U.S.

Senators bid farewell to Vice President Joe Biden, who spent much of his career in the Senate, during a special tribute in the Senate chamber.

President-elect Trump plans to nominate retired Marine Gen. John Kelly to become his secretary of Homeland Security. Kelly is a former head of U.S. Southern Command and a long-serving Marine infantryman. He would be the latest former general to join the nascent Trump administration.

President-elect Trump plans to nominate at least three former top generals to his cabinet, and he is said to be considering more former top four-star military commanders. NPR takes a look at why Trump favors the brass and what effect a cabinet of such leaders could have on the way he runs the government.

NPR's Asma Khalid reflects on a year covering politics at a moment when being Muslim was seen as a political problem for some.

Retired Gen. John Kelly, the former boss of the U.S. Southern Command, would be the third former general picked by President-elect Trump.

This study doesn't prove that optimism actually causes better health or postpones death. But it joins a growing body of evidence suggesting that they're fellow travelers.

Pruitt has made no secret of his disdain for the Environmental Protection Agency — his official biography calls him "a leading advocate against the EPA's activist agenda."

A congressional hearing on the proposed $85.4 billion merger focused heavily on questions about the impact on consumer prices and how the companies might use their competitive advantage.

Authorities say it's still too soon to tell what caused the fire, but that there is no evidence it was intentional.