NPR 2008-12-18

The Illinois Supreme 1 Court has refused to hear a challenge that questioned the fitness of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich to hold office since he faces federal corruption 2 charges. NPR's Cheryl Corley reports.

The state's attorney general had filed the request with the Illinois Supreme Court, asking it to temporarily remove the governor. Lisa Medigan had argued that Governor Blagojevich's legal and political troubles amount to a disability which keep him from performing his duties. The court denied the request with no comment. Harold Krent, Dean of Law at Chicago-Kent College of Law, says the Supreme Court took the right step. "The clear mechanism 4 under the Illinois constitution for a resolve in the case of a governor who many think is unfit to serve should be through impeachment 5 and that process is already underway. " Governor Blagojevich stands accused of attempting to sell the U. S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama. Meantime, he is asking the state to pay for his legal defense 6 in the impeachment proceedings 7. Cheryl Corley, NPR News, Chicago.

President-elect Barack Obama officially announced the appointment of two new cabinet members today. Mr Obama said he's tapped former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack to be his agriculture secretary. And the president-elect named Colorado Senator Ken 3 Salazar to head the Interior Department. Mr Obama praised both men, saying they will protect the environment while also expanding the goal of energy independence. "Together they will serve as guardians 8 of the American landscape on which the health of our economy and the well-being 9 of our families so heavily depend. " Latest choices moved the president-elect closer to completing most of his cabinet picks before leaving for a pre-inaugural vacation.

The Bush administration today moved to freeze the assets of a New York company. It says it's a front for the Iranian government and it has provided support to Iran's nuclear program. NPR's Dina Temple-Raston reports.

ASSA Corp. owns a building in Manhattan that Treasury 10 officials allege 11 was partly funded by Iran's Bank Melli. According to the Treasury Department, ASSA Corp. is a front company, funneling 12 rental 13 income from the high-end midtown building to Iran. The Treasury announced that it had frozen the company's assets and said its action does not interfere 14 with business or other activities of the building's tenants 15. The latest move by the Treasury comes on the heels of a U. S. government finding last year that Bank Melli was providing services to Iran's missile programs. The U. S. government froze Bank Melli assets in the U. S. a year ago. The United States has already imposed sanctions on several state-run Iranian businesses along with elements of its Defense Ministry 16 and Revolutionary Guard Corps 17. Dina Temple-Raston, NPR News, New York.

Domestic automaker Chrysler said today it plans to close all 30 of its manufacturing plants for a month starting on Friday. Troubled automaker said its production shutdown is needed as a result of slowing demand as the company tries to conserve 18 cash.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 99 points. The S&P 500 dropped eight points today.

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A House panel is expected to convene 19 next month to launch an inquiry 20 into a 50-billion-dollar securities fraud alleged 21 to have been carried out by Wall Street Money Manager Bernard Madoff. The announcement follows word yesterday the Securities and Exchange Commission, the government's main securities watchdog group, has launched an internal probe to try and figure out why allegations against Madoff won't follow up on. Madoff, the former chairman of the NASDAQ Stock Market was arrested last week and he's charged with running what amounted to a massive Ponzi scheme. A judge today ordered the 70-year-old Madoff placed under house arrest essentially 22 confined to his Manhattan apartment.

In an effort to curtail 23 gun-related violence, Los Angeles is considering tightening 24 its gun and ammunition 25 laws. NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates has more.

The new laws are being considered by the Los Angeles City Council and are designed to cut the city's gun-related injuries and deaths, especially those that are caused by gang violence. Although assault weapons were previously 26 banned, a new law will now make the 50 caliber 27 bullets that most of them fire illegal. Another change will remove the option of ammunition purchase through the Internet and mail, forcing buyers to purchase their ammunition in person. Additional laws will require that the ammunition venders be licensed 28 and gun stores will now have to carefully and regularly inventory 29 their weapons. Los Angeles has one of the highest gun-homicide rates in the country. So far there have been 354 homicides in 2008. LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa says guns account for 80% of the city's homicides. Karen Grigsby Bates, NPR News.

Despite an announced OPEC production cut, crude oil futures 30 fell $3. 45 a barrel today, settling at $40. 15 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.