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The Two-Way
4:25 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Gingrich On Jobless: 'We Shouldn't Give People 99 Weeks To Do Nothing'

Credit Joe Raedle / Getty Images
Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich and his wife Callista Gingrich (in red) greet people during an event at the The River Church in Tampa, Fla., earlier today (Jan. 23, 2011).

Republican presidential contender Newt Gingrich today made the case that those who have been collecting jobless benefits for extended periods of time should be required to enroll in job-training programs, saying that "we shouldn't give people 99 weeks to do nothing," our colleagues at WUSF in Tampa report.

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Monkey See
4:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

'I'd Rather Be A Mystery': John Hawkes On Keeping His Hat Pulled Down

Credit Fox Searchlight
John Hawkes and Elizabeth Olsen in 2011's Martha Marcy May Marlene.

Originally published on Mon January 23, 2012 6:25 pm

John Hawkes' conversation with Melissa Block on today's All Things Considered begins as many of his conversations might: with her noting that when she told people she was coming to talk to him and rattled off his credits, she got a response that he undoubtedly gets a lot: "Ohhh, he's that guy."

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The Two-Way
3:58 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Illinois Senator Mark Kirk Suffers A Stroke

Illinois Senator Mark Kirk is hospitalized in Chicago after undergoing surgery to relieve swelling on his brain; doctors discovered he'd suffered a stroke over the weekend.

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Shots - Health Blog
3:26 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Women Report More Pain Than Men From Same Ailments

Credit iStockphoto.com
It hurts me more than it hurts you. Really.

Women consistently say they suffer more intense pain than men — about 20 percent more on average, even from seemingly gender-neutral ailments like sinus infections.

That's the word from a big new study that tracked reports of pain from people diagnosed with the same medical conditions. So much for the old cliche that women handle pain more easily than men. Or maybe this backs another cliche, that guys are tough and unfeeling.

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The Two-Way
3:01 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Marine Accused Of Killing Iraqi Civilians In Haditha Reaches Plea Deal

Credit Sandy Huffaker / AFP/Getty Images
U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich (R) walking into court with his defense attorney Neal Puckette for opening statements in the Haditha murders trial at Camp Pendleton on Jan. 9.

The case of a U.S. marine accused of killing 24 unarmed civilians in Haditha, Iraq came to a surprising end today. Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich reached a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to dereliction of duty, a misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of three months in confinement.

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Environment
3:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Extreme Weather Rips Through The South

Originally published on Mon January 23, 2012 6:25 pm

Transcript

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

The South is cleaning up from yet another round of devastating tornadoes. The storms started first in Arkansas, then brought baseball-sized hail, heavy wind and lightning to parts of Tennessee and Mississippi. But it was Alabama that saw the worst of it. At least two people died with 100 more injured.

As NPR's Russell Lewis reports, the overnight storms hit communities still struggling to recover from a series of devastating tornadoes last year.

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Presidential Race
3:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

GOP Candidates Prepare To Debate In Fla.

NPR national political correspondent Mara Liasson joins Melissa Block from Florida to discuss Monday night's Republican presidential debate.

National Security
3:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

CIA Officer Charged With Leaking Information

Credit Jacquelyn Martin / AP
Former CIA officer John Kiriakou leaves federal court in Alexandria, Va., on Monday.

Originally published on Mon January 23, 2012 6:35 pm

A former CIA officer was charged on Monday with leaking secrets to reporters — and then lying about it.

The Justice Department has accused John Kiriakou of violating the Espionage Act by outing his colleagues and passing sensitive details about counterterrorism operations to reporters for The New York Times and other media outlets.

Kiriakou, 47, of Arlington, Va., appeared in federal court in Virginia on Monday, where he was released after posting a $250,000 bond.

The Reluctant Spy

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Law
3:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Top Court: Police Need Warrant For GPS Tracking

The Supreme Court rules that police can't put a GPS tracking device on a vehicle without a warrant.

Iraq
3:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Marine Accused Of Iraqi Killings Takes Plea Deal

A plea deal has been reached in the court martial case of Marine Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich. He was the last person facing charges in the killings of 24 Iraqis at the village of Haditha in 2005. Monday, he admitted to one charge of dereliction of duty. The case became a touchstone for criticism of the Iraq war. Originally, several Marines were charged with murder in the case. But the Marines who killed the Iraqi civilians that day claimed that their actions were tragic — but legal under the official rules of engagement in a complex war fought in and among the people.

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Business
3:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

RIM Announces Management Shake-Up

Research In Motion, the maker of Blackberry smart phones, used to be a dominant player. Now, it's looking like an also-ran. The company announced a management shake-up Monday, but the new guy won't have much time to pull off a turnaround.

Author Interviews
3:00 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Caldecott Winner Chris Raschka Discusses His Book

Robert Siegel talks with this year's Randolph Caldecott Medal winner Chris Raschka, who won for A Ball for Daisy. The Caldecott award is one of the most distinguished prizes in children's literature.

Afghanistan
2:34 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

In Battle For Hearts And Minds, Taliban Turn To CDs

When the Taliban controlled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, their hard-line policies included a ban on music tapes and videos.

Yet now, the Taliban are producing their own CDs in an attempt to win the hearts and minds of Afghans.

In bustling downtown Kabul, Mustafa, 22, works in an electronics store selling music CDs to 20-something customers.

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It's All Politics
2:28 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Candidates' Stance on Immigration Reform Scrutinized Ahead Of Florida Primary

Credit Emmanuel Dunand / AFP/Getty Images
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney campaigns in Tampa, Fla., on Monday.

The issue of immigration reform, which simmered mildly during the first three Republican presidential contests, appears ready to boil over now that the candidates have reached Florida for the state's Jan. 31 primary.

Florida, with its large and influential Latino population, provides the earliest gauge of the difficulty facing any eventual GOP nominee in courting Hispanic voters, who increasingly view Republicans' rhetoric about immigration as anti-Hispanic.

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The Two-Way
2:21 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

A Year After The Shooting, Giffords Completes Unfinished Business

Credit Facebook.com
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords hugs Daniel Hernandez, the former intern who helped save her life.

Life came full circle for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords today. A little more than a year after she was shot in the head at a community meet-and-greet she organized, she met with others who survived the rampage.

At her office in Tucson, the Arizona congresswoman met with Daniel Hernandez, her former intern who is credited with helping to save her life by containing her bleeding.

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National Security
2:19 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

In Afghan War, U.S. Prepares To Redefine The Mission

American commanders in Afghanistan are preparing for a major shift in their mission this year.

U.S. troops are expected to move away from their lead role in combat operations in most areas. Instead, they'll advise Afghan forces to take the lead in both operations and security duties throughout much of Afghanistan.

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The Two-Way
1:03 pm
Mon January 23, 2012

Jewel (The Bear) Gives Birth To (At Least) Two Cubs

Music Interviews
11:49 am
Mon January 23, 2012

Winter Songs: Tap Dancing To 'Sixteen Tons' On The Hood

Credit Roman Krochuk / iStockphoto.com
In rural Minnesota, listener Veronica Horton made her own fun by dancing to "Tennessee" Ernie Ford's classic song on an old car.
Shots - Health Blog
11:46 am
Mon January 23, 2012

Stem Cells Show Promise As Blindness Treatment In Early Study

Two women losing their sight to progressive forms of blindness may have regained some vision while participating in an experiment testing a treatment made from human embryonic stem cells, researchers reported today.

The report marks the first time that scientists have produced direct evidence that human embryonic stem cells may have helped a patient. The cells had only previously been tested in the laboratory or in animals.

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The Two-Way
11:39 am
Mon January 23, 2012

Supreme Court Rules Police Need Warrant For GPS Tracking

Credit Yasir Afifi / AP
The Supreme Court heard arguments in a case about whether GPS monitoring devices like this one may be affixed to suspects' cars without a warrant from a judge.

Originally published on Mon January 23, 2012 2:26 pm

The Supreme Court has just ruled that police need a warrant if they want to place a tracking device on a suspect's vehicle. The court's decision was unanimous.

NPR's Nina Totenberg says that this debate has been a contentious issue in the digital age. Here's how she explained it to newscaster Paul Brown:

At issue here is the case of Antoine Jones, a Washington, D.C. night club owner. Police put a GPS tracking device on his car for 30 days. That helped authorities find a stash of money and drugs.

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