotic presidential nominating process that many party insiders viewed as damaging to the their campaign for the White House in 2012, multiple GOP sources told CNN.

Six year old suspended for ‘sexual harassment’  —  CANON CITY, Colo. -  —  A six year old boy is suspended from school in Canon City for kissing a classmate on the cheek  —  His mother says it's a crush and the two children like each other.  But the school is calling it something else; sexual harassment.

Attorney General Kamala D. Harris Announces Arrest of Revenge Porn Website Operator  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced the arrest of the alleged owner and operator of a revenge porn website who facilitated the posting of more than 10,000 sexually explicit photos …