The end of 2012 was set to be Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's farewell tour as the top U.S. diplomat. But things clearly changed.

POL-Joe-Biden-TV

While it sometimes seems like Joe Biden is already the star of his own show, a new petition to the White House wants the vice president to take part in a TV program that spotlights his "daily activities." "Vice President Joe Biden has a demonstrated ability to bring people together, whether at the negotiating table or at the neighborhood diner," the petition states. It goes on to pitch the production of a "recurring C-SPAN television program featuring the daily activities and interactions" of Biden with other elected officials.

MONEY

MONEY-stocks-markets

Stocks started 2013 with the bang, with the S&P 500 finishing the week at its highest closing level since December 2007.

MONEY-bonds-Treasuries-investors

After ravenously buying up Treasuries for the past several years, investors have started cashing out, pushing yields higher and dinging their portfolios.

MONEY-Fed-hawks

Three Federal Reserve officials stressed Friday that moderate economic growth in 2013 may push the central bank to stop its controversial asset purchases before the end of the year.

MONEY-jobs-lowest-unemployment

Want a guaranteed job? Get used to being called doctor. And stay in school. The top five jobs with the lowest unemployment rates for 2012 are in the health care, finance or social service sectors -- and all require a lot of education and training.

MONEY-adele-top-album

Adele is on repeat at the top of the charts. The singer's blockbuster 21 was the top-selling album in the U.S. for both 2012 and 2011, according to Nielsen SoundScan, becoming the first album to pull off the repeat since Nielsen started tracking music sales in 1991. It clocked 4.41 million sales in 2012, including both digital and physical sales, after hitting 5.82 million in 2011.

MONEY-bieber-prepaid-card

Bieber Fever is spreading... to the prepaid card industry. Eighteen-year-old pop sensation, Justin Bieber, will promote a new prepaid debit card to his more than 30 million Twitter followers and 50 million Facebook fans, according to BillMyParents, the teen-focused financial company that's launching the card.

MONEY-toyota-self-driving-cars

Toyota will offer a glimpse into its self-driving car research on Monday, just ahead of the the Consumer Electronics Show, in Las Vegas.

MONEY-hulu-ceo-jason-kilar

Hulu CEO Jason Kilar is leaving the video-streaming company.

FEATURES AND COMMENTARY

ENT-Patrick-Dempsey-Coffee-Chain

"Grey's Anatomy" star Patrick Dempsey thinks he's just what the doctor ordered for a struggling Seattle-based coffee chain. Dempsey said he won the bid to buy Tully's Coffee, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October. The company, citing "rising commodity prices and challenging lease economics," said it planned to close a number of underperforming coffee shop locations as part of its reorganization.

TECH-Facebook-Offensive-Combat-game

While many people still associate Facebook games with casual offerings like Zynga's "FarmVille," the social media giant has expanded its game catalog through titles like KIXEYE's "War Commander" and Kabam's "The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle Earth." Now, Facebook has partnered with start-up U4iA Games (pronounced "euphoria") to launch its first "core" video game, the first-person shooter "Offensive Combat."