NPR News 2010-11-15 加文本

NPR News 2010-11-15

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Louise Schiavone.

Taxation is topic A as Congress returns to Washington for a lame-duck session. At issue, should the tax cuts adopted during the Bush administration extend beyond their year's end expiration date? On NBC's "Meet the Press", Senator John McCain of Arizona expressed support for an across-the-board extension and a reevaluation.

"I think they should be extended until we're out of this recession. At such time then we could look at other tax hikes, but when we're in a serious recession, I cannot believe that raising taxes is a good thing on anybody."

President Obama favors extending them for couples earning less than 250,000 a year. Congress also needs to tie up critical spending bills.

More personnel changes are slated at the White House. Top presidential advisor David Axelrod says he'll be leaving to begin work on the president's reelection campaign. He spoke on Fox News Sunday.

"Late winter, early spring I'll be going back - coming back here - to Chicago and beginning to work on that, on that project."

The 55-year-old Axelrod is a longtime friend of President Obama and served as his chief strategist for the 2008 campaign.

In Myanmar today, thousands gathered at the party headquarters of newly freed pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. We get more from NPR's Anthony Kuhn.

Aung San Suu Kyi offered to help unite Myanmar's fractious opposition parties and work to end the foreign sanctions against her country if that's what Burmese people wanted. She also said that a one-woman show was no democracy and that she wouldn't be free unless her fellow countrymen were also free. In talks with diplomats, supporters and opposition party members, she stressed that she intended to continue fighting for freedom of speech and she urged her followers to do the same. Opposition parties welcomed her message of unity. Her own party, the National League for Democracy, was banned last year after it decided to boycott the elections. Some NLD leaders who opposed the boycott broke away to form a new party. Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Bangkok.

The California Highway Patrol says a man who allegedly ran head-on into a pack of motorcyclists on a desert road, beginning a fatal chain reaction, has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. Five people died. The incident is believed to have been triggered by the driver of a Honda, who attempted to maneuver around the caravan of motorcyclists. Here's officer DeeAnn Goudie of the California Highway Patrol.

"None of them are, you know, 100% sure on the year but they're 100% sure that it's a Honda Civic with a California plate."

Several people were injured. The incident occurred Saturday.

This is NPR News.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today encouraged his cabinet to accept a package of security and diplomatic incentives the US has proposed in hopes of reviving Middle East peace talks. Part of the proposal calls for a 90-day moratorium on West Bank settlement construction.

A British couple kidnapped by Somali pirates and held for 388 days has been freed. Larry Miller reports from London that the UK government refused to pay a ransom, but family, friends, Somali exiles and even Somali villagers chipped in to meet the demand.

Paul and Rachel Chandler had cruised the world for three years when they were abducted from their sailboat off the Seychelles. They were taken to Somalia by pirates, who demanded six million dollars but settled for a million. The British government said it doesn't pay ransoms. It's taken more than a year for the money to be collected privately. During their captivity, the Chandlers, who've been married for 30 years, were separated for long periods of time. They were taken from place to place. They suffered health problems and said they were poorly treated by the pirates. They are now reported to be in reasonably good health. They were handed over early this morning and phoned relatives. The Chandlers say they are just happy to be alive, adding "We're with the good guys now." For NPR News, I'm Larry Miller in London.

The annual Global Language Monitor survey is out, declaring "spillcam" and "vuvuzela" the top words of 2010. "Spillcam" from the underwater camera, reflecting the months-long oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico; and "vuvuzela", the noisy South African horns at the World Cup soccer tournament.

I'm Louise Schiavone, NPR News, Washington.