NPR News 2011-11-30 加文本

NPR News 2011-11-30

From NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

American Airlines is the last major airline to file for bankruptcy following the 911 terror attacks. Its parent company AMR and that of its regional affiliate American Eagle say they are seeking Chapter 11 protection to reduce debt and costs. Analysts say there should be little impact to fliers unless restructuring fails and the company stops flying.

The doctor convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson is sentenced to four years in prison. In a California courtroom today, Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor said Conrad Murray repeatedly violated the confidential doctor-patient relationship and failed to properly care for Jackson, whose death was attributed to the powerful anesthetic propofol.

“Doctor Murray abandoned his patient who was trusting him. His patient was vulnerable under those circumstances, having been administered potentially dangerous drugs by his medical provider.”

It's uncertain if Murray will be required to serve the entire four years. He maintains he is innocent.

Republican presidential candidate Hermen Cain says he is reassessing moving forward with his campaign. Cain discussed his situation with his senior campaign staff in light of recent allegations of an extramarital affair and accusations of sexual harassment.

Finance ministers of countries sharing the euro are meeting in Brussels to figure out how to rescue the currency. Teri Schultz reports from Brussels the focus is on boosting the EU's contingency fund for potential future bailouts.

Eurozone finance ministers are discussing how to enhance, what's called, the European Financial Stability Facility, the fund established last year to back up struggling economies. The goal is to raise the account to a trillion euros to be ready for any eventuality, most pressingly, in need the bailout, Italy or Spain. But there's skepticism that total can be reached by EU governments alone under current circumstances. That would make necessary assistance from the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank. Belgium Finance Minister Didier Reynders says he doesn't think the eurozone is going to fall apart, but “We are afraid of all the situation in different member states.” Belgium just came to a long-awaited deal on its own budget over the weekend after being downgraded a notch by Standard & Poor's. For NPR News, I'm Teri Schultz in Brussels.

The Associated Press is reporting that a Chilean court is charging a former US military officer in the 1973 killings of two Americans, a journalist and a student in the early days of the ghost of Pinochet's dictatorship. Judge Jorge Zepeda is asking the Chilean Supreme Court to order former navy captain Ray Davis's extradition. It's part of the judge's investigation into human rights abuses during Pinochet's nearly 20-year rule.

At last check on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 63 points at 11,586.

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Egypt's military rulers are claiming victory from a heavy turnout for the first election since President Hosni Mubarak was ousted. The council said the high voter participation in the first phase of parliamentary elections was proof of popular support for the military's transition plan. But NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson reports average Egyptians are reporting confusing in the process.

“We spoke to one voter who said that she went inside, filled out her ballots. And then the ballot officials actually put the wrong ballot in the wrong box. The party ballot into the individual candidates' box and the individual candidates' ballot into the party box, and when she pointed that out, he'd apparently been doing it all. They just marked a big X or they just basically crossed out the name of party ballot box and rolled in individual ballots and then did the same for the other one. NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson.

After being quoted by several Republican Presidential candidates, a well-known county sheriff in Arizona Joe Arpaio says he is endorsing Texas Governor Rick Perry. NPR's Ted Robbins says Perry hopes the endorsement convinces voters that he is strongly against illegal immigration.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has made an international reputation targeting the Latino community and employers in the Phoenix area, enforcing any law he can use to arrest illegal immigrants. Mitt Romney and Michele Bachmann also sought his endorsement. But Arpaio says as the governor of a border state, Rick Perry understands the fight better than the other GOP contenders. Perry has called for federal troops on the Texas border and employed civilian volunteers to track illegal crossers. But Perry has also been criticized for supporting in-state tuition for illegal immigrant students in Texas schools.

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