With just a week left until we reach the $85 billion in automatic spending cuts known as the sequester, President Obama took to eight local media markets trying to pressure Congress to avoid the cuts. New research indicates that our main protection against the mosquito, DEET, may not be as effective as we thought. And, 11 scientists are $3 million richer than they were earlier this week thanks to the new ‘Breakthrough Prize’ awarded by Silicon Valley tech titans.

Campbell Soup Company controls about 50 percent of the soup market, which is far less than the 144-year-old company used to. In order to start growing again, Campbell’s has introduced a new line of soups specifically for millennials, but the results have been lukewarm. The government of Bulgaria has quit after nationwide protests against austerity measures. And a new report says college fundraisers brought in $31 billion in donations last year, with a full billion of that going to Stanford University.

One of the top cops on Wall Street isn’t a federal official, he’s Eric Schneiderman, the attorney general for the state of New York. Right now, he’s got his eyes on the big credit rating agencies and the role they played in the financial crisis. And a computer security firm is releasing a report today that links cyber attacks in the U.S. to hackers inside a Chinese military group. The Chinese government is denying the allegations which come from a company called Mandiant.

This month US Airways merged with American Airlines, then Warren Buffet bought Heinz — some experts are calling it the return of the mega deal, but do these big deals make companies stronger? A vote in the European Parliament tomorrow on whether Europe should temporarily stop issuing carbon permits could threaten one of the key measures designed to tackle climate change. And if you are not happy with your career, it could be time to take a look at who your friends are.

While the Dow has been inching toward a record high, Apple’s stock has taken a significant dive. But Allan Sloan, senior editor at large at Fortune Magazine, says that has more to do with investment managers on Wall Street than with what’s going on in Cupertino. The Group of 20 major world economies are meeting in Moscow today, and the biggest item on the agenda is global monetary policy with some countries complaining about a currency war. And you can refinance your mortgage, but what about your student loan?

On this Valentine’s Day, American Airlines and US Airways are making a wedding announcement as the boards of both carriers have approved a merger. Bob Crandall, the former CEO of American Airlines, joins us to discuss what’s ahead for what will be the world’s largest airline. Is a new global recession on the way? And, despite advice to the contrary, work colleagues frequently date each other. That can give HR a headache and lead to corporate policies barring office romance.

President Obama called for stronger gun control laws last night in his State of the Union address — and one of the big ideas being talked about is closing what’s called the “gun show loophole.” But is it really about gun shows and is it really a loophole? Leaders in Europe react to Obama’s call for new EU-US trade talks. This week, Netflix announced its teaming up with Dreamworks to create its first original cartoon series for kids.

As North Korea conducts another nuclear test, its neighbors weigh more sanctions. Publishing company McGraw-Hill, which owns the credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s that is the target of a $5 billion lawsuit by the Justice Department, reports earnings today. Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s (R) budget proposal cuts income taxes and it lowers the sales tax. But there’s the catch: It levies sales taxes on a big list of services for the first time.

Texas Governor Rick Perry is visiting California this week to attract companies away from the Golden State with promises of low taxes and fewer regulations. The EU’s Justice Commissioner says American companies like Google and Facebook must abide by a proposed new European law on data protection or face stiff penalties. The U.S. trade deficit shrank at the end of 2012, thanks in part to higher exports. Which of world’s economies depend most on exports?