Politics

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** FILE ** Tucked into the “fiscal cliff” tax package approved by Congress this week were billions of dollars in tax breaks, including a tax credit for the production of wind, solar and other renewable energy. (Associated Press)

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Senators line the steps to the Senate door of the Capitol to watch Sen. Mark Kirk, Illinois Republican, (second from left), accompanied by Sen. Joe Manchin III, West Virginia Democrat, as he returns to Congress on the first day of the 113th Congress on Thursday after suffering a stroke last January. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called Mr. Kirk “an inspiration.” (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)

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House Speaker John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, performs a mock swearing-in ceremoney for Rep. Donna F. Edwards (right), Maryland Democrat, on Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, on Capitol Hill in Washington as the 113th Congress began. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

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Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, who was forced to resign as commander of U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan in July 2010, presumably will tell about that and more from his 38-year career in his memoir, “My Share of the Task,” coming out Monday.

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House Speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio walks in House of Representatives chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, as the 113th Congress began. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

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** FILE ** In this Nov. 14, 2012 photo, U. S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during a news conference at the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations in Perth, Australia. Clinton was released from a New York hospital on Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013 three days after doctors discovered a blood clot in her head. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, Pool)

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Washington favorite Patricia Racette returns to the Washington National Opera in Giacomo Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut.” (Washington National Opera)

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House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, applauds after handing the gavel to House Speaker John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, who was re-elected as House Speaker of the 113th Congress, on Jan. 3, 2013, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Associated Press)

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**FILE** President Obama speaks at the South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington on Dec. 31, 2012. (Associated Press)

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Vice President Joseph R. Biden (left) watches as Sen. Mark Kirk (center), Illinois Republican, accompanied by Sen. Joe Manchin III, West Virginia Democrat, waves to applauding crowds as he walks up the steps to the Senate door at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013. Mr. Kirk returned to Congress after suffering a stroke last January. (Andrew Harnik/The Washington Times)