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10:48am

Wed March 21, 2012
National Security

Accused Sergeant Heads Down A Long Legal Road

Credit Spc. Ryan Hallock / AP
Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, who is accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians, will have the case heard in the military justice system, which has significant differences from the civilian courts. Here, Bales is shown in a training exercise in Fort Irwin, Calif., last August.

The military justice system has been crafted to work efficiently, but Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales can expect a lengthy legal process as he faces accusations that he killed 16 men, women and children in Afghanistan

Bales is locked up in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, as he and his lawyer prepare for a case that involves a horrendous mass murder. In addition, it's a stress point that could trigger retaliation against American troops and even affect the course of a U.S. war that's more than a decade old.

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9:58am

Wed March 21, 2012
Shots - Health Blog

Doctors' Missteps Online Can Lead To Disciplinary Action

Originally published on Wed March 21, 2012 5:01 pm

Credit iStockphoto.com
Doc, don't be caught red-faced online!

Can your doctor really say that online?

Well, doctors can and do say all kinds of derogatory things about patients online. On the other hand, some doctors take another tack and use their computers and smartphones to ask patients out. And then there are the doctors who go online to prescribe medicines for patients they've never seen.

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9:52am

Wed March 21, 2012
Europe

French Police Surround Suspect In School Shooting

Originally published on Sun March 25, 2012 9:07 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm David Greene.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep. Good morning.

In the southern French city of Toulouse, police are in a stand-off with a man suspected of carrying out a series of shootings. The suspect is described as a 24-year-old French citizen, of North African heritage. He is said to be an al-Qaida sympathizer.

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9:45am

Wed March 21, 2012
The Two-Way

Women Continue To Fill Rick Perry's Facebook Wall With Mock Questions

Credit Facebook.com/GovernorPerry
Gov. Rick Perry's Facebook page, the scene of contention.

Here's the first of more than 5,600 comments we saw this morning when we went to Texas Gov. Rick Perry's Facebook page and opened up a post on his wall thanking those who supported his bid for the Republican presidential nomination:

"Governor Perry, I am experiencing mid-cycle cramping. Is this a punishment from god for not getting pregnant this month?"

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8:50am

Wed March 21, 2012

8:36am

Wed March 21, 2012
It's All Politics

Why Dreams Of A Contested GOP Convention Are Slipping Away Again

Like leap year, talk of a brokered convention seems to surface every presidential cycle. Unlike leap year, the brokered convention itself rarely seems to happen in the end.

But this time around, as the GOP candidates grind it out delegate by delegate, the prospects seemed greater than at any time in the past few decades. As recently as Monday, Rick Santorum insisted he could collect enough delegates to deny rival Mitt Romney the 1,144 needed to clinch the nomination outright.

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8:35am

Wed March 21, 2012
The Two-Way

Trayvon Martin's Killer Had Been Accused Of Violence In The Past

Credit AP
George Zimmerman, in a 2005 mug shot provided by the Orange County (Fla.) jail, via The Miami Herald.
  • Kathy Lohr, on 'Morning Edition'

As national attention continues to be focused on the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., last month and the questions it resurrects about race relations in the U.S., The Orlando Sentinel today adds to what's known about George Zimmerman, the 28-year-old man who pulled the trigger.

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7:40am

Wed March 21, 2012
The Two-Way

It Was Inevitable: Romney's Win In Illinois Resurrects The I-Word

Originally published on Wed March 21, 2012 8:41 am

Credit Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images
Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney at his victory party Tuesday in Schaumburg, Ill.
  • Ari Shapiro on 'Morning Editon'

From Fox News' On The Record with Greta Van Susteren to The Wall Street Journal and Politico, Tuesday's relatively easy win for Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney in the Illinois primary has renewed talk about him being the "inev

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7:10am

Wed March 21, 2012
The Two-Way

Developing: Suspect Surrounded In France, Claims Al-Qaida Ties

Credit Pascal Guyot / AFP/Getty Images
French police officers at the scene of the siege today in Toulouse, where a suspect in recent killings is said to be holed up in an apartment.
  • Eleanor Beardsley, on 'Morning Edition'

There's a dramatic scene unfolding in Toulouse, France, where police have surrounded an apartment building in which the suspect in the recent high-profile killings of at least seven people is said to be barricaded.

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7:01am

Wed March 21, 2012
It's All Politics

In Winner-Take-All Wisconsin, Looming GOP Primary Is Just A Sideshow

Mary Beth Kopidlansky of Waukesha says she knows who she'll vote for in Wisconsin's upcoming GOP presidential primary (Mitt Romney), but that's not really what she's interested in talking about.

For Kopidlansky, and most potential voters in this most Republican of Wisconsin counties, the contest that is consuming them and the rest of the state is not the state's April 3 presidential primary when 42 potentially crucial delegates will be awarded.

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6:43am

Wed March 21, 2012
It's All Politics

Are Primary Republicans Chasing Romney Or The Reagan Rainbow?

Originally published on Wed March 21, 2012 12:28 pm

Rick Santorum's underdog campaign limped out of Illinois to fight another day, but his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination goes forward under a long shadow.

It's not really the shadow of Mount Mitt, even though front-runner Romney's big win in Illinois heightened his pile of delegates. Romney creeps ever closer to inevitability, yet he too is caught in the same shadow of a man who left the stage two decades ago but dominates it to this day.

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4:44am

Wed March 21, 2012
Money & Politics

Romney, SuperPAC Outspend Rivals Combined

Originally published on Wed March 21, 2012 10:23 am

As Mitt Romney decisively won the Illinois Republican presidential primary Tuesday night, financial reports filed at the Federal Election Commission showed that Romney and a superPAC supporting him yet again spent more than all of his GOP opponents combined.

The reports cover the month of February, which started with Romney's win in Nevada and ended with contests in Michigan and Arizona, which the former Massachusetts governor also won.

In between, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum took three smaller states.

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4:43am

Wed March 21, 2012
Reporter's Notebook

A Nation Stands Together For A Fallen Soccer Player

Last weekend, English soccer fans were looking forward to a sporting feast. They ended up taking part in a nationwide communal vigil, focused on an African player's fight for life.

Something extraordinary is happening here.

It started in a sports stadium in London on Saturday. A big crowd had gathered there to watch two English teams, Tottenham and Bolton, do battle in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup.

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4:08am

Wed March 21, 2012
Sweetness And Light

Americans Hit The Brakes On NASCAR

Originally published on Wed March 21, 2012 12:25 pm

Credit Jamie Squire / Getty Images
Drivers practice for the Budweiser Shootout at the NASCAR Nextel Cup Daytona 500 at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona, Fla.

Individual sports are always volatile, and after being the next big thing, NASCAR's popularity has stalled.

A lot had to do with the economy. In a sport that depends on sponsorships and rich owners — like those good buddies Mitt Romney kicks tires with --– NASCAR was especially vulnerable.

And as for fans, when it became cutback time, they had to think twice about gassing up those big old RVs and driving a far piece to sit in those ear-shattering stadiums.

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4:07am

Wed March 21, 2012
Law

Confronting The VP May Be Impolite. Is It A Crime?

The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments Wednesday in a case involving the arrest of a Colorado man who was thrown in jail after telling Vice President Cheney in 2006 that the Bush administration's policies in Iraq were "disgusting."

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4:07am

Wed March 21, 2012
Food

Italian 'Nonnas' Bring Taste Of Home To Staten Island

Originally published on Wed March 21, 2012 10:23 am

America is dotted with countless restaurants large and small. Many of those are well-loved for their distinct character — and for what they can teach diners about cooking, and about life.

One such establishment is Enoteca Maria, an Italian restaurant on New York's Staten Island.

After losing his mom and sister, owner Joe Scaravella missed sitting down with family for home-cooked meals. So he created something of an oxymoron: a place to go out for a home-cooked meal.

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4:06am

Wed March 21, 2012
Judging The Health Care Law

White House Preps For Court's Health Care Ruling

Credit J. Scott Applewhite / AP
Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., center, joins other conservative lawmakers on Capitol Hill to criticize President Obama's health care law on Oct. 5, 2011. They said the boxes were packed with petitions asking Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Most of the president's speeches these days focus on jobs or gas prices. But the health care law is his signature achievement, and it always gets a mention at political events.

"Change is health care reform that we passed after a century of trying," President Obama said to cheers and applause from the audience at a recent fundraiser in New York.

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4:04am

Wed March 21, 2012
Law

FBI Still Struggling With Supreme Court's GPS Ruling

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court said police had overstepped their legal authority by planting a GPS tracker on the car of a suspected drug dealer without getting a search warrant. It seemed like another instance in a long line of cases that test the balance between personal privacy and the needs of law enforcement.

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4:00am

Wed March 21, 2012
Election 2012

Romney Wins Illinois With Range Of Voters

Originally published on Wed March 21, 2012 10:23 am

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Good morning. I'm David Greene.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep.

For once, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has met or even exceeded the expectations that were set for him. When he won the big Midwestern states of Michigan and Ohio, the margins were narrow enough and analysts were not impressed - given his huge advantage in money and organization. But in Illinois last night, even Romney's closest rival, Rick Santorum, did not come within 10 points.

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4:00am

Wed March 21, 2012
Election 2012

Kinzinger, Jackson Jr. Among Ill. Primary Winners

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Mitt Romney won the Illinois Republican primary convincingly yesterday, as we've been reporting elsewhere in the program. Illinois voters were not just voting for presidential candidates, though, there were congressional primaries as well. Redistricting made things very interesting. Two Republican incumbents had to run against one another, and a high-profile Democratic incumbent got a challenge from a former colleague. NPR's David Schaper runs down the results.

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