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Law
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Supreme Court Hears Arguments On Individual Mandate

The nation's capital is focused on the Supreme Court this week, and that includes members of Congress. Wednesday is the third day justices will hear arguments considering the constitutionality of President Obama's health care overhaul.

Politics
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Bill Maher's Obama SuperPAC Donation Causes Stir

Credit Chris Pizzello / AP
Bill Maher, shown here at a 2011 event in Los Angeles, gave $1 million to the superPAC supporting President Obama's re-election bid.

Comedian Bill Maher's $1 million check to the superPAC supporting President Obama's re-election is the first seven-figure donation to the group since Obama tacitly endorsed the fundraising strategy in early February.

And it has brought new focus to some of Maher's statements about women — specifically Republican women — and led to calls for the White House to disavow the HBO host and his money.

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History
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Auction House To Sell Titanic Collection

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Business
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Business News

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

NPR's business news starts with new owners for the L.A. Dodgers.

One of the more legendary athletes here in Los Angeles, basketball's Magic Johnson is leading a consortium of investors to buy the Major League baseball team.

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This is a $2 billion deal. And that shatters the record for the most money paid for a North American sports franchise. The NFL's Miami Dolphins went for $1.1 billion three years ago.

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Health
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Organ Harvesters Blur Line Between Life And Death

Backed by the federal government, doctors in Michigan are trying to expand the use of a controversial form of organ donation that raises disturbing ethical concerns, including questions about whether the donors are really dead. Defining dead turns out to be pretty complicated. There are two ways to declare someone dead.

Religion
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Pope To Officiate Open-Air Mass In Cuban Capital

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Pope Benedict stuck to mostly spiritual themes on a visit to communist Cuba's most sacred shrine. This morning, the pontiff leads a mass in Havana's Plaza of the Revolution. As Nick Miroff reports from Havana, so far even Benedict's gentle push for greater religious and political freedoms for Cubans has been rejected by the government.

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Around the Nation
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Slain Teen's Parents Appear On Capitol Hill

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Florida state investigators are continuing to look into the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. His family has been part of a widespread campaign calling for the arrest of the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot and killed the 17-year-old high school student. Yesterday, the parents of Trayvon Martin were up on Capitol Hill attending a forum on hate crimes and racial profiling. NPR's Sonari Glinton reports from the Capitol.

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NPR Story
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Justices Hear Arguments Over Heart Of Health Law

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DAVID GREENE, HOST:

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

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And I'm Renee Montagne.

It's the third and final day for the U.S. Supreme Court to consider the Obama health care overhaul. The justices hear arguments today on what parts could remain in effect if the court rules the individual mandate of the health care law is unconstitutional. After yesterday's arguments, that seemed more likely than most experts had expected.

NPR's legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg reports.

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NPR Story
4:00 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Gingrich Pares Down Presidential Campaign

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DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Now, if the health care law survives constitutional scrutiny, the Republicans who are running for president have vowed to repeal the law if elected. One GOP candidate now appears less likely to have that opportunity. Newt Gingrich is short on victories and low on cash, and he is dramatically shrinking his campaign for president.

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The Record
12:01 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Alan Lomax's Massive Archive Goes Online

Credit Shirley Collins / Courtesy of Alan Lomax Archive
Alan Lomax (right) with musician Wade Ward during the Southern Journey recordings, 1959-1960.

Originally published on Thu October 25, 2012 2:53 pm

Folklorist Alan Lomax spent his career documenting folk music traditions from around the world. Now thousands of the songs and interviews he recorded are available for free online, many for the first time. It's part of what Lomax envisioned for the collection — long before the age of the Internet.

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Sweetness And Light
12:01 am
Wed March 28, 2012

Watching College Basketball's Slump Into Anonymity

Credit Streeter Lecka / Getty Images
Duke freshman Austin Rivers, seen here in the Blue Devils' loss to Lehigh in the NCAA tournament, is leaving school for the NBA draft. The trend of athletes spending only one year in college has hurt the sport, says Frank Deford.

This year's Final Four seems more like Best in Show at the Westminster. Such pedigree: Kentucky, Kansas, Ohio State and Louisville –– four of the very top dogs in the history of the sport. Well, it's a Meryl Streep kind of year, isn't it?

But if the Final Four might delight fans by giving them aristocracy in its teams, unfortunately the whole of college basketball is plagued by anonymity in its players, and external issues that have diminished the popularity of the game.

Good grief. This year, there has been more buzz about Mad Men than about March Madness.

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Movies
12:01 am
Wed March 28, 2012

In Japan, 'Sliced-Up Actors' Are A Dying Breed

Japan is home to Asia's oldest and largest motion-picture industry, with its own unique genres and traditions. While every film industry has stuntmen, only Japan has a class of actors whose main job is to be sliced and diced by samurai sword-wielding protagonists. But the decline of period dramas means that this class of actors is literally a dying breed.

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Art & Design
7:36 am
Tue March 27, 2012

Semi-Nude Painting Smuggled Into Canadian Museum

It took a while, but guards at Canada's Glenbow Museum finally noticed a new acquisition in the gallery: An oil painting of a semi-nude woman. An anonymous note said the donor's late father did the painting and had always wanted his work in a museum.

Around the Nation
7:25 am
Tue March 27, 2012

Misbehaving Parents Ruin Easter Egg Hunt

Originally published on Tue March 27, 2012 7:27 am

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Business
4:00 am
Tue March 27, 2012

Business News

Apple CEO Tim Cook has flown in to China to meet with government leaders. He's trying to work out issues ranging from trademark concerns to treatment of local factory workers who make Apple products.

Business
4:00 am
Tue March 27, 2012

Harrisburg Residents May Foot Police Bill

The Pennsylvania capital Harrisburg is more than $300 million in debt. The budget is controlled by a state-appointed custodian. City and law enforcement services are under strain and residents worry violent crime may be growing.

Business
4:00 am
Tue March 27, 2012

The Last Word In Business

The walls, furniture and detailing of artist Frank Buckley's apartment in Dublin, Ireland, are made from bricks of shredded euros. He estimates each brick contains up to 50,000 euros worth. He got the materials for free from the country's central bank.

Law
4:00 am
Tue March 27, 2012

Supreme Court To Delve Into More Health Care Questions

At the Supreme Court, lawyers and justices will continue to spar over the new health care law. Tuesday's debate will center on whether the requirement that everyone carry health insurance — the individual mandate at the heart of the law — is constitutional.

NPR Story
4:00 am
Tue March 27, 2012

21st Century Vietnam Leaves War In The Past

Hanoi, Hue, Danang and Saigon, were city names that were stamped on the American psyche a half-century ago, when the U.S. waged war in Vietnam. The once war-torn, Southeast Asian nation has made great strides to leave its troubled past behind.

Business
4:00 am
Tue March 27, 2012

Jobs Act Could Expand Funding For Start-Ups

Lawmakers in the House are expected to vote on a jobs act Tuesday. Part of the legislation would allow the public to make investments in start-up companies and small businesses. These companies could raise money online or through social networks. The bill would lift SEC regulations that restrict soliciting investors.

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