Chrysler, General Motors Work to Escape Crushing Debt

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Chrysler hopes to survive by cutting costs and debt, and by joining with Italian carmaker Fiat. And General Motors plans to make the US its biggest shareholder. Transcript of radio broadcast:

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

The race to save two of America's big three carmakers is entering a new and intense period.

In March, the government ordered Chrysler to cut costs and form an alliance with Italian carmaker Fiat by April thirtieth. The actions were conditions for additional government aid of up to six billion dollars. The company received four billion in federal loans in December.

U.A.W. members meeting Wednesday in Kenosha, Wisconsin to discuss proposed contract terms

On Wednesday, Chrysler members of the United Auto Workers approved cost cutting measures. Under the plan, Chrysler will be able to change terms of an agreement with the labor union. In return, the U.A.W. would own fifty-five percent of the company.

The Treasury Department has also been pressing Chrysler's creditors. The government wants forty-six creditors to accept two billion dollars instead of the seven billion dollars the company owes. Four big banks have agreed. They hold seventy percent of Chrysler's debt. But other creditors have refused the terms.

The government has also been urging Chrysler to join with Fiat. On Thursday, President Obama announced that the companies have agreed to become partners. He said the government will make additional loans to support the partnership. All government loans are to be repaid before Fiat could take majority ownership of Chrysler in the future.

Mister Obama also said Chrysler will seek bankruptcy protection in court. Bankruptcy laws will protect the company from legal action while it continues operations and reorganizes its finances. The President said the government will provide about eight billion dollars in additional loans to the company during this period.

No one knows if all this will work. But if the plan succeeds, it could serve as a model for America's biggest carmaker, General Motors. G.M. has until June first to offer a plan to the government if it is to receive new government loans. This week, the company proposed cutting twenty-one thousand more factory jobs. It will also sell fewer kinds of vehicles.

Like Chrysler, G.M. is attempting to reduce its debt. The carmaker plans to do this by offering company stock in exchange for twenty-seven billion dollars in G.M. bonds. It also wants to make the government a majority shareholder in return for part of the emergency loans it has received.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.

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NFL Broadcaster John Madden Retires

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A question from Ukraine about the Hudson River School. And we take a trip to the New Orleans Jazz Fest. Transcript of radio broadcast:

Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English.

(MUSIC)

I'm Doug Johnson. This week …

We travel to Louisiana for the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival ...

And answer a question about a group of landscape painters.

But first, we tell about the retirement of football broadcaster John Madden.

John Madden

(MUSIC)

HOST:

Last weekend National Football League teams began choosing players for the next season. As young players prepare to begin their professional careers in the sport, one important person in American football announced his retirement. Bob Doughty tells us more about popular broadcaster John Madden.

BOB DOUGHTY:

American football broadcaster John Madden is loved by sports fans, coaches and players throughout the United States.

John Madden

The former football player and coach brought his excitement and love for the sport to television viewers every time he announced a game. John Madden is known for his friendly personality and sense of humor. He is also known for explaining football as he announced the games. This helped people understand and enjoy the sport even more.

Last month, John Madden announced his retirement as a National Football League broadcaster. Madden is seventy-three. He says he wants to spend more time with his wife and family, especially his five grandchildren. Madden says his decision to retire was difficult because he loves everything about football.

He started as a professional football player. But an injury to his knee in nineteen fifty-eight ended his short career. He began his career as a head football coach in nineteen sixty-nine, when he was selected to lead the Oakland Raiders. He coached the team for ten years. He led the Raiders to a Super Bowl victory in nineteen seventy-seven. Two years later he retired and became a sports announcer for the NFL. John Madden was named to the Professional Football Hall of Fame in two thousand six.

Madden has announced eleven Super Bowl games during his thirty-year broadcasting career. He has won sixteen Emmy Awards for Outstanding Sports Analyst/Personality on television. His last game as a football announcer was this year's Super Bowl in February.

John Madden's huge influence on the sport of football continues. His video game, "Madden NFL," is the best-selling sports video game in history. It has sold more than seventy million copies worldwide during the last twenty years.

(MUSIC)

Hudson River School

HOST:

Our listener question this week comes from an artist in Ukraine. Mykhailo Sydorenko wants to know about two American painters -- Frederic Edwin Church and Albert Bierstadt.

These two artists were linked to a nineteenth century group of painters known as the Hudson River School. A "school" of painters refers to a group of artists whose work has a common influence. The Hudson River School painters are considered the first official school in American art.

Detail from "Heart of the Andes" by Fredric Edwin Church

Their detailed landscape paintings showed the huge expansiveness of American wilderness. These paintings expressed a sense of wonder for America's natural environment and its endless possibilities. The paintings also had a moral and spiritual message. The painters believed that nature was a direct representation of God.

The school was named after the Hudson River Valley in the state of New York. Many of the artists painted this valley and its surrounding areas. Some of the artists also traveled to paint in other countries.

The painter Thomas Cole is said to be one of the first members of this group. He became very successful, starting in the eighteen twenties. Like later members of the group, Cole was well educated in the traditions of European painting. But Cole made a clear case for creating a new art for the new land of America.

One of Cole's students was Frederic Edwin Church. His famous painting "Heart of the Andes" was completed in eighteen fifty-nine. To create this work, Church had traveled for nine weeks in Ecuador making drawings. When the large painting was shown to the public, thousands of people paid money to see its strikingly real style.

Albert Bierstadt is best known for his paintings of the American West. He was influenced by later members of the Hudson River School. Bierstadt received his training as an artist in his native Germany. Although he started painting in New York and other eastern states, he began traveling west in eighteen fifty-nine.

His eighteen sixty-six painting "Yosemite Valley" gave many people on the East Coast their first introduction to California's beautiful mountain area.

(MUSIC)

New Orleans Jazz Fest

HOST:

The birds are back, the bees are buzzing and the flowers are in full bloom. It is that time of year again. Warm weather means outdoor music festivals and one of the biggest is happening right now. Every year thousands of bands and fans travel to the southern state of Louisiana for the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Faith Lapidus has more.

FAITH LAPIDUS:

The festival is celebrating its fortieth anniversary this year. More than five thousand musicians are expected to perform during the huge seven-day event. About four hundred thousand people are expected to attend. Whether you like blues or rock, Cajun, folk, Zydeco, country, or of course, all that jazz, you are guaranteed to hear it at Jazz Fest.

Wynton Marsalis

Jazz musician Wynton Marsalis is a native of New Orleans. Here is "The Razor Rim" from his newest CD "He and She."

(MUSIC)

The nine-time Grammy Award winning Marsalis is one of the headliners at this year's festival. Other famous performers include Neil Young, Etta James, Tony Bennett, Bonnie Rait and Sugarland. The Dave Matthews Band is also performing. This band's mix of jazz, world music, folk and rock is a perfect fit for the festival. Here the band performs "Funny the Way It Is."

(MUSIC)

Traditionally, most of the performers at the festival are not well known outside of Louisiana. More than eighty percent of the performers are locals, including Buckwheat Zydeco. Here is his song "I'm Gonna Love You Anyway."

(MUSIC)

While the music may be at the top of the menu, let us not forget about the food. Lip-smacking, mouth-watering New Orleans cuisine. Visitors are enjoying crawfish etouffees, red beans and rice, gumbo, jambalaya and the famous fried pastries called beignets. We leave you with music from another New Orleans native. Harry Connick, Junior sings his song honoring the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

(MUSIC: "All These People")

HOST:

I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today.

It was written by Lawan Davis, June Simms, and Dana Demange who was also the producer. For transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs, go to voaspecialenglish.com.

Send your questions about American life to mosaic@voanews.com. Please include your full name and where you live.

Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOA's radio magazine in Special English.

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US Auto Giant Chrysler Files for Bankruptcy

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Pres. Barack Obama makes remarks on the auto industry in the White House, 30 Apr 2009

U.S. President Barack Obama said the nation's third-largest automaker, Chrysler, will file for bankruptcy. Chrysler will continue to operate, and will merge with the Italian car company Fiat.

President Obama said the agreement with Fiat will give Chrysler a new lease on life.

"I am pleased to announce that Chrysler and Fiat have formed a partnership that has a strong chance of success. It is a partnership that will save more than 30,000 jobs at Chrysler and tens of thousands of jobs at suppliers, dealers and other businesses that rely on this company," he said.

Chrysler will receive as much as $6 billion in government money in addition to $4 billion it has already received in emergency loans.

Talks led by the U.S. Treasury failed to reach a deal to reduce Chrysler's debt to its creditors, so the automaker will enter into bankruptcy.

Mr. Obama said that does not mean that Chrysler will stop making automobiles.

"This is not a sign of weakness, but rather one more step on a clearly charted path to Chrysler's revival. Because of the fact that the United Auto Workers [union] and many of the banks -- the biggest stakeholders in this whole process -- have already aligned, have already agreed, this process will be quick," he said.

The United Auto Workers union approved a cost-cutting agreement late Wednesday. And the Treasury Department reached a $2 billion deal earlier in the week with four banks that hold most of Chrysler's debt.

A bankruptcy filing would allow a judge to decide how much creditors would get while Chrysler continues to build cars.

Talks with creditors broke down late Wednesday after more than 40 investment funds rejected Treasury's offer to retire $6.9 billion of Chrysler debt in exchange for $2.2 billion in cash.

The president criticized the creditors, who he said held out for the prospect of an unjustified, taxpayer-funded bailout.

"They were hoping that everybody else would make sacrifices and they would have to make none. Some demanded twice the return that other lenders were getting. I do not stand with them," said the president.

The U.S. government will be an investor in a restructured Chrysler and will help choose its new board of directors. But the Obama administration said it does not plan to run the company.

The president said Fiat will contribute billions of dollars in advanced technology as well as a global sales network.

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US Says Al-Qaida Still Greatest Threat to America

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The United States says the al-Qaida terrorist group remains the greatest threat to America and its allies and is currently using Pakistan to rebuild its capabilities and plan attacks on Western nations. The State Department released its annual report on global terrorism Thursday.

State Department's Acting Coordinator of Counterterrorism, Ronald Schlicher (undated photo)

The State Department's Acting Coordinator of Counterterrorism, Ronald Schlicher, says since the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States al-Qaida and its allies have moved from Afghanistan into remote areas of the Pakistani frontier.

"And they are using, of course, that mountainous terrain as a safe haven where they can hide, where they can train, where they can communicate with their followers, where they can plot attacks and where they can make plans to send fighters to support the insurgency in Afghanistan," said Ronald Schlicher.

The global terrorism report says the Taliban and other insurgent groups and criminal gangs control parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan and are a threat to regional stability.

Ambassador Schlicher says, although still very dangerous, al-Qaida in Iraq is diminishing and has experienced significant defections.

"It has lost key mobilization areas," he said. "It has suffered disruption of support, infrastructure and funding and it has been forced to change its targeting priorities in some instances. The number of suicide bombings in Iraq, which we find to be a key indicator of the operational capability of the group, those numbers fell significantly in 2008."

The report credits local populations in places like Baghdad and Anbar province for turning against militants and cooperating with the Iraqi government and coalition forces.

Schlicher says an emerging hot spot for terrorism is Somalia, which he describes as a significant challenge for the United States and its allies.

"The international community is increasingly focused on the many dangers that develop in the absence of a place without any effective government control, such as Somalia, where of course we see such problems as terrorism, piracy, narcotics trafficking, human rights abuses and the development of ideological extremism," said Schlicher.

The report accuses Iran of being the most significant state sponsor of terrorism.

Schlicher says the Quds Force (a special unit of Iran's Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution) is supporting terrorist and Islamic militant groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

"The Quds Force is kind of an elite unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and they are deeply involved in the really objectionable, terrorist activities in those places where Iran chooses to be active," he said. "The great area of concern, of course, is the Middle East itself."

The report says Iranian weapons transfers to the Taliban in Afghanistan are continuing to threaten Afghan and NATO troops and undermine stabilization efforts.

The terrorism report does note what it describes as significant achievements in the fight against extremists, including the capturing or killing of key terrorists in Pakistan, Iraq and Columbia.

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Top US Officials Say Pakistan Responding to Taliban Threat

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US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (left) with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at Senate hearing, 30 Apr 2009

U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton say Pakistan realizes the threat posed by the Taliban and has begun to respond. The U.S. officials appeared Thursday before a congressional panel that will begin considering the Obama administration's request for more funding for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The comments by Secretaries Gates and Clinton to the Senate Appropriations Committee came as Pakistani troops fought militants for a third day in Buner district and security forces sought to push Islamic extremists from their foothold some 100 kilometers from Islamabad.

Secretary Clinton welcomed the action. "It was heartening to see the military sent in to Buner province to begin to push the Taliban advance back," she said.

Secretary Gates said the Taliban's advance into Buner could spark a broader political response against the militants. "I think the Taliban moving into Buner set off an alarm bell that may, in fact, begin to create a broader political consensus in Pakistan that would include not just President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani, but perhaps the sharifs and others as well, including the army," he said.

Earlier this week, President Barack Obama said Pakistan's army has begun to realize that the threat posed by militants is greater to the nation's stability than any threat posed by India, despite three wars between the two neighboring rivals. The comment was a reference to the fact that Pakistan stations a significant portion of its military along the border with India.

Secretary Clinton said the United States is confident that Pakistan is taking effective action to protect its nuclear weapons. "The Pakistani military is very focused on the protection of their arsenal and we have certainly kept our eyes very closely on that," she said.

Clinton and Gates appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee to urge lawmakers to approve the $83.4 billion request for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and for aid to Pakistan.

The package includes $1.4 billion in economic aid to Pakistan and $400 million to train and equip the Pakistani military in counterinsurgency tactics.

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US Ship Captain Testifies on Piracy

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U.S. congressional committees have examined the problem of maritime piracy and steps the U.S. and other countries are taking to deal with it. Captain Richard Phillips, who was held for five days by pirates off the coast of Somalia, testified before a Senate panel, while U.S. officials appeared before a House committee.

In response to the sharp increase in pirate attacks in major shipping lanes in the Gulf of Aden, the United States, European Union, and other governments have stepped up counter-piracy operations in the area.

An international contact group was formed earlier this year. The U.S. Central Command set up a special anti-piracy task force, assisted by the U.S. Coast Guard.

So far this year, Ambassador Stephen Mull, Senior Adviser to the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, said there have been 15 interdictions of pirate vessels, nearly double the total from 2008, with 52 pirates apprehended.

Mull says the international contact group, which will hold an emergency session in coming weeks, is working to build a permanent security approach:

"We want to protect America's right, and the world's right, to freedom of the seas through enhanced international cooperation in stopping these pirate attacks and building a lasting maritime security regime that we think will serve all of our interests in the end," said Stephen Mull.

Arming merchant vessels, either through private security firms or providing crews with weapons, was a key topic in House and Senate hearings.

Republican Representative Dana Rohrabacher asked this question:

"Couldn't these people be deterred by just having private security guards on the ships or having someone hired by the shipping companies to keep a protective cover in that part of the world?," asked Dana Rohrabacher.

While some shipping companies are using this approach, Coast Guard Rear Admiral William D. Baumgartner said the issue is not simple, involving questions of proper training, effective techniques, cargo safety and insurance issues:

"There are many nations and many interests that think this raises the danger to the crews and to the vessel and will take this whole thing to a different level," said Admiral Baumgartner.

Captain Richard Phillips testifying on Capitol Hill, 30 Apr 2009

Captain Richard Phillips, held by four pirates who assaulted his ship the Maersk Alabama, and later freed after U.S. Navy sharpshooters killed three, testified to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Phillips favors further hardening of merchant vessels, enhanced training for crews, and U.S. military protection, to the extent possible, for U.S. flag vessels.

He says putting weapons aboard vessels would fundamentally change the model of commercial shipping and urges that this be seen as only one part of a broader strategy:

"At most, arming the crew should be only one component of a comprehensive plan and approach to combat piracy," said Captain Phillips. "To the extend that we go forward in this direction it would be my personal preference that only a limited number of individuals aboard the vessel have access to effective weaponry, that these individuals receive special training on a regular basis."

John Clancey, chairman of Maersk, Inc. told lawmakers that arming the crews of merchant ships could inject even more danger:

"Our belief is that arming merchant sailors may result in the acquisition of even more lethal weapons and tactics by the pirates, and a race that merchant sailors cannot win," said John Clancey. "In addition, most ports of call will not permit the introduction of firearms into their national waters."

Ambassador Mull told lawmakers no links have been identified so far between Somali pirates and Islamic or known terrorist groups, but said officials are closely watching to see if any emerge.

Democratic Senator John Kerry,Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Comittee and Republican Richard Lugar both stressed that lawlessness in Somalia is at the core of the problem:

KERRY: "Thriving on chaos and ungoverned spaces, perpetrated by small groups of non-state actors, international piracy combines several of the great security challenges of our age."

LUGAR: "The existence of failed states directly threatens the national security interest of the United States. Failed states exist as potential safe havens for terrorism, drugs and arms trafficking, and piracy."

Donald Payne, chairman of the House Africa Subcommittee, said profit and criminal cartels, not ideology, drive piracy in Somalia.

Payne, who recently met with leaders of Somalia's Transitional Government in Mogadishu, believes none of the groups in Somalia's fractured political picture formally support piracy:

"The leadership of Puntland, Somaliland, [and the transitional federal government in] Somalia really want to see this end, because it does absolutely nothing for the country which is in terrible straits in the first place," said Donald Payne. "Somalia has been abandoned for 15 years and they are certainly not going to get anybody investing in Somalia with these gangsters doing what they are doing."

The bodies of the three pirates killed by U.S. Navy SEAL special forces were returned to authorities in Somalia on Thursday. The surviving pirate is in the U.S. facing prosecution.

Under special agreements, the United States, European nations and other governments have turned over captured pirates to Kenya for trial.

Somalia's foreign ministry on Thursday said pirates captured off the Somali coast should be returned there to face trial.

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More Countries Report Influenza Cases

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Contract staff of Port Health stand in attention before shifting duties at the Hong Kong Airport, 30 Apr 2009

The number of confirmed cases of swine influenza A H1N1 continues to grow. According to the World Health Organization, the list of countries where the virus has been detected now stands at 11 with Switzerland and the Netherlands reporting their first cases of the virus. And for now, the WHO is maintaining its pandemic threat warning at Phase 5, the second-highest alert status.

The World Health Organization reports a 75 percent jump in the number of confirmed swine flu cases worldwide since Wednesday. Mexico and the United States account for much of the increase.

The WHO's Phase 5 threat warning signals that a global pandemic could be imminent, but has yet to develop, with human-to-human transmission occurring in many geographical locations.

"There is nothing which epidemiologically suggests today that we should be moving towards Phase 6," said WHO Assistant Director-General, Keiji Fakuda.

A growing number of countries are either discouraging or banning travel to and from Mexico, where the first cases of swine flu were reported and where the virus is suspected in thousands of infections and more than 150 deaths.

The Obama administration says there are no plans to close the 3,000 kilometer U.S.-Mexico border. Rather, the U.S. government is urging common-sense steps to prevent virus transmission and distributing millions of doses of anti-viral treatments to health officials nationwide.

Meanwhile, expedited efforts are going forward on several continents to develop an effective vaccine for the new strain of influenza. European Union health ministers pledged to pursue an effective and safe vaccine without delay.

Angus Nicoll of the European Center for Disease Prevention says that at this point no one knows whether the virus will become more or less virulent in the months ahead. "It is quite possible with an influenza virus, a pandemic influenza virus that it gets worse over time. We just have to wait and see for that," he said.

A similar effort to develop a vaccine has been launched in the United States. But the interim director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Richard Besser, says it will be months before any decisions are made about mass-inoculations.

"The target would be to have this vaccine ready for the fall flu season, so that in addition to being vaccinated for the [common] flu, you would be able to be vaccinated for this [new] strain. But that decision as to whether we should vaccinate the public has not been made. And we will not know that until this [outbreak] goes much further, and we see whether this infection becomes more severe or goes away," he said.

Every year, tens of millions of Americans are vaccinated against influenza. But the current swine flu is a new strain to which humans have no immunity and against which existing vaccines offer no protection.

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Swine Flu Prompts US School Closures

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Scores of schools are closed in several U.S. states to combat the spread of the influenza virus being called swine flu. The virus has now been detected in at least 10 countries, and the World Health Organization is warning that a worldwide outbreak could be imminent.

A Lowell public school bus passes the Immaculate Conception School in Lowell, Mass., Wednesday, 29 April 2009

One day after President Barack Obama suggested closing any schools where flu cases are confirmed or even suspected, a rapidly expanding number of school districts are taking the president at his word.

In Fort Worth, Texas, which shut down its entire public school system for 10 days, parents are scrambling to tend to their children, as one mother told ABC's Good Morning America program.

"I know that some families are taking their children with them to work. Others are advertising for baby sitters on Facebook [the Internet]," she said.

In Mexico, where thousands of people are suspected of having contracted swine flu, the government has ordered all non-essential public activities suspended until May 5.

President Felipe Calderon said he is asking all Mexicans, without exception, to stay at home with their families. The Mexican leader said home is the safest place to avoid contracting swine flu.

The Obama administration continues to defend its decision against closing the U.S. border with Mexico. At a news conference Wednesday, President Obama said there would be little benefit to a border shut down, since the flu is already spreading in the United States.

US Vice President Biden (file)

Appearing on NBC's Today show, Vice President Joe Biden said the U.S. government's priority is to prevent transmission of an already-established virus.

"Closing the classroom and closing the border are two fundamentally different things," he said. "This [virus] is in other countries now. Which borders do we close? Do we close the Canadian border, too? Do we close [suspend] flights coming out of countries in Europe where it has been identified? We should be focusing on mitigation."

The vice president added that he would tell his own family to avoid public transportation and confined places. It was the first time a U.S. official has suggested that Americans keep away from mass transit, and a spokesperson for Mr. Biden later stated that the vice president's admonition applied to those who are suffering flu-like symptoms, not the public at large.

The number of U.S. states where influenza cases have been confirmed has more than doubled to 11 in recent days. Dozens of other states are investigating suspected cases.

Wednesday, the World Health Organization raised its pandemic threat warning to its second-highest alert status, level 5. WHO Director-General Margaret Chan.

"It really is all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic," Chan said.

The higher threat warning does not indicate a pandemic, but denotes sustained human-to-human transmission in communities in different geographical locations.

The influenza virus is a new strain to which humans have no immunity and for which no vaccine currently exists. Health officials say anti-viral treatments appear effective in reducing the severity and duration of flu illness.

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Asia Activates Pandemic Plans After WHO Alert

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Health authorities in Asia have swiftly responded to the World Health Organization's warning of an "imminent pandemic" of swine flu. Authorities have activated pandemic plans, tightened surveillance at borders and stockpiled more drugs.

Contract staff of Port Health stand in attention before shifting duties at the Hong Kong Airport, 30 Apr 2009

Hong Kong, the Philippines and Australia activated swine flu hotlines Thursday as part of stepped up efforts to prevent an outbreak. Authorities also urged the public to maintain good hygiene to prevent the spread of the virus.

In the Asia-Pacific, only New Zealand has confirmed cases of swine flu.

Philippine health officials went on television Thursday to alert the public of the threat of a pandemic, as described by the World Health Organization.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque said personal hygiene is the first line of defense against swine flu.

"Wash your hands with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze," said Duque. "Alchohol-based hand cleaners are also effective. Please avoid close contact with sick people."

Philippine President Gloria Arroyo has ordered the health department to buy more anti-viral drugs to add to its stockpile of 600,000 doses of the drug Tamiflu.

In Australia, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says the government has stepped up surveillance at borders.

"Thermal scanners will be switched on progressively in eight Australian international airports - Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane, Cairns, Gold Coast and Darwin," said Mr. Rudd. "Furthermore from tomorrow evening, all international passengers will be asked to fill-in health declaration cards to report flu-like symptoms."

Japan said Thursday it will tighten quarantine checks.

The human swine flu outbreak started in Mexico, where it is known to have killed at least seven people and infected 26. The virus has quickly spread, and has been found in the United States, Canada, Britain, Germany and Israel, prompting the WHO to raise its pandemic alert to its second highest level. On Thursday, Switzerland confirmed a swine flu case there.

In Indonesia, the health ministry has warned against travel to Mexico and other countries with confirmed swine flu cases. Indonesia and China banned pork imports from affected countries, even though health experts say there is no evidence of infection from eating the meat.

In Hong Kong, which was paralyzed by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome outbreak in 2003, it was business as normal and few people wore surgical masks. But the territory's top health officials and medical experts convened Thursday to assess the situation.

Dr. York Chow, Hong Kong's Secretary for Health, says the government will raise its flu alert level as soon as it is required.

"Once the WHO is going to announce the pandemic alert has raised to level 6 or there is a first confirmed case of swine flu in Hong Kong we will definitely raise the pandemic alert to emergency immediately," said Chow.

Swine flu is spread through droplets that infected people expel when sneezing and coughing. People can also contract the disease by touching infected surfaces and then touching their hands to their mouth and nose.

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China Ready for Swine Flu

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Passengers wearing masks are asked to fill in health declaration forms upon arrival at Hong Kong Airport, 30 Apr 2009

China's top officials say they are ready to combat swine flu, if the illness shows up in the country. Stephanie Ho reports from Beijing.

Chinese Health Minister Chen Zhu urged basic hygiene as an effective first line of defense against swine flu.

Chen urged people to cover their noses and mouths with a tissue when they cough or sneeze. He said people also should not spit and should put what he described as "any mouth secretions" into a tissue that is thrown away in a garbage pail with a lid.

Chinese authorities have not yet found a case of swine flu in the country - in either a human or a pig.

Chen says if a human case is found, Chinese authorities will report it in a timely manner, quarantine the patient and give treatment, according to plans and according to China's laws and regulations.

He told reporters in Beijing Thursday that China is working on developing a swine flu vaccination. He says the Chinese government has already submitted a request to the World Health Organization to acquire strains of the virus, from areas that have already been affected.

Meanwhile, China's Vice Agriculture Minister Gao Hongbin had strong criticism for the name of the illness, swine flu, which implies that pigs are somehow to blame.

Gao says China is a big producer and consumer of pork, and that, despite misconceptions, pork is still safe to eat.

He says the government pays close attention to and cares strongly about anything related to pig production because it is closely linked to the national economy and to people's livelihoods.

The Chinese official urged that the official name of the disease be changed. He pointed to three different possibilities - a U.S. government decision to refer to the disease as the H1N1 flu, the European Union's decision to refer to it simply as a "novel flu," and the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health's reference to it as the "North American flu."

The emerging H1N1 virus strain is a mixture of genetic material from other swine, bird and human flu strains.

Whatever is decided, Gao says the name should at least stop laying the blame solely on pigs.

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Indians Vote in Third Round of Staggered General Election

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India has held another round of its staggered general election, which is being conducted in five stages over a month. The third phase of polling will play a key role in deciding the fortunes of the opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, which wants to wrest power from the ruling Congress-led coalition.

From the financial hub, Mumbai in the west, to insurgency wracked Kashmir in the north, millions of people cast votes on Thursday for 107 out of 543 parliamentary seats. Following this round, voting has been completed in about two-thirds of the vast country.

Stakes are high for the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, as several of its strongholds such as Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka states went to the polls.

In particular, the BJP is hoping to put up a good show in Gujarat, which the party is showcasing as a region which has made huge strides in economic development under the rule of its most prominent and controversial leader, Narendra Modi.

Congress Party supporters hold posters at a rally addressed by party leader Rahul Gandhi in Ghaziabad, India, 30 Apr 2009

Many political analysts say the BJP is trailing the governing Congress-led coalition. But after casting his vote, BJP candidate for prime minister Lal Krishna Advani said he is optimistic about his party's prospects coming to power.

Advani says his assessment during campaigning is that the BJP will emerge the largest single party in the election. He says people are supporting the alliance led by the Hindu nationalists.

Another prominent candidate is the head of the ruling Congress Party, Sonia Gandhi. She is contesting from Rae Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh.

Not all the focus is on the two national parties. In several states that voted, such as West Bengal and Bihar, regional and left parties are on the frontlines and will be key in deciding who will head the next government.

In Mumbai, security was a prime concern for many middle class people voting five months after terror strikes killed 166 people in the city. But for most poor people across the country, development or local issues outweighed concerns about security.

In the Anantnag region of Kashmir, where a Muslim separatist insurgency has raged for two decades, polling was held amid tight security. A call for a poll boycott and a general strike by separatist groups appeared to have deterred some voters, but a trickle of people turned up at polling booths. The voter turnout in Kashmir is regarded as a barometer of support for separatist groups.

Barring a few incidents of violence, polling was peaceful in most of the country.

The results of the month-long election will be known on May 16 when votes are counted after two more rounds of polling. India's general election - the world's largest democratic exercise - is held in phases to allow millions of security forces to move around the country.

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Police Bust Arab Terror Cell in Northern Israel

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Israel says it has smashed an Arab terror cell planning a wave of attacks. The suspects have pleaded not guilty to the charges, but the arrests are likely to add to the concerns of Israelis.

Security forces arrested seven Israeli Arabs who allegedly planned to carry out bombings and kidnappings against Jews. Police seized nine bombs ready for detonation and materials and instructions for making explosives.

The cell included five Arab citizens of northern Israel from 19 to 21 years old, and two minors. They were charged with terrorism, weapons possession, contacting Palestinian agents, and aiding and abetting the enemy.

Police Commander Avi Argarissi says cell members underwent intensive training in a forest near their villages.

"They built bombs and tested them, and practiced abducting soldiers and civilians," Argarissi told Israel Radio.

The cell was allegedly funded and supplied by militant Palestinian groups in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Argarissi says the Israeli Arabs were motivated by Palestinian nationalism. They wanted to kill people, they wanted to instill fear and prevent further Jewish settlement in the State of Israel, he said.

The cell members have pleaded not guilty. But the arrests will likely add to concerns among Israeli Jews that the Arab minority is growing more militant. Israeli Arabs make up about 20 percent of the population, and while most are not involved in violence, they openly identify with their Palestinian brothers.

That is why the party of Israel's ultra-nationalist Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman did so well in recent elections. Lieberman accuses Israeli Arabs of disloyalty and that strikes a chord among many Israeli Jews.

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South Korean Ex-President Questioned in Bribery Case

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South Korean prosecutors were expected to question the country's previous president until late into the night Thursday about his possible involvement in bribery. The investigation of former President Roh Moo-hyun is reminiscent of the high-level corruption trials in South Korea's recent past.

Television news broadcasts provided near constant updates of former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun's long chartered bus journey Thursday from his rural home to the capital for questioning by prosecutors.

Former S. Korean President Roh Moo-hyun arrives at the Supreme Public Prosecutor's Office in Seoul, South Korea, 30 Apr 2009

Mr. Roh told reporters he was embarrassed to have to testify in a case involving bribery and corruption allegations.

He says he has no face to show to the people, and is sorry for disappointing them.

Mr. Roh occupied the presidential Blue House in Seoul from 2003 to 2008, having won his election mainly on a platform of running a clean government. However, he and family members now stand accused of having accepted up to $6 million in slush fund money from a business executive.

The former president has admitted his wife took about $1 million from Park Yeon-cha, head of a shoe company. However, he describes that money as a loan. Mr. Roh's son and a nephew-in-law are believed to have accepted about $5 million from Park. Park was arrested last year for tax evasion and graft.

Prosecutors say they are asking the former president several hundred questions to determine whether the money in question made its way to him for personal use.

He does not face any formal charges yet, but could be indicted depending on the outcome of the testimony. His very public ordeal calls to mind painful memories for many South Koreans of two past presidents convicted for accepting massive political contributions.

Former Presidents Chun Do-hwan and Roh Tae-woo were brought before prosecutors in 1995, and sent to prison for accepting hundreds of millions of dollars from private business interests to fund political campaigns. They were later pardoned.

Choe Chi-won, a political science professor at Seoul's Korea University, says the questioning has deep political significance for Roh Moo-hyun and his followers.

He says Mr. Roh was a symbol for the so-called "386" generation - a younger political class that was born in the 60s, entered university in the 80s, and were in their 30s when he was president. He says they are the generation that often associates themselves with the struggle for morality in South Korean politics - and their image stands to be damaged along with Mr. Roh's.

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Donors: Aid Falls Short in Burma Cyclone Recovery

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A woman feeds her baby in a makeshift tent in Twantay, south of Yangon, 30 Ap 30 2009

As Burma nears the anniversary of a cyclone that claimed tens of thousands of lives, aid organizations say international donations remain well short of long-term needs.

Cyclone Nargis, which struck Burma's Irrawaddy coast over May 2 and 3 last year, left more than 130,000 dead or missing. It devastated the rice-growing delta and destroyed tens of thousands of homes.

Aid organizations say that despite progress in helping communities rebuild, international aid is falling short.

David Verboom, regional head of the European Commission's European Humanitarian Aid department, said Thursday that Burma's political situation undermines international donor support.

"It is clear the political environment of course is a hindrance for many donors to contribute ... that is quite clear," he said.

Burma's military government was accused of restricting international aid right after the cyclone. Only intervention from the United Nations and regional governments led the government to give aid workers access to the hardest-hit areas.

Many governments, including the United States and the European Union, have economic sanctions against Burma's military because of its human rights violations and intolerance of dissent. The military also controls all aspects of the economy.

"From the international community side it is fair to say that support has been limited. Much more could have been done," he said.

Verboom notes that international aid after the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 totaled $12 billion. After Nargis, in which a similar number of people died, only about $300 million was given.

A reconstruction plan put together by the United Nations, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Burma's government, calls for $690 million in aid over the next three years.

But a recent U.N. appeal raised just over $315 million.

Oxfam International says urgent help is needed before June to ensure that farming and fishing families can plant crops and return to the sea.

Oxfam's Regional Director Sarah Ireland

Sarah Ireland is Oxfam's regional director.

"Whilst I'm really heartened by what I saw a couple of months ago and communities are rebuilding their lives and getting back to some normality, what they are telling us was very much they wanted our support still," she said.

In the past year, the U.N. says food aid reached more than one million people in Burma. Other relief efforts included boosting nutrition to women and children, improving education and health services, providing emergency shelters, and water and sanitation.

But Nick Finney from Save the Children says about 500,000 people, including 200,000 children, still lack adequate shelter. Thousands still live under tarpaulins.

"People don't stand a chance in those kind of conditions and for us to be standing here one year on …. We need a reality check on the current situation where people are living in these conditions and facing a coming monsoon season and some real issues in terms of basic needs of shelter, food and water," said Finney.

Aid workers say international help in providing new housing, safe water supplies and rebuilding farms will be needed for several years before communities in the Irrawaddy delta have fully recovered.

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Studying in the US: Writing College Papers

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Academic writing in America means getting to the point quickly, stating ideas clearly and supporting them with evidence. Transcript of radio broadcast:

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

Today in our Foreign Student Series we discuss writing college papers. Writing a term paper, research paper or essay for a college class is a kind of academic writing. Academic writing among professionals is a way to create new knowledge.

A professor assigns students to write a paper. The students examine an issue, review what is already known, think about what they have learned and come to some conclusion.

A student-writer must present information and also take a position

This means that each student-writer must present information and also take a position. The student might support an idea, question it or even disprove it. Or the writer could show how the subject may be understood better or in a different way than it has been. And the student must support the position with evidence.

Cultural differences may interfere when international students try to write this way. Writing teachers say students in many countries have learned to write beautiful descriptions about something without ever stating the main idea. American college students are expected to state their main idea at the beginning of the paper.

In other cultures, paragraphs may be organized to build toward the main idea, which is revealed at the end. But in the United States, the main idea of each paragraph should be in the first sentence. Another difference is about writing style. Other cultures may use lots of descriptive words. But American English values short, strong sentences.

Teachers at the writing center at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana work with students to improve their writing. Graduate tutor Lars Soderlund says non-native English speakers generally have some trouble with English grammar.

He says their sentences may be too long. Or they incorrectly use articles such as "a", "an" and "the." He also says non-native speakers generally use too much emotional language and give too many details before getting to the main idea.

The associate director of the writing center, Tammi Conard-Salvo, says international students should look online for materials that explain the kind of writing they will be required to do. They should ask their professors for help. Most colleges have a writing center where they can get free individual help with their work.

Links to writing center materials can be found on our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. I'm Jim Tedder.

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American History Series: Kansas Takes Steps Towards Statehood

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Pro-slavery settlers race to gain Kansas for the South. But they face opposition from the man President Pierce appointed governor of the territory, Andrew Reeder. Transcript of radio broadcast:



Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION -- American history in VOA Special English.

Now, we continue the story of America's fourteenth president, Franklin Pierce.

Pierce was elected in eighteen fifty-two. He was a compromise candidate of the Democratic Party. He was well-liked. But he was not considered a strong leader.

Franklin Pierce

The eighteen fifties were an increasingly tense time in the United States. Most of the population lived east of the Mississippi River. But more and more people were moving west. As western areas became populated, they became official territories, and then new states.

What kind of laws would these new territories and states have? Would the laws be decided by the Congress in Washington? Or would they be voted on by the people living in them?

The biggest legal question affecting western lands was slavery. This week in our series, Rich Kleinfeldt and Shirley Griffith tell more about the long disputed issue of slavery and the Kansas-Missouri bill.

VOICE ONE:

Owning another human being was legal in many parts of the United States at that time. Slaves were considered property, like furniture and farm animals.

People who owned negro slaves wanted to take all their property -- including the slaves -- with them when they moved west. People who opposed slavery did not want it to spread. Some of them considered slavery a moral issue. They believed it violated the laws of God. An increasing number of white Americans, however, saw slavery as an economic issue. They wanted new states to be free from slavery, so they would not have to compete with slave labor.

VOICE TWO:

The United States had been established as a democracy. Yet slavery existed. America's early leaders knew that trying to end slavery probably would split the nation in two. So they looked for compromises. They decided it was better to save the Union...even if it was not perfect...than to watch the Union end.

Like other presidents, Franklin Pierce hoped to avoid the issue. He also believed that earlier legislation had settled the debate. In eighteen twenty, Congress had passed the Missouri Compromise. It extended a line across the map of the United States. South of the line, slavery was legal. North of the line, slavery was not legal, except in Missouri.

Thirty years later, another political compromise made the situation less clear.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The compromise of eighteen fifty made slavery a local issue, instead of a national issue, in several western territories. It said the people in those territories had the right to decide for themselves if slavery would be legal or illegal.

Within a few years, that law caused a new debate in Congress. Lawmakers argued: was the peoples' right to decide the issue of slavery restricted only to the territories named in the compromise of eighteen fifty? Or was the right extended to the people of all future territories?

VOICE TWO:

The answer came in eighteen fifty-four. In that year, Congress debated a proposal to create two territories from one large area in the west. The northern part would be known as the Nebraska territory. The southern part would be known as the Kansas territory. Settlers in both new territories would have the right to decide the question of slavery.

President Pierce did not like the Kansas-Nebraska bill. He feared it would re-open the bitter, national debate about slavery. He did not want to have to deal with the results. Tensions were increasing. Violence was increasingly possible.

The Kansas-Nebraska bill had a lot of support in the Senate. It passed easily. The bill had less support in the House of Representatives. The vote there was close, but the measure passed. President Pierce finally agreed to sign it. In exchange, congressional leaders promised to approve several presidential appointments.

Supporters of the Kansas-Nebraska bill celebrated their victory. They fired cannons as the city of Washington was waking to a new day. Two senators who opposed the bill heard the noise as they walked down the steps of the capitol building. One of them said: "They celebrate a victory now. But the echoes they awake will never rest until slavery itself is dead."

VOICE ONE:

The new bill gave the people of Kansas and Nebraska the right to decide if slavery would be legal or illegal. The vote would depend on who settled in the territories. It was not likely that people who owned slaves would settle in Nebraska. However, there was a good chance that they would settle in Kansas.

Groups in the South organized quickly to help pro-slavery settlers move to Kansas. At the same time, groups in the North helped free-state settlers move there, too.

VOICE TWO:

A map of the Territory of Kansas

Some of the northern groups were companies called emigrant aid societies. Shares of these companies were sold to the public. The money was used to help build towns and farms in Kansas. Owners of the companies hoped to make a lot of money from the development.

The southern effort to settle Kansas was led mostly by slave-owning farmers in Missouri. They believed that peace in Missouri depended on what happened in Kansas. They did not want to live next to a territory where slavery was not legal.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In Washington, President Pierce announced the appointment of Andrew Reeder to be governor of the Kansas territory. Pro-slavery settlers urged Reeder to hold immediate elections for a territorial legislature. They believed they were in the majority. They wanted a vote before too many free-state settlers moved in. The legislature would have the power to keep the territory open to slavery and, in time, help it become a slave state.

VOICE TWO:

Andrew Reeder

Governor Reeder rejected the demands. He decided to hold an election, but only for a territorial representative to the national Congress. On election day, hundreds of men from Missouri crossed the border into Kansas. They voted illegally, and the pro-slavery candidate won.

The same thing happened when Kansas finally held an election for a legislature. Governor Reeder took steps to make the voting fair. His efforts were not completely successful. Once again, men from Missouri crossed the border into Kansas. Many of them carried guns. They forced election officials to count their illegal votes. As a result, almost every pro-slavery candidate was elected to the new legislature.

VOICE ONE:

The governor ordered an investigation. The investigation showed evidence of wrong-doing in six areas, and new elections were held in those areas. This time, when only legal votes were counted, many of the pro-slavery candidates were defeated. Yet there were still enough pro-slavery candidates to have a majority.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Andrew Reeder was governor of a bitterly divided territory. He wanted to warn President Pierce about what was happening.

Reeder went to Washington. He met with Pierce almost every day for two weeks. He described how pro-slavery groups in Missouri were interfering in Kansas. He said if the state of Missouri refused to deal with the trouble-makers, then the national government must deal with them. He asked the president to do something.

VOICE ONE:

Pierce agreed that Kansas was a serious problem. He seemed ready to act. So Reeder returned home and opened the first meeting of the territorial legislature. The pro-slavery majority quickly voted to move to a town close to the Missouri border. It also approved several pro-slavery measures.

Governor Reeder vetoed these bills. But there were enough votes to reject his veto and pass the new laws.

VOICE TWO:

Wilson Shannon

The Kansas legislature also sent a message to President Pierce. It wanted him to remove Andrew Reeder as governor. Political pressure was strong, and the president agreed. He named a new governor, Wilson Shannon. Shannon supported the pro-slavery laws of the legislature. He also said Kansas should become a slave state, like Missouri.

Free-state leaders were extremely angry. They felt they could not get fair treatment from either the president or the new governor. So they took an unusual step. They met and formed their own government in opposition to the elected government of the territory. It would not be long before the situation in Kansas became violent.

That will be our story next week.

(MUSIC)

ANNOUNCER:

Our program was written by Christine Johnson. The narrators were Rich Kleinfeldt and Shirley Griffith. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs can be found along with historical images at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION -- an American history series in VOA Special English.

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Obama Surprised By Number of Critical Issues

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President Obama speaking at news conference, 29 Apr 2009

View or listen to news conference

U.S. President Barack Obama marked his 100th day in office Wednesday by rallying support for his policies, and tackling an unfolding health crisis.

On day 100, the president took questions from the public at a school near St. Louis, Missouri. "It is great to be back in the middle of America, where common sense often reigns," he said.

And he fielded inquiries from reporters beneath the chandeliers of the White House East Room at his third formal news conference.

Originally, the White House downplayed the 100 day marker. But in the end, it embraced the chance to showcase the president's agenda. "I am proud of what we have achieved, but I am not content. I am pleased with our progress, but I am not satisfied," Mr. Obama said.

At his news conference, the president said one of the biggest surprises of his first months in office has been the sheer number of crucial issues that have come to the fore at the same time.

As his second 100 days begins, Mr. Obama faces yet another challenge: the first national health emergency of his presidency. "We are continuing to closely monitor the emerging cases of the H1N1 flu virus throughout the United States," he said.

The president made clear he has no plans to close the border with Mexico. He said the new flu strain is a reason for concern, but not panic. "The key now I think is to make sure that we are maintaining great vigilance," he said.

Unlike his two earlier prime-time press conferences, there was no one dominating issue. On domestic matters, Mr. Obama said he is hopeful the big American automakers will remain viable, and he praised Democrats in Congress for passing a budget blueprint almost identical to the one he proposed in February.

The president also defended his decision to release Bush administration legal documents that authorized harsh interrogation techniques used on terror detainees. He said the information gathered by interrogators could have been obtained using other, more moral methods. "We could have gotten this information in other ways, in ways that are consistent with our values, ways that are consistent with who we are," he said.

President Obama was then asked about the situation in Pakistan. He said the government there is fragile, but he said he is confident Pakistan's nuclear arsenal will remain secure. "Primarily, initially, because the Pakistani army I think recognizes the hazards of those weapons falling into the wrong hands," he said.

Mr. Obama said Pakistan's military is recognizing that the biggest threat to their nation is coming from extremists inside the country. "You are starting to see some recognition just in the last few days that the obsession with India as the mortal threat to Pakistan is misguided and that their biggest threat right now comes internally," he said.

The president also talked about the recent increase in violence in Iraq. Speaking on a day when two car bombs in Baghdad killed more than 40 people, he said there is reason for concern. But he also said the level of violence is lower than last year. And he made clear his timetable for withdrawing U.S. forces has not been affected.

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WHO Raises Swine Flu Alert to Level 5

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The World Health Organization has raised the swine flu pandemic alert level to phase 5 - just one step below the highest level. The decision comes as the number of countries with confirmed cases rises to at least 10.

World Health Organization Director-General Margaret Chan said the alert level was stepped up because influenza viruses are unpredictable and can spread quickly around the world.

"This change to a higher phase of alert is a signal to governments, to ministries of health and other ministries, to the pharmaceutical industry and the business community that certain actions should now be undertaken with increased urgency, and at an accelerated pace," said Margaret Chan.

The increase to level 5 indicates that there is sustained human-to-human transmission in communities in different geographical locations.

Dr. Chan said all countries should immediately activate their pandemic preparedness plans and countries should remain on high alert for unusual outbreaks of influenza-like illness and severe pneumonia.

"The biggest question, right now, is this: how severe will the pandemic be, especially now at the start?," she said.

The decision late Wednesday from the Geneva-based body comes the same day as Germany and Austria announced their first confirmed cases of swine flu, raising the total number of countries affected to 10. They include Mexico, the United States, Britain, Canada, Costa Rica, Israel, Spain and New Zealand. While Australia, France, Denmark and South Korea are investigating possible cases within their borders. Many of the infected persons had recently visited Mexico, which is the epicenter of the outbreak.

Assistant Director-General for Health Security and Environment at the World Health Organization, Dr. Keiji Fukuda, urged people to practice good hygiene, including washing their hands and covering their mouth when they cough, and if they become sick to stay home.

"If you are sick, if you have something that may well be swine flu, or any illness, it may be prudent to stay home until you are feeling better," said Keiji Fukuda. "This is a way of voluntarily preventing yourself from transmitting infection perhaps to others. It is also a way of getting rest and treatment. "

The most severe cases of swine flu have been found in Mexico, where the disease is suspected of killing more than 150 people and sickening hundreds more.

In the United States there have been more than 90 confirmed cases in 11 states. Earlier Wednesday, health officials announced the first swine flu fatality in the United States was a Mexican baby who was visiting relatives in the state of Texas.

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Lawmakers Urge More Action to Prevent Flu-Infected Travelers From Entering US

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Members of the U.S. Congress - particularly those representing states along the border with Mexico and Canada - are calling on the Obama administration to do more to prevent travelers infected with swine flu from entering the United States. They made their appeals to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano during a Senate hearing looking at the federal response to the swine flu outbreak.

A number of lawmakers have suggested closing U.S. borders as a way to stop swine flu-infected travelers from entering the country. Their concern was heightened by news that the first death from the virus in the United States was a 23-month-old boy from Mexico who died in Texas.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano (r) and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in Washington, 29 Apr 2009

Testifying before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Wednesday, Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano said closing U.S. borders would cause immense trade and economic disruption and would be ineffective in controlling the spread of the disease.

"Making such a closure now has not been merited by the facts," she said. "It would have very little marginal benefit in terms of containing the outbreak of virus within our own country."

Some senators said if border closures would not be considered, the U.S. government should step up monitoring of travelers entering the United States.

Former Republican presidential candidate, Senator John McCain, is from the southern border state of Arizona.

"I really hope we would pursue vigorously better technological and scientific and closer observation of people going across the border than is presently the case," he said.

Senator Susan Collins, a Republican from the northern border state of Maine, suggested the United States could follow the example of a number of Asian nations.

"Other countries are being far more aggressive in their screening," she said. "Singapore, Thailand, Japan, Indonesia, South Korea, and the Philippines, are all using thermal scanners. These scanners are able to detect if a passenger has a fever, and then the person could be set aside."

But Secretary Napolitano said such technology is ineffective.

"With respect to the thermal scanners, they are not always accurate," said Napolitano. "They are not as precise as what we wish. In addition, you have travelers who actually have the flu who do not have a temperature. So they don't really sift out travelers who are ill from those who are not."

Napolitano said border patrol officers are actively monitoring travelers who wish to enter the United States. She said those who appear ill are interviewed about their current health status and travel history.

Napolitano said she would consider additional steps to better screen the health of migrant agricultural workers who are given temporary visas.

Meanwhile, Anne Schuchat of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told the panel that efforts are underway to develop a vaccine against the swine flu, and it could be ready as early as September.

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Specter Defection Latest Setback For Republicans

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U.S. Senator Arlen Specter's decision to defect from the Republican Party and become a Democrat is the latest setback for a party still reeling from national election defeats in 2008 and 2006.

Political survival appears to be the immediate reason for Senator Specter's party switch.

Specter acknowledged his prospects in a Republican primary in his home state of Pennsylvania next year were bleak because tens of thousands of moderates have left the Republican Party in that state and joined the Democrats.

"As the Republican Party has moved farther and farther to the right, I have found myself increasingly at odds with the Republican philosophy and more in line with the philosophy of the Democratic Party," said Arlen Specter.

Specter also noted a trend in recent years in which conservative Republican candidates have targeted moderate incumbents in primary elections.

"They do not make any bones about their willingness to lose the general election if they can purify the party. I do not understand it but that is what they say," he said. "There ought to be a rebellion. There ought to be an uprising."

Senator Specter's conversion is welcome news for Democrats. They are one step closer to securing 60 of the 100 U.S. Senate seats. That would make it harder for Republicans to block President Barack Obama's legislative proposals in the Senate through a parliamentary delaying tactic known as the filibuster.

Senator Arlen Specter (r) with President Obama at the White House, 29 Apr 2009

President Obama welcomed the Senate's newest Democrat to the White House (Wednesday).

"In fact, I would like to think that Arlen's decision reflects the recognition that this administration is open to many different ideas and many different points of view, that we seek cooperation and common ground," said President Obama.

Specter's defection caught many Republicans by surprise. It is the latest in a series of political setbacks for a party that lost control of Congress in the 2006 midterm elections and lost the White House last November.

Many Republicans sought to minimize the national political fallout from the Specter defection.

Former Senator Fred Thompson of Tennessee said on his radio show that Specter was always out of step with the conservative wing of the Republican Party.

"I would feel a little better about it if he would just acknowledge that, 'Folks, I think I am going to get my fanny beat if I go down this trail and I want to stay around here," said Fred Thompson.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said Specter's decision was not a national story, but a Pennsylvania story, and said Republicans are eager to do battle in the next congressional midterm elections in 2010.

"We intend to be competitive on a nationwide basis," said Mitch McConnell. "I do not accept that we are going to be a regional party, and we are working very hard to compete throughout the country."

But Democrats do see national implications in the Specter decision.

John Podesta was White House chief of staff for former President Bill Clinton and now heads a liberal public policy research organization in Washington.

"Certainly his decision to leave the Republican Party should be a warning shot, I think, to the leadership in Congress in particular that they have just careened too far off to the right and have left the middle behind," said John Podesta.

Political experts say there are things the Republican Party can do to improve their political prospects before next year's congressional elections.

Stephen Wayne is a presidential scholar at Georgetown University in Washington.

"The Republicans need to broaden their electoral base," said Stephen Wayne. "In the last couple of elections they have lost, by sizable margins, the support of young people, first time voters, Hispanics, and women."

Even some Republicans say the party needs to adjust its message and attitude to be more appealing.

Ken Duberstein served as former President Ronald Reagan's chief of staff in the late 1980's, but he endorsed Barack Obama in last year's presidential election.

"They need to be very much positive," said Ken Duberstein. "It is the shining face of Ronald Reagan. It is not the 'just say no' that seems to be dominating the Republicans now. You know, you have to be perceived as interested in governing, not just campaigning."

Duberstein also worries that Republicans are a disappearing political breed in the Northeast, and will have to rely on a shrinking base of support primarily in the South.

"The Republican Party can offer an awful lot, but they have to do that by reaching out, not just to the South or some places in the Midwest, but to contest again in the Northeast and in the West Coast and in the Southwest," he said.

The Democrats may be celebrating now, but experts warn that political fortunes can turn very quickly.

The last time Republicans held only 40 Senate seats was following the election of 1976. But four years later, Republicans captured 12 seats and won a majority in the Senate. It was the same year Ronald Reagan was elected president, and it was also the same year a newcomer named Arlen Specter was elected to his first Senate term in Pennsylvania.

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Obama Pledges Government Action to Deal With Swine Flu Outbreak

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U.S. President Barack Obama says schools should consider closing if cases of swine flu are even suspected among students or faculty. Mr. Obama spoke just hours after the United States recorded the first known death outside Mexico.

President Barack Obama addresses the rising concern over Swine Flu, at the White House in Washington, 29 Apr 2009

President Obama extended condolences to the family of a 23-month-old child who succumbed to the flu in Texas, as well as all sufferers of the illness.

"This is obviously a serious situation, serious enough to take the utmost precautions," he said.

The president urged health officials across the nation to work as quickly as possible to identify and report new cases of swine flu. He said schools should consider temporarily closures, and that parents should make contingency plans for such a possibility. One school in New York has been shut down since the discovery that dozens of students there were ill with the virus.

Mr. Obama noted that he has requested $1.5 billion of emergency funding from Congress for medicine and medical equipment, and to boost planning and coordination among health officials.

He said all Americans can take common-sense steps to stem transmission of swine flu.

"Keep your hands washed. Cover your mouth when you cough," said Mr. Obama. "Stay home from work if you are sick. Keep your children home from school if they are sick."

Mr. Obama was speaking at the White House, where he appeared with Vice President Joe Biden and Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter, who left the Republican Party on Tuesday to become a Democrat.

Mexico remains the epicenter of the swine flu outbreak, with more than 150 deaths blamed on the virus. Confirmed cases have been reported in Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Austria, Israel and New Zealand. More than five-dozen cases of swine flu have been confirmed in the United States, with three-fourth of the cases reported in New York.

Although it could take months to develop and distribute an effective vaccine for this particular influenza strain, health officials say two anti-viral treatments appear effective in limiting the severity and duration of the illness. The U.S. government is making millions of doses of the treatments available to state and local officials.

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