Steve Inskeep http://kcur.org en Politics In The News http://kcur.org/post/politics-news-22 Transcript <p>DAVID GREENE, HOST: <p>It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Good morning, I'm David Greene.<p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>And I'm Steve Inskeep.<p>Again and again, President Obama's administration tries to pivot attention toward East Asia. Administration officials believe China and its neighbors are where the economic future lies.<p>GREENE: And yet it's the Middle East that keeps demanding the president's attention. It brings to mind that line from F. Mon, 13 May 2013 08:21:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 36620 at http://kcur.org U.S. Point Man On Syria Meets With Rebels Inside Syria http://kcur.org/post/us-point-man-syria-meets-rebels-inside-syria Ambassador Robert Ford crossed into northern Syria on Wednesday. The secret visit was confirmed by Syrian activists at the media office at the Bab al-Salama crossing on the Turkish frontier. Fri, 10 May 2013 09:45:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 36503 at http://kcur.org 12 Dead In Texas Fertilizer Plant Blast, Authorities Say http://kcur.org/post/12-dead-texas-fertilizer-plant-blast-authorities-say Transcript <p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>There is so much we do not yet know about the chase for suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing. We do know that one suspect was killed by police overnight in the Boston area. One is believed to still be at large. We're going to continue covering that story, but we're also trying to get a little more deeply into another story we've been following in this unbelievable week of news.<p>A small Texas town was devastated this week when a fertilizer plant caught fire and then exploded. NPR's John Burnett has been covering that story. Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:28:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 35364 at http://kcur.org Boston Marathon Investigation Continues http://kcur.org/post/boston-marathon-investigation-continues Transcript <p>DAVID GREENE, HOST: <p>It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm David Greene.<p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>And I'm Steve Inskeep. Wed, 17 Apr 2013 08:44:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 35222 at http://kcur.org Venezuelan Humorist Engages Kidnappers In Election Dialogue http://kcur.org/post/venezuelan-humorist-engages-kidnappers-election-dialogue Earlier this week in Caracas, we were about to go to an interview when it had to be rescheduled. The man we were going to speak with was unavoidably detained — kidnapped, to be precise.<p>It took awhile after that for Laureano Marquez to free up his schedule and meet us in a coffee shop.<p>"I'm so sorry," he said when he finally arrived, as if it was his fault for being thrown into a car and driven off to the far reaches of town.<p>We'd been planning to talk with Marquez about Venezuela's presidential election this weekend, an election that opens a door on a changing Latin America. Fri, 12 Apr 2013 11:53:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 34979 at http://kcur.org Venezuelan Humorist Engages Kidnappers In Election Dialogue How Hugo Chavez's Policies Affected Ordinary Venezuelans http://kcur.org/post/how-hugo-chavezs-policies-affected-ordinary-venezuelans In the days before elevators, there was no such thing as a penthouse on the top floor. The highest floors of a building had cheaper rents because the stairs were hard to climb.<p>Caracas, Venezuela, is organized roughly the same way, with many poor neighborhoods climbing up the sides of a mountain valley. Some of the poorest homes are among the most remote, accessible not by any road but by alleyways and long flights of stairs.<p>Up one of those flights of stairs, we found a woman whose life says a lot about Venezuela and by extension about Latin America. Thu, 11 Apr 2013 09:10:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 34895 at http://kcur.org How Hugo Chavez's Policies Affected Ordinary Venezuelans Hugo Chavez's Legacy Looms Over Venezuelan Election http://kcur.org/post/hugo-chavezs-legacy-looms-over-venezuelan-election Transcript <p>DAVID GREENE, HOST: <p>This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm David Greene.<p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>And I'm Steve Inskeep in Caracas, Venezuela. This country is about to hold a presidential election. Voters are replacing the late Hugo Chavez, who shouldered this oil-rich republic onto the world stage. He often denounced the United States as an oppressive empire - even as he sold Americans oil - and imported gasoline from U.S. refineries. Wed, 10 Apr 2013 08:56:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 34829 at http://kcur.org Pentagon May Take Over Drone Program From CIA http://kcur.org/post/pentagon-may-take-over-drone-program-cia Transcript <p>RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: <p>It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.<p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>And I'm Steve Inskeep. Good morning.<p>We're learning this morning of a possible change in the American use of unmanned drones. The change, if it happens, would affect who gives the orders and possibly how much the public learns.<p>MONTAGNE: A senior U.S. official tells NPR the administration may now move the drone program away from control of the Central International Agency. Thu, 21 Mar 2013 09:10:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 33814 at http://kcur.org Obama Begins Middle East Trip http://kcur.org/post/obama-begins-middle-east-trip Transcript <p>RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: <p>This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.<p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>And I'm Steve Inskeep. President Obama is making his first visit to Israel since he's been in the White House. His past relations with Israel's government have not always gone well. Though the two nations insist they're reached new levels of security cooperation, they have publicly debated issues ranging from Iran to the Mideast peace process.<p>The president and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have not had the warmest relations. Wed, 20 Mar 2013 11:11:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 33758 at http://kcur.org Installation Mass Launches Pope Francis' Papacy http://kcur.org/post/installation-mass-launches-pope-francis-papacy Transcript <p>RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: <p>This is MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.<p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>And I'm Steve Inskeep.<p>(SOUNDBITE OF BELLS RINGING)<p>INSKEEP: That's the sound of bells in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, as Pope Francis celebrated his inaugural Mass today. Tue, 19 Mar 2013 11:52:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 33694 at http://kcur.org Selection Sunday Sets NCAA Tournament Brackets http://kcur.org/post/selection-sunday-sets-ncaa-tournament-brackets Transcript <p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>OK. The field is set for the NCAA Division One men's basketball tournament. Top seeds include Kansas, Louisville, Indiana and Gonzaga. The team previously known for its heroic upsets in the NCAA tournament is now one of the teams to beat. NPR's Mike Pesca is here to discuss the selections. Mike, good morning.<p>MIKE PESCA, BYLINE: Hello.<p>INSKEEP: How'd Gonzaga do it?<p>PESCA: I know, right? You read those other teams, and it's, like, perennial power, perennial power, perennial power, Jesuit school from Spokane.<p>(LAUGHTER)<p>PESCA: But they're awesome. Mon, 18 Mar 2013 08:06:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 33623 at http://kcur.org Pakistani Advocate For The Poor Slain By Gunmen http://kcur.org/post/pakistani-advocate-poor-slain-gunmen Transcript <p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>Gunmen killed a woman in Pakistan yesterday. The news stories about this were formulaic for Pakistan, she was killed in a customary manner by assassins on motorcycles who rolled away with impunity. What's remarkable is the way she lived. Parveen Rehman came from Karachi, one of the world's largest cities. Thu, 14 Mar 2013 09:26:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 33443 at http://kcur.org Venezuela To Display Chavez Body For Perpetuity http://kcur.org/post/venezuela-display-chavez-body-perpetuity Transcript <p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>Thousands of Venezuelans have been filling streets this week, listening to music and lining up to see the coffin of their leader, Hugo Chavez, who died on Tuesday. Leaders from around the world have also come to the capital city, Caracas, for a funeral which formerly takes place today. And in keeping with his often larger-than-life persona, the Venezuelan government plans to embalm Chavez and keep his body on display under glass, in perpetuity. NPR's Juan Forero is in Caracas, following events there. Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:39:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 33158 at http://kcur.org Vatican Is Without Sitting Pope http://kcur.org/post/vatican-without-sitting-pope Transcript <p>RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: <p>This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.<p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>And I'm Steve Inskeep. Good morning. In Italy the papacy is officially vacant. The Vatican is now under the control of the cardinals who will elect a new leader of the Catholic Church. Yesterday Pope Benedict XVI gave up his ring, his cape and red papal shoes to become Pope Emeritus. Cokie Roberts was there, joins us from Rome. Fri, 01 Mar 2013 10:41:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 32768 at http://kcur.org Witnesses To Take The Stand In BP Trial http://kcur.org/post/witnesses-take-stand-bp-trial Transcript <p>STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: <p>It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep.<p>LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST: <p>And I'm Linda Wertheimer.<p>Today, a federal judge in New Orleans hears from witnesses to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. A civil trial of BP opened yesterday in a case to determine blame and financial liability for the environmental disaster that was the worst disaster in U.S. history.<p>INSKEEP: NPR's Debbie Elliott covered that disaster as a reporter, and is now covering the trial. She was in the courtroom yesterday. Tue, 26 Feb 2013 10:21:00 +0000 Steve Inskeep 32567 at http://kcur.org