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Many inmates could be released or see their sentences sharply reduced as judges review crack cases starting Tuesday. Congress voted last year to ease sentencing guidelines for crack cocaine. But a decision last summer to revisit old cases sparked new controversy.

On Nov. 8, they'll go to the ballot box to vote on whether to block a law slashing the power of public employee unions. The law's backers argue it will help cities and schools hold down labor costs and lift the state's economy. But union workers say they've already done enough, citing a billion dollars in pay freezes and concessions.

A political calculation, not a financial one, may be at the heart of Prime Minister George Papandreou's decision Tuesday to send the EU debt restructuring proposal to voters, observers say.

Guy Raz speaks with Leslie Bruce, senior writer with the Hollywood Reporter, about the money behind reality star Kim Kardashian's wedding to basketball player Kris Humphries. The reportedly multimillion dollar wedding actually earned the Kardashian family money through various deals with entertainment television and magazines. But Kardashian filed for divorce Monday after 72 days of marriage.

Norris and Janis Galatas had planned to be settled at middle age. But then Norris got wounded in Iraq and Janis lost her job. They're barely squeaking by, and they feel like the middle class has been left behind. "It's sad that the American dream is not even realistic anymore," Norris says.

Former Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice was among the head architects of the way America responded to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. She was also at the center of divisive debates within the George W. Bush administration. In her new memoir No Higher Honor, she defends and explains Bush's decision to engage in war in Iraq, and shares how her work took a toll on her personal life. She speaks with host Michel Martin.

The schedule for the first four Republican presidential caucuses and primaries appeared officially set with New Hampshire announcing it would hold its first-in-the-nation primary on Jan. 10. That's seven days after the Iowa caucuses which were moved to Jan. 3, the first Tuesday of the new year, and which will kick off the process by which Republicans will choose their party's nominee.

Citing stronger economic growth, the Federal Reserve said it was not applying new policies to help the economy. The Fed said while the economy grew at a faster pace, there is still "continuing weakness in overall labor market conditions."

Even if people used bikes to run short errands than half the time, it could save more than 1,100 lives a year in 11 Midwestern cities, thanks to reduced air pollution and improved health. That's the word from scientists at the University of Wisconsin, who figured people would bike 4 months out of the year.

Historians have long struggled to explain how the West became the preeminent political and economic force in the modern world. In Civilization, historian Niall Ferguson credits six "killer apps" and explains how China is quickly catching on — and catching up.