Search results for

NPR's Julie Rovner reports on the good news and bad news for Medicare. The good news is experts believe the program will remain solvent for an additional four years. The bad news is that though both Congress and the White House have pledged to reform Medicare, the task remains a monumental one. And as more baby boomers edge toward retirement, the longer lawmakers wait to act, the more difficult reform may become.

Ramos is considered a pioneer of Tejano music, the sound known for its traditional Mexican roots infused with the big-band sound of the 1940s, and heavily influenced by blues and rock. Hes bandleader of Ruben and the Texas Revolution. Their most recent recording is –El Gato Negro: A Class Act—. Hes also part of the all-star band Los Super Seven which has a new CD –Canto—

NPR's Renee Montagne reports on a new exhibit at the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. It features toys made by impoverished children in third-world countries.

Shes up for an academy award for her portrayal of the mother of a drug addict who is also an addict herself in the film –Requiem for a Dream.— This is her 5th nomination and could be her second win. She won the Academy Award for the 1974 film –Alice Doesnt Live Here Anymore.— Burstyns other films include –The Last Picture Show,— –The Exorcist,— and –Same Time, Next Year— (she starred in the Broadway version too and won a Tony).

Mike Schmit from Markesan, Wis., grew a pumpkin weighing over 2,500 pounds. But the pumpkin, which was the biggest one in the running, was disqualified because of a fingernail-sized crack.

NPR's Allison Aubrey reports on a group of mid-western farmers coming to Washington D.C. to lobby for government price supports for their crops. Many farmers opted out of the support in the late 1990's, but now say the decline of Asian markets is forcing them to ask for government help again.

Host Bob Edwards talks with Hersch Goodman of the Jaffe Center for Strategic Studies. They discuss Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's visit to the White House today.

Host Bob Edwards talks to Richard Allen, National Security Adviser under President Ronald Reagan, about the tape recordings he made in the White House Situation Room the day President Ronald Reagan was shot. Most every top administration official was in the room that day, and the tapes provide a rare glimpse of their private conversations about who was in charge, whether the assassination attempt was part of a conspiracy, and what to do about Soviet subs closer than usual to U.S. shores. Next week marks the 20th anniversary of the attempt on Reagan's life. This interview is the first of two parts.

NPR's Jim Zarroli reports on the Federal Reserve's consideration of an additional interest rate cut in hopes of curbing the economic slowdown.

Financial markets waited until early afternoon to see just how much the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates. But as NPR's Jack Speer reports, the half-point cut announced by Fed Chair Alan Greenspan disappointed Wall Street. This is the third time the Fed has cut interest rates this year.