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The Two-Way
1:15 pm
Wed June 19, 2013

FBI Director Says Agency Is Using Drones Over The U.S.

Credit General Atomics / Getty Images
A Predator drone

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 4:55 pm

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is using drones on United States soil for surveillance purposes, the agency's director, Robert Mueller, told a Senate committee today.

"Our footprint is very small, and we have very few and of limited use, and we're exploring not only the use but also the necessary guidelines for that use," said Mueller , answering a question from Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.

Mueller, who was testifying in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said they were used in a "very, very minimal way and very seldom."

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Fine Art
12:40 pm
Wed June 19, 2013

The Art Of Life: Claes Oldenburg At MOMA

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 4:05 pm

The sculptor Claes Oldenburg was born in Stockholm but grew up in Chicago, went to Yale and came to New York in 1956, where he became a key player in the pop art movement — the major counter-reaction to the abstract expressionism that dominated the 1950s. So much for art history.

Although Oldenburg is a serious artist, probably no artist in history ever created works that were more fun. In a new show at the Museum of Modern Art — really two shows — practically everyone, including myself, was walking through the galleries with a huge grin.

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Planet Money
12:39 pm
Wed June 19, 2013

How A Used Bottle Becomes A New Bottle, In 6 Gifs

Credit Lam Thuy Vo / NPR

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 2:44 pm

The Salt
12:26 pm
Wed June 19, 2013

Women And Children Caught In Middle Of Potato War

Credit Paul J. Richards / AFP/Getty Images
Fresh white spuds aren't allowed in a government supplemental nutrition program for women and children because, unlike other fruits and vegetables, potatoes aren't lacking in the typical diet.

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 1:01 pm

We didn't plan it, but somehow, it has turned into Potato Week here at The Salt. The latest twist in the tater tales takes us to Capitol Hill.

Americans love to pile on the potatoes – we consumed a whopping 112 pounds per capita last year. But lately, the potato industry has been playing the part of jilted lover and taking its heartache to Congress.

According to the National Potato Council, the U.S. Department of Agriculture "discriminates" against fresh, white potatoes.

Huh?

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The Two-Way
12:09 pm
Wed June 19, 2013

It's Beach Time... In Alaska, Where Heat Wave Breaks Records

Credit Rachel D'Oro / AP
In this photo taken on Monday, people swim and sunbathe at Goose Lake in Anchorage, Alaska.

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 1:44 pm

Taking advantage of an intense heat wave that broke long-standing records yesterday, residents of Anchorage, Alaska, headed to the beach at Goose Lake.

As the Anchorage Daily News reports, the National Weather Service recorded a high temperature of 81 degrees in the city, beating the previous record of 80 degrees set in June of 1926.

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History
12:02 pm
Wed June 19, 2013

Exhibit Explores US History of 'Rights' Versus 'Privileges'

Transcript

CELESTE HEADLEE, HOST:

This is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. I'm Celeste Headlee. Michel Martin is away. Coming up, we'll glimpse into the mind of a sociopath. We'll hear from an author who says she is a sociopath, but your assumptions about people like her might be completely off-base. That's in a few minutes.

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Middle East
12:02 pm
Wed June 19, 2013

To Arm, Or Not To Arm The Syrian Rebels?

The White House says the United States will arm Syrian rebels, but a new poll shows most Americans don't like the idea. Guest host Celeste Headlee speaks with Shadi Hamid of The Brookings Institution, about America's current and future involvement in Syria.

The Salt
11:50 am
Wed June 19, 2013

The Martini: This American Cocktail May Have An International Twist

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 7:15 pm

There's no cocktail more distinctly American than the martini. It's strong, sophisticated and sexy. It's everything we hope to project while ordering one.

Baltimore-born satirist H.L. Mencken is said to have called the martini "the only American invention as perfect as the sonnet." But is the martini perfectly American? Maybe not entirely.

So in honor of National Martini Day on Wednesday, we decided to dig into the drink's muddled past.

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Shots - Health News
11:04 am
Wed June 19, 2013

AMA Says It's Time To Call Obesity A Disease

Credit NPR

Originally published on Wed June 19, 2013 5:35 pm

While the American Medical Association may not have the clout it once did, it's still the largest single group of doctors making waves about health and the practice of medicine.

So it's not nothing when the AMA's House of Delegates approves a measure to label obesity a disease. The group's deliberative democratic body passed a measure in Chicago Tuesday that broadly, if vaguely, says obesity is a medical condition:

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Politics
9:40 am
Wed June 19, 2013

Liberal Groups Say They Received IRS Scrutiny Too

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Some other news. We have a more complicated view this morning of the scandal at the IRS. An inspector general critiqued the tax agency's targeting of conservative groups - many of them linked with the Tea Party movement. We knew that much. And now it's become apparent that more liberal or progressive groups were also targeted.

NPR's Tamara Keith reports.

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