President Barack Obama gave his penultimate State of the Union address Tuesday night, displaying an energetic mood that many say has been missing the last few years. Giving his speech to Congress, which has a Republican majority in both chambers for the first time since 2006, the Democrat mentioned the progress that the country has made since the beginning of the century, but that the process is ongoing.

Tuesday night was historic, since for the first time Americans could read the address online as it was being delivered. In years past, it had been released to the press, with the understanding that reporters couldn’t analyze it until the President had spoken. In 2015, Americans had the opportunity to read along as President Obama gave his plans for the final two years of his term.

One of the more notable moments from Tuesday’s address was Obama’s response to those who applauded when he talked about the fact that his time as President is coming to a close. Listen here…

The Republican Party gave its official response to the address shortly afterward, with Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst choosing to talk, according to political experts, more about the GOP agenda rather than responding directly to Obama’s speech. Florida Congressmen Carlos Curbelo and Curt Clawson gave the Spanish-language and Tea Party responses, respectively.

President Obama will give one final State of the Union address in 2016.

Monday night will mark the first episode of The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore on Comedy Central. The program will be in the 11:30 p.m. Eastern slot previously held by The Colbert Report, before Stephen Colbert left the channel in December to prepare for his new role as the late show host on CBS. Like Colbert, Wilmore’s program will be a spin-off of the popular Daily Show, which he was previously a contributor on. In fact, Wilmore is now the third person to have his own late-night show after success collaborating with Jon Stewart, after Colbert and John Oliver. Earlier this month, the Los Angeles native spoke with Jimmy Kimmel about the process of creating the show.

As is the normal for any new show, ratings will likely be high for the first few weeks. But will it maintain the success that Colbert had, or that Oliver is enjoying right now on HBO? This is probably not the final time that Comedy Central will give a Daily Show correspondent a talk show, either, but who would be a potential host in several years will be an intriguing question.

How do you think the Nightly Show will fare? Leave a comment below!

What began in October 2005 will come to an end Thursday night when The Colbert Report airs its last episode on Comedy Central. The decision comes as the result of Stephen Colbert being named the new host of The Late Show on CBS this past April. Colbert Report has received many awards for its satirical take on evening news and talk-show programs; earlier this year Colbert won the People’s Choice Award for Favorite Late Night Talk Show Host, beating the three broadcast network personalities.

Comedy Central has been putting together many montages to pay honor to the man who was previously a correspondent on The Daily Show. Whether it was clips of the host breaking character and laughing on-air, or highlights from one of the many segments and celebrity interviews, both diehard and casual fans of the show have been able to enjoy how much it has evolved over the last nine years. Wednesday’s episode included a segment where Colbert (who plays a fictional character also named Stephen Colbert) sells many artifacts from the show’s history in a yard sale outside the studio.

The interesting question now is not just what Thursday’s episode will feature, but what’s next for Comedy Central and Colbert. Larry Wilmore will host a satirical program beginning next month, which will take over the channel’s 11:30 p.m. slot. CBS announced last week that Letterman will continue as host of The Late Show until May, so how will the wait affect Colbert? The comedian will be dropping his character to host the network program as himself, so viewers and television critics are very eager to see how he handles that change.

Thursday offers one more episode of The Colbert Report, which will almost certainly include many tributes and well-wishers. It may or may not be emotional, but it will be missed.

Monday marked 10 years since the murder of one of rock music’s most influential figures: “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott. The former Pantera and Damageplan guitarist was shot to death during a performance at the Alrosa Villa nightclub in Columbus, Ohio on December 8, 2004. Nathan Gale killed four people that night, before a Columbus police officer killed the former Marine.

Abbott and brother Vinnie helped co-found Pantera in the early 1980s, although the signature lineup didn’t form until 1986, when lead singer Phil Anselmo joined the brothers (Darrell on guitar, Vinnie on drums) and bassist Rex Brown. The band introduced its unique metal sound on the 1990 album Cowboys from Hell, and continued that popular style until the group’s break-up in 2003. Their single “Walk” is regarded as one of the band’s best tracks, and is still a favorite for radio stations throughout the country. Pantera also provided part of the soundtrack to a Spongebob Squarepants episode.

The Columbus Dispatch published a story Monday morning talking about the relationship between the owner of Alrosa Villa, the police officer who shot Gale, and the brother of a security guard who was killed that night in 2004. The venue remains open for concerts, and often hosts non-rock acts, although its reputation remains as a key music hall for heavy metal bands.

Even with the shooting, Columbus has not seen a decline of performances from bands in the same genre. In 2007, Crew Stadium hosted the first “Rock on the Range” festival, an event that has grown in popularity over the years. Acts already confirmed to play in 2015 include Slipknot, Judas Priest, Linkin Park, Marilyn Manson, and Breaking Benjamin, which re-emerged as a quintet earlier this year.

Share your memories of Dimebag Darrell below!

Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman announced Tuesday that he would not seek a fifth term in office. The Democrat became the longest-serving mayor in city history in January, and has received praise over the last 15 years for his efforts in Columbus’ growth and renovation projects. WBNS-TV posted this video to their website of Tuesday’s press conference.

Coleman was born in Indiana, but grew up in Ohio, graduating from the University of Cincinnati and the University of Dayton. His first public office position came on the Columbus City Council, where he served from 1992 to 1999. He was Lee Fisher’s running mate on the Democratic ticket for the 1998 Ohio gubernatorial race, which Republicans Bob Taft & Maureen O’Connor won. Coleman first won election to the mayor’s office in 1999, defeating Republican Dorothy Teater and succeeding Greg Lashutka. Coleman was a candidate for governor in the 2006 election cycle, but withdrew in November 2005.

Coleman did not announce his plans for the future, which may include running for U.S. Senate against Rob Portman in two years. He intends to serve out the remainder of his term, one of his projects being a pitch to bring the 2016 Democratic National Convention to Columbus. Meanwhile, there is speculation that Zach Scott, who has served as Franklin County Sheriff since 2011, will announce a candidacy to succeed Coleman soon.

The next mayoral election for Columbus is in 2015.

Nicola Sturgeon became the first woman to hold the position of Scottish first minister on Wednesday, after serving as deputy to Alex Salmond since 2007. Sturgeon has also succeeded Salmond as leader of the Scottish National Party, as Salmond had announced he was stepping down from both posts in the aftermath of the Scottish vote on independence.

Both politicians were strongly involved with the Yes Scotland campaign, whose goal was to have Scotland gain independence from the United Kingdom. A September vote on the issue yielded a 55%-45% majority for “No,” as in Scotland should not become independent. The following day, Salmond declared his intent to resign from his positions in November, although he has not retired from politics completely.

Sturgeon has already pledged to provide equal opportunities to both genders, and plans to achieve progress by working with all political parties.

Sturgeon became a registered SNP member at the age of 16, and first joined the Scottish Parliament (known as “Holyrood”) in 1999. She is a fan of the Danish TV series Borgen, which is a fictional drama where the main character becomes the first female prime minister of Denmark.

Sturgeon was elected First Minister by the Scottish Parliament. There are no term limits for the office, but the position usually goes to the leader of the majority party.

It was a great night for Republicans in the Buckeye State, as the party kept control of the top individual statewide positions. Governor John Kasich, along with Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor, won a second term after defeating Democratic challenger Ed FitzGerald. Attorney General Mike DeWine also won re-election, as did Secretary of State Jon Husted, Auditor Dave Yost, and Treasurer Josh Mandel. Apart from the race for Treasurer, most races were decided convincingly, with Kasich winning 86 of Ohio’s 88 counties, including Cuyahoga County, where FitzGerald is the County Executive.

In national politics, Republicans retained control of the House and will have the Senate majority for the first time since 2006, following key wins in Arkansas, North Carolina, and West Virginia, among other states. Neither of Ohio’s two Senators were on the ballot this year, but all 16 Representatives won re-election to the House, meaning the GOP holds its 12-4 advantage in Ohio’s delegation.

The 114th U.S. Congress will commence its session on January 3.