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Steve Inskeep talks to President Obama about the widening gap between rich and poor in the U.S. The president says the decades-long trend has accelerated because of globalization and technology. Because of those two factors, a lot of manufacturing jobs have left the U.S.

John Boehner finds himself in a position he had hoped to avoid all year. With no deal on the budget, questions about whether he can effectively lead the House will only grow louder.

Disruptions in government services will slow growth, at least in the short term. But economists say they can't refine their predictions because they have no idea how long the shutdown might last or how many federal workers may be furloughed.

As the sun sets on the first day of a shutdown, lawmakers in Washington have made no progress. They're still at loggerheads.

In his interview with President Obama on Monday, NPR's Steve Inskeep says some of the president's remarks were reminiscent of what he said in 2011 during the debt ceiling crisis. One stark difference, however, was the president's firmness. "Absolutely I will not negotiate," the president said.

Hockey superstar Alex Ovechkin was among the first torch bearers for the 2014 Olympics that will be held in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. David Greene talks to Ovechkin about the various challenges ahead for the Winter Games, as well as the upcoming hockey season.

There's a new video game about to launch called "You Don't Mess With Putin." In it, the Russian leader battles some unlucky zombies at a news conference. But no superhero can do it alone. His sidekick? A hard-drinkin' American who goes by the name Comrade Mike.

Also: Sherman Alexie drinks the ebook Kool-Aid; Karen Russell on her new "genius" status; Marcela Valdes on YA novels and the economy.

The memoir Eat, Pray, Love turned author Elizabeth Gilbert into a phenomenon. Now, she turns again to fiction with The Signature of All Things, a novel that reviewer Lizzie Skurnick calls "one of the best of the year."

Eugene Rakow is a carpenter who shot himself in the heart with a nail gun. Doctors removed the nail and gave it to him as a souvenir. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the surgeon said Rakow was amazingly lucky. "Nine out of 10 people won't make it," according to the surgeon.