POLITICS - Damage Control Over IRS, Benghazi, AP Scandals

"Obama Attempts Damage Control on IRS, Benghazi, AP Scandals" by Christina Bellantoni and Terence Burlij, PBS Newshour 5/16/2013

Excerpt

To catch you up on the last 24 hours in politics; President Barack Obama canned the man at the helm of the Internal Revenue Service, released 100 pages of emails between intelligence analysts and State Department officials following the attacks in Benghazi, Libya, and asked a Senate Democrat to reintroduce a bill to help reporters protect the identity of their sources.

In other words, a whole lotta damage control.

"Americans are right to be angry about it, and I am angry about it," Mr. Obama said Wednesday evening in a four-minute statement from the East Room of the White House.  He was referring to the swelling scandal at the IRS, which put extra layers of scrutiny on conservative organizations seeking tax-exempt status.

"I will not tolerate this kind of behavior in any agency, but especially in the IRS, given the power that it has and the reach that it has into all of our lives," he said.

Earlier in the day, Attorney General Eric Holder told members of the House Judiciary Committee that the Justice Department would conduct a full investigation into the IRS' conduct.

"The facts will take us wherever they take us," Holder said.  "This will not be about parties.  This will not be about ideological persuasions.  Anyone who has broken the law will be held accountable."

The administration's response came as lawmakers ramped up their demands for answers.

"My question isn't about who's going to resign.  My question is, who is going to jail over this scandal?"  House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, declared at a morning news conference.

Amid the mounting pressure, Mr. Obama huddled late Wednesday with Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, who asked for and received the resignation of acting IRS commissioner Steven Miller.

"This has been an incredibly difficult time for the IRS given the events of the past few days, and there is a strong and immediate need to restore public trust in the nation's tax agency," Miller wrote in a memo distributed to agency employees.  "I believe the Service will benefit from having a new Acting Commissioner in place during this challenging period."

Miller said he will officially depart the IRS when his assignment ends early next month.  The 25-year agency veteran is scheduled to appear Friday before the House Ways and Means Committee to answer questions about the IRS' actions.  On Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee will get the next bite at the apple, and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will hold a hearing Wednesday.

NPR condensed the treasury inspector general's report into "10 Things We Learned," one of them being that the IRS sat on some applications for as long as three years and expected applicants to respond to its requests for information within three weeks.

For his part, Mr. Obama will take questions at noon Thursday during a Rose Garden event with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.  The NewsHour will live-stream the news conference.

On Benghazi, Mr. Obama is attempting to put to rest the evolution of talking points about whether the events on Sept. 11, 2012, were a terrorist attack -- a story that has involved the press as well.

ABC News' Jonathan Karl had a big scoop Friday, reporting the talking points had been revised 12 times over the course of a few days.  But CNN's Jake Tapper, formerly with ABC, reported Tuesday that reading the emails contradicts that report.

That's one reason the White House aimed to let people see for themselves.  The emails, already given to congressional investigators, are posted in full here.

The Washington Post's Scott Wilson and Karen DeYoung have a helpful explainer.  From the piece:

According to the e-mails and initial CIA-drafted talking points, the agency believed the attack included a mix of Islamist extremists from Ansar al-Sharia, a group affiliated with al-Qaeda, and angry demonstrators.

White House officials did not challenge that analysis, the e-mails show, nor did they object to its inclusion in the public talking points.

But CIA deputy director Michael Morell later removed the reference to Ansar al-Sharia because the assessment was still classified and because FBI officials believed that making the information public could compromise their investigation, said senior administration officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the internal debate.

Those officials said Wednesday that the e-mails capture a fairly routine conversation between agencies over how to talk about a major event.

What was most challenging in this case, senior administration officials said, was doing so within days of the attack as intelligence agencies working in a volatile environment were trying to piece together what happened.

The New York Times has more on the internal divisions the emails lay bare.  Politico writes that the email chains "suggest it was the State Department that was most concerned about taking the blame for the attack."

Then there is the matter of the Justice Department's seizure of phone records from the Associated Press as part of an investigation into leaks about a failed terror plot last year.

Holder told lawmakers Wednesday that he had recused himself from the probe early on because he was one of the officials who had access to the information that was leaked.  But he pledged to review the matter once the investigation was completed.

"I do think that at the conclusion of this matter, and when I can be back involved in it, that given the -- the attention that it has generated, that some kind of after-action analysis would be appropriate," Holder said.

The Justice Department's decision to subpoena the records has drawn criticism from lawmakers and news organizations about the impact on 1st Amendment protections.  In response, the Obama administration announced Wednesday that it would support a new media shield law that would provide greater protections to reporters seeking to keep their sources confidential.

"Obama Announces IRS Resignation, Promises Safeguards and Oversight Cooperation" PBS Newshour 5/15/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  President Barack Obama announced that acting commissioner of the IRS Steven Miller would be stepping down, calling the political targeting scandal "inexcusable."  Jeffrey Brown delves into the latest developments and lingering questions with Josh Gerstein for Politico and Paul Streckfus, creator and editor of EO Tax Journal.

POLITICS - Twin Political Storms, IRS and AP Phone Records

"Republicans Demand Action, Jail Time for Those Responsible for IRS Scandal" PBS Newshour 5/15/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Republicans stepped up demands for action against the IRS for targeting conservative political groups, the day after the Treasury Department released a report saying the IRS used inappropriate criteria in assessing tax-exempt status.  Gwen Ifill reports on Attorney General Eric Holder's testimony in a House Judiciary hearing.

Ah, yes, the conspiracy rats flood the media.

IRS - Targeting Political Groups Scandal

Sadly, more gunpowder for conspiracy theorists.

"Disclosures About Involvement in IRS Targeting Draw Calls for Transparency" PBS Newshour 5/14/2013

Excerpt

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  The nation's capital was alive with talk of scandal today, starting with the revelations about the Internal Revenue Service.  Questions grew over reports of overzealous enforcement aimed at groups on the political right.

The day began with new disclosures about what the IRS had done and who knew about it.  The Washington Post reported the targeting of conservative groups was not limited to the agency's Cincinnati office, as the IRS initially said.  Instead, The Post said agency officials in Washington and at least two other offices were also involved.

That prompted new calls by Republicans for more information.  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell demanded full transparency.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL, R-Ky.:  So this morning, I'm calling on the president to make available completely and without restriction everyone, everyone who can answer the questions we have as to what's been going on at the IRS, who knew about it and how high it went, no stonewalling, no more incomplete answers.

JEFFREY BROWN:  President Obama on Monday said singling out conservative groups for tax scrutiny would be -- quote -- "outrageous."

And at the White House today, Press Secretary Jay Carney said again the president is determined to get to the bottom of the scandal.

DOJ - Seizure of AP Phone Records

President Obama's administration suffering from hoof-in-mouth?

"Justice Department Seized AP Phone Records to Track Government Leaks" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/14/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  The Justice Department (DOJ) secretly subpoenaed phone records of Associated Press journalists during two months in 2012.  The AP was notified that records had been secretly seized for more than 20 of its phone lines, possibly to track government leaks of classified information about a foiled terror plot.  Judy Woodruff reports.

"Was Seizure of AP's Phone Records Justified or Harmful to Press Freedom?" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/14/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Judy Woodruff talks with David Schultz, legal counsel for the Associated Press, about the procedures for accessing information from the news media about confidential sources, what constitutes "crossing the line" by the government and whether the current investigation was justified by the gravity of the situation.

INDIA - Sparking Enthusiasm for School

"In India, Organization of Learning Centers Seeks to Spark Enthusiasm for School" PBS Newshour 5/14/2013

Excerpt

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  Next, Fred de Sam Lazaro reports from India on a group that's put together perhaps the world's largest campaign to improve remedial education.

His story is part of our Agents for Change series.

FRED DE SAM LAZARO (Newshour):  Madhav Chavan is trying to revolutionize the way India's children learn and the way they are taught, starting as early as possible.  As these preschoolers identify the first letter in Hindi for the word mango, he egged them on.

MADHAV CHAVAN, Founder, Pratham:  So what kind of face do you make when the mango is sour?

FRED DE SAM LAZARO:  Unfortunately, Chavan says, as they get older, most of these children will be bound for schools that are failing their students on many levels, beginning with rigid, outdated methods of instruction.

MADHAV CHAVAN:  This regimentation, rote learning, learning by heart, tell me the answer, that is what kids -- kids are being taught.

RUSSIA - Catches Inept CIA Spy?

"Russia Arrests U.S. Diplomat on Spying Accusations" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/14/2013

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  We turn to Moscow, where a U.S. Embassy officer was detained and accused of spying in a story that sounds right out of the Cold War.

Margaret Warner reports.

MARGARET WARNER (Newshour):  The announcement came in Moscow from Russia's federal security service, the FSB.

Releasing these photographs and video, it said U.S. diplomat Ryan Fogle in a blond wig and hat had been detained in Moscow overnight.  Officially, he's a diplomat at the U.S. Embassy, but the Russians said he works for the CIA and was caught trying to recruit a Russian intelligence agent to work for the U.S.

Later today, the Russians handed him over to the embassy and ordered him expelled from the country.  In Washington, the State Department's Patrick Ventrell confirmed a U.S. diplomat had been detained, but declined to elaborate.  The incident came as the U.S. is seeking Russian cooperation in two key areas, the investigation of the Boston bombing suspects and efforts to end the Syrian civil war.

Secretary of State John Kerry was in Moscow last week announcing a joint effort to bring about Syrian peace talks.

Gee... an embassy 'diplomat' being a CIA spy?  So, what's new?


"Incident With Diplomat Occurs as U.S. Seeks Russian Help on Boston Attacker" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/14/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Sounding like something out of a spy movie, Russian authorities detained an American diplomat overnight on claims he is actually a CIA agent.  Margaret Warner talks with Will Englund of The Washington Post for more details of the story and what kind of information American intelligence agencies might want to collect in Russia.

TECHNOLOGY - Book on Technology Making the World Smaller

"Book Explores Societal Transfer of Power From Big Institution to Active Citizen" PBS Newshour 5/14/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Author Nicco Mele's new book, 'The End of Big,' explores how technology has made the world a smaller place, opening up new opportunities for local politics, small business and average citizens to wield influence.  Political editor Christina Bellantoni talks to Mele about his work and the ways technology impacts our democracy.

GARMENT INDUSTRY - Miraculous Rescue and What's Next for the Industry

"Bangladeshi Seamstress Rescued From Factory Rubble After 17 Days" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/10/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Seventeen days after a Bangladeshi garment factory collapsed and only hours before the remains were to be demolished, rescuers pulled a woman out of the rubble alive.  Jonathan Rugman of Independent Television News reports on the miraculous discovery and the news that the disaster has now claimed more than 1,000 lives.

"How Is the Garment Industry Working to Improve Conditions Abroad?" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/10/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  The garment factory disaster in Bangladesh has raised concern about the conditions of factories abroad.  Ray Suarez talks with Steven Greenhouse of The New York Times about consequences for the owner of the factory and Bangladesh's safety standards, as well as what's being done by Western retailers to improve working conditions.

CYBERCRIME - Robbers Hit ATMs Worldwide for $45 Million

"Cyber ATM Robbers Grab $45 Million Worldwide Within Hours" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/10/2013

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  And we turn to a major cyber-theft, global in scope and raising new questions about our vulnerabilities in the digital age.

The thefts took place in broad daylight at ATM machines, and the thieves wore no disguises.

U.S. ATTORNEY LORETTA LYNCH, Eastern District Of New York:  This was a 21st century bank heist that reached through the Internet to span the globe.

JEFFREY BROWN:  U.S. authorities say the reach of the international cyber-crime was wide; 27 countries -- Russia, Japan, Egypt, Colombia, Canada and beyond.

The criminals hacked into companies that process prepaid debit cards for two banks in the Middle East, stole the data and then copied it onto doctored cards with magnetic strips.  Yesterday in New York, U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch explained what happened next.

LORETTA LYNCH:  They become a virtual criminal flash mob, going from machine to machine, drawing as much money as they can before these accounts are shut down.

JEFFREY BROWN:  On Dec. 21st, thieves hit 4,500 ATMs in some 20 countries, stealing five million dollars.  Then on Feb. 19th, they upped their game.  In 10 hours, they stole $40 million dollars in 36,000 transactions worldwide.

In Manhattan alone, a team of eight so-called "cashers" allegedly made their way from ATM to ATM making 2,900 withdrawals totaling $2.4 million dollars.

Two of the suspects took photos of themselves and the stacks of cash they allegedly stole.  To round out the crime, authorities say the suspects laundered the money by purchasing luxury goods in the form of Rolex watches, Gucci bags and expensive cars.

"International ATM Cyber Hackers Hid 'in Plain Sight' to Overcome Computer System" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/10/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  The global network of thieves who targeted ATMs struck 2,904 machines over 10 hours in New York alone, withdrawing $2.4 million.  For more on the attack and the aftermath, Jeffrey Brown talks with Loretta Lynch, the U.S. attorney for the eastern district of New York and the federal prosecutor in the heist case.

PAKISTAN - Historic Election Coming

"Pakistan Prepares for Historic Vote Amid Threats of Violence From the Taliban" PBS Newshour 5/10/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  In Pakistan, citizens are enthusiastically preparing to vote in a historic election.  But in the lead up to the parliamentary vote, attacks by the Taliban have killed more than 100 people with the promise of suicide bombs on election day.  Ray Suarez takes a look at the various candidates and the attitudes of the voters.

BOSTON - Bombing Victim on Her Recovery

"Boston Marathon Victim on Her Road to Recovery" PBS Newshour 5/10/2013

Excerpt

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  And finally tonight, one victim's road to recovery after the Boston attacks.  Roseann Sdoia was waiting for a friend to cross the finish line when the second bomb exploded just a few feet away.  Her right leg was so badly damaged it had to be amputated above the knee.  She will soon be fitted for a prosthetic leg and is currently being treated at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Charlestown.

Emily Rooney of WGBH Boston sat down with her this week for an interview about her experience and road to recovery.  Here's an excerpt.

AMERICA - The 93-day Ordeal, Jessica Buchanan

"The Rescue of Jessica Buchanan" CBS 60 Minutes 5/12/2013 (15:46 video)

An American aid worker's first interview about being kidnapped and held for ransom by Somali pirates in a 93-day ordeal.  Scott Pelley reports.

Rescue by SEAL Team Six 1/24/2012.

IMMIGRATION - Reform Plan in Senate Committee for Markup

"As Bipartisan Immigration Reform Plan Debuts, an Emphasis on Flexibility" PBS Newshour 5/9/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  The comprehensive bipartisan immigration reform plan survived its first day in Congress.  Judy Woodruff reports on the battles and revisions underway.  Jeffrey Brown talks to Politico's Carrie Budoff Brown and Brian Bennett of the Los Angeles Times about whether the gang of eight can bring undecided Republicans on board.

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  A comprehensive immigration reform plan faced its first major tests today in the U.S. Senate, and emerged pretty much intact.

For supporters, it was a hopeful beginning to the drive to pass the first major immigration overhaul bill since 1986.  The front line of the immigration fight is now the Senate Judiciary Committee, where markup began this morning on a bipartisan bill.

KIDNAPPINGS - Ariel Castro in Court and Victims' Healing Process

"Ariel Castro Appears in Court to Face Charges of Rape, Kidnapping" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/9/2013

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  And we turn again to the shocking story in Cleveland (Ohio) of three women held captive and abused for a decade.  Today, the man accused in the case appeared before a judge.

Ray Suarez has the latest.

MAN:  Ariel Castro.

RAY SUAREZ (Newshour):  Ariel Castro kept his head bowed and buried throughout his early morning appearance in Cleveland Municipal Court.  It was his first public appearance since he was arrested Monday in the kidnapping of three women, Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight.

All had been held captive in Castro's Cleveland home since their separate disappearances between 2002 and 2004.  Prosecutors said today the former school bus driver repeatedly beat and sexually assaulted the women.

TIMOTHY MCGINTY, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Prosecutor:  This child kidnapper operated a torture chamber and private prison in the heart of our city.  The horrific brutality and torture that the victims endured for a decade is beyond comprehension.

RAY SUAREZ:  The New York Times reported today that, according to a police document, the women were chained in the basement for years before finally being moved to the second floor.

It also said Knight told police she'd been impregnated by Castro on multiple occasions and that each time, he starved and punched her until she miscarried.  Castro didn't enter a plea today to the four counts of kidnapping, one for each of the women, plus Berry's six-year-old daughter conceived in captivity, and to three counts of rape.

His bond was set at $8 million dollars, $3 million more than the prosecution requested.  After the proceedings, Castro's public defender said her client will likely be kept isolated.

KATHLEEN DEMETZ, Public Defender:  I would imagine he will be in a single cell, and I would imagine he probably will be under a suicide watch observation unit.

RAY SUAREZ:  Castro's brothers, Pedro and Onil, also appeared in court on unrelated misdemeanor charges.  They were later released from custody.  Authorities say the two men knew nothing about the women allegedly being held captive in their brother's home.

"For Cleveland Victims, Trust and Comfort May Be First Steps in Healing" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/9/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Ray Suarez talks to Matthew Dolan of The Wall Street Journal for more details on the case, and then gets analysis from Dr. Frank Ochberg, clinical professor of psychiatry at Michigan State University, about the healing process for the Cleveland kidnapping victims and what can be learned from past cases of abuse and trauma.

ALSO

Ohio's Ideastream coverage

POLITICS - House Hearings on Benghazi, For Conspiracy Theorist

"Congress Sorts Through Charges and Counter-Charges in Benghazi Attack Accounts" PBS Newshour 5/9/2013

Excerpt

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  We return to last September's attack on U.S. installations in Benghazi, Libya.

House Speaker John Boehner demanded today that the White House order the State Department to release e-mails related to whom the agency thought was behind the attack.  Yesterday, amid a steady flow of partisan arguing by members of Congress, three State Department officials testified that senior government officials withheld embarrassing facts and didn't take responsibility for security at the Benghazi facilities.

One of the witnesses, former U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission in Libya Gregory Hicks, said he was effectively demoted after he questioned and criticized the State Department's handling of the attack.

To help us sort out some of the facts in the story, I'm joined by Adam Entous of The Wall Street Journal.

SUPREME COURT - Book on 'The Roberts Court'

"An Inside Look at Backstories of Big Decisions in Chief Justice Robert's Court" PBS Newshour 5/9/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  In her new book, "The Roberts Court," Marcia Coyle of the National Law Journal and regular NewsHour contributor takes a look at the landmark decisions that have reached the Supreme Court during the tenure of Chief Justice John Roberts.  She talks to Jeffrey Brown about her observations and interviews with the justices.

OPINION - GOP Conspiracy Theories and Racism

The Rachel Maddow Show
MSNBC 5/8/2013

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

 

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

MILITARY - Sexual Assaults Growing

"Report on Military's Growing Number of Sexual Assaults Draws Presidential Rebuke" PBS Newshour 5/7/2013

Excerpt

RAY SUAREZ (Newshour):  The problem of sexual assaults in the nation's armed forces is getting worse, and maybe much worse.  The issue drew the national spotlight today and a presidential rebuke.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:  We're not going to tolerate this stuff, and there will be accountability.

RAY SUAREZ:  The news of growing sexual assaults in the military raised the president's hackles at a news conference with the president of South Korea.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Let's start with the principle that sexual assault is an outrage.  It is a crime.  That's true for society at large, and if it's happening inside our military, then whoever carries it out is betraying the uniform that they're wearing.

RAY SUAREZ:  Mr. Obama spoke as an annual Pentagon study reported sexual assaults in the military rose from just under 3,300 in 2012 to nearly 3,400 last year.  But it also found that up to 26,000 cases went unreported.

At a Senate hearing this morning, the Air Force chief of staff, Gen. Mark Welsh, struck sparks with New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, suggesting it's not always a commander's fault if victims don't come forward.

KOREAS - Provocations, Escalation and Tolerance

"Threat of Escalation by North Korea Looms Over Summit With Park Geun-hye" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/7/2013

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  And we return to the situation on the Korean Peninsula, as the threat of further escalation loomed over a White House summit today.

The day began with a new warning on North Korean state television aimed at joint U.S./South Korean naval drills in the yellow sea.

WOMAN:  First, Korean people's army units in the southwestern sector of the front will take immediate counteractions in case even a single shell drops over the territorial waters on our side.  Second, in case the enemies recklessly counter our counterstrikes, all striking forces will turn the five islands in the West Sea of Korea into a sea of flames.

JEFFREY BROWN:  The new threat of from the North and its young leader, Kim Jong-un, follows several months of tough talk and actions, while the U.S. and South Korea conducted joint military exercises that were seen in turn as provocations by the North.

In December, North Korea test-launched a long-range rocket. In February, it carried out another underground nuclear test, its third to date.  And when the U.N. Security Council imposed new sanctions as a result, the North renounced the armistice that ended the Korean War, and then insisted it would fire off more mid-range Musudan missiles.

Despite North Korea's threat, there were no launches and U.S. officials now report the North has removed the weapons from a launch site.  Against that backdrop, President Obama held a White House summit today with South Korea's new president, Park Geun-hye, followed by a joint news conference

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:  The days when North Korea could create a crisis and illicit concessions, those days are over.  Our two nations are prepared to engage with North Korea diplomatically and over time build trust.  But, as always, and as President Park has made clear, the burden is on Pyongyang to take meaningful steps.

PRESIDENT PARK GEUN-HYE, South Korea:  We will be no means tolerate North Korea's threats and provocations, which have recently been escalating further, and that such actions would only deepen North Korea's isolation.

JEFFREY BROWN:  Park took office in February, becoming South Korea's first female president.  She's the daughter of Park Chung-hee, who took power in a military coup and ruled South Korea in the 1960s and '70s before being assassinated.

The new president came to power seeking to improve relations with the North, but her tone has changed with events.  In an interview with CBS News yesterday, Park warned that her country will meet any aggression in kind.

PRESIDENT PARK:  Yes, we will make them pay.

JEFFREY BROWN:  Still, President Park has also said that if the North relents on its nuclear program, she's prepared to resume aid shipments and economic initiatives.

"South Korea May Be Growing Less Tolerant of Pyongyang's Provocations" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/7/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  While North Korea makes fresh warnings, other signs suggest that nation has backed off some of its hot rhetoric.  Former State Department official Kurt Campbell and former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Donald Gregg join Jeffrey Brown to discuss South Korea's President Park Geun-hye and building trust with North Korea's leader.

EDUCATION - How to Better Engage Students in the World of Science

"Maine School Engages Kids With Relevant Problem-Solving Challenges" (Report 1 of 2) PBS Newshour 5/6/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Special correspondent John Tulenko of Learning Matters reports on a public middle school in Portland, Maine that is taking a different approach to teaching students.  Teachers have swapped traditional curriculum for an unusually comprehensive science curriculum that emphasizes problem-solving, with a little help from some robots.

Significant excerpt (out of he mouth of babes)

LIVA PIERCE (student):  Usually, in school, you learn about things that are happening in the world that are bad.  In social studies, you might learn about an earthquake.  But I feel that schools shouldn't just be about learning about problems.  I think they should be about solving them, because if you aren't learning about how to solve problems, then what will you do when you're out of school?

"Hey, Look at This!  San Francisco's Exploratorium Boasts Fun, Interactive Science" (Report 2 of 2) PBS Newshour 5/7/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  San Francisco's Exploratorium, one of the nation's most successful science and technology centers, has just opened its brand new location.  Spencer Michels reports on how the center's hands-on teaching approach peaks the imaginations of children and adults alike.

ECONOMY - Communities Prepare for Sequester Cuts

"Communities Prepare for Sequester Cuts to Staffing and Social Programs" PBS Newshour 5/7/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  With no compromise in sight, communities across the country are bracing for sequester to kick in during the coming weeks.  Ray Suarez looks at effects for workers and government programs at the state-level.  Gene Grant of New Mexico PBS, Gretchen Frazee of WTIU and Flo Jonic of Rhode Island Public Radio share their perspectives.

RAY SUAREZ (Newshour):  Now an update on the impact of federal spending cuts known as the sequester.

The government must reduce spending in most programs across the board by $85 billion dollars this year -- the latest fallout, federal officials announced today they're postponing auctions for new oil and gas leases in California.  Those bids were planned for an area that features one of the largest deposits of shale oil in the country.

Staffing and budget problems were cited as one of the several reasons for the decision, but when it comes to tracking the effect of the sequester, it's a tricky thing.  While some cuts have already hit, others are still to come and some may be avoided.

One of the most immediate and visible changes, furloughs for air traffic controllers that led to flight delays, ended within a week of when the cuts took effect.  That's because Congress and the president signed a bill quickly providing new relief for the Federal Aviation Administration.

Some other furloughs, such as at the State Department, have been avoided through budgetary maneuvers.  But the president maintains incremental fixes are the wrong approach to the sequester.

AMERICA - Keeping Our Heritage

"Keeping America's Heritage of Sights and Sounds Fresh for Future Generations" PBS Newshour 5/7/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  These days it may seem like you can find any movie, TV show or song you want online.  But a vast amount of America's cultural treasures is in danger of extinction.  Jeffrey Brown reports on conservation efforts at the Library of Congress, which holds the largest audio and visual collection in the world.

SYRIA - Israeli Airstrikes

"Israel Targets Syrian Military Complex Outside Damascus" PBS Newshour 5/6/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Israel reportedly launched airstrikes against Syrian military targets believed to be connected to Hezbollah.  Jeffrey Brown reports on various responses to Israel's actions, as well as the continuing conversation within the international community about what should be done about the possible use of chemical weapons in Syria.

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  Israel today played down a weekend of airstrikes that hit Syria.  The Syrians, in turn, threatened to strike back, but there were no signs of new hostilities in the offing.

On Syrian state television today, images of the smoldering remains of a military complex near Damascus.  It was hit early Sunday by airstrikes attributed to the Israeli military, the second in three days.  Israel didn't officially claim responsibility, but senior officials there said the targets were advanced Iranian missiles being shipped to Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

Israeli leaders warned again Sunday that Hezbollah must not obtain -- quote -- "game-changing weapons."

UZI LANDAU, Israeli Minister of Tourism:  It's vital for the security and the stability of the Middle East that no weapons of mass destruction will spill over to the hands of terror organizations.

JEFFREY BROWN:  A similar Israeli strike last January apparently targeted anti-aircraft missiles that were being shipped to Hezbollah.

GUN CONTROL - New Technology Threatens Citizen Safety and U.S. Security

"Texas Law Student Creates Plastic Gun That Fires Real Bullet From 3-D Printer" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/6/2013

RAY SUAREZ (Newshour):  Now to a new wrinkle in the gun debate tied to ever-speeding advances in technology.

For the first time, this weekend, a plastic gun created by a 3-D printer successfully fired a real bullet.  That success, starring on its own promotional video, has stirred up many questions and concerns about its potential impact.

The world's first fully functioning 3-D printable handgun is the brainchild of Cody Wilson, a University of Texas law student.  Dubbed the “Liberator,” it's fashioned from 15 plastic parts created on an $8,000 dollar three-dimensional printer.  The technology is already commonly used in various industries.

A printer lays down melted polymer filaments layer by layer according to precise digital blueprints to form solid plastic objects.  That means the Liberator would be undetectable to airport security screeners and therefore illegal.  The only metal in the gun is the common household nail used as a firing pin and a six-ounce piece of metal added to ensure the weapon is detectable to comply with current law.

But there are other questions.  Wilson's nonprofit gunned advocate group, Defense Distributed, is publishing the design files online, so anyone in the world can download the blueprints and print a Liberator, all of this without a background check or any serial number.

The group is also developing 3-D printable components for high-capacity automatic weapons.  It posted video of test-firings earlier this year.

"New Printable Handgun Raises Concerns for Undetectability, Universal Access" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/6/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Cody Wilson, a law student from Texas, has made the first fully functioning plastic pistol from a 3-D printer, sparking questions and concerns about legal and safety implications.  Ray Suarez talks with with Forbes magazine's Andy Greenberg about how the homemade gun known as "the Liberator" figures in a broader national debate.

Significant excerpt

RAY SUAREZ:  So, what exactly is his motivation?  You touched on it briefly, but does he want more people to have guns?  Is his problem really with the attempt to know who has them and who doesn't?  Where does he come from?

ANDY GREENBERG, Forbes:  I think that Cody would be happy to see more guns in Americans' hands.

But his ultimate goal, I believe, and he has told me, is the dissolution of the U.S. government and governments around the world.  He's an anarchist and a radical libertarian.  And I think he sees this exercise of making a gun printable as kind of a demonstration of ways that the technology can circumvent the law, can circumvent -- to make the government irrelevant, until it just kind of disappears, or at least kind of he wants to carve out a kind of space where technology prevents the states' hands from controlling what people do.

POLITICS - Latest GOP Rebranding Effort

"House GOP takes a new message to 'mommy blogs'" by Steve Benen, Maddow Blog 5/7/2013

Republicans have struggled with a gender gap for quite a while, but in 2011 and 2012, the problem intensified. Indeed, the phrase "Republican war on women" did not materialize out of thin air.

In a short period of time, we saw GOP officials restricting contraception; cutting off Planned Parenthood; requiring state-mandated, medically-unnecessary transvaginal ultrasounds; forcing physicians to lie to patients about abortion and breast cancer; fighting equal-pay laws; and temporarily defeating the Violence Against Women Act.  When it came time for House Republicans to pay for lower student loan interest rates, GOP officials decided to get the funding by cutting access to breast cancer and cervical cancer screenings.

But that was before.  USA Today reported last week that the party has a new idea, included in House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's (R-Va.) rebranding campaign, it hopes will resonate with some of the women who ran away from the party in recent years.

House Republicans are targeting popular "mommy blog" websites in a digital ad campaign beginning Tuesday as part of an ongoing effort to repair the GOP's image with certain voting blocs -- in this case swing female voters -- who have sided decisively with Democrats in recent elections.

The banner ads will be featured on over 100 websites popular among women and geo-targeted to be viewed by residents in 20 Democratic-held congressional districts targeted by the GOP for 2014.... The $20,000 ad buy, running on sites including Ikeafans.com and MarthaStewart.com through Friday, will call on Democrats to vote with House Republicans next week on a bill to give hourly private sector workers more flexibility to choose between compensatory time and cash payment for overtime work.

Yes, the rebranded, new-and-improved Republican Party thinks private-sector flex time is the key -- or at least, a key -- to closing the gender gap.

There are, of course, a couple of problems.  For one thing, this is a pretty modest policy step, which doesn't come close to compensating for the rest of the GOP's regressive social agenda.

For another, the proposal itself isn't any good.

The basic idea behind the "Working Families Flexibility Act" is empowering private-sector employers to make a trade with workers -- instead of giving employees overtime pay for extra work, businesses can compensate workers with some additional time off.

If this sounds familiar, it's because the new Republican idea isn't new at all -- Alex Seitz-Wald noted that House GOP leaders pushed identical measures in 1996, 1997, and 2003, and it was a favorite measure of Newt Gingrich's.

OK, but what are the substantive downsides?  Seitz-Wald explained:

What labor advocates are more concerned about is that the bill supposedly aimed at helping working families might actually hurt them by undermining the 40-hour work week and “increasing overtime hours for those who don’t want them and cutting pay for those who do,” as Center for Economic and Policy Research economist Eileen Appelbaum wrote.  The National Partnership for Women and Families said the “mis-named Working Families Flexibility Act will mean a pay cut for workers without any guaranteed flexibility or time off.” [...]

In Cantor’s “Making Life Work” speech in February, he explained that, “In 1985, Congress passed a law that gave state and municipal employees this flexibility, but today still denies that same privilege to the entire private sector.  That’s not right.”  But that move was to cut costs for government, not provide workers with more freedom, Judith Lichtman of the National Partnership for Women And Families told the AP.  And government employees generally have the protection of both a union and civil service laws.

And as Ezra Klein noted, if the problem is that working parents don’t have enough free time with their kids, then why not give them more by guaranteeing paid vacation days to employees?  The U.S. is the only developed country that doesn’t have a law ensuring all workers get vacations, thanks to fervent opposition from Republicans and corporate interests.  “Instead, Cantor is saying that the way to solve the problem of working parents not having enough time with their kids is to give them an incentive to work more overtime,” Klein wrote.

The House is likely to pass the bill sometime this week, though it almost certainly won't become law, at least not anytime soon -- the White House issued a formal veto threat yesterday.

AMERICA - About the Job Market Today

"April Hiring Increase Shows Signs of Economic Healing Despite Spending Cuts" PBS Newshour 5/3/2013

Excerpt

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  Solid job growth in April and positive revisions to previous months.  Today's Labor Department figures eased worries about the U.S. economy.

In all, the economy added 165,000 jobs last month, primarily in the private sector, retail, restaurant and health care industries.  The stronger-than-expected hiring helped reduce the nation's unemployment rate a modest 0.10 percent to 7.5 percent, the lowest level since December 2008.

A further key element of today's good news: dramatic revisions upward in the number of new jobs created in February and March by a total of 114,000.  With the revisions, February payrolls increased to 332,000 jobs, while March gains stood at 138,000.

White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Alan Krueger said the hiring numbers reflect an improving job market, in spite of federal spending cuts from the sequester, which he took the opportunity to criticize.

ALAN KRUEGER, Chairman, White House Council of Economic Advisers:  Today's report and other data coming in shows the resilience of the U.S. economy.  The economy is healing from the scars of the great recession, but there's a ways to go.  We're not back to full health.  And we could put more people back to work more quickly if we had more sensible fiscal policy coming out of Washington.

"Brutal Job Search Reality for Older Americans Out of Work for Six Months or More" PBS Newshour 5/3/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Despite a rosier jobs picture in April, for Americans ages 55 or older who have been unemployed long-term, the prospect of finding work is greatly limited.  Economic correspondent Paul Solman explores why older workers face joblessness and considerable financial strain.

OPINION - Now All of New England Allows Gay Marriage

"Rhode Island bends the arc towards justice" by Steve Benen, Maddow Blog 5/3/2013

And then there were 10.

Overcoming years of resistance, Rhode Island on Thursday became the 10th state in the country and the last in New England to approve same-sex marriage.

The measure passed a final vote in the legislature in the afternoon.  Just before 7 p.m., Gov. Lincoln Chafee, an independent who had long advocated for its passage, signed it into law in a jubilant ceremony on the steps of the Statehouse in Providence, where hundreds of people, including many state and local officials, joined the celebration.

Rhode Island was New England's sole holdout for many years -- the legislative efforts began in earnest in 1997 -- but this year, thanks in part to an aggressive push from Chafee, who discussed his efforts on the show last night, the support for equal marriage rights was simply too strong.

Once the law goes into effect in August, all seven Northeastern states -- New York and all of New England -- will permit same-sex couples to legally marry.  Along with Iowa, Maryland, and the state of Washington, we've reached the point at which one fifth of the states are now on board with marriage equality.

And the list isn't done.  Efforts are also well underway in Delaware, Illinois, and Minnesota.

An enormous amount of blood, sweat, and tears were necessary to get us to this point, and it's heartening to see milestones become more routine.  It wasn't long ago when equal marriage rights in the United States were considered a dream -- a point Americans might someday reach, but a goal on a distant horizon.  The early breakthroughs came largely through the judicial process, not the legislative one, with elected officials and voters too reluctant to advance the cause.

But with remarkable speed, victories have become far less elusive, and successes are coming through legislatures and ballot referenda.  The arc of the moral universe is long, and slowly but surely, it's clearly bending toward justice.

HUMOR - Another Dilbert Zing 5/3/2013

Dilbert

BOSTON - Tsarnaev Brothers Considered a 4th of July Attack

"Boston Plotters Said to Initially Target July 4 for Attack" by ERIC SCHMITT, MARK MAZZETTI, MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT, and SCOTT SHANE; New York Times 5/2/2013

Excerpt

The surviving suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings told F.B.I. interrogators that he and his brother considered suicide attacks and striking on the Fourth of July as they plotted their deadly assault, according to two law enforcement officials.

But the suspect,Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, told investigators that he and his brother,Tamerlan, 26, who was killed in a shootout with the police, ultimately decided to use pressure-cooker bombs and other homemade explosive devices, the officials said.

The brothers finished building the bombs in Tamerlan’s apartment in Cambridge, Mass., faster than they had anticipated, and so decided to accelerate their attack to the Boston Marathon on April 15, Patriots’ Day in Massachusetts, according to the account that Dzhokhar provided to authorities.  They picked the finish line of the marathon after driving around the Boston area looking for alternative sites, according to this account.

In addition, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has told authorities that he and his brother viewed the Internet sermons of Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical American cleric who moved to Yemen and was killed in September 2011 by an American drone strike.  There is no indication that the brothers communicated with Mr. Awlaki.

Mr. Tsarnaev made his admission on April 21 — two days after he was captured while hiding in a boat in a nearby backyard — to specially trained F.B.I. agents who had been waiting outside his hospital room for him to regain consciousness.

After he woke up, they questioned him, invoking what is known as the public safety exception to the Miranda Rule, a procedure authorized by a 1984 Supreme Court decision which in certain circumstances allows interrogation after an arrest without notifying a prisoner of the right to remain silent.

The new details of what Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has told authorities emerged as the F.B.I. moved forward on Thursday with trying to determine how the brothers were radicalized and the role that Tamerlan’s wife, Katherine Russell, may have played in the plot or in helping the brothers evade the authorities after the attacks.

HISTORY - Cannibalism at 1607 Jamestown, Colony of Virginia?

"Archaeologists Make Grisly Discovery About Starvation at Jamestown Settlement" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/2/2013

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  And finally tonight, a grizzly addition to early American history.

Founded in 1607, Jamestown was America's first permanent English settlement.  The Virginia Company of London established the colony 60 miles north of the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, naming the site “James Fort” after England's King James I.  But life there was anything but easy.  Historians believe the settlers arrived during the worst drought in 800 years.

And disease, starvation, and conflicts with nearby Native Americans plagued the colonists.  Accounts from the time tell of residents forced to eat dogs, cats, rodents, and even shoe leather to fend off starvation.  And it appears it was even worse than that.

Researchers have now revealed evidence of cannibalism in the remains of a 14-year-old girl found in a trash pit at the colony site last summer.

Forensic anthropologist Douglas Owsley says cut marks on the cheekbones and skull of the girl they have named Jane support the theory she was butchered after her death for consumption.

DOUGLAS OWSLEY, Smithsonian Institute:  From my experience working with prehistoric skeletons, where I have seen postmortem, meaning after-death, processing of remains, this is absolutely consistent with what we see in cannibalism and those types of cases.

JEFFREY BROWN:  How Jane died remains unknown, but researchers say there was no evidence of murder.

In all, some 80 percent of the colonists and members of a relief fleet sent from England died before the situation stabilized in 1610.

"Jamestown's 'Jane' Reflects Grim Reality of America's Early Settlers" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/2/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  An archaeological dig at Jamestown, Va., unearthed the remains of a teenage girl whose skull had been butchered -- confirmation that early settlers resorted to cannibalism to stave avoid starvation.  Jeffrey Brown talks to William Kelso, the director of the team, about how their discovery alters our understanding of that history.

Official Jamestown Settlement & Yorktown Victory WEB Page

TECHNOLOGY - Promise and Pitfalls of Digital Future

"Google's Schmidt and Cohen Discuss Promise and Pitfalls of the Digital Future" PBS Newshour 5/2/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Google's Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen explore the intersection of technology and democracy in their new book, "The Digital Age:  Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business."  Judy Woodruff talks to the authors about the promise and pitfalls of the digital future.

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  What a high-tech future may mean for your standard of living, personal privacy and how governments deal with their citizenry, a big subject, to be sure.

But those visions are the focus of a book called "The New Digital Age" by Eric Schmidt, the executive chairman of Google, and his co-author, Jared Cohen, who recently worked at the State Department.  He's now at Google as well.

I sat down with them in Washington recently.

IRAQ - Chronic Violence

"Iraq Bombarded by Deadly Sectarian Violence in Bloodiest Month Since 2008" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/2/2013

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  And we turn to Iraq, where the country just had its deadliest month in nearly five years.  Ray Suarez reports on the recent surge in violence and what's behind it.

RAY SUAREZ (Newshour):  Twisted wreckage and shattered glass strewn across central Iraq, the aftermath of all-too-familiar bombings.  Four coordinated attacks Monday in four Shiite cities south of Baghdad killed more than 35 people.  Multiple attacks yesterday killed 22 more.

MAN:  Do Allah and Prophet Mohammed accept this?  No one is safe.  You do not know if you will come back to a house or not when you go to work.

RAY SUAREZ:  The attacks, dozens in the last month, are the most serious spasm of violence since American troops left nearly 18 months ago.  Today, the United Nations mission in Iraq said April was the deadliest month since June 2008.  More than 700 people were killed, almost all in Baghdad. Nearly 600 were civilians.

Coupled with the Sunni-Shiite bloodletting in neighboring Syria, all this has rekindled fears of sectarian war in Iraq.  Years of such violence tore the country apart after the American invasion, and killed tens of thousands.

MAN:  The explosions have escalated nowadays in the south and the middle of the country, especially since Hawijah events, when the Iraqi troops stormed a protest site.

RAY SUAREZ:  That attack in Hawijah by the predominantly Shiite security forces last week resulted in 20 dead Sunni protesters.  They had set up camp about 100 miles north of Baghdad to oppose what they saw as the increasingly sectarian bent of Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his government.

A string of bombings followed the Hawijah attack.  Sunni militants skirmished with security forces, and the telltale car bombings of al-Qaida in Iraq ramped up.  But another group is also coming to the fore.  The Men of the Army of the Naqshbandi Order, known by its Arabic acronym, JRTN, is a Sufi Islamist militant group.

The group was formed after Saddam Hussein's execution in late 2006.  One of its strongholds is Hawijah.  JRTN is allegedly headed by the highest-ranking Saddam aide to elude capture, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri.  He was the king of clubs in the U.S. military's famous deck of cards of wanted Iraqis.

Last week, Prime Minister Maliki sought to tamp down the sectarian fervor, now rife in Syria, and again threatening Iraq.

PRIME MINISTER NOURI AL-MALIKI, Iraq:  I can honestly say that, if the sectarian sedition bursts, there will not be a winner or a loser.  All of us will be losers, whether those who are in the south or in the north, in the east or west of the country.  Let those who foment sectarianism, whether they are from inside or outside the country, be ready to burn themselves in the fire of sectarian strife.

RAY SUAREZ:  On Monday, Iraq's Media Commission took what it said was a step to end that strife.  It suspended licenses for 10 satellite channels.

SALEM MASHKOUR, Iraq Communications and Media Commission:  We had direct meetings with the channels' administrations and we asked them to change their language, taking a stand against those who call for violence, sectarian strife and sectarian killing.  They were calling for direct killing recently, so this is inconsistent with the norms and standards adopted by free press in most democracies.

RAY SUAREZ:  Most were Sunni-affiliated operations.  The commission is powerless, however, to stop broadcasts altogether.

"As Tensions Boil Over, How Might Iraq Prevent Return to Chronic Violence?" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/2/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Ray Suarez talks with former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker and Feisal Istrabadi, Iraq's former deputy ambassador to the United Nations, about the upsurge in Iraqi violence and boiling political pressures, how the conflict in Syria has spilled over into Iraq and whether the country is advancing towards civil war.

WOMEN - The Morning-After Pill Fight

"Justice Department Plans Fight Over Federal Ruling on Morning-After Pill" PBS Newshour 5/2/2013

Excerpt

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  And we return to the battle over emergency contraception, the so-called morning after pill.

It's been more than a decade since the pill was first approved by the FDA, but legal and political controversy has swirled ever since.  In 2011, the FDA decided the drug should be available to all girls and women, without prescription.

In an unprecedented action, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius quickly overruled the agency, keeping the age limit at 17 and older.

Last month, a federal judge ordered that restriction lifted in a strong rebuke to the administration.

And then, on Tuesday, the FDA set a new age limit, 15 and older, for the most popular version of the pill, known as Plan B One-Step.  And last night, the Department of Justice said it will fight the federal judge's broader decision that the drug should be available to all girls and women.

Julie Rovner of NPR is here to help sort it all out.

POLITICS - Is It 2016 Yet?

"The Calendar Says 2013, but It Feels Like 2016" by Terence Burlij and Christina Bellantoni, PBS Newshour 5/3/2013

Excerpt

There are still roughly 1,000 days before voting gets underway in the 2016 presidential primary process, but you wouldn't know it by looking at the political headliners appearing at dueling Democratic and Republican Party dinners in Columbia, S.C., Friday night.

Vice President Joe Biden will address the South Carolina Democratic Party's annual Jefferson Jackson Dinner and is also expected to attend Rep. Jim Clyburn's "World Famous Fish Fry."

Just two miles away, freshman Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, will speak at the South Carolina Republican Party's Silver Elephant Celebration honoring Jim DeMint, who late last year stepped down from his U.S. Senate seat to become president of the Heritage Foundation.

Cruz's appearance has fueled speculation that he might be lining up a presidential bid for 2016.  Last year's keynote speaker at the event was Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., another potential GOP contender.

Earlier this week the National Review's Robert Costa reported that Cruz was considering a possible bid.  The senator responded to the story on Facebook, calling it "wild speculation."

An aide to Cruz told the Dallas Morning News that the senator's presence at Friday night's banquet was to honor DeMint.

"This is for Senator DeMint, and that's why he's going," Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier said.

Rubio, meanwhile, has raised his profile by championing the bipartisan immigration reform bill that he helped craft with seven other members of the Senate.  He defended its elements Friday in the Wall Street Journal's op-ed pages.  In the piece, he addresses the criticism coming at him from people who view the measure as offering undocumented immigrants "amnesty":

And for those who believe the road ahead for illegal immigrants is too generous or lenient, Congress will have a chance to make it tougher, yet still realistic.  No one has a right to violate the immigration laws and remain here with impunity.  Finding a sensible way to resolve our illegal-immigration problem must include penalties that show the rest of the world that it really is cheaper, easier and faster to immigrate to the U.S. the right way.

Of course, there are those who will never support immigration reform no matter what changes we make.  Even if we address every concern they raise, they will likely come up with new ones.  They have a long list of complaints but typically never offer a solution of their own.

Rubio closes by going after the politics at hand:  "[D]efeating it without offering an alternative cannot be the conservative position on immigration reform.  That would leave the issue entirely in the hands of President Obama and leave in place the disastrous status quo."

The Washington Post's Philip Rucker raises the curtain on Biden's visit to the Palmetto State, which holds critical early primary contests for both parties.

For Biden, who, his family and advisers say, is weighing whether to run in 2016, several paradoxes are at work.  He is beloved by grass-roots Democrats, but mainly as the avuncular No. 2 to Barack Obama.  From the South Carolina Lowcountry to the Iowa heartland, there are no signs -- none yet, at least -- of a "Draft Joe" movement.  "There just isn't," said Sue Dvorsky, a former head of the Iowa Democratic Party.

The Democratic women's group EMILY's List, meanwhile, is laying the groundwork to make 2016 another history-making election.  Enter "Madam President."

As Terence wrote Thursday, the group unveiled its campaign to elect the first female president of the United States, the same morning a new poll found former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to be the overwhelming favorite for the Democratic Party's nomination in 2016.

"I have to say, there is one name that seems to be getting mentioned more than others," EMILY's List President Stephanie Schriock told reporters.  "We do not know if Hillary is going to run, but we are hopeful that she may."

(Speaking of female candidates, Schriock also suggested she might run for the Montana Senate seat being vacated by veteran Democratic Sen. Max Baucus, who is retiring.)

If all this weren't enough, C-SPAN on Friday is starting Road to the White House 2016.

As we've noted a few times, yes, it's early.  But when it comes to presidential politics, it's really never too early to speculate.

BOSTON - Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's Friends Obstructed Investigation

"Three College Friends of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Arrested for Roles After the Bombing" PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

Excerpt

GWEN IFILL (Newshour):  The Boston bombings investigation took another new turn today with federal charges filed against three college buddies of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.  They're accused of trying to get rid of evidence or lying to investigators after the attack.  Two of the three are from Kazakhstan.

Azamat Tazhayakov is on the left, and Dias Kadyrbayev is in the center in this undated photo with Tsarnaev taken in New York.  The third new suspect was identified as Robel Phillipos.

We get more now from Dina Temple-Raston of NPR.

ECONOMY - Washington Budget Cuts Debate Reflect European Arguments

"European Arguments Over Austerity Echoed in Washington Debate on Budget Cuts" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  And we turn to a growing pushback against economic austerity measures here and in Europe.  The day started with several big protests abroad, as citizens complained their governments are cutting spending too severely.

European capitals filled with May Day crowds protesting austerity measures that are meant to bring down sky-high government debt.  In Athens, Greek union workers went on strike against proposed layoffs of public employees.

KOSTAS TSIKRIKAS, President, Confederation of Civil Servants Trade Union:  We will continue to fight to overturn this unfair and dead-end policy that is destroying millions of jobs on a national and European level and is driving large swathes of society to poverty and destruction.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  In Madrid, Spaniards joined the protests. Unemployment in Spain and Greece now tops 27 percent.  And for the Eurozone as a whole, it hit a record high 12.1 percent in March.  The human toll behind the data also fueled rallies today in Britain, Portugal and France, with trade unions and others insisting that spending cuts and tax hikes have killed economic growth.

THIERRY LEPAON, Secretary General, CGT Workers Union:  We have seen that in Spain, in Greece, in Portugal, in Italy, the austerity policies launched by these governments are leading once again to a dead end.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  The arguments over austerity and debt are echoed in Washington's debates over budget cuts.  A 2010 Harvard study by economists Kenneth Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart concluded that when government debt exceeds 90 percent of the gross domestic product, the economy shrinks a 10th of a percent.  It's frequently cited by Republicans, including House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch.

SEN. ORRIN HATCH, R-Utah:  And while one might quibble with the particulars of Reinhart's and Rogoff's assessment, failure to take it seriously, given the recent struggles of the Eurozone, amounts to whistling past the graveyard.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  But, this month, researchers at the University of Massachusetts did more than quibble.  They concluded that average annual growth actually tops two percent even when government debt is high.  And they charged the Rogoff-Reinhart study included key calculation errors and omitted important post-World War II data from other countries, such as Australia and New Zealand.

The furor became fodder for comedian Stephen Colbert.

STEPHEN COLBERT, "The Colbert Report": Please.

If ignoring New Zealand, Australia, and Canada were a crime, everyone in America would be on death row.

But, come on, 2.2 percent up, 0.1 percent down.  You say potato, I say eliminate food stamps.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  Reinhart and Rogoff have acknowledged some errors, but they say their conclusions are sound just the same.  Other economists say mandatory budget cuts, known as the sequester, are at least partly to blame for the disappointing March jobs report. President Obama said as much yesterday.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:  It's slowed our growth.  It's resulting in people being thrown out of work, and it's hurting folks all across the country.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  Another picture of the sequester's effects on growth may come Friday, when April's unemployment numbers are released.

"U.S. Faces 'Real-Time Experiment' in Economic Recovery While Cutting Spending" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  As Europeans protested austerity for May Day, the Federal Reserve said it will continue to stimulate the U.S. economy, but expressed concern that spending cuts are restricting growth.  Robert Kuttner of The American Prospect and economist Kevin Hassett join Judy Woodruff to debate the merits of austerity abroad and in the U.S.

ASIA - Anger Over Garment Factory Disaster Spillover

"Anger Over Garment Factory Disaster Fuels Annual Labor Rallies in Southeast Asia" PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  After 400 people died in the collapse of a Bangladeshi garment factory, workers in Southeast Asia marched to call for better working conditions and pay.  Ray Suarez talks with Pietra Rivoli, professor at Georgetown University, and Time magazine's David Von Drehle about safety regulations in developing nations.

CALIFORNIA - Oyster Farm, Pacific Cost vs Department of the Interior

"Strange Bedfellows Join Fight to Keep California Oyster Farm in Operation" PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

Excerpt

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  In Northern California, there's an unusual battle brewing over a renowned oyster farm that's located in a national seashore.  The fight is playing out among business, government and some environmentalists.  But it's one that's creating strange bedfellows concerned about the outcome.

Spencer Michels reports.

SPENCER MICHELS (Newshour):  The Drakes Bay Oyster Company at Point Reyes National Seashore north of San Francisco may be producing its last crop.

When its long-term lease expired last year, the Department of the Interior said the lease was terminated, and ordered the family-owned company to stop planting and harvesting oysters, as the farm has done since the 1930s.  And that has provoked a battle with an unlikely cast of characters.

The repercussions extend far beyond this spectacular Pacific Coast enclave, to the restaurants of the Bay Area and all the way to Washington, D.C., where politicians of both parties are joining in the fight.  Much of the area in the National Seashore has been designated wilderness, and the then secretary of the interior has said the oyster farm doesn't fit in a wilderness area, since it's a commercial operation.

So he ordered it closed in March.  The company sued to stop its eviction, and a federal court has allowed operations to continue while it considers the case.

WAR ON TERROR - Films on Hunt for Bin Laden and the CIA 'Sisterhood'

"Documentary Focuses on Analysts Behind 'Manhunt' for Osama Bin Laden" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

GWEN IFILL (Newshour):  Today marks the second anniversary of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.  Tonight, we bring you the previously unknown story of the sisterhood of CIA analysts who chased the al-Qaida leader.

Margaret Warner reports.

MARGARET WARNER (Newshour):  It was the news most Americans had waited nearly a decade to hear.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:  After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body.

MARGARET WARNER:  But for many of the people who'd helped find Osama bin Laden, their work had started nearly two decades earlier, long before the most-wanted man on earth had earned his infamy.

Their story of the CIA analysts and officers who'd tracked down the al-Qaida chief is told in the documentary HBO film "Manhunt" debuting tonight.  It's based on the book by CNN's Peter Bergen.

PETER BERGEN, CNN:  In '97, Osama bin Laden had declared war on the United States, but no one paid any attention.

CINDY STORER, Former CIA Analyst:  There were just warning after warning.  We knew something huge was going to happen.

MARGARET WARNER:  But long before that September day, their chase began in a near-total information vacuum.

WOMAN:  Well, we certainly didn't know that al-Qaida existed.  We didn't know there was a terrorist organization.

MARGARET WARNER:  The group tracking the elusive Saudi militant was known as Alec Station and was novel in its approach.

MAN:  The unique thing about Alec Station was the fusion of analysis and operations.

MARGARET WARNER:  The analytical team at CIA was comprised mostly of women.  Before 9/11, it wasn't a prime assignment.  Cindy Storer was an analyst, part of what was called “The Sisterhood.”

CINDY STORER:  I was counseled once in a performance review that I was spending too much time working on bin Laden.  They said we were obsessed crusaders, overly emotional, using all those women stereotypes.

MARGARET WARNER:  Nada Bakos followed Storer on the mostly female team.

NADA BAKOS, Former CIA Analyst:  We picked up that end of the spear, where some of the operations officers tend to be mostly men.

MARGARET WARNER:  After 9/11, the tempo of operations shifted to hunting al-Qaida figures in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere.  Many analysts moved into new jobs as “targeters.”  Nada Bakos was among them, forward-deployed in Iraq to track Abu Musab al Zarqawi.

She also targeted a vital al-Qaida emissary who, after capture, gave up the name of the courier who eventually led the U.S. to bin Laden's door two years ago today.

NOTE:  The Hollywood-drama film "Zero Dark Thirty" (2012) is also about the hunt for Osama bin Laden.


"At the CIA, a 'Sisterhood' of Analysts Who Helped Find Bin Laden" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Cindy Storer and Nada Bakos were part of a majority female team of CIA intelligence analysts -- dubbed "The Sisterhood" -- who contributed to the effort to locate Osama bin Laden.  Margaret Warner talks with Storer and Bakos about their intensely detailed work and frustrations with having that work sometimes ignored or belittled.

ALSO:

"The True Un-Hollywood Story of a Sisterhood's Hunt for Bin Laden" by Margaret Warner, PBS Newshour 5/1/2013

POLITICS - White House News Conference 4/30/2013

"100 Days In, President Obama Holds News Conference on Second Term Priorities" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 4/30/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  From the White House briefing room President Barack Obama joked and jabbed with the press and promised to keep pushing his priorities, including immigration reform and closing the Guantanamo Bay detention center.  Kwame Holman reports on what the president said about congressional conflict, Syria and the Boston Marathon attack.

"President Obama Renews Pledge to Close Guantanamo Detention Center" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 4/30/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  In a White House news conference, President Barack Obama renewed a pledge to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, where more than half of the prisoners have recently been on hunger strike to protest their legal limbo.  Gwen Ifill talks to Charlie Savage of The New York Times.

POLITICS - White House vs Congress

What the White House (President Obama) is facing is the our-way-or-no-way, anti-Obama, do-nothing GOP.  The party of non-governance.

"Political Challenges and Clashes to Come Between Congress and White House" PBS Newshour 4/30/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  How does the current relationship between the White House and Congress affect major points of business like spending cuts and immigration reform?  Judy Woodruff gets analysis from Glenn Thrush of Politico and Dan Balz of The Washington Post.

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  We continue coverage our coverage of the president's news conference today with a look at his relationship with Congress.

Joining me now are Dan Balz, chief correspondent with The Washington Post.  And Glenn Thrush, he covers the White House for Politico.

BOSTON - Lessons to be Learned, What Went Wrong

"In Hindsight of Boston Marathon Bombing, Trying to Figure Out What Went Wrong" PBS Newshour 4/30/2013

Excerpt

RAY SUAREZ (Newshour):  It's been just over two weeks since the attacks and investigators are pursuing several lines of inquiry both here and abroad.

Those include, according to several news organizations, widening the investigation to see if others may have helped the suspects before or after the bombings, and continuing to speak with the widow of the 26-year-old suspect who was killed, Tamerlan Tsarnaev.

And, as the president said at his news conference, the director of national intelligence will oversee a review of how 17 agencies handled earlier tips and questions about the older brother.

For the latest, we turn to Evan Perez, who is covering the case for The Wall Street Journal.

HEALTH - Consequences of Taking Too Much Pain Medication

"Pain and Consequences for Those Taking Too Much Pain Medication" PBS Newshour 4/30/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  At age 22, college football player Austin Box had suffered a slew of painful injuries.  Two weeks after his graduation, he overdosed on a lethal cocktail of pain medications, none of which he had been prescribed.  Health correspondent Betty Ann Bowser reports on the perils of painkillers and the difficulty of combating abuse.

Significant excerpt

THOMAS FRIEDEN, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:  When I was in medical school, the one thing I was told was completely wrong.  The one I was told was, if you give opiates to a patient who's in pain, they will not get addicted.  Completely wrong.  Completely wrong.  But a generation of doctors, a generation of us grew up being trained that these drugs aren't risky.  In fact, they are risky.

BETTY ANN BOWSER (Newshour):  Health officials also cite a cultural shift in the acceptance of taking prescription drugs in general.

TERRY CLINE, Oklahoma Commissioner of Health:  In our society, where we expect a pill to make our lives easier to manage, sometimes, we take the easy way out.

ALSO:

"Prescription Drug Abuse: Top 10 Things CDC Says You Should Know" by Jason Kane, PBS Newshour 4/30/2013

ABORTION - The New Arena for the Debate Over Abortion

IMO: T his is just more of unconstitutional imposition of a religious based belief, by using the law of the land, on ALL citizens of the U.S., which opposite allowing the free practice of religion by individuals.  Not to mention the effect on women's right to decide what to do with her own body.

"States Become Central Battleground in Fight Over Access to Abortion Services" PBS Newshour 4/30/2013

Excerpt

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour):  The central battleground in the debate over abortion rights has shifted in recent years to the states.  In just the past two months, five states, Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, North Dakota and Virginia, approved more stringent restrictions in abortion.

In North Dakota, for example, the new law prohibits abortion as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can be soon as soon as six weeks.

REP. BETTE GRANDE, R-N.D.:  North Dakota believes in the life of the unborn child, believes that the heartbeat is life.

JEFFREY BROWN:  Such laws are aimed at undermining the standards set out in the Supreme Court's 1973 ruling in Roe vs. Wade.  That decision gave women the right to an abortion until the fetus is viable outside the womb, about 24 weeks into pregnancy.

Speaking last Friday at a Planned Parenthood conference, President Obama took aim at measures designed to limit abortion rights.  He told the crowd such policies would -- quote -- "roll back basic rights" when it comes to women's health.

OPINION - GOP Style Austerity and Syrian Chemical Weapons Debate

The Rachel Maddow Show

MSNBC 4/29/2013

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