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Black Leaders Ask: Where's Our President?
From President Obama on down, a new wave of black politicians who eschew identity politics has risen across the country. But that has many in the black community feeling that a historic opportunity to address urban issues is slipping away.
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We Bought A Toxic Asset; You Can Watch It Die
Remember those complicated bonds full of home mortgages? The ones that almost brought down the economy? A team of reporters with NPR's Planet Money used $1,000 of their own cash to buy a tiny piece of one — and plan to track it until it dies.
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Obama Postpones Trip To Indonesia
President Obama is delaying his trip to Asia next week to focus on his big push on health care. The White House tweeted the announcement. His family was going to go with him but they will not now. The White House wanted Congress to act on the health care bill by March 18, Obama's original departure date.
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Christian Groups Find Way Around High Health Costs
The nonprofit Samaritan Ministries transfers money among its members to pay each household's health care costs. Benefits to members include lower monthly payments and faith-based policies, but there's no guarantee their bills will be covered. Several evangelical Christian groups are using similar approaches.
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Administration Turns Eye Toward Big Agribusiness
Top Obama administration officials launch a series of workshops Friday delving into agriculture antitrust issues. Some big agribusiness firms say the forums will showcase a well-functioning, free market, but some producers think the probe will expose a system increasingly hostile to traditional family farms.
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Most States Have No Laws Against Freelance 'Repos'
The auto repossession industry is big business. Two million cars were repossessed last year. A report from the National Consumer Law Center says most of those are done without the involvement of courts or police. These so-called self-help repos have caused at least six deaths in recent years.
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Ground Zero Workers Reach Deal On Claims
New York City has reached a settlement with first responders and ground zero workers who were sickened by the dust from the World Trade Center after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The $657 million package was negotiated by a special entity created to head off lawsuits against the city and its contractors. The plan still needs to be approved by a judge and the workers.
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Charges Of 'Re-Segregation' At N.C. High School
A high school in Wayne County, N.C., has a student population that is poor and 99 percent black. That's not the case at other public high schools in the same county. The disparity has prompted a civil rights inquiry — and complaints about what one leader calls "re-segregation."
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New Jersey Man Held In Yemen After Al-Qaida Sweep
Sharif Mobley was arrested in a roundup of suspected al-Qaida members and was being treated at a hospital in San'a when he got into a shootout with guards during an escape attempt, killing one and wounding another, an official said. Acquaintances said the former nuclear plant worker had strong religious views and had become increasingly radical.
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Club Settles In Child's Uzi Death At Gun Fair
A Massachusetts sporting club is donating $10,000 to children's charities as part of a deal settling criminal charges in the death of an 8-year-old boy who accidentally shot himself in the head with an Uzi during a gun fair.
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Football Legend, TV Star Merlin Olsen Dies
The Hall of Fame defensive lineman went on to a successful career in sports broadcasting and commercials, as well as a continuing role on Little House on the Prairie. He was 69 and had been suffering from cancer.
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Schools Across U.S. Grapple With Closures
Kansas City, Mo., has just approved one of the largest school closures in the nation's history. All over the U.S., the number of districts shutting schools is growing rapidly in the face of declines in both revenue and enrollment.
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Costs Threaten Upkeep Of John Brown's Burial Site
Shutting down a park at the New York farm where the abolitionist's body lies would save taxpayers about $40,000 a year, a tiny chunk of the state's $8 billion deficit. Historians say that's not enough of a savings to warrant the loss of a landmark.
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New Music Emerges From Elkhart's Instrument Past
Dozens of band instrument makers used to be part of the local economy in Elkhart, Ind. But since the city was battered by the economy, only three major companies remain. One says it will manufacture instruments only in the U.S. — and it will hire new workers to grow the business and regain market share.
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Highway Deaths At Lowest Levels Since 1950s
The Department of Transportation announced Thursday that the number of people killed in highway crashes last year was the lowest since 1954. Factoring in the number of miles traveled, it was the lowest fatality rate ever.
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