NPR News 2009-05-31 加文本
NPR News 2009-05-31
From NPR News in Washington, I'm Craig Windham.
The deadline has now passed for General Motors' bondholders to accept or reject an offer to exchange their unsecured debt for stock, giving them a small ownership stake in the troubled automaker. Michigan Radio's Tracy Samilton reports.
Bondholders were offered a 10% stake in GM with warrants to buy more stock later at a reduced price. At least one of GM's largest bondholder groups took the deal on Friday. GM said a satisfactory number must accept the exchange. Analysts say the more bondholders GM gets in line before a bankruptcy filing, the more likely it is that the Judge will impose that same deal on the holdouts. On Monday, GM CEO Fritz Henderson will hold a press conference in New York, where the company is expected to file for bankruptcy protection. Also on Monday, Chrysler will learn if it has won the court's permission to sell its valuable assets to a new company led by Fiat, if it has, Chrysler could be out of bankruptcy within weeks. The government hopes that GM bankruptcy would last less than 90 days. For NPR news, I'm Tracy Samilton, in Ann Arbor.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates says while North Korea's nuclear program does not yet pose a direct threat to the United States, it is, in his words "a harbinger of a dark future". Gates said the US will not stand idly by as North Korea bolsters its nuclear capability. He added that the North has some clear choices to make.
"At the end of the day, the choice to continue as a destitute international pariah or chart a new course is North Korea's alone to make."
Gates was speaking at a conference of defense officials in Singapore. South Korea says it has indications that North may be preparing to test launch another long-range missile.
Pakistan's army says it has regained control of the largest town in the Swat Valley from Taliban militants. The BBC's Humphrey Hawksley says the next step is for the civilian administration there to restore local services, so displaced residents can return.
Pakistani troops have been keeping watch on the almost deserted city, center of Mingora and have been carrying out street by street patrols, securing neighborhoods and checking houses for booby traps. Some fighting continued in the suburbs and the army spokesman Athar Abbas emphasized that the capturing of the city from the Taliban should be seen as part of a long process of rebuilding. Some two and a half million people have fled their homes since the military operations began in the Swat Valley more than a month ago. The BBC's Humphrey Hawksley reporting.
President Obama is urging the Senate to expedite the confirmation process for his Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor. "I hope the confirmation process will begin without delay. No nominee should be seated without rigorous evaluation and hearing. I expect nothing less. But what I hope is that we can avoid the political posturing and ideological brinksmanship that has bogged down this process, and Congress, in the past." Mr. Obama in his weekly radio and internet address today.
This is NPR News.
Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi was given a hero's welcome as she returned to her home state of North Dakota today. Students from her alma mater Concordia College and the state's governor were among those on hand at the airport in Fargo to greet her. Saberi was released after being imprisoned for several weeks in Iran on charges of spying for the United States.
Scottish singer and YouTube sensation Susan Boyle has just learned the outcome of her Cinderella quest to win Britain’s top television talent show. Larry Miller has the story from London.
“I dreamed a dream in time gone by.” With more than a hundred million hits on YouTube, the vocal makers' odds were on 48-year-old Scot Susan Boyle to win the “Britain's Got Talent” TV competition. From the start, the matronly Boyle surprised the judges, an amateur singer with learning disabilities who said she’s never been kissed and was bullied much of her life. The pressure almost became too much for her and she nearly pulled out before the final. And after the final, it came down to Boyle and Diversity, a multi-cultural male synchronized dance group.
"The winner of Britain's Got Talent 2009 is Diversity."
Boyle may have lost the big prize, 150,000 dollars and a chance to perform for the Queen, but she already has a record deal lined up. For NPR News, I'm Larry Miller in London.
Britain's Prince Harry followed in his mother's footsteps today as he raised money for a charity that supports AIDS orphans in Africa. The 24-year-old prince played in a charity polo match on Governor's Island in New York and his team won, thanks to his assist on a last second goal. Harry is wrapping up his first official trip to the United States.
I'm Craig Windham, NPR News in Washington.
Glossary:
stand idly by 袖手旁观
booby trap n.A concealed, often explosive device that is triggered by an unsuspecting victim when a harmless-looking object is touched.诡雷, A situation that catches one off guard; a pitfall.陷阱
alma mater n.母校
talent show n.A show that features amateur performers whose talents may win them recognition or awards.新秀发掘演出：由业余的表演者进行的演出，在该演出中，他们的表演才能可能会为他们赢得人们的承认或奖励;业余歌手演唱会
Governor's Island 总督岛
harbinger n.先驱，先兆
destitute a.贫困的
pariah n.贱民，被社会遗弃者
brinkmanship n. 紧急致策,边缘政策
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