JIM LEHRER: Two new government reports today underscored uncertainty about the U.S. economy. The Commerce Department reported consumer spending was relatively weak in October. It edged up just 0.2 percent for the smallest increase since June. And construction spending fell 0.8 percent. Activity in the housing sector was down for the 20th month in a row.
Last night, Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, said the country can avoid a recession, but he also voiced concern.
BEN BERNANKE, Federal Reserve Chairman: I expect household income and spending to continue to grow, but the combination of higher gas prices, the weak housing market, tighter credit conditions, and declines in stock prices seem likely to create some headwinds for the consumer in the months ahead.
JIM LEHRER: Bernanke also hinted another interest rate cut might be coming. That gave Wall Street new grounds for hope today, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 60 points to close above 13,371. But tech stocks were down, and the Nasdaq fell seven points to close just below 2,661. For the week, the Dow gained 3 percent; the Nasdaq rose 2.5 percent.
Oil prices dropped below $90 a barrel today for the first time in a month. The price of oil for future delivery tumbled more than $2 in New York trading. It finished under $89. Oil has fallen nearly 10 percent since hitting a record high last week.
There was word today the Bush administration is trying to work out an interest rate freeze for hard-pressed homeowners. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson met Thursday with key home mortgage lenders. The industry publication American Banker reported they included Washington Mutual, Countrywide, Wells Fargo, and JPMorgan Chase. They're considering a voluntary freeze on low introductory rates to stem the tide of foreclosures.
In Venezuela today, thousands of supporters of President Hugo Chavez rallied in Caracas. They filled the streets just ahead of Sunday's referendum on constitutional changes. If it passes, Chavez could seek re-election indefinitely. Yesterday, more than 100,000 people rallied against Chavez.
Russian President Putin headed today toward a major election victory, but a key opposition figure said it would be a "farce." Garry Kasparov, the former chess champion, was released from jail yesterday. He'd been held five days for mounting street protests.
Today, he warned Sunday's voting could lead to a one-party dictatorship under Putin.
GARRY KASPAROV, Chess Champion and Russian Politician: We are going to fight and say what is very important. We are going to work out a strategy that will be aimed at dismantling Putin's regime. This is the goal. We're not talking about changing political course, not these ambiguous statements. We are aiming to dismantle Putin's regime, which is detrimental for the future interests of my country.
JIM LEHRER: Polls indicate Putin's United Russia Party could win a landslide. The Communists appear to be the only other party certain to qualify for seats in parliament.
President Putin today suspended Russia's role in a treaty limiting conventional weapons. It was retaliation for U.S. plans to build a missile defense system in Eastern Europe. As a result, Russian forces west of the Ural Mountains will no longer have to limit their arsenal of tanks, planes and other weapons. Russia will also stop allowing NATO inspections of military sites.
U.S. and Iraqi forces arrested several dozen people today linked to a top Sunni politician. That's after a car bomb was found outside the office compound of Adnan al-Dulaimi. He leads the largest Sunni bloc in parliament. The U.S. military said one of his guards had the keys to the car. Five American soldiers were injured trying to blow up the vehicle.
A U.S. soldier was killed today in a roadside bombing north of Baghdad. That made 38 American deaths in November, the same as in October. It was 126 back in May, as the troop surge escalated. Just over 700 Iraqi civilians were killed in November. That number has also fallen since May, when more than 2,100 Iraqis were killed.
The Turkish army has now been authorized to cross into northern Iraq and to attack Kurdish rebels; Prime Minister Erdogan announced that today. He said his cabinet approved the move on Wednesday. He did not say when the military operation would happen. The Turks have demanded an end to Kurdish attacks into Turkey.
Thousands of Muslim protesters marched in Sudan today. They demanded a British teacher, Gillian Gibbons, be executed for letting students name a teddy bear Mohammed. We have a report narrated by Paul Davies of Independent Television News.
PAUL DAVIES, ITV News Correspondent: For those who believe this affair has already been blown out of all proportion, a sinister new twist. Demonstrations on the streets of Khartoum, some protestors armed with machetes demanding that British teacher Gillian Gibbons faces not 15 days in prison, but a death sentence for insulting the prophet.
It was after Friday prayers that a crowd around a thousand strong marched from their mosques attacking yesterday's court verdict as too lenient.
SUDANESE CITIZEN (through translator): Two weeks? Two weeks? Street kids arrested for vagrancy get two weeks, not an infidel who insults the prophet.
PAUL DAVIES: Probably because of those scenes we're told the 54-year-old teacher has now been moved to a secret location for her own safety.
Yesterday, witnesses who saw her being led into this caged dock to hear her fate described her as distressed and confused. Her family back in Merseyside will be concerned at that, by the latest demonstrations, and by descriptions of the prison where she's expected to serve her sentence.
These pictures of Omdurman women's prison give a glimpse of life in an institution notorious for overcrowding and disease.
JIM LEHRER: A Sudanese court has ordered Gibbons be deported after serving her prison time. She could have been given a punishment of 40 lashes.
A man claiming to have a bomb took hostages today at a Clinton-for-President office in New Hampshire. It started in the early afternoon in Rochester, New Hampshire. The unidentified hostage-taker demanded to see Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. Later, he released three people, unhurt. Police sealed off the area, as the standoff continued.
Senator Clinton was in Washington at the time. She canceled a speech, and her security was increased.
President Bush urged Congress again today to double funding for AIDS prevention and treatment around the world. He made the appeal on the eve of World AIDS Day. The president asked for $30 billion over the next five years to treat 2.5 million people. We'll have more on AIDS prevention later in the program tonight.
Former General Motors Chairman Roger Smith died last night in Detroit. He had an unspecified illness. Smith led the automaker throughout the 1980s. He oversaw the introduction of front-wheel drive, midsize cars, and the Saturn brand, among other things. Smith also presided over closing several plants and laying off 30,000 workers in Flint, Michigan. Roger Smith was 82 years old.
