ADVISORY CNN Wire Outlook

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Supervising News Editor Maggie Leung -- 404-827-1401

UPCOMING

POL-Fiscal-Cliff (Will update)

An agreement to avert the fiscal cliff of automatic tax increases and spending cuts appeared "within sight," President Barack Obama said Monday, but lawmakers said nothing will pass Congress before a midnight deadline.

North-Carolina-Wilmington-10 (Will update)

Forty years after they were convicted by a jury of firebombing a grocery store in Wilmington, North Carolina, civil rights activists who became known as the "Wilmington 10" were pardoned Monday by the state's outgoing governor.

Venezuela-Chavez-Health (monitoring)

Leaders in Venezuela's capital are asking residents to take a more somber approach than usual to ring in the New Year.

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED STORIES

CNN SHOWCASE

Iraq-One-Year-Later -- By Chelsea J. Carter

A year ago, with the departure of U.S. troops from Iraq, there was cautious optimism in Iraq about its future. That was on "Iraq Day," the celebration of the December 31 deadline for American troops to withdraw from the country -- a moment that marked the official end of the war. One year later, much about a post-war Iraq remains unclear -- for the Iraqis and Americans who lived it and fought it -- as the country struggles to define itself, with its government stumbling from one political crisis to another.

INTERNATIONAL

Iraq-Violence

At least 16 people were killed and dozens were injured in attacks across Iraq Monday amid an apparent uptick in sectarian tensions. Most of the attacks targeted Shiites, including bomb blasts that injured pilgrims traveling to shrines just days before a religious celebration.

Venezuela-Chavez-Health

Leaders in Venezuela's capital are asking residents to take a more somber approach than usual to ring in the New Year.

South-Africa-Mandela

South African President Jacob Zuma urged his countrymen Monday to keep the ailing Nelson Mandela in their prayers.

New-Years-Date-Line-Quirk

Just 101 miles separate Samoa and American Samoa. But one will be the first country in the world to welcome the New Year; the other will have to wait a full day.

Africa-Big-Five

The deadly church and mosque attacks in Nigeria and Kenya, and the deaths of Ghanaian and Ethiopian leaders dominated sub-Saharan Africa headlines in 2012. But lost in the midst were a series of positive stories. For every conflict, there was a milestone. For every violence, there was reconciliation. For every setback, progress. Here are the top 5 positive stories out of the continent, as chosen by those who call it home.

TECH-kruger-latest-sightings-nadav-ossendryver

School boy's wildlife-tracking website helps tourists spot big beasts.

SPORT-Jimenez-Leg-Break-Golf-Skiing

Miguel Angel Jimenez may be the oldest golfer to win on the European Tour, but his lust for life has put a big dent in his hopes of extending that record in 2013. The 48-year-old, known for his love of cigars and fine wine, has been ruled out for at least three months after breaking his leg while skiing in his native Spain at the weekend.

FISCAL CLIFF

POL-Fiscal-Cliff

US-Fiscal-Cliff-Anger

The "fiscal cliff" is hours away. And Americans are angry. Across the country, millions are fed up with a Congress that seems unable to get some important things done.

MONEY-fiscal-cliff-rich

Being "rich" could become a whole lot tougher. Under one fiscal cliff proposal being worked out in Congress, taxes would rise only on couples making more than $450,000. That's a lot higher than the $250,000 threshold that policy makers had long marked as the dividing line between the middle class and the rich. Just under 2% of filers, or 2.85 million, have adjusted gross incomes above $250,000.

MONEY-debt-ceiling

It's official: U.S. debt will reach its legal borrowing limit on Monday, giving Congress about two months before it must raise the debt ceiling or risk causing the government to default on its bills and financial obligations. "I can confirm we will reach the statutory debt limit today, Dec. 31," a Treasury Department official said.

MONEY-Fiscal-Cliff-Impact

The fiscal cliff hasn't been reached yet, but it has already affected the nation's economy.

MONEY-family-tax-credits

With the fate of the fiscal cliff uncertain, the Shivers family is bracing for a big tax hit. Many families like the Shivers could also end up worse off by hundreds or thousands of dollars next year if a deal to avert the fiscal cliff isn't reached.

MONEY-fiscal-cliff-sequester-furloughs

Federal workers are bracing for furloughs that could start to take place in the next few months if Congress doesn't replace massive budget cuts scheduled to begin Wednesday.

POL-Fiscal-Cliff-Roberts

Chief Justice John Roberts is warning leaders in the other two branches of the federal government that the pending "fiscal cliff" would "inevitably result in the delay or denial of justice for the people the courts serve."

MORE POLITICS

POL-Hillary-Clinton-Hospitalized

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was treated with blood thinners on Monday at a New York hospital to help dissolve a blood clot in her head and doctors were confident she would make a full recovery.

MED-Blood-Clots

Four things you need to know about blood clots.

POL-Benghazi-Senate-Investigation

Terrorists in Benghazi, Libya, "essentially walked right into the Benghazi compound unimpeded and set it ablaze," a special Senate report on the September 11 attack that killed a U.S. ambassador and three other Americans says.

POL-Employer-Contraception-Ruling

The billionaire founder of Domino's Pizza has won a temporary court victory, with a federal judge blocking enforcement of part of the health care reform bill requiring most employers to provide a range of contraception and reproductive health services.

POL-BTN-2013-Politics

Two-thousand-thirteen promises to be an interesting political year -- with two governors races that will be closely watched, the very real possibility of another special Senate election in Massachusetts, a possible debate in Washington over immigration reform as the political clout of Latinos continues to grow, and a planned push by Democrats for gun control measures. By the numbers, here's a look ahead at politics in 2013.

POL-Political-5-Things-2013

OK. The budget deficit, the debt ceiling, and tax reform are givens. We know that those battles will continue to be in the political spotlight throughout 2013. But what else will be front and center in the New Year Here are five other things to keep your eyes on.

POL-Politics-Top-10

Picking the top 10 moments of an election year is like finding your favorite grain of sand on the beach -- there is an impossible number of possibilities.

U.S.A.

North-Carolina-Wilmington-10

Connecticut-Newtown-Shooting

The father of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooter Adam Lanza claimed his body last week, a family spokesman said. Peter Lanza claimed the body on Thursday, family spokesman Errol Cockfield said. The spokesman declined to specify where the body would be buried.

MED-doctors-gun-debate

The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14 has compelled the editors of the medical journal Annals of Internal Medicine to call on other physicians to become active participants in the discussion about gun violence and gun policy in this country.

New-York-Explosives

A New York City man and woman have been arrested in Manhattan, accused of possession of an explosive substance and a sawed off shotgun, authorities say. The pair also had a document that appears to be titled "The Terrorist Encyclopedia," according to court documents.

Texas-Planned-Parenthood

A Texas judge denied a Planned Parenthood request for a temporary restraining order Monday that would have extended the organization's ability to participate in the state's revamped Women's Health Program. A law going into effect Tuesday requires the state to fully fund women's health clinics with the exception of those that are affiliated with abortion providers. Previously, such establishments obtained 90% of their money through the Social Security Administration and other federal funding.

US-Banished-Words-List

Dear 2012, now that you're gone, please take these lame words with you: trending, spoiler alert, bucket list, superfood, guru and job creators. Oh yeah, and don't forget yolo. That's the message from scholars at Lake Superior State University.

US-New-Years-Draq-Queen-Drop

It started in 1996 as a crazy idea to ring in the new year, but police nearly shut it down. "They said, 'We have an idea: Let's do a shoe drop. ... We made this shoe for you,'" recalled Gary "Sushi" Marion, the star of a weekly drag queen review in Key West. "'You've got to sit in it for New Year's Eve,' and I said 'OK,' and that is how it started."

MED-pill-color

It's not the color, but what's inside that counts when it comes to medication. However, doctors suspect that's not exactly how patients see it. According to a study published Monday in the medical journal Archives of Internal Medicine, changes in pill color significantly increase the odds that a patient will fail to take their medication as prescribed by their doctor.

MONEY

MONEY-Unemployment-Benefits

Some 2.1 million jobless Americans are receiving their last federal unemployment checks this week if Congress doesn't extend the deadline to file for extended benefits.

MONEY-doctors-medicare-cuts

For doctors who treat the nation's 47 million Medicare patients, the countdown to 2013 brings them ever closer to a staggering 29% pay cut slated for the New Year. Current federal law requires that Medicare reimbursement rates be adjusted annually to keep spending in line with GDP growth. But Medicare spending has typically outpaced economic growth, so the law requires rates to be cut every year to keep Medicare financially sound.

MONEY-gas-prices

Gasoline prices averaged the highest ever in 2012, despite never topping the single day spikes seen in 2008.

MONEY-record-box-office

U.S. moviegoers bought a record $10.8 billion in movie tickets this year, with the number of tickets sold rising for the first time in three years.

MONEY-Stocks-Markets

Stocks rallied Monday, ending a volatile year on a high note, as investors welcomed signs a fiscal cliff deal is taking shape in Washington.

MONEY-Zynga-Games

Struggling online game company Zynga shut down two more titles Sunday as part of an ongoing cost-cutting aimed at reversing the company's mounting losses.

MONEY-Stocks-Greece

Few would have bet on Greece being Europe's best performing stock market in 2012, but it managed to outstrip Germany's DAX, as international support silenced speculation about an imminent exit from the eurozone.

MONEY-Europe-Merkel

A year after Europe stood on the brink of economic disaster, financial markets are calmer and the chances of the euro disintegrating have diminished. But the region's most powerful political leader warns that the economic environment will be tougher in 2013.

FEATURES AND COMMENTARY

ENT-Kanye-Kardashian-Pregnancy

The Twitterverse exploded early Monday morning after everyone's favorite bad boy rapper Kanye West announced that his girlfriend -- the famous-for-being-famous Kim Kardashian -- was pregnant.

ENT-Jessica-Simpson-new-baby-bump

She only just showed off her weight loss and now Jessica Simpson is proudly sharing her weight gain. The singer posted a pic of her growing baby bump on her Twitter account Sunday.

ENT-Matthew-McConaughey-baby-boy

It's a boy! No, seriously, it's really a boy for Matthew McConaughey and his love Camila Alves. Despite earlier reports that the couple had welcomed a baby girl, McConaughey took to his Twitter account to announce that their third child was a son.

ENT-Lindsay-Lohan-2012-Media

In the eyes of the public, the year is ending for Lindsay Lohan in much the same way it began: with an impending court date.

COMMENTARY-Avlon-Cabdriver-Resume

Jack Alvo drives the streets of the New York City six days a week -- the 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. shift. He never imagined he'd be a cabdriver at his age. After all, a decade ago, he was pulling down $250,000 a year on Wall Street. He survived the 9/11 attacks while working in wealth management for Morgan Stanley on the 73rd floor of the World Trade Center's South Tower. He was a lucky man. But Jack lost his last finance job in 2009, not so long after the markets crashed during the Great Recession. He is still in its grasp, trying to raise two kids, his hair now gray, driving a yellow taxi through the steel and concrete caverns of Manhattan.

COMMENTARY-Zelizer-GOP-Future

In 2013, the Republican Party faces a big test. Members begin the new year in disarray, with their public approval ratings plummeting while Democrats still control the White House and Senate. The year is coming to a close with an embarrassing display of legislative ineptitude as House Republicans divided over a solution to the fiscal cliff. Without displaying the capacity for strong leadership, political parties can't succeed.

COMMENTARY-Frum-Appreciate-HW-Bush

George H.W. Bush marked his 80th and 85th birthdays with parachute jumps. He said after the second jump: "Just because you're an old guy, you don't have to sit around drooling in the corner. Get out and do something. Get out and enjoy life." Now 88, Bush has been struggling with serious health concerns, including bronchitis. We need him to recover, to set an example for the world of how a man can mark his 90th.