Search results for

Rain and storm surge from Hurricane Rita have sent water over and through breaches in patched levees around New Orleans. The lower Ninth Ward, which was completely flooded by Hurricane Katrina, is once again under water.

London's mass transit system is being guarded by thousands of extra police -- many of them heavily armed -- as British authorities take extra precautions against possible other attacks in the capital. Last week, police arrested four key suspects in connection with the failed attacks of July 21.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has approved a plan that would give the nearly 12 million undocumented workers now living in the United States a path to citizenship. The debate now moves to the full Senate. NPR's Jennifer Ludden helps explain the politics and policies involved.

Even though South Korean scientists apparently failed to make human embryonic stem cells from cloned human embryos, several teams around the world are still planning to achieve that goal. To do that, they will need a source of human eggs. But those eggs may be hard to come by.

President Bush says reforming social security will be a top priority during his second term. He wants workers to be able to divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts. They could invest that money in stocks and bonds to save for their own retirement. NPR's Kathleen Schalch reports on what privatization could mean, and how it might be done.

Antonio Villaraigosa is set to become the Los Angeles' first Latino mayor since 1872 after a historic coalition of Latinos, blacks and whites buoyed his candidacy. But he says that after the publicity dies down, he will be judged by his ability to tackle problems such as L.A.'s public school system.

Large regions of Pakistan, India and Afghanistan cite widespread destruction after a deadly earthquake Saturday. Deaths are estimated in the tens of thousands. Rescue and relief crews are rushing to devastated areas.

A pilot program at Orlando International Airport allows passengers to speed through security checkpoints -- if they first submit to a detailed background check. The Bush administration is trying to decide whether to expand such "registered traveler" programs.

The U.S. Supreme Court rules that people who use marijuana for medical reasons can be prosecuted by the federal government, even when a state sanctions medicinal use of the drug. Ten states allow people to take marijuana under a doctor's prescription.

Thomas Jefferson High School in south Los Angeles recently has been the scene of three huge brawls, involving hundreds of black and Latino students and police in riot gear. Racial tensions plague the massive urban high school, which is also faces overcrowding and lack of resources.