News Wrap: Jobs Report Fuels New Rally on Wall Street

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• HARI SREENIVASAN:

  The jobs report fueled a new rally on Wall Street. Stocks moved higher on hopes the Federal Reserve will take new action to stimulate the economy.

  The Dow Jones industrial average gained nearly 58 points to close above 11000 for the first time in five months. The Nasdaq rose 18 points to close near 2402. For the week, the Dow gained 1.6 percent; the Nasdaq rose 1.3 percent.

  The foreclosure mess got worse today. Bank of America, the nation's largest, expanded a week-old freeze on selling foreclosed homes to all 50 states. The bank is reviewing thousands of cases over concerns that employees signed legal documents without reading them.

  For the record, Bank of America is an underwriter of the "NewsHour."

  And PNC Financial Services Group halted foreclosure sales in 23 states that handle the process through courts. It's the fourth major lender to do so.

  Retired General James Jones is stepping down as national security adviser. The announcement today was the latest high-level departure in the Obama White House.

  The general's departure had been expected, and President Obama made it official this afternoon.

• U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:

  Serving as national security adviser is one of the most difficult jobs in our government. But, through it all, Jim, like the Marine he has always been, has been a dedicated public servant and a friend to me.

• HARI SREENIVASAN:

  The former commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps has served as national security chief for two years. In that position, he worked on winding down the U.S. combat mission in Iraq and on the decision to send more troops to Afghanistan. He will be replaced by his top deputy, Tom Donilon.

• BARACK OBAMA:

  He has served three presidents and been immersed in our national security for decades. Over the last two years, there's not a single critical national security issue that has not crossed Tom's desk.

• HARI SREENIVASAN:

  Donilon is shown as deeply skeptical of the troop surge in Afghanistan in Bob Woodward's new book, "Obama's Wars." It also quotes Defense Secretary Robert Gates as saying Donilon would be a disaster as national security adviser.

  But, today, Gates said he looks forward to working with Donilon.

  ROBERT GATES, U.S. secretary of defense: I have and have had a very productive and very good working relationship with Tom Donilon, contrary to what you may have read.

• BARACK OBAMA:

  My outgoing chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel.

• HARI SREENIVASAN:

  Today's news follows last week's resignation by Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to run for mayor of Chicago. Two top economic advisers, Christina Romer and Lawrence Summers, resigned earlier.

  In Northern Afghanistan today, a powerful bomb killed at least 20 people, including a provincial governor. It exploded inside a packed mosque as worshipers were attending Friday prayers. In addition to the dead, more than 35 others were wounded. And, in the south, NATO reported three of its soldiers were killed in separate attacks. That makes 19 so far in October.

  After a year-long investigation, a Senate committee says the U.S. military's reliance on 26,000 private security guards in Afghanistan is aiding the Taliban. It found that, too often, contractors unwittingly hire Afghans with ties to the Taliban. The report also said Pentagon oversight has been lacking.

  The death toll from the toxic sludge spill in Hungary rose to seven today. Cleanup crews found two more bodies as they worked in three villages that bore the brunt of the deluge. The sludge reached the Danube River yesterday, but Hungarian officials insisted today the toxins have been greatly diluted.

  JANOS SZEPVOLGYI, Hungarian Academy of Sciences (through translator): We didn't say that the red mud is not dangerous. It is dangerous material. But, in our opinion, the main danger comes from high alkalinity, from the caustic nature of the material. And the level of metals that are precipitated into the water is very low. We can say that the danger they pose is very little.

• HARI SREENIVASAN:

  On the other hand, Greenpeace reported the danger is not over. It said lab tests taken from sludge samples showed high levels of arsenic and mercury.

• ZSOLT SZEGFALVI, Greenpeace-Hungary:

  We don't understand what the authorities say that it's not dangerous, it's safe. What ore details show us, it's a dangerous material outside, and the level of such elements are really high.

• HARI SREENIVASAN:

  The Hungarian government said today the spill totaled 184 million gallons. That's nearly as large as the Gulf oil spill.

  Abbott Laboratories agreed today to take its diet pill Meridia off the market in the U.S. and Canada. The regulators sought the move after studies found increased risk of heart attack and stroke in heart patients using the drug. An estimated 100,000 Americans take Meridia.

  Earlier this week, Pfizer confirmed it recalled 190,000 bottles of its cholesterol drug Lipitor last August. It had several reports of a musty odor in some bottles.

  California finally has a state budget, 100 days after its fiscal year began. The state assembly approved a spending plan overnight, and the state Senate followed suit early today. Supporters said it would help close a $19 billion deficit. Opponents said it used rosy forecasts and accounting tricks to push back the state's day of reckoning.

  Those are some of the day's major stories.