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President Obama has selected trusted advisers Susan Rice and Samantha Power for key foreign policy positions. Rice has been under fire for her characterization of the attack last year in Benghazi. She withdrew her name for consideration as secretary of state after Senate Republicans threatened to block her possible nomination. Audie Cornish talks with NPR's Mara Liasson about the political calculations behind the president's picks.

Syrian troops and Hezbollah militants have recaptured the town of Qusair. The town near the Lebanese border had been under rebel control for more than a year. Rebel commanders confirm that their forces have retreated to two villages north of the town. Kelly McEvers

As President Obama meets his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, many experts hope this will be the start of something new: regular high-level contacts. History shows it is always dangerous when established powers face rising powers.

In a surprise move, a federal appeals court ruled that some "morning after" contraceptives must be made available without prescriptions now, even though the federal government is in the midst of appealing a lower court ruling that would make the pills widely available.

First lady Michelle Obama's confrontation with a heckler at a Democratic Party fundraiser Tuesday night has sparked a dramatic range of reaction.

Former President Bill Clinton and other dignitaries spoke at a memorial service for slain civil rights leader Medgar Evers on Wednesday morning. Evers was killed 50 years ago this month.

In a report, the International Monetary Fund said Greece's recession and unemployment problems were more severe than anticipated. But the report added that the overall bailout was a success because it prevented the country's economic troubles from spilling over to the rest of Europe.

Forecasters expect Tropical Storm Andrea to bring heavy rains to Florida before moving up the East Coast in the coming days. It is the first named storm in what is expected to be a busy hurricane season.

Two weeks after the brutal murder of a British soldier that brought a rise in hate crimes against Muslims in the U.K., a fire devastated an Islamic community center in London Wednesday. Scotland Yard says the cause of the blaze is being treated as suspicious; graffiti was found at the scene.

The attorney general heads to the Senate on Thursday, where lawmakers are sure to demand answers. But being in the center of the storm is nothing new for Holder. Over four years in office, he has been a lightning rod for the president's fiercest critics.