Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• New music made the old fashioned way
  Some Minnesota musicians are turning down the volume and turning back the clock with their music.4:50 p.m.
• Pawlenty hopes to boost 'green' jobs
  Gov. Tim Pawlenty says he will push tax credits and other incentives to companies that add jobs in the renewable energy field.5:20 p.m.
• Melamine in imported cookies could cause health problems
  The Minnesota Department of Agriculture said it's found melamine in cookies sold in at least one Asian grocery in Minnesota. Heidi Kassenborg, of the state agriculture department, joined All Things Considered to talk more about the first advisory issued in Minnesota for melamine contamination.5:24 p.m.
• Hennepin Co. declines to reconsider absentees
  The Hennepin County canvassing board has rejected Democrat Al Franken's campaign's request to count some absentee ballots that had been declared invalid.5:50 p.m.
• Somalis rejoice over president with African roots
  While people all over the globe seem to identify with President-elect Barack Obama, Africans especially aren't shy about claiming him as one of their own.5:54 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• U.S. Boosts AIG Bailout Package
  The U.S. is giving new financial assistance to American International Group, providing $40 billion to the troubled insurance giant in return for partial ownership. The government will replace a proposal to give the firm $123 billion with one worth $150 billion.
• South African Singer Makeba Dies
  Miriam Makeba, whose voice gave South Africans hope when the country was gripped by apartheid, has died of a heart attack after collapsing on stage in Italy. She was 76.
• In Vietnam, Press Freedom Curtailed
  Vietnam's media are tightly controlled by the ruling Communist Party. When conservatives are on the rise, life gets harder for journalists in the country.
• NASA Announces End Of Mars Phoenix Mission
  NASA has said the Phoenix Mars mission, which landed on the red planet last May, has ended. Since then, it has been snapping pictures, making weather measurements and conducting chemical analysis on Martian soil. NASA says it has not heard from Phoenix since Nov. 2.
• Homeland Security Department Preps For Transition
  The Department of Homeland Security has been working on its transition plans for more than a year. They include putting a career employee in the second or third position in every division so there's someone who can take over as acting director until the new appointee is in place.
• Treasury Rule Tweak Gave Banks Billions
  In Late September, a Treasury Department rule change gave U.S. banks a windfall of as much as $140 billion. A change to Section 382 of the tax code relaxed the limits on a type of tax shelter that arises during corporate mergers. Washington Post reporter Amit Paley, who reported on the change, offers his insight.
• Obama Tries To Avoid Clinton Missteps In Transition
  One of the reasons the handoff from the Bush administration to the Obama administration is proceeding smoothly is that the president-elect has learned from the past. One example: his decision to move faster than President Clinton to begin assembling his White House staff.
• Letters: Press Secretary, Mormons, Municipalities
  Listeners responded to the segment in which former White House press secretaries offered wisdom to president-elect Barack Obama's likely pick, Robert Gibbs. Listeners also sounded off on the story on protests against the Church of Latter Day Saints, and on municipalities and the economic meltdown.
• Layoffs Hit Kansas Aircraft Maker; Worker Reacts
  Wichita, Kan.-based aircraft manufacturer Hawker Beechcraft has announced a 5 percent cut to its work force, or almost 500 jobs, due to the worldwide economic slowdown. Michelle Thornton, one of those laid off last Thursday by the firm, talks about what happened.
• Chinese Stimulus May Affect Commodity Prices
  The size of China's economic stimulus package will likely have an effect on the rest of the world. Simon Johnson, former chief economist for the International Monetary Fund and senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, says the Chinese package sets an example for other countries to follow, but the real effect will likely be seen in commodity prices.
• Ex-War Advocate Adelman Backs Obama On Iraq
  Kenneth Adelman, who has worked under Republican presidents since Nixon, was an outspoken supporter of the war in Iraq. He has since changed his view and looks favorably upon the president-elect's tentative 16-month timetable to pull U.S. troops from Iraq.
• Q&A: Will Congress Bail Out Detroit Automakers?
  The Big Three automakers say they need a government bailout to survive. The Treasury Department opposes a Democratic plan to provide money from the $700 billion bailout of the financial sector. Meanwhile, it's unclear whether there is support for another bailout.
• Asian Markets Spike On China Stimulus Package
  China has launched an economic stimulus package worth nearly $600 billion, which includes more government investment in infrastructure, tax deductions for exporters, and bigger subsidies to the poor and farmers. Asian markets soared in response.
• Obama Visits White House For Meeting With Bush
  President George W. Bush welcomed President-elect Barack Obama to the White House on Monday. While the two men met to discuss affairs of state, first lady Laura Bush gave Michelle Obama a tour of the second-floor residence of the Executive Mansion.
• A Kurosawa Celebration, From Many Angles
  A restored Rashomon and rarely seen sketches in the director's own hand anchor a three-month tribute to the man who brought Japanese cinema to the world.

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