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President-elect Barack Obama has named Mary Schapiro to head the Securities and Exchange Commission. In a news conference in Chicago, Obama said government regulators "had dropped the ball," leading to the financial meltdown.

In Fort Hood, Texas, investigators are collecting information about Thursday's deadly attack at a soldier processing center. Thirteen people were killed, 12 of them soldiers, and 30 were wounded when a gunman, identified as Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, opened fire in the facility.

The U.S. Transportation Department said Thursday it has received more than 100 complaints from owners of the 2010 Toyota Prius and has opened an investigation into possible brake problems with the model. That's more bad news for Toyota, which has recalled more than 5 million vehicles of various models to repair problems with sudden acceleration.

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee rejected a provision to include a government-run public insurance option as part of the effort to overhaul the health care system. The vote was 15-to-8 against the measure.

President Obama challenged leaders gathered at the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday to join the U.S. in solving the world's problems rather than waiting for America to do it on its own. Obama used his first address to the U.N. General Assembly to calls for a "new era of engagement."

Iranian envoys meet Thursday in Geneva with representatives from Europe, Russia, China and the U.S. for talks that will focus on Tehran's suspect nuclear program. The meeting comes as Iran's foreign minister visited Washington on Wednesday on a rare visit.

Representatives from the U.S. and five other world powers outlined their concerns about Iran's nuclear program at a meeting in Switzerland with an Iranian delegation. U.S. officials held the highest-level direct talks with the Iranians in years.

In Austin, Texas, a small private plane crashed into a federal office building that housed Internal Revenue Service workers. Initial reports indicate the pilot hated the IRS and may have crashed the plane intentionally.

Toyota President Akio Toyoda apologized Friday two weeks after reports of problems with gas pedals and floor mats led to the recall of more than 5 million vehicles. But Japan is very much in denial that its national icon is in turmoil.

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.