Today's Takeaway: Can Holiday Shopping Save the Economy?

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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

What's at the Heart of the Euro Zone Crisis?;One Voter's Take on the Egyptian Election; The Political Ads of the 2012 Race; Remembering George Harrison and the Beatles with Louise Harrison; Can Shopping Save the Economy?; Judge Rejects Citigroup Settlement Over Toxic Mortgages; The Legacy of Barney Frank; Neuroscience's Challenge to Criminal Justice; Assessing the UN Climate Change Conference

Top of the Hour: Woman Claims 13-Year Affair With Cain, Morning Headlines

An Atlanta woman told a FOX affiliate on Monday that she had a 13-year-long affair with Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain. Cain went on CNN earlier in the day to preemptively deny the allegations from the woman, an unemployed single mother named Ginger White.

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What's At the Heart of the Euro Zone Crisis?

Much of the political turmoil surrounding the euro zone crisis has centered around the question of whether fiscally stronger nations, such as Germany and France, should have to bail out Greece and other struggling economies. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has held the purse strings along with other leaders who have demanded strict austerity measures in those countries receiving assistance. Merkel is under political pressure at home with many in her government feeling that the Greeks, like the German people, should have lived within their means.

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Historic Egyptian Election Enters Second Day

Egypt's first democratic elections since the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak entered their second day on Tuesday. Although the elections capped weeks of bloody clashes between the military and protesters, who felt that they were loosing their revolution to military rule, the atmosphere throughout voting centers was one of hope. Protesters have been unhappy with the pace of transition as the country moves from military to civilian rule. The Obama administration came out in support of the protesters before the election began.

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The Political Ads of the 2012 Race

"From the creator of 'I'm Running For Office for Pete's Sake' comes the story of two men trapped in the same body — Mitt versus Mitt." It sounds like a movie trailer, but it's really the latest political ad from the Democratic National Committee. The DNC is reportedly spending $22,000 to run the ad this week. Among the GOP presidential candidates, Rick Perry has already spent $2.8 million on advertising, Ron Paul has spent $2.1 million, Mitt Romney has spent $134,000, and Herman Cain has spent $78,900. But what kind of poll numbers does one TV spot really buy?

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Cain Denies Affair With Atlanta Woman

After weeks of deflecting allegations of sexual harassment from four different women, Herman Cain is back on the defensive after an Atlanta woman claimed she carried on a 13-year affair with the Republican presidential candidate on Monday. Ginger White, an unemployed single mother, told a FOX affiliate in Atlanta she decided to come forward after being bothered by how the other woman who had accused Cain of sexual harassment were "demonized." Cain admitted to knowing the woman during an appearance on CNN, but strongly denied an affair took place.

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Remembering George Harrison and the Beatles with Louise Harrison

Fifty years ago, four young men named Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, and Pete Best stepped into a studio for the first time to record a few songs. They called themselves the Beat Brothers, and they were more or less a backup band for a singer named Tony Sheridan. The Beat Brothers did not remain a backup band for long. Pete Best would be replaced by Ringo Star, and the Beat Brothers became the Beatles, one of the most enduring and popular bands in history.

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Top of the Hour: Banks Profited $13 Billion Off Secret Fed Loans, Morning Headlines

After more than two years of obfuscation, details of the largest bank bailout in U.S. history are beginning to emerge. The Federal Reserve secretly gave banks $7.77 trillion, allowing them to make an estimated $13 billion in profits from the central bank's below market rates, according to a new report from Bloomberg News.

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Can Holiday Shopping Save the Economy?

Every holiday season, many Americans feel the compulsion to shop for themselves and their loved ones. George W. Bush famously encouraged the nation to go shopping during his presidency, reminding Americans that 70 percent of the economy is derived from personal spending. This year, the economic engine went into overdrive during Black Friday and Cyber Monday; but, does that indicate signs of a looming economic recovery?

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Barney Frank Will Leave Congress After Three Decades

Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank announced Monday that he will not seek re-election next year, after representing his district in Congress for more than 30 years. The announcement brings to an end the career of one of Congress's most quotable and cantankerous members. Frank leaves behind a legacy of notable achievement in economic policy, and will be remembered by history as the first member of Congress to come out as gay.

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Judge Rejects Citigroup Settlement Over Toxic Mortgages

A federal judge rejected a $285 million settlement between Citigroup and the Securities and Exchange Commission, objecting to the practice of allowing banks to settle fraud cases without admitting guilt. Citi may now face a trial over the sale of toxic mortgages which cost investors millions but made the bank profit. The judge said the public has a right to "the transparency of financial markets whose gyrations have so depressed our economy and debilitated our lives."

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Assessing the UN Climate Change Conference

It's the second day of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. For the next two weeks, delegates from 194 nations will meet in Durban, South Africa to discuss the future of international climate change legislation. But amid such concerns as the looming expiration of the Kyoto Protocol, a perennial question emerges: Why have actions to stanch global warming been so timid? And will this conference do anything to change that?

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Norwegian Mass Murderer Anders Breivik Declared Insane

Andres Breivik, the 32-year-old Norwegian man who killed 77 people and injured 151 others in July, was declared insane by state psychiatrists in Oslo on Tuesday. After planting a car bomb near government buildings in Oslo that killed eight people on July 22, Breivik drove to a political youth camp on Utoeya island and gunned down 69 people, many of whom were teens. In an online manifesto that was found later, Breivik claimed to be defending Europe from an Islamic invasion enabled by Norway's Labour Party and the European Union. Alexander Levi, a lawyer in Oslo, discusses the likelihood of Breivik facing a prison sentence after being declared insane.

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American Airlines Files For Bankruptcy

American Airlines' parent company, Texas-based AMR, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Tuesday morning, making it the last major airline in the U.S. to do so. American, the nation's third largest airline, will continue operations during the restructuring, which it hopes will reduce labor costs and $29.6 billion in debts. AMR has lost $982 million since the beginning of the year, and has posted annual losses for the last three years. In recent years, American has struggled to compete against United and Delta, both of which merged with other airlines after going through their own reorganizations.

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