Governors in nine states, mostly in the South, are thinking about rejecting millions of dollars in federal stimulus money pegged for increased unemployment insurance. Joining us this morning is Michael Luo, a New York Times writer who is reporting that many jobless people in those states are angry that they may not get benefits from the stimulus package.

Read Michael Luo's article from the New York Times at Jobless Angry at Possibility of No Benefits

Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour discusses why he turned down funds for his state.

The Obama administration's budget plan asks Congress to raise taxes on the wealthy to help stem the flood of red ink. One of the strategies to increase tax revenue is a cap on the rate that high-income taxpayers can use to claim charitable deductions. This is part of a plan to finance changes to the country’s health-care system. That news is sending shudders through the nonprofit and philanthropic world. Joining us this morning is Peter Panepento, a web editor with the Chronicle of Philanthropy, and Matthew Bishop from The Economist and author of Philanthrocapitalism: How the Rich Can Save the World joins us from Barcelona.

As America has become more diverse, its law schools and firms have followed suit. But the pipeline to the judiciary is blocked—white males are overrepresented on state appellate benches by a margin of nearly two-to-one. Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, one of the authors of a Brennan Center for Justice study on making the judiciary more diverse, and Kim Cocroft, a newly appointed judge in Columbus, Ohio, join John and Jerome with a look at the issue.

As George Mitchell, President Obama's special envoy to the Middle East finishes up a day in the West Bank, we're taking a look at the challenges that lie ahead for all the President's envoys. Both Mitchell and Richard Holbrooke, the special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, have long roads ahead of them. One man who can sympathize: Dan Simpson. Now an editor at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Simpson served as special envoy to Somalia from 1994 - 1995 and was an Ambassador to Congo and the Central African Republic. He joins us now with his insight into the world of the special envoy.

The Association of South East Asian Nations, known as ASEAN, is usually thought to be more of a figurehead organization that rarely takes real action. That might be changing though as the group of ten countries is working together in the face of the global economic slowdown. Finance ministers have been very proactive and have already agreed to establish a $120 billion currency stabilization fund, which will take on a role similar to that of the IMF. For more we are joined by the BBC's Jonathan Head in Bangkok, Thailand.

An alleged follower of al Qaeda may soon face terrorism-related charges in U.S. federal court. The move would eliminate the possibility of a military tribunal for the man who is the only designated enemy combatant to be held in the continental United States. Moving the trial into federal court offers the defendant legal options available in civilian criminal court, like the right to challenge the evidence against him. For what this means for future terrorism trials, we are joined by John Schwartz, National Legal Correspondent for the New York Times, who is following this story.

Read The New York Times article U.S. Will Give Qaeda Suspect a Civilian Trial

Among the more creative ways the White House plans to pay for its spending is a carbon emissions cap that the President says will produce $150 billion. The money would finance renewable energy projects and pay for middle-class tax credits. President Obama's budget blueprint is a nearly $4 trillion plan that includes major spending and major deficits as the government tries to combat the severe recession. Joining us this morning to discuss this plan to cap and spend is New York Times Reporter John Broder who has been covering this story.

For more, read Drilling Down on the Budget: Setting ‘Green’ Goals in today's New York Times.

Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Tanzania, is famous for its snow-capped peaks and that snow cap has gotten a lot of attention recently. Climate change experts say its melting glaciers are dramatic evidence of the impact of human-induced climate change. That’s why UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon flew over the top of Kilamanjaro this morning—a stunt to draw attention to climate change. But are the retreating glaciers of Mount Kilamanjaro really the iconic symbol of climate change? Joining us to explain this is Doug Hardy from the University of Massachusetts. He's a “high elevations” specialist who took a trip to Mount Kilimanjaro earlier this month.

The number of soldiers who have given their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan is 4,253. As each soldier returns home, their bodies lay in coffins that are flown back to the U.S. through Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. We have not been permitted to see those flag-draped coffins because of a Pentagon ban on media coverage that dates back 18 years to the George H. W. Bush presidency. The media, it was thought, would use these images in a malignant way instead of honoring the dead. This week, after an announcement by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, the ban officially ends.

To read about this check out the New York Times article Defense Chief Lifts Ban on Pictures of Coffins.

View a larger photo of "Untitled, War Redacted Series, 2007." © Camille J. Gage, used with permission.

It's Friday and once again we are joined by Allison Williams, associate editor of Time Out New York, for a look at what should be on our weekend to-do list.

Allison Williams' recommends watching Dead Like Me on DVD and to tune in for the final season of ER. Or watch from the beginning on DVD.

We agree, but also want to strongly recommend catching up on Friday Night Lights. What might be the final season is on NBC now and it is one of the best shows on television and this season is a killer. Go Panthers!

Need something to snack on while watching all that tv? Get a delivery from Sticky Fingers Bakeries and top off your fresh-made treats with a schmear of LemonBird's handmade jams.Or settle down with a six pack of Graeter's ice cream. Overnight delivery never tasted so sweet.

U2 certainly took their sweet time crafting their new release, but the result of all their hard work is set to be released this week. Want a sneak peak? Here is there video for Get on Your Boots.

Although it's not particularly action packed, if you're in the mood for some quality time with your PS3, Flowers is probably the prettiest videogame out there. Wait...they make videogames without zombies? Who knew! It's available for download exclusively at the Playstation Network store.

Plan to catch up on the Oscar winners? Here's a rundown of their films to guide your movie watching:
Best Actor: Sean Penn in Milk
Best Actress: Kate Winslet in The Reader
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight
Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Best Documentary: Man on Wire
Best Animated Film: Wall-E
But the big winner was Slumdog Millionaire taking home Best Picture and Best Director nods along with six other Oscars.

Most available on The Takeaway's Amazon store.

You have to wait until March 6th for the release of Watchmen, but to tide you over, here is the trailer.

Finally, the Jonas Bros movie hits theaters this weekend. Try not to squee too loudly!

The Commerce Department is reporting that the economy contracted at a staggering 6.2% pace during the fourth quarter, the worst contraction in 25 years. Declines are across the board from consumer spending to business investment. Kelly Evans, an economics reporter for the Wall Street Journal joins us to help dissect and digest this.

Watch a video of Kelly Evans talking to her colleague Phil Izzo about how inventory build up at the fourth quarter inflated the GPD report.