NPR 2008-12-03

President-elect Barack Obama told state governors today upon his swearing-in he will be willing to help them come up with ways to create jobs and deal with declining revenues. At a meeting of the National Governors Association in Philadelphia, Mr. Obama said at least part of a proposed economic stimulus 1 plan being worked on by Democrats 2 will be targeted at job creation. "This administration does not intend to delay in getting you the help that we need. We intend to help save or create 2.5 million jobs. We intend to put tax cuts into the pockets of hard-pressed middle-class families in your states. "  Governors said they also need federal help for jobless benefits, food stamps and healthcare coverage 3 as well as an estimated 136 billion dollars to repair bridges, airports and other infrastructure 4.

Defense 5 Secretary Robert Gates says he has an open-ended commitment to remain at the Pentagon into Obama administration with no time frame on how long he'll stay on the job. NPR's Tom Bowman reports.

Gates told reporters he doesn't plan on being a caretaker secretary, saying decisions on war strategy, budgets in modernizing 6 military forces need the personal attention of the defense secretary. Gates admits he is in a unique situation as the first defense secretary ever to be asked to stay on in a new administration. The President-elect appeared with Gates and other members of his national security team this week in Chicago where Mr. Obama said removing American combat troops from Iraq in 16 months is the right time frame. Gates is along post timetables, asked today if all that's a 16-month goal, Gates wouldn't answer. He instead pointed 7 to Mr. Obama's pledge to also listen to the advice of ground commanders in Iraq, saying the President-elect framed just right. Tom Bowman, NPR News, the Pentagon.

Officials in India today released a few more details from their investigation 8 into last week's terror attacks in Mumbai. But as NPR's Andrea Hsu reports, just who the gummen were and how they managed to carry out the assaults remains 9 far from clear.

Mumbai's Commissioner 10 of Police Hassan Gafoor told at news conference that the gunmen trained with ex-army officials for one to one and a half years, though he declined to say whose army. He did report that the sole surviving gunman has identified himself as a Pakistani. Asked what other proof Indian officials have that the gunmen had ties to Pakistan, Gafoor pointed to findings that they came on a ship from Karachi. He said they then hijacked 11 the troller and traveled the final 45 nautical 12 miles on rubber dinghies. Once onshore, he said, they split up into groups of two, then fanned out by taxi to five locations: two luxury hotels, a train station, the Jewish center and a cafe. He said bombs were left in two of the taxis, the night of attacks, there were two reports of explosions in taxis in areas away from the other attacks. Andrea Hsu, NPR News, Mumbai.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 270 points today; the S&P 500 was up 32 points. This is NPR.

President-elect Barack Obama is expected to introduce another member of his team this week. The top Democratic source says Mr. Obama will announce his nominated New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson as commerce secretary. Richardson would be the President-elect's fifth major cabinet appointment since the announcement at the start of the week that he's chosen Senator Hilary Clinton to be secretary of state, and Robert Gates to stay on as his defense secretary. The appointment of Richardson, a former UN ambassador and energy secretary would make him the first Hispanic name to Obama's rapidly filling Cabinet.

United Nations has issued an updated figure of 500 for the number of people who died from cholera 13 in Zimbabwe. Almost 12, 000 cases of the waterborne illness have been reported. South Africa is treating cholera sufferers who've crossed the border from neighboring Zimbabwe. Johannesburg, NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton reports.

The UN World Health Organization warned that the cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe could spread quickly into areas without access to safe water, sanitation 14 and simple treatments. Cholera has already affected 15 most regions in Zimbabwe. State media reported Monday that much of the capital Harare had been deprived of water because of a shortage of purification chemicals. The collapse 16 of Zimbabwe's public health and sanitation systems are part of the prolonged economic and political crisis. Cholera cases have been reported across both sides of Zimbabwe's borders with South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique. The UN has expressed concern about the threat of a regional cholera outbreak. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, NPR News, Johannesburg.

Former first lady Barbara Bush has been released from a Houston hospital where she has been recovering from surgery for a perforated ulcer 17. Spokesperson for the hospital says the former first lady was discharged this morning and is in good condition. Barbara Bush is 83.