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This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Last week President Obama again called for ending a ban against people in the military who are openly homosexual. That was one of his campaign promises. This week America's top military officer expressed support for the proposal at a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Admiral Mike Mullen is chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Admiral Michael Mullen speaks to the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday

Defense Secretary Robert Gates also expressed support for ending the policy known as "don't ask, don't tell."

President Bill Clinton proposed it seventeen years ago. The law, passed by Congress, does not prevent gays and lesbians from serving in the military. But it does require them not to tell anyone about their sexual preference. Estimates of the number of troops dismissed under the policy are as high as thirteen thousand five hundred.

A USA Today/Gallup Poll last May showed that fifty-eight percent of conservatives and Republicans supported letting gays and lesbians serve openly.

But Senator John McCain, a Navy veteran, is among Republican lawmakers against ending the policy.

Senate Armed Services Committee member John McCain

Secretary Gates said he has launched a year-long study of the possible effects of a change in the law. But he gave the Defense Department forty-five days to think of ways to enforce the existing law "in a more humane and fair manner."

In California, a federal judge is studying the evidence in a trial over a ban against same-sex marriage in that state. Fifty-two percent of California voters amended the state constitution in November of two thousand eight.

In the trial, two same-sex couples argue that the state ban violates equal protection rights under the United States Constitution. The judge is expected to hear closing arguments next month. The case is likely to reach the Supreme Court.

A survey last April by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that fifty-four percent of Americans opposed gay marriage. Thirty-five percent said they supported it.

Thirty of the fifty states have changed their constitutions to ban same-sex marriage. Five states permit it: Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. And same-sex marriage could soon become legal in the city of Washington.

Several countries, mostly in Europe, offer different levels of marriage rights to same-sex couples.

On Thursday, President Obama condemned an anti-homosexuality bill in Uganda that proposes death for some crimes. He spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington. The yearly event is organized by a Christian group known as The Family. Activists say Ugandan politician David Bahati, who proposed the legislation, is a member of that group.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

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President Obama gave his first State of the Union speech Wednesday night. He talked mostly about the economy, and he repeated some of his message the next day in Florida.

BARACK OBAMA: "The worst of the storm has passed. But I think all of you understand the devastation remains. One in ten Americans still can't find work. That's why creating jobs has to be our number one priority in two thousand and ten."

President Obama just before delivering his State of the Union speech to Congress

Independent voters helped elect President Obama but have since turned away from the Democrats. Congressional elections are this November.

BARACK OBAMA: "I know it's an election year. And after last week, it's clear that campaign fever has come even earlier than usual. But we still need to govern. To Democrats, I would remind you that we still have the largest majority in decades, and the people expect us to solve problems, not run for the hills."

To help create jobs, he urged the Senate to join the House of Representatives in passing a second economic stimulus bill.

BARACK OBAMA: "People are out of work. They are hurting. They need our help and I want a jobs bill on my desk without delay."

He also called for a three-year freeze on some federal spending. And he set a goal to double American exports over the next five years.

Speaking to Democratic lawmakers after his speech

BARACK OBAMA: "Do not walk away from reform. Not now. Not when we are so close. Let us find a way to come together and finish the job for the American people."

President Obama again promised to remove all American combat troops from Iraq by the end of August. He predicted success in Afghanistan. And he had a warning for nations that violate international agreements "in pursuit of nuclear weapons." He said that is why North Korea now faces stronger sanctions.

BARACK OBAMA: "And as Iran's leaders continue to ignore their obligations, there should be no doubt: they, too, will face growing consequences. That is a promise."

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell giving the Republican response in the state capital, Richmond

BOB MCDONNELL: "What government should not do is pile on more taxation, regulation and litigation that kill jobs and hurt the middle class."

On Friday President Obama proposed tax credits for every new employee that a business hires this year. He also joined House Republicans for a sometimes tense meeting at their yearly gathering.

And the Commerce Department reported that economic growth at the end of two thousand nine was the fastest in six years. This early estimate was higher than expected. However, it was largely the result of businesses cutting their supplies of unsold goods at a slower rate.

Investments in equipment rose sharply. But consumer spending increased just two percent. Still, a private report said consumer confidence in the economy reached a two-year high this month.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. For more news, and for transcripts and MP3s of our reports, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Mario Ritter.

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President Barack Obama has begun his second year in office. The forty-fourth president, and first African-American president, was inaugurated last January twentieth.

BARACK OBAMA: "Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real, they are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America, they will be met."

President Obama answers a question in Elyria, Ohio, Friday

Congress quickly approved an economic recovery bill. Yet unemployment remains high at ten percent. The Obama administration now faces the earthquake relief effort in Haiti and the threat of terrorism at home. There was a failed attempt to bomb a plane on its way to Detroit, Michigan, on Christmas Day.

BARACK OBAMA: "As president, I have a solemn responsibility to protect our nation and our people. And when the system fails, it is my responsibility."

President Obama campaigned on a promise of "change we can believe in." His high public approval ratings have fallen in recent months. A poll by Quinnipiac University in Connecticut found Americans equally divided about his first year. Peter Brown works at the university.

PETER BROWN: "They like Obama personally. They think he is trustworthy and honest. They think he is a strong leader. They say they don't necessarily agree with him on the issues they are most concerned about. They wish he would spend more time on the economy. They don't like the health care bill."

The Senate and House of Representatives have each passed their own health care legislation. But there is no final bill. And the Democrats have a new problem they had not expected.

A newly elected senator is a Republican who opposes the legislation. Scott Brown won a seat in Massachusetts that had been held by Democrat Ted Kennedy for almost fifty years.

But more importantly, Senate Democrats lost their sixtieth vote. Senators can threaten a bill with unlimited debate unless sixty senators vote to prevent it.

President Obama had campaigned for the Democratic candidate in Tuesday's special Senate election in Massachusetts. Experts say one of the lessons is that even though the economy has improved, it demands more attention. David Wasserman from the Cook Political Report in Washington was a guest on VOA's "Encounter" program.

DAVID WASSERMAN: "I don't think President Obama and the Democrats were expecting to have to spend so much time on health care because it is dragging on. And in the eyes of a lot of Americans, this isn't really dealing with the economy. This isn't bringing back jobs."

President Obama with his wife, Michelle, and Chief Justice John Roberts after the oath of office

Many political experts are mixed in their opinions. But Larry Sabato at the University of Virginia says not to judge too much from the first year.

LARRY SABATO: "If you look back in history you will find that many presidents who were enormously popular in that first year became failed presidents over time. Other presidents who were not terribly popular in their first year and had lots of controversies served two full terms and went out of office in a reasonably positive way."

Congressional elections will be held in November, and Republican gains are likely. Smaller Democratic majorities could force the president to reach out to the opposition and to conservatives in his own party.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Mario Ritter.

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Food. Water. Medicine. Hope. All that and more is urgently needed after a powerful earthquake wrecked much of Haiti's capital on Tuesday.

A Spanish rescuer carries 2-year-old Redjeson Hausteen Claude from a wrecked home in Port-au-Prince Thursday

Other countries moved quickly to send rescuers and supplies. But the airport is damaged and crowded with planes. The main seaport was also damaged. Blocked roads and limited communications have only further slowed aid efforts. Anger is a growing concern.

President Obama announced an immediate one hundred million dollars for relief efforts. Thousands of American troops should be in the area by Monday. An aircraft carrier and more helicopters arrived Friday, and a hospital ship is expected by the end of next week.

People have donated millions of dollars through text messages to the Red Cross and other aid groups. But the public was warned to be careful of false appeals.

Haiti is the poorest nation in the western half of the world. The former French colony in the Caribbean has a history of political violence and natural disasters. Yet before this week, there were signs of promise of better times ahead for its nine million people.

American and French rescue workers search the ruins of a hotel in Haiti's capital Friday

BAN KI-MOON: "A major humanitarian effort is now well underway. Although it is inevitably slower and more difficult than any of us would wish, we are mobilizing all resources as fast as we possibly can."

Ban Ki-moon also said he will visit Haiti "very soon."

President Obama spoke Friday by phone with Haiti's President Rene Preval, who himself lost his home in the quake.

BARACK OBAMA: "I pledged America's continued commitment to the government and the people of Haiti in the immediate effort to save lives and deliver relief and in the long-term effort to rebuild. President Préval and I agreed that it is absolutely essential that these efforts are well coordinated among the United States and the government of Haiti; with the United Nations, which continues to play a central role; and with the many international partners and aid organizations that are now on the ground."

Rajiv Shah

He is a trained medical doctor and an agricultural expert. He held top jobs at the Department of Agriculture and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Doctor Shah is the thirty-six year old son of Indian immigrants.

USAID had been without a leader for almost a year, raising concerns about its future. The agency has changed over the years -- it now does its work largely through private contractors.

The Obama administration wants to raise development to the same level of importance as defense and diplomacy. Rajiv Shah says he plans to hire more experts. USAID now provides twenty billion dollars a year to development projects around the world. The plan is to increase that to fifty billion a year by two thousand twelve.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

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Yemen is the poorest Arab nation. Poverty can help breed extremism -- al-Qaida is a growing concern for the Yemenis. But the government also faces an armed rebellion in the north and a separatist movement in the south.

Yemeni anti-terrorist forces train near Sanaa this week

Yemen also plays a part in the case of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. He is the man accused of trying to bomb an American plane with explosives in his underwear.

A Yemeni deputy prime minister said Thursday that the twenty-three year old Nigerian met last year in Yemen with Anwar al-Awlaki. The American-born Muslim clergyman is accused of supporting al-Qaida.

But the deputy prime minister said al-Qaida first recruited the young man in Britain when he was a student in London. The official also warned against foreign military intervention in Yemen, saying that could strengthen al-Qaida.

Britain is organizing an international conference later this month to discuss the security problems. And the United States is expected to nearly double its seventy million dollars in security assistance to Yemen.

Earlier this week, President Obama said no additional prisoners from Guantanamo Bay will be released to Yemen. The president wanted to close the American prison in Cuba this month. But the recent developments seem to have only made the issue more difficult.

The failed attack on the plane happened December twenty-fifth, Christmas Day. Almost three hundred people were on the flight from Amsterdam. It was preparing to land in Detroit, Michigan. Passengers and crew restrained the man and put out the fire caused by a mixture of explosives.

A drawing of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab facing charges in a federal courtroom in Detroit

On Thursday President Obama blamed the incident on what he called a "systemic failure across organizations and agencies."

"Rather than a failure to collect or share intelligence," he said, "this was a failure to connect and understand the intelligence that we already had."

He is ordering steps to improve airport security and the handling of intelligence information. But he admitted there is no perfect solution. "As we develop new screening technologies and procedures," he said, "our adversaries will seek new ways to evade them."

Last week, the Central Intelligence Agency suffered a setback in its efforts against al-Qaida. A suicide bombing at a C.I.A. base in Afghanistan killed seven Americans and a Jordanian intelligence officer. The bomber was identified as a Jordanian doctor who was supposed to be informing on the terrorist group.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

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At the end of each year, editors and news directors of the Associated Press in the United States vote for the top ten news stories of the year.

They named the American economy as the top news story of two thousand nine. The government approved more than seven hundred eighty billion dollars to help the struggling economy. Yet the unemployment rate was over ten percent. Many banks failed. And the federal deficit reached a record one point four trillion dollars.

Chief Justice John Roberts swears in Barack Obama as the 44th United States president

The battle between Republicans and Democrats over health care reform was voted the third top story of the year. Reform of the country's health care system was one of President Obama's top goals.

The American auto industry was fourth on the list. Two of the big three American automakers filed for bankruptcy after suffering sharp drops in sales.

Next on the list was the H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu. The virus affected tens of millions of people worldwide. Officials said swine flu sickened about fifty million Americans and killed ten thousand.

American troops in Afghanistan

The AP editors said the death of singer Michael Jackson in June was also among the top news stories. The fifty year old international star was just days from beginning a series of performances in London. Jackson's doctor became the subject of a police investigation after admitting he gave Jackson a powerful drug to help him sleep.

Another top story happened in November. Thirteen people were killed in a shooting at Fort Hood military base in Texas. Army psychiatrist Major Nidal Hasan is accused of the killings.

Ted Kennedy

And finally, the tenth news story of the year has been called the "Miracle on the Hudson." Pilot Chesley Sullenberger safely landed a US Airways passenger plane on New York's Hudson River after both its engines failed.

For the first time, the AP invited members of the public to name their top news stories. A separate vote was held on Facebook. More than one thousand four hundred people took part.

They chose President Obama's inauguration as the top story, followed by the economy. Eight stories appeared on both top ten lists.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. What do you think were the top news stories of two thousand nine? You can comment on our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

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Almost two hundred countries met for two weeks at a United Nations conference on climate change in Copenhagen, Denmark. In the end, only five of them reached an agreement: the United States, China, India, Brazil and South Africa.

President Obama praised the agreement last Friday. This week, he said many people are disappointed in the agreement. But he said the compromise was better than nothing.

The voluntary agreement urges major polluters to make deeper cuts in the release of greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gas emissions, such as carbon dioxide, are created in part by burning oil and coal for transportation and electricity.

Protesters gather on the last day of the meeting on climate change in Copenhagen. Many activists were dissatisfied with the agreement.

But the agreement, known as the Copenhagen Accord, is not legally binding. It fails to set detailed targets for cuts in carbon emissions. And it failed to earn the support of all the nations at the talks.

India's environment minister praised the united position taken by India, China, Brazil and South Africa. He said it permitted them to avoid the legally binding targets and international supervision proposed by developed countries.

India, for example, has promised to cut emissions by at least twenty percent from two thousand five levels by two thousand twenty. But big developing countries do not want to limit their economic growth. They say rich nations created the problem, so they should take most of the responsibility for reducing greenhouse gases.

China rejected accusations by critics that it was responsible for the results at Copenhagen. A Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said developed countries did not perform well at the talks. She said China has taken its own measures to fight climate change and supports pressing ahead with international cooperation.

China and other large developing countries have accused rich nations of failing to offer big enough cuts in their own emissions. They also say wealthy nations did not offer enough money and technology to help poor countries deal with climate change.

In Europe, politicians and environmentalists expressed deep disappointment that world leaders failed to reach a stronger agreement.

But United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says the Copenhagen Accord is only a beginning. He says he will work with world leaders to reach a legally binding treaty in the coming months.

By next month all countries are supposed to have plans for cutting emissions. And climate talks will continue in the coming year with meetings in Germany and Mexico.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

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Think of your family or friends. How well would those relationships work without trust -- or with a broken trust?

Tiger Woods considers a difficult shot from deep grass during the 2009 U.S. Open

The Associated Press just voted him "athlete of the decade." But more than half the votes arrived before his private life hit the news.

The young golfer has admitted being unfaithful to his wife and family. Public opinion of him has fallen. Some companies have removed him from their advertising. Tiger Woods is now taking what he calls "an indefinite break from professional golf."

Trust also plays into much bigger issues, like reaching a climate change agreement or reforming a health care system.

Two different researchers have recently studied the effects of trust within countries.

Pelle Ahlerup is an economics researcher at Sweden's University of Gothenburg. His research suggests that trust between people is more important in countries with a weak legal system. And in societies where there is less trust between people, the quality of the legal system plays a larger part.

He says projects designed to increase interpersonal trust can have a major effect in poor countries with undependable legal systems. Earlier research has shown that countries with greater trust between people generally do better in economic growth and other areas.

What about trust in government -- could it even affect murder rates? A historian at Ohio State University argues yes in a new book called "American Homicide."

Randolph Roth studied homicide rates over the past four hundred years in parts of the United States and western Europe. The Justice Department says rates in recent years fell to levels last seen in the middle of the nineteen sixties. Still, murder rates in the United States have generally been among the highest among Western democracies since the middle of the nineteenth century.

Professor Roth says poverty and unemployment do not lead to higher murder rates. Nor do stronger punishments and more police keep murder rates down.

He looked at murder among unrelated adults and found four things that relate to homicide rates. One is a belief that a government is stable and that the justice and legal systems are fair and effective. Another is a feeling of trust in government officials.

The third factor is a sense of pride in country and unity with other citizens. And the fourth is a belief that a person's position in society is satisfactory and that getting respect does not require violence.

When these feelings are strong, he says, murder rates are generally low. Rates are higher when people do not trust their leaders or feel protected or connected to society. But Professor Roth says even the best political leaders cannot unite a country once a society's problems get out of control.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

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Demonstrators marching Saturday from the Danish parliament in the center of Copenhagen to the site of the climate change conference

Yvo de Boer is the top climate official at the United Nations.

YVO DE BOER: "The time for formal statements is over. The time for restating well known positions is past. The time has come to reach out to each other. I urge you to build on your achievements, take up the work that has already been done and turn it into real action."

But there are questions about how much can be done, and how an agreement would be put into action.

A "Global Day of Action" was also observed in other cities, including Sydney, Australia

Delegates hope to set new targets to reduce greenhouse gases -- the pollution blamed for trapping extra heat in the atmosphere. An existing agreement, the Kyoto Protocol, ends in two thousand twelve. Many countries have offered new proposals for cuts, including the United States and China.

China is now the leading producer of greenhouse gases. But the United States and other industrialized nations were the top polluters for years. So they are under extra pressure to reduce emissions from cars, factories and other sources.

Summit delegates look at a display showing the warming of the world's oceans

But developing countries are also being urged to do more. And they, in turn, want help. They criticized a proposal for industrialized nations to pay developing countries ten billion dollars a year over three years. The World Bank says dealing with climate change will require hundreds of billions a year in public and private financing.

In New York, the United Nations secretary-general reacted to a dispute over e-mails stolen from the University of East Anglia in England. Critics say the messages show climate change scientists discussing ways to discredit other theories about global warming. But Ban Ki-Moon said Tuesday that the evidence is "quite clear" that humans are the main cause of temperatures rising faster than expected.

Modern climate records date back to eighteen fifty. The United Nations weather agency says two thousand to two thousand nine was the warmest decade on record. And it said this week that final results will likely show two thousand nine was the fifth-warmest year on record.

Current estimates show record warmth this year in large parts of southern Asia and central Africa. The agency reported that the only parts of the world with cooler than average conditions this year were the United States and Canada.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. For the latest news from Copenhagen, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

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American forces in Afghanistan have launched their first offensive since President Obama announced more troops for the war. On Friday, military officials said more than one thousand NATO troops, mostly Americans, launched the operation with Afghan forces. Troops moved in to clear Taliban insurgents and explosives from the Now Zad valley in the southern province of Helmand.

U.S. Marines near Khan Nashin, Helmand province, Friday

He called Afghanistan and Pakistan the "epicenter" of violent extremism by al-Qaida. He said the terrorist group that attacked the United States eight years ago is plotting new attacks. And he warned, "This is not just America's war."

He said the people and governments of both Afghanistan and Pakistan are endangered. The risks are even higher, he said, within a nuclear-armed Pakistan.

The thirty thousand will bring the number of American troops in Afghanistan to about one hundred thousand. Almost forty thousand other foreign troops are also there under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

On Friday, NATO announced that at least twenty-five countries will send about seven thousand additional forces next year. American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made an appeal to NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Belgium.

President Obama spent three months considering his decision. He said one of the goals is to train Afghan security forces to take responsibility for their own security. Setting a date to begin removing troops is meant to put pressure on the government of President Hamid Karzai to take responsibility.

President Obama gave his speech to future Army officers at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York

Public opinion surveys show that the war has grown increasingly unpopular with Americans. In Congress, the troop increase is unpopular with some liberal Democrats. Cost is one concern. The president estimated the cost of the new plan at about thirty billion dollars this year. Some in his party argue that the money should go instead to economic recovery.

Republicans in Congress who support the troop increase criticized the president for setting a date to start a pullout. But Defense Secretary Robert Gates said July of two thousand eleven "will be the beginning of a process" that will depend on conditions in Afghanistan.

For many Americans, finding a job and getting health care are the top concerns -- as the president recognized in his speech.

BARACK OBAMA: "This is why our troop commitment in Afghanistan cannot be open-ended, because the nation that I am most interested in building is our own."

On Friday, the Labor Department in Washington said the unemployment rate decreased by two-tenths of one percent in November to ten percent. The monthly report said the nation lost eleven thousand jobs -- far fewer than expected. It was the best report since two thousand seven.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

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Transparency International is out with its two thousand nine report on corruption around the world. The nongovernmental organization has released its Corruption Perceptions Index each year since nineteen ninety-eight.

This year the country seen as least corrupt is New Zealand. New Zealand shared first place last year with Denmark and Sweden. This year Denmark is ranked second, and Sweden shares third place with Singapore.

At the bottom of the list, ranked last for the third year, is Somalia.

An Afghan police officer searches voters during August's disputed presidential election. Afghanistan is seen as the second most corrupt country.

Transparency International, based in Berlin, works to fight corruption and increase public awareness. Its yearly report has grown to a list of one hundred eighty countries.

The group says unstable countries damaged by war and ongoing conflict continue to be those most affected by corruption. Those countries include Afghanistan and Iraq, two nations that receive billions of dollars in international aid.

Iraq moved up two places this year and is now ranked fourth from the bottom, along with Sudan. But Afghanistan fell three places to just above Somalia, meaning Afghanistan is seen as the second most corrupt country.

Transparency International says people have to pay bribes to receive basic services. A lack of government enforcement against corruption is blamed for helping the Taliban gain supporters.

The United States has approved close to forty billion dollars in aid for Afghanistan over the past eight years of war. President Obama is preparing to announce his new war plan on Tuesday. The plan is expected to include thousands of additional American troops.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai began a second term last week after an election in which widespread cheating was found. He is under increased international pressure to fight corruption.

Last week his government announced new efforts to investigate top officials. A group of current and former cabinet ministers are reportedly under investigation.

In this year's corruption report, the United States dropped one place, to nineteenth from eighteenth last year. Yet the score actually improved by two-tenths of a point. Transparency International says there are many concerns about supervision of the American financial industry.

Many of the countries at the bottom of the list are in sub-Saharan Africa. Patrick Berg is a program coordinator for Transparency International.

PATRICK BERG : "Where you find poverty, corruption usually hits people the hardest. In some of the more affluent countries, corruption may be a major problem. But it does not keep people from getting health care or clean water to their houses."

But he says some countries -- including Botswana, Mauritius and Cape Verde -- have worked hard to improve their governance. As a result, they have improved their standing on the list.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

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November eleventh, nineteen eighteen, was the day Germany signed a cease-fire agreement with the Allies in World War One. Some countries observe November eleventh as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day.

Fireworks at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall

Two days earlier, French President Nicolas Sarkozy was in Germany as thousands of people remembered a different war -- the Cold War. They celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall in a peaceful revolution.

For almost thirty years the huge wall divided Germany. It also represented the separation of western Europe from the communist east.

In the United States, November eleventh is Veterans Day. The holiday honors all those who have served in the armed forces. It has special meaning for service members like Lieutenant Colonel Dan Snowden, now serving in Afghanistan.

Dan Snowden

On Veterans Day, the president traditionally lays a wreath of flowers next to the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington. But President Obama surprised mourners by also visiting the graves of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Later, he met again with his advisers about a decision on the future of the Afghan war. His war commander has asked for an additional forty thousand troops. But officials say the American ambassador in Kabul has expressed concerns because of Afghan government corruption. The ambassador, Karl Eikenberry, is a former commander of the war. President Obama said Friday in Tokyo that "the decision will be made soon."

Veterans Day came a day after the president spoke at a memorial service at the Army base at Fort Hood, Texas. The service was for the thirteen people killed in a shooting there last week. Military officials have brought murder charges against Major Nidal Hasan, an Army psychiatrist. He was one of the Army's mental health professionals working with soldiers to deal with the effects of war.

Soldiers honor victims of the shooting at Fort Hood, Texas

Investigators say they are looking at every possible reason for the shooting. Officials say they will also investigate whether warning signs about Major Hasan's behavior were ignored.

Fort Hood is a huge base that has lost more than five hundred soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many soldiers say the best way to honor those killed in the shooting is to continue doing their duty. Sergeant Perry Osburn put it this way:

PERRY OSBURN: "We cannot let this make us afraid, you know what I'm saying? You just got to keep moving on."

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. Transcripts, podcasts and archives of our programs can be found at voaspecialenglish.com. And you can follow us on Twitter at VOA Learning English. I'm Steve Ember.

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People in Afghanistan were supposed to vote again Saturday for president. But earlier this week the Independent Election Commission declared Hamid Karzai the winner of a second term. His only remaining opponent had withdrawn. Abdullah Abdullah said he did not believe the second vote would be any more fair.

Hamid Karzai

But Abdullah Abdullah withdrew Sunday after the president rejected his demands -- including dismissal of the head of the election commission.

Western leaders called on President Karzai to improve governance and security. He told reporters that he will "continue to make every possible effort," in his words, to end government corruption.

President Obama says the proof is going to be not in words but in actions. This week was the first anniversary of his own election. And one decision weighing heavily on him is whether to send thousands more troops to Afghanistan to fight the Taliban and al-Qaida.

His top general there has warned that the eight-year effort to defeat the insurgency could fail without more troops. Sixty-eight thousand Americans and forty thousand other foreign troops are already in the war.

Critics have accused the president of taking too long. Administration officials say they expect a decision in the coming weeks.

This week, two American states, Virginia and New Jersey, elected governors. Republican Party candidates won both elections. Barack Obama won both states last year, and spent time campaigning for the Democrats in this year's races.

Some people said the results showed displeasure with his policies. Others noted that a majority of voters said they did not consider him in their decision.

Next November are the midterm elections. Democrats now control Congress and the White House. But historically the party that controls the White House suffers losses in elections halfway through a president's first term.

The economy is starting to improve. But high unemployment and issues like reform of the health care system could influence public opinion.

On Thursday, the president thanked two groups for giving their support to a health care bill in the House of Representatives. One is a doctors group, the American Medical Association. The other is AARP, representing forty million older Americans.

On Friday President Obama signed into law a bill that extends payments for the unemployed and expands a tax credit for homebuyers.

But also Friday, the government reported that the unemployment rate was ten and two-tenths percent in October. That was higher than expected, and above ten percent for the first time in twenty-six years. But job losses have been slowing.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Mario Ritter.

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This week, President Obama signed an expansion of federal law on hate crimes. Such laws provide more investigative resources or longer sentences, or both, for crimes driven by prejudice.

Until now, federal law has covered crimes based on a victim's race, color, religion or national origin. Congress first acted in nineteen sixty-eight after the murder of civil rights leader Martin Luther King.

Now, after years of effort by gay rights groups and others, the law will include sexual orientation. And it will extend protection to those victimized because of their gender or gender identity or a disability.

A 1999 protest in New York against hate crimes, on the first anniversary of Matthew Shepard's death

Democrats attached the new hate crimes legislation to a major defense bill that had to be passed. Republicans wanted to consider it separately. John Boehner, the minority leader in the House of Representatives, called it "thought crimes" legislation and "radical social policy."

James Byrd Jr.

Most of the states also have some form of laws of their own dealing with hate crimes. More than seven thousand six hundred incidents were reported nationwide in two thousand seven, the most recent year available. Seventeen percent were linked to sexual orientation.

Frederick Lawrence is a dean at George Washington University Law School. He says the United States has been somewhat of a leader in passing hate crimes legislation. Now such laws are becoming more common internationally.

They take different forms in different countries. For example, some countries ban speech that could incite hatred. Germany bans showing symbols of its Nazi past.

In the United States, free speech is protected by the Constitution. But social and religious conservatives expressed fears that they might now be accused of a hate crime if they denounced homosexuality. Professor Lawrence says the new federal law -- meant to prevent violence -- will not limit free speech rights.

On a separate issue, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton this week criticized international efforts by Islamic countries to ban anti-religious speech.

HILLARY CLINTON: "The best antidote to intolerance is not the 'Defamation of Religions' approach of banning and punishing offensive speech, but rather a combination of robust legal protections against discrimination and hate crimes, proactive government outreach to minority religious groups, and a vigorous defense of both freedom of religion and expression."

The Organization of the Islamic Conference has been urging the United Nations to approve anti-defamation measures.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. You can find transcripts and podcasts of our programs -- and share comments -- at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Bob Doughty.

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