7 News Features: Seven's Top Seven: National Year Ender

WSVN -- Sex, guns and cover-ups -- another banner year in Washington.

The president and vice president kicked off 2006 with a bang -- literally.

Vice President Cheney shot a buddy in the face during a hunting trip then waited three days to talk about it.

Cheney and the President were talking -- a lot -- about Iraq, both accused of leaking classified information hoping to win support for the war.

The scandal broke when the Vice President's Chief of Staff "Scooter" Libby was brought up on felony charges.

Florida Republican Mark Foley -- the star player in a sex scandal. "The instant messages Mark Foley reportedly sent to a former page are deplorable."

Foley resigned after his pornographic writings went public.

While the politicos were screaming at each other, Americans were screaming about high gas prices -- they hit a record. Americans hit the roof after learning the oil companies were making record profits.

Immigration issues took center stage after congress said, "Learn English." Hispanics fought back with their own Spanish national anthem.

Then hundreds of thousands demonstrated nationwide in support of immigrants in the U.S.

Other news in 2006: Enron's Ken Lay was convicted of fraud, though he died of a heart attack before he went to jail.

Five Amish schoolgirls were gunned down in their own classroom in Pennsylvania. "He bound the female victims up by the blackboard and apparently executed them."

Twelve miners died after an explosion ripped through a West Virginia coal mine, only one survived.

A fiery crash in New York City left Yankee pitcher Corey Lidle dead after his plane slammed into a high-rise apartment building. "I looked up, and I see smoke and everybody started scream."

In California, five firefighters were killed in a fast moving wildfire.

There was a fresh spinach scare after three deaths were blamed on E. coli tainted spinach.

A 12-year-old boy died while riding a roller coaster at Disney MGM theme park.

And Patsy Ramsey, mother of strangled baby beauty queen Jon Benet Ramsey, died of ovarian cancer. Making bigger headlines than her death, a suspect came forward in her daughter's murder. John Karr implied he was involved in the death of Jon Benet.

Turns out he made the whole thing up.

Meanwhile, players on the Duke University lacrosse team were investigated after an exotic dancer claimed she was raped at one of their parties.

And veteran headline grabber OJ Simpson shocked the nation by saying, "If I did it, here's how it happened."

His tell-all book and TV deal got the ax after outraged Americans threatened to boycott the Fox special.

Traveling the open seas proved to be deadly in 2006.

Over 2,600 passengers were sent home after a fire on the Crown Princess killed one man and injured 11.

A Princess cruise ship tilted so sharply, so quickly people and objects were sent flying.

And a cruiseship mystery goes unsolved newlywed: George Smith disappeared from his honeymoon cruise.

As 2006 comes to a close we'll end on some positive notes: It was a year the stock market hit an all-time high.

We learned about giving from billionaire businessman Warren Buffet who donated most of his fortune to charity.

And this kid showed us no matter what, you try. Jason McElwain is autistic, despite that he scored 20 points in just three minutes.

Jason McElwain: "This is, this is a dream come true."