NPR 2011-07-27

The White House warns House Speaker John Boehner's latest budget plan will be vetoed if it reaches President Obama's desk. It's opposed to a measure requiring that a second debt-limit vote be held before the 2012 elections. Now some conservatives, meanwhile, say Boehner's plan doesn't make enough reductions. The bill which could come up for a vote tomorrow calls for federal spending cuts of 1.2 trillion dollars and would raise the debt limit by up to a trillion dollars before the August 2nd deadline. As wrangling 1 over the debt ceiling continues, NPR's Ari Shapiro reports the White House warns Tuesday remains 2 a hard deadline.

White House spokesman Jay Carney dismissed pundits 3 who say the US could figure out a way to keep hang all of its bills after August 2nd.

"The United States hit its debt limit in May. And since May, the Treasury 4 Secretary, using authority that he has, has exercised all the wiggle room available to him, and that runs out on August 2nd. That's not a guess. It’s not a political opinion. It is the judgment 5 of career analysts 6 at the Treasury Department."

He attacked Republicans' approach to this issue. Speaking about dueling 7 remarks by the president and the House speaker Monday night, Carney said the speaker of the House never mentioned the word "compromise," yet that is the only option. Ari Shapiro, NPR News, the White House.

In the event the government does not extend its debt ceiling, California state treasurer 8 says he'll ask a group of banks, credit unions and investment funds for short-term loans amounting to about five billion dollars to avoid a potential cash shortage.

Embattled Democratic Congressman 10 David Wu says he is resigning. The lawmaker from Oregon formally announces his decision as he confronts an 18-year-old woman's allegations that she was a victim of unwanted sexual advances by Wu. The lawmaker is the second House Democrat 9 in the last two months to resign as a result of a sex-related scandal.

The United Nations says it's had to postpone 11 its first airlift of food aid to Somalia's capital. From Nairobi, NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton reports there were hopes that nutritious 12 and high-energy supplements would reach desperately 13 malnourished children suffering from drought and famine.

New arrivals from rural areas of Somalia are flooding into the capital Mogadishu in search of food. Some are taking refuge in bombed-out buildings. The UN World Food Program is planning a series of airlifts, but says it's still fine-tuning logistics, and that security is not the main concern for its initial relief delivery. The agency is scaling up food aid to Mogadishu because of the growing number of hungry, displaced people coming into the turbulent city. With famine declared in two parts of southern Somalia, thousands of refugees are fleeing into neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia to escape drought and conflict. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, NPR News, Nairobi.

From Washington, this is NPR News.

Authorities in Norway are starting to release the names of the 76 people killed in last week's bombing at Oslo's government quarter and shooting rampage at youth camp. The self-confessed perpetrator, Ander Behring Breivik, has pleaded not guilty. His lawyer Geir Lippestad had this assessment 14 of his client.

"I can't describe him because he's, he's not like anyone of us. This whole case has indicated he's insane."

Now Breivik has said that he is pursuing a war. Earlier, the 32-year-old said he launched the attack as part of an anti-Muslim campaign.

The world's largest retailer 15 has entered the video streaming business. Consumers can now stream TV shows and movies directly from Wal-Mart's website. NPR's Elizabeth Blair reports Wal-Mart hopes to be major competition for Netflix, which recently raised its prices.

Wal-Mart has integrated Vudu, the video service it bought last year into Walmart.com. So consumers can now stream, rent or buy videos like 'Rango' with Johnny Depp.

"The place I come from, we kill a man before breakfast, just to work up an appetite."

Wal-Mart's move comes just two weeks after Netflix raised its prices by as much as 60% for people who want to continue both its DVD mail and streaming services. Wal-Mart has tried to get it on the digital video market before. In 2003, it launched an online DVD rental 16 service, but abandoned it two years later at the time Wal-Mart encouraged consumers to switch to the Netflix. But now the world's largest retailer wants to be Netflix's biggest rival. Elizabeth Blair, NPR News.

Before the close on Wall Street, Dow was down 90 points at 12,501.

This is NPR News.