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The government's latest response to the financial crisis involves taking ownership stakes in financial institutions in order to get credit flowing through the economy again. Treasury Secretary Paulson said he didn't like government ownership of banks, but the alternatives, he said, were "totally unacceptable."

President Barack Obama and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner have announced stricter rules on executive compensation at banks receiving "exceptional" levels of aid from the federal government. Some executives will have their annual salary capped at $500,000.

The economy shrank at a pace of 3.8 percent in the final three months of last year, the worst performance in more than two decades. At the White House, President Barack Obama took note as he was launching a task force to focus on helping the middle class.

President Obama will soon have the chance to appoint a new justice to the U.S. Supreme Court. Justice David Souter is planning to retire at the end of the court's term.

President Obama says the economy is still stressed out, but there are "glimmers of hope." After meeting with economic advisers, the president says those include low mortgage rates leading to refinancing, increases in small business loans and stimulus tax cuts making their way into paychecks.

A Senate Judiciary subcommittee held a hearing Wednesday with a witness who warned the Bush administration against harsh interrogation techniques. Former FBI agent Ali Soufan interrogated Abu Zubaydah. He called the harsh methods ineffective.

President-elect Barack Obama is said to have chosen Chicago schools chief Arne Duncan to serve as education secretary. Duncan has run the country's third-biggest school district for the past seven years. He has focused on improving struggling schools, closing those that fail and getting better teachers.

The Senate has voted 94-2 to confirm Hillary Clinton as secretary of State. Clinton was expected to be confirmed Tuesday, but Texas Sen. John Cornyn raised objections, citing foreign contributions to Bill Clinton's foundation.

President Barack Obama is freezing all pending federal rules changes left by the Bush administration. He also froze salaries for White House staffers who make more than $100,000 a year. And because of some bungled wording during Tuesday's swearing-in ceremony, Chief Justice John Roberts re-administered the oath to Obama Wednesday.

The latest movie in the Star Trek franchise opens on Thursday — though it premiered Wednesday night at the San Diego Comic-Con. Director Justin Lin was there to walk the fine line with fans.