Members of Congress appear to have reached a deal to extend the payroll tax cut through the end of the year. The agreement comes after GOP leaders reneged on their insistence the tax break be offset with other spending cuts.

President Obama had some harsh words for Chinese authorities during his state of the union address last January: "I will not stand by when our competitors don’t play by the rules," he said. "We've brought trade cases against China at nearly twice the rate as the last Administration, and it’s made a difference." The tough talk continued while President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden met with Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping yesterday. 

Three years ago, Chris Brown made headlines when he brutally beat his then-girlfriend Rhianna, putting her in the hospital and forcing both to cancel their scheduled Grammy performances. Brown was invited back for this year's awards show, and performed twice to great acclaim. Since Sunday's event, many of Brown's female fans — aka members of "Team Breezy" — have expressed their support by tweeting that they would let him beat them up.

After months of squabbling, congress has reached a tentative deal on an extension of the payroll tax cut and jobless benefits that would last until the end of the year. Initially the GOP said they would not approve an extension unless it was financed by other spending cuts, but have since rescinded that position. So what's changed?

The unlikely story of Jeremy Lin continues in dramatic fashion. Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin made a tie breaking 3-pointer with less than a second to play to cap his finishing flurry of six straight points as New York rallied to beat Toronto, extending its winning streak to six games. Joining us now is Takeaway director and super fan Jay Cowit.

The ripple effect of the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis and a chronically sluggish economy have changed the face of poverty in America. Sections of the population who never previously utilized the "safety net" have experienced long periods of under, or unemployment and struggled to get by. According to recent Census data, 47 million Americans now live below the poverty line. In 55 cities across the country, the new urban poor have responded by living in tent cities.

Israel says the bombs set off in Thailand were similar to those used earlier this week against Israeli diplomats in India and Georgia. Iran has been implicated in the blasts, something Tehran denies. Israel's deputy prime minister says the attacks are all part of Iran's plan to become a super power.

"I am a son of Detroit." That's the first line from an op-ed Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney published in The Detroit News on Tuesday. The candidate's father, George Romney, was the Governor of Michigan in the 1960s; Mitt Romney grew up in Michigan, and with the Michigan primary contest just a week away, he’s been vigorously re-asserting his roots. But given the fact Romney hasn't lived in the state in years and "corporate-raider" past, whether or not Michigan voters will accept him as a native son remains to be seen.

Many modern political dynasties are built on "like father, like son." However, Mitt Romney's cautious presidential bid in many ways highlights how he's different from his old man. In 1967, former Michigan Governor George Romney candidly revealed that he had changed his stance on the Vietnam War with the remark, "When I came back from Vietnam, I had just about the greatest brainwashing that anybody can get." Most pundits agree that this remark effectively ended George Romney's 1968 presidential campaign.

After Ben-Ali fled Tunisia, and Mubarak ran from Egypt, the Libyan revolution began in Benghazi and then traveled east, to Tripoli. After an intense civil war bolstered by international support, Moammar Gadhafi’s 40-year reign finally ended last October in his hometown of Sirte. As Libyans celebrate the anniversary of their revolution, the state of their government is still in flux, and the role of women in Libyan civic life is particularly uncertain.

In 2009, the Food and Drug Administration rejected an artificial hip manufactured by Johnson & Johnson. However, the company continued to sell the hip replacement in Europe and marketed a related model stateside. More than 90,000 patients worldwide used these faulty devices, and resulted in painful corrective surgery for many. In the wake of an August 2010 recall and thousands of lawsuits, Johnson & Johnson has lost at least $3 billion.

In recent years, U.S. special operations forces — a shadowy division of elite soldiers — have emerged as the new heroes behind some of the country’s toughest military operations, like rescuing Jessica Buchanan, an American woman who’d been kidnapped by Somali pirates, and killing Osama Bin Laden. Now Admiral William McCraven, the leader of the special operations command, is seeking new authority to deploy his forces with less Pentagon oversight.