Locking the lobby door?

Washington lawmakers are grilling Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito today. But behind the scenes, they're talking about what legislation they need to pass to mute the criticisms over the Jack Abramoff scandal. Hillary Wicai looks what rules on lobbying might change.

Tyco goes micro

Shares of Tyco International surged 4% this morning after a Wall Street Journal report said the group may be broken up. Why are investors so excited about the news? Alisa Roth reports.

Striking back

Haiti's Chamber of Commerce called for a strike today to protest the inability of UN peackeepers there to stop the wave of kidnappings that have hit Haiti's middle and upper classes. Reed Lindsey reports from Port-au-Prince.

Sooner or later it adds up to real money

Economist Joseph Stiglitz estimates that the Iraq war could cost the US between $1-2 TRILLION. Stiglitz and co-author Linda Bilmes considered factors including recruiting costs, damaged military equipment, and healthcare.

Bedore predicts for 2006...

The year's only a week old, but prognosticators are already figuring out what lies ahead in 2006. At least one market analyst's betting the Dow will hit 13,000. But comedian/commentator Tim Bedore thinks most economic predictions tend to be wrong. He's got a few of his own...

A better world through books?

Any college student will tell you that textbooks are expensive. But one start-up has a novel approach: It donates its profits to charity. From the Marketplace Entrepreneurship Desk, Bill Poorman reports.

Where fashion meets modesty

The Koran enjoins Muslims to always dress modestly... but that doesn't have to mean plainly. As Nancy Farghalli reports, retailers are starting to get the message and respond to a new niche market.