NPR 2009-07-13

Committee Chairman in both the Senate and House say they will begin investigations 1 into a secret CIA counterterrorism program that the Bush administration did not disclose to Congress for nearly eight years. Former Vice 2 President Dick Cheney allegedly ordered the program to be kept from lawmakers. NPR's Peter Overby reports.

Senate Intelligence Chair Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat 3, said the law generally tells the CIA and the President to keep Congress informed. "This is a big problem, because the law is very clear." And Democrat Patrick Leahy, who chairs the Judiciary Committee, said it's a simple question.  "Either he did, or he didn't." But Jeff Sessions, the ranking Republican on Judiciary, said Cheney served with fidelity 4. "And I hope that nothing like this will impact on his outstanding record." And Republican Senator John Cornyn brought up House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's allegation that the CIA lied to Congress. "And this looks to me suspiciously like an attempt to provide political cover to her and others." Cornyn and Feinstein appeared on FOX News Sunday, Leahy and Sessions on CBS's "Face the Nation". Peter Overby, NPR News, Washington.

President Obama spoke 5 by phone with his Supreme 6 Court nominee 7, Sonia Sotomayor from the Oval Office today. The White House says he wished her well in her Senate confirmation 8 hearings, which begin tomorrow and expressed confidence she will be confirmed to succeed Justice David Souter.

Five Iranians, who were held for over two years by US forces in Iraq, have arrived back in Teheran. US forces accused the men of helping 9 Shiite militants 11. NPR's Michelle Trudeau reports from Baghdad.

US forces believe the men to be members of the Iranian revolutionary Guards' elite 12 Quds force, which the military says, back Shiite militias 13 in Iraq. The Iranians, however, have described the five men as diplomats 14, and denied that they were involved in militant 10 activity. They were arrested in the northern city of Irbil in January, 2007. Officials released the men this past week to the government of Iraq, in compliance 15 with the US-Iraq security agreement that took effect in January. Also as part of the security agreement, US troops pulled out of Iraq cities earlier this month.  Since then the country has seen sporadic 16 violence, which officials there said they were expecting. In Baghdad, roadside bombs has killed at least two civilians 17, and wounded 20 others. Another bomb killed an official in Iraq's cabinet. Michelle Trudeau, NPR News, Baghdad.

NASA has finished fueling the space shuttle Endeavor, which is set for launch in just over an hour barring any last-minute problems. The weather is favorable at the Kennedy Space Center. NASA engineers found no damage from the lightning strikes that occurred near the launch pad on Friday night. And repairs designed to prevent recurrence 18 of the hydrogen gas leaks that forced to delay in the original mid-June launch date have worked apparently 19. NASA test director Steve Payne says Endeavor is ready to go. "Oh it's rock solid. We're very happy with the repair and this was our last major hurdle 20. I think today is our day." Endeavor will carry a crew of seven astronauts on a mission to the International Space Station.

This is NPR News from Washington.

Many farmers and ranchers in the US appeared to be having a hard time paying for health insurance that's offered to owners of  small businesses. From Lincoln, Nebraska, Martin Wells has the story.

Family farmers and ranchers are insured at a higher rate than the general population, but 10% were uninsured, or had a family member who was uninsured. That's according to a report from the Access Project, a not-for-profit organization dedicated 22 to helping local communities improve health and healthcare access. The survey found more than one-third of the uninsured farmers and ranchers spend more than 10% of their income on healthcare. They were also four times more likely to have incomes under 20,000 than those with insurance. And families with income derived 23 from farming and ranching 24 are least likely to be able to afford private health insurance. The report was based on data gathered for a 2007 survey of farm and ranch 21 operators in seven Great Plain states. For NPR News, I'm Martin Wells in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Gasoline prices have registered their most significant decline since last December over the past few weeks. Prices at the pump have dropped about 10 cents a gallon to a national average of $2.56 for self-service regular.  Industry analyst 25 Trilby Lundberg says the decline was expected because crude oil prices have been falling. "Crude oil fell twice as much as gasoline did, about half the cut went to motorists, and about 25% each went to refiners and retailers 26." Lundberg says she expects gas prices to drop even further in the coming weeks. Gasoline prices are about $1.55 lower now than they were at this time last summer. The highest gasoline prices in the most recent survey were in Honolulu, the lowest were in Wichita, Kansas.

I'm Craig Windham, NPR News in Washington.