NPR 2010-06-25

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Defense¹ Secretary Robert Gates says he fully² supports President Obama's decision to appoint General David Petraeus to replace General Stanley McChrystal as the top commander in Afghanistan. And as NPR's Rachel Martin reports Gates says the strategy there won't change under the new leadership.

Both Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and the Chairman of the Joint³ Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen are responding to the high-level personnel shakeup. Secretary Gates says moving General Petraeus from the head of central command over to Afghanistan to lead the war is the "best possible outcome to an awful situation". Admiral Mullen added that reading the Rolling Stone article that got McChrystal fired made him "physically⁴ ill". Gates says the military leadership in Afghanistan, now including Petraeus, fully supports the president's decision to begin a conditions-based drawdown of US troops by July of 2011. But Gates says his new top commander will have the flexibility⁵ to adjust war plans and submit recommendations to the president as he sees fit. Rachel Martin, NPR News, Washington.

President Obama says he and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have reset⁶ the relationship between their countries. During a joint news conference at the White House today, Mr Obama acknowledged differences still exist, but he says they've been addressed candidly⁷. He also gave Moscow an unqualified endorsement⁸ for membership in the World Trade Organization. President Obama and other leaders of the world's major economies are preparing to go to Toronto for the G20 summit. Foreign leaders are already arriving amid tight security. Canadian police today searched a car near the summit site and found containers of gasoline and what are described as possible "axe⁹ handles". The driver was arrested.

The Supreme¹⁰ Court says a federal fraud law used to convict former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling was misapplied by prosecutors¹¹. From Dallas, NPR's Wade¹² Goodwyn reports the ruling could benefit Skilling and others who've been convicted under the law.

Appellate courts have disagreed about what kinds of white collar crime are covered under the so-called honest services statute¹³. The law makes it a crime to "deprive another of the intangible right of honest service". It was widely agreed that kickbacks¹⁴ and bribery¹⁵ violated the law, but there was no evidence that Jeff Skilling, Ken¹⁶ Lay and Andrew Fastow took bribes¹⁷. They concocted¹⁸ a scheme to hide Enron's massive losses and inflate¹⁹ its profits. The Supreme Court said that's not a violation²⁰ of the honest services statute. The court left open the possibility that Skilling's conviction on conspiracy²¹ charges might stand. The ruling throws the case back to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to sort out and gives Skilling, who is incarcerated²² in a federal prison in Colorado, new hope. Wade Goodwyn, NPR News, Dallas.

Worries about the economic recovery weighed down stocks today, the Dow near the close down 135 points.

From Washington, this is NPR News.

Apple's newest iPhone has hit store shelves around the country and around the world. NPR's David Folkenflik is at an Apple store in New York.

A frenzy²³ you want, a frenzy you'll get. Here outside the stylish²⁴ Apple store in Midtown Manhattan, I spoke²⁵ to Peeto de Los Angeles, a security guard from the Bronx. He'd been online for more than 11 hours.

"Well, this phone, the camera, has LED, has zoom²⁶, has LED flash and the FaceTime."

FaceTime being the function that allows people to make video phone calls. The new phone is said to be sleeker²⁷, quicker, lighter²⁸ and have more battery power than its predecessors²⁹. And it's the "ultimate of cool", according to Jill McQueen, a bartender from Kansas City, Missouri.

"It's awesome³⁰, it's perfect, it's shiny, it's clean."

Consumers like her are likely to be pumping a lot more data through AT&T system, and some analysts³¹ ask whether that may ultimately slow the experience for users. David Folkenflik, NPR News, New York.

There is finally a victor in the marathon tennis match at Wimbledon. American John Isner hit a backhand passing shot for a winner today, finally prevailing³² in a match that lasted more than 11 hours spread over three days. The fifth set alone lasted more than eight hours. Isner says he and Frenchman Nicolas Mahut will always be linked.

"I don't think I've ever said five words to the guy prior to our match. Not that he is a bad guy, we just, you know. This is what it is. But now when I do see him in the locker³³ room at other tournaments, you know, we will always be able to share that."

Isner collapsed³⁴ on the Wimbledon grass after the winning shot, and then sprung back to his feet to applause from the crowd.

Again, and stocks down today, the NASDAQ at the close down 36 points.

I am Giles Snyder, NPR News from Washington.