News Wrap: State Department suggests Syrian war can still be ended

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• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  The attacks in Paris have also prompted political blowback here at home.

  A number of governors, almost all of them Republican, say their states will not accept refugees from Syria. And several Republicans in Congress said today they want to block plans to take in an additional 10,000 Syrians into the U.S. over the next 12 months. The White House said it's going ahead with the plan. We will focus on the political fallout from Paris after the news summary.

• GWEN IFILL:

  The State Department suggested today that, even in the aftermath of the Paris attacks, the civil war in Syria can still be ended. Diplomats at a weekend meeting in Vienna announced that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the opposition will start new talks on January 1.

  And leaders at the G20 meeting agreed today to support the new effort. In Washington, State's Mark Toner said Friday's attacks make it all the more critical to act.

• MARK TONER, State Department Spokesman:

  You know, we have got specific steps for the first time to advance a cease-fire and to put forward a political process. So, you know, there was already an urgency here, a sense of urgency. That's been redoubled. Or that's been obviously underscored by events in Paris.

• GWEN IFILL:

  The Vienna agreement focuses on moving toward an interim unity government and new elections. But the future role of Syrian President Assad remains undecided.

• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  Activists in Minneapolis are demanding that police publicly identity the officer who shot a black suspect early Sunday. Family members maintain that 24-year-old Jamar Clark was shot while handcuffed. He's now on life support. The shooting sparked protests, but police officials maintained that Clark wasn't handcuffed at the time. They also said he interfered with paramedics treating someone he had assaulted.

• GWEN IFILL:

  The Justice Department today announced a record $95 million settlement with one of the nation's largest for-profit college companies. Education Management Corporation stands accused of high-pressure recruiting to sign up students and collect their federal student aid.

  Education Secretary Arne Duncan, along with Attorney General Loretta Lynch, said the announcement follows investigations by 39 states.

• ARNE DUNCAN, Education Secretary:

  The settlement should be a very clear warning to other career colleges out there. We will not stand by when you profit illegally off of students and taxpayers. The federal government will continue to work tirelessly with state attorneys general to ensure that all colleges follow the law.

• GWEN IFILL:

  The company enrolls 100,000 students and receives 90 percent of its revenue from federal student aid.

• JUDY WOODRUFF:

  And the week on Wall Street got off to a big start, boosted by a gain in oil prices and, in turn, energy stocks. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 237 points to close at 17483. The Nasdaq climbed 56 points. And the S&P 500 added 30.