In a little less than an hour, President George Bush and his Democratic challenger John Kerry will square off in the first presidential debate. The stage is the University of Miami, in the all-important state of Florida, and both sides are expected to come out ready to battle.
The latest polls give Bush a five-point lead [...]

The war in Iraq has taken its toll on the American military, and a sizeable chunk of the National Guard and Reserve troops are now actively deployed. With retention rates being artificially propped up by a Pentagon “stop loss” order there is concern that the United States does not have enough ground troops to enforce [...]

Geologists today said there is a 70 percent chance that Mount Saint Helen’s will erupt sometime in the next few months. The eruption is unlikely to be anywhere near the volcano’s cataclysmic explosion in 1980, when blowing ash covered towns as far as 250 miles away. But scientists say that earthquakes around the [...]

Architect Daniel Libeskind’s plans for the World Trade Center site brought hope to a battered post-9/11 New York and nation.
His plans envisioned design-signature buildings soaring around a changed Ground Zero, bustling offices, theaters, museums, and a park. Yet, he is caught in an ongoing battle to realize both his vision and plans.
Hear Daniel Libeskind talk [...]

John Mack, the Harvard psychiatrist who became renowned for his controversial research of people who claimed to be abducted by aliens, died Monday when he was struck by an alleged drunken driver in London. He was 74.
Mack won a Pulitzer Prize for his 1977 biography of the World War I British soldier T. E. [...]

According to a new security report out today, this September has been one of the bloodiest, most brutal months in Iraq since the American invasion. According to the Special Operations-Consulting Security Management Group, not a single province in Iraq escaped attacks in the 30-day period, including Iraq’s Kurdish region in the north.
The city of [...]

Howard Dean’s candidacy was a wild ride, filled with inspirational highs and more than a few moments of loss and regret. In the end, despite months of dizzyingly elevated poll numbers and fundraising totals around the country, Dean won only one primary in his home state of Vermont. Still, his impact on this year’s [...]

For the first time since the Vietnam War, Americans are looking at foreign policy as a top issue that will decide their vote. How President George Bush and Senator John Kerry shape their foreign policy positions on the U.N., Iraq, and the war on terror may win or lose them the election.
Hear former National Security [...]

The net worth of Forbes’ 400 richest Americans hit $1 trillion this year. That $45 million more than in the past 12 months. From 31-year-old Google founder Sergey Brin to 96-year-old oil tycoon Max Fisher, they range in age and geography, but not economic class.
While it wasn’t always the case, America is now the most [...]

Oil prices slipped over the $50-a-barrel mark for the first time ever, and analysts say that prices may rise even higher. Clashes between the army and rebel militants in Nigeria and Hurricane Ivan’s passage last week over the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico helped push the price of oil to its new high.
Hear Bob Tippee, editor-in-chief [...]

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation today announced the winners of this year’s “genius grants.” The 23 honorees will each receive a half-million dollars, no strings attached. The winners include a molecular biologist, a marine roboticist, a glass technologist, a Ragtime pianist, and a former barber turned bookseller.
Rueben Martinez’s bookstore is [...]

For decades, the orthodox view on free trade has been strong and simple: countries do what they do best, and everyone ends up a winner. But now, an economist who literally wrote the book on economics is demanding a rethink.
Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Samuelson is challenging conventional “win-win” assumptions about free trade. The [...]

Fannie Mae is the second largest financial institution in the U.S., worth 1 trillion dollars. Today, the mortgage finance company agreed to increase its capital on hand and submit to tighter oversight from the government.
Hear Bob Hagerty of the Wall Street Journal talk about what the agreement means for mortgage holders and the markets.
Guests:
Bob Hagerty, [...]

A proxy battle is taking place in the national fight over stem cell research. In November, Californians will vote on Proposition 71, which could bypass federal restrictions on research funding and have far reaching implications for the rest of the country.
If passed, Proposition 71 would take $3 billion in taxpayer-backed loans and [...]

In just three days, George W. Bush and John Kerry will take the stage at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida, for the first of three televised debates.
Both candidates were preparing for those debates today. Both also found time today in their campaign speeches to preview themes likely to be raised in [...]

He was born Stephen Demetri Georgiou, son of a Greek Cypriot London restaurateur and a Swedish Baptist mother. He gained fame as Cat Stevens, and his music helped define the 60s and 70s.
In the late 70s, the singer-songwriter converted to Islam, and in 1977, Cat Stevens became Yusuf Islam. He turned his back [...]

This week, President Bush defended going to Iraq at the United Nations and senator John Kerry spoke against the war in Iraq.
On Point host Tom Ashbrook and news analyst Jack Beatty look back at this week’s major news.
Guests:
Tom Ashbrook and Jack Beatty

After 36 years, CBS’s “60 Minutes” still makes news with its pioneering format, now widely imitated, and its high-profile though aging stable of stars. The program has left its signature on world events and shaken up the often predictable world of television news.
But the forced resignation of the show’s creator and a series of credibility [...]

President Bush is stepping up attacks that his Democratic challenger, John Kerry, is giving comfort to terrorists and undermining the war in Iraq.
Dana Milbank, White House correspondent for the Washington Post, reports on the recent rhetoric from both sides.
Guests:
Dana Milbank, White House correspondent The Washington Post

Yom Kippur or the “Day of Atonement” is the holiest day on the Jewish calendar and marks the end of a ten-day long period of reflection. This year, Yom Kippur falls in the midst of reports of genocide in the Sudan, hostage beheadings in Iraq, and mortar bombings in Israel.
Rabbi Harold Schulweis of the [...]