Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Feds propose de-listing gray wolves from endangered species list
  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Friday that the population of gray wolves in Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin has recovered enough to be removed from federal protection.4:49 p.m.
• Despite no new plants, Minn. company still part of the nuclear process
  A factory in Hutchinson is about to ship a huge crane overseas. The crane is key to a new crop of nuclear reactors that, for now, aren't welcome here.4:53 p.m.
• One bill down, but the hard work at the Capitol is still to come
  The just-signed Agriculture bill is less than 1 percent of the state's total budget for the next two years and does little to erase the projected $5 billion deficit. And the governor and the Legislature are having a much harder time agreeing on what to do next.5:17 p.m.
• Military family prepares for husband's deployment
  How do you prepare for a year at war? The Munoz family, in the north metro, is struggling with that question. Staff officer Freddy Munoz will soon deploy to Kuwait as part of the drawdown of U.S. troops from Iraq, along with about 2,400 other Minnesota National Guard soldiers.5:21 p.m.
• Poligraph checks claims by Reps. Ellison and Peterson
  U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota says that two-thirds of American corporations pay no taxes. And Rep. Collin Peterson claims that a 25 percent cut for agriculture is higher than other parts of the federal budget. Those are the claims we're fact-checking this time on Poligraph.5:45 p.m.
• Mpls. musician takes low-key approach to his work
  Minneapolis singer-songwriter Ben Weaver is known for deeply imagistic lyrics and an ability to reduce songs to their bare elements. He won't tell you what he thinks his song "East Jefferson" means. That's for you to decide.5:51 p.m.
• The Dinner Party Download featuring Vera Farmiga
  On this week's Dinner Party Download, author T.C. Boyle, the history of SPAM and actress Vera Farmiga.6:20 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• House Passes Ryan's 2012 Budget Plan
  The House passed a 2012 budget resolution Friday in a partisan vote of 235-193 with four Republicans dissenting. The blueprint, put forward by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, would reduce spending by trillions of dollars over the next decade, in part by overhauling Medicare and Medicaid. It's a non-starter in the Senate — but a benchmark for the conservative majority in the House, which will have to convince voters that fiscal discipline trumps a popular entitlement.
• Week In Review: Obama's Budget Speech; 2012 Presidential Election
  Robert Siegel speaks with our regular political commentators, E.J. Dionne of The Washington Post and Brookings Institution, and David Brooks of The New York Times.
• At ABC, Two Soaps Get Scrubbed
  ABC is canceling two of its long-running daytime soap operas: All My Children and One Life to Life. The TV network is replacing the melodramas with two talk shows, hosted by fashion gurus Clinton Kelly of What Not to Wear fame and Tim Gunn from Project Runway.
• Egypt Finds Its Own 'Jon Stewart'
  The audience for Egypt's Bassem Youssef Show is growing as fast as a snowball rolling down a hill — and it exemplifies everything that is new about media in post-revolutionary Egypt.
• The Record Stores Are All Right
  What the continued success of independent record stores means to the recording industry.
• Control Flicks: Movies That Mess With Your Mind
  Lately, sci-fi films have featured fewer aliens and more ... reality. NPR's Bob Mondello surveys a recent crop of movies in which regular people battle for control — of time, of minds and of lives.
• What If The IRS Showed How Your Taxes Are Spent?
  Imagine that when you filed your taxes you got a receipt from the IRS that showed how your money was spent. David Kendall, a senior fellow at the think tank Third Way, argues that this would clear up misconceptions about where our taxpayer dollars go and help restore trust between citizens and the government. Robert Siegel talks with Kendall about his idea.
• Cubans Await Communist Party Reforms
  Cuba will hold a Communist Party Congress starting this weekend, the first since 1997. Its main purpose will be to ratify Raul Castro's reform plans for the island's failing economic model. But it's not clear how far the changes will go.
• A Philatelic Whopper: When Lady Liberty Turns Out To Be A Replica
  If you look closely, you'll find something's wrong with the U.S. Postal Service's Lady Liberty Forever stamp.
• Has NATO Hit A Wall In Libya?
  President Obama and others say NATO and its partners must maintain operations in Libya as long as Moammar Gadhafi remains in power. But with rebels and Gadhafi's forces in a stalemate, there's concern the NATO operation may be insufficient to protect civilians — let alone force the dictator out.

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