Closed captions transcript:

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From Washington and this is video

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a news. I'm Joe Palca

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reported hearing another wave of airstrikes
pound of the Syrian rebel enclave of

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eastern goodness Saturday killing at least
24 people running creasing the civilian

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death toll over the past week to more than
500 including more than 120 children the

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Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and
witnesses said Saturday the weeklong

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bombing campaign by the Syrian government
and Russia has been so relentless the 1st

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responders have not had the chance to count
bodies the President Trump weighed in

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on the situation yesterday I will say
what Russia and what Iran and what Syria

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have done recently is

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a humanitarian disgrace I will tell you
that we're there for one reason we're there

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to get ices and get rid of ISIS and go
home. We're not there for any other reason

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and we've largely accomplished our goal
there is no immediate comment from the

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Syrian government the Turkish government
called it extremely worrying the U.S.

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Will open an embassy in Jerusalem It may
instead of by the end of next year as

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previously announced Turkey's
Foreign Ministry said Saturday in

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a statement that this
decision shows the U.S.

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Administration's insistence on damaging
the grounds for peace by trampling over

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international law the resolutions of
the United Nations Security Council on

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Jerusalem and ice president Mike Pence
told the Israeli Parliament last month the

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move would take place at the end of 2019
but the State Department said Friday the

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administration would open the embassy
in May to coincide with Israel's 70th

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anniversary President Donald
Trump announced the U.S.

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Recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital
in December angering Washington's Arab

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allies and Palestinians who want the eastern
part of the old city as their capital

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this is V.O.A.

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New. A series of suicide bombings and
militant raids in Afghanistan has killed

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dozens of people

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a day after construction work on the
much awaited Afghan section of an

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international gas pipeline was begun an
Afghan interior ministry spokesman said

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a suicide bomber on Saturday
blew himself up near

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a security post in Kabul killing at least
3 people and wounding several others the

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Islamic state terrorist group claimed it
plotted the violence in the capital city

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the United States has urged Russia and Iran
to support the Kabul government not the

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Taliban to help defeat Islamic state in
Afghanistan rejecting Moscow's claim that

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the number of Afghan ISIS terrorists
runs into the thousands U.S.

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Forces commander in Afghanistan General
John Nicholson made the remark Saturday

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while responding to recent Russian
accusations that Washington is intentionally

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downplaying the spread of bias militants
in the country the numbers that are spread

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about the numbers of Dyess fighters by
Russia as you mention visit is what is

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grossly exaggerated it is around $1500.00
the general said that the ISIS militants

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are operating in parts of the eastern
Afghan provinces of Nangarhar and Khun R.

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And maintain

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a pocket in the northern Josh one province
Nicholson said the Afghan forces backed

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by U.S.

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Counterterrorism troops and air power are
attacking all 3 locations we have cut

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their numbers in half over the last 2 years
we have killed their I mean years we've

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reduced their territory again we have

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a driven their fighters out of parts of the
country Russian Foreign Minister Sergei

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Lavrov all speaking in Moscow asserted
that thousands of ISIS terrorists are

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present in northern and eastern Afghan
regions and are being joined by militants

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fleeing Syria and Iraq 2 car bombs exploded
in the Somali capital of Mogadishu on

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Friday killing at least 30 ph people
according to government sources

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a representative of the Aman ambulance said
that bombings targeted the presidential

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palace and

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a hotel at least 30 people were. Wounded
in that most of the victims were civilians

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on her way to work one morning
down the path along the length

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U.S. President Donald Trump revived

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a campaign favorite on Friday reciting
lyrics to the 1960 song of the snake during

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his speech at the Conservative Political
Action Committee conference in National

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Harbor Maryland had been all frosted
with the do poor thing she cried.

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I'll take you in the
song tells the tale of

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a woman's good intentions
backfiring when she tries to nurse

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a snake back to health and that's what
we're doing with our country for letting

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people in and it's going to be

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a lot of trouble only getting worse but
we're giving you protected like never

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before. I'm Joe Palca V.O.A.

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In Europe. That's the latest
world news from B O A.

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From Washington V.O.A.

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Presents issues in the news. On the panel
this week Linda Feldmann Washington

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bureau chief for The Christian Science
Monitor and Tom De Frank contributing editor

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to The National Journal our moderator is
the White House correspondent for West

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Wing reports Paul Brandis Hello thank you
for joining us and here are the issues

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after another devastating school shooting
students and teachers erupt in protest

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across the country they even met with
President Trump what do they want the

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investigation into Russian meddling in the
$26000.00 presidential election rolls on

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to the Winter Olympics in South Korea are
winding down and the death of an American

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religious figure Billy Graham at the
age of $99.00 will discuss his legacy

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let's start with the all
too familiar story of

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a uniquely American tragedy
the massacre of 17 people at

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a school in the state of Florida students
and parents nationwide are protesting

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demanding action and President Trump and
other Republicans have gotten an earful in

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recent days Tom let's start with you what
is the message that the president and the

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lawmakers have been hearing when what
they've been hearing especially from these

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kids is you've got to start talking about
guns and you've got to start doing

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something about guns yes it's OK and it's
important to do what the president wants

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to do. Says they have

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a greater emphasis on mental health
because in many of these. Massacres the

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shooter has mental
problems but but the the

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overwhelming. View of the of the kids is
that guns is the guns are for the biggest

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problem of all there's there's almost not
quite but there's almost as many guns in

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the United States as there are
people and I think there are

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a lot more actually the data. Whatever
it's a it's a breathtaking lot it's

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a breathtaking number and something like
90 percent of the guns are owned by

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about 3 percent of the American public
but but I think what the kids are really

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saying get rid of these assault weapons
or have greater control on assault

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weapons you can you can vote.
You can't vote until you're 18

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but you can get

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a assault weapon. If you're under under
the age of 18 and so I think what the

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kids are saying it's not enough to say well
we've got to focus on this we've got to

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focus on that we also have to focus on guns
and that politically that's always been

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the most difficult thing for politicians
to deal with because of the power of the

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National Rifle Association you know the
National Rifle Association forswear

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globalist nerds you might know this is

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a very powerful lobbying organization
here in Washington that represents

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a basically

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a gun sellers more than gun owners it's
Morton to point that out that being said

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they have an awful lot of power Linda
they contributed millions of dollars to

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President Trump's campaign they have an
awful lot of power can anything really be

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done to satisfy what these students and
teachers and parents are asking for I would

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say in the short term no we are in

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a very very polarized political environment
in Washington the midterms are coming

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up. We started when the shooting happened
last week we had this extraordinary

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moment of of outpouring of grief and instant
activism by these teenagers we haven't

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seen this before this I think

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a lot of people were hopeful
that this could turn into

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a positive movement in there there's
going to be a March on March 24th so in

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a month we will see that impact but this
week the whole situation just melted into

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name calling and people sort of reverting
to their corners and so I think we're

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seeing

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a lot of suggestions proposals even Donald
Trump says he's willing to try certain

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things he's not himself a gun person he is

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a New York City guy in the cities guns are
seen as weapons of death and destruction

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not as something to use for hunting or for
target practice. But Donald Trump is all

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about satisfying his base which includes
very much gun owners and I have to say it

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isn't just the power of the N.R.A.

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It's the power of the idea behind what
they stand for which is the right to bear

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arms which is

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a shrine in our Constitution having said
that I think the activation of these young

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people these teenagers and young adults who
are sick and tired of seeing these mass

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shootings whether it be in a school or at

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a concert or. Just anywhere I mean it could
happen really anywhere I think we are

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seeing perhaps the birth of

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a generation of young people who are going
to grow up to become politically active

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and are not going to stop until they do
see changes in our gun laws at all that

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point when people talk about the 2nd
Amendment and the right to bear arms at the

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time that was written and codified and so
forth we had muskets which are sort of

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a gun that could fire one bullet and then
you have to kind of you know report new

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gun powder and so forth then it guns
have certainly changed since then at one

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complaint that these students and parents
have and so forth is that the laws have

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not kept up with the massive firepower
that these guns now have is that

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a legitimate point Tom and if it is how
do you overcome the opposition of that to

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that Linda was referring
to well I think it is

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a legitimate point but it's very difficult
to overcome that that opposition but I

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think it's it's very

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a legitimate point the weapon used in the
Parkland Florida shooting was an A or 15

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which is

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a commercial version of the old army in
I'm 16 which I have fired as an Army

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officer in my youth and I can just tell
you that the the lethality of the M.

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16 A AR 15 is not to be believed nobody
needs an assault weapon to go hunt deer

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it is

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a weapon no. War and the Supreme Court
has ruled more than once that there that

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reasonable controls can be put on certain
kinds of weapons even the late and many

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consider great Justice Antonin Scalia
said you can restrict to certain kinds of

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weapons now President Trump
said he's going to support

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a change in regulations that that you cannot
own one of these assault weapons like

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the A R 15 English or 21 years old and
he says I've talked to the N.R.A.

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And they're going to do the right thing
but I don't I don't think he's correct

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about that we will have to see the reason
this is so difficult is not just that

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there's a 2nd Amendment enshrining the
right to bear arms but I think it's

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a an emotional issue as well beyond that I
think the National Rifle Association is

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not a very skillful job of convincing

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a lot of their constituents that if you
do anything anything in any way no matter

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how modest to control. Guns
or the ability to get them

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you're you're going down the slippery
slope that eventually the United States

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government is going to take away your guns
they're going to confiscate guns and I

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think that is intellectually dishonest and
just not true it won't happen but that's

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this the N.R.A.

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Has made their point and they sold it very
skillfully to their to their base we've

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got to move on but quickly on
that one thing I want to get

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a quick answer from both of you
you know President Trump as

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a private citizen back in 2000 wrote in

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a book called The America we deserve I
believe is the title where he said I support

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the ban on assault weapons and yet when
he was running for president of course if

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you want to win the Republican nomination
you can't say things like that so he

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flipped deep down which is the real Donald
Trump I think that's the real Donald

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Trump I think the Donald Trump of 2000 is

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a guy who sees people being mowed
down with. Weapons and says that's

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ridiculous I think that that's what
Donald Trump really is about but he's now

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wearing this Republican label and that of
today's Republican Party which is very

00:13:38
much about not allowing any new restrictions
on guns quickly which is the real

00:13:42
Donald Trump the Lindens Donald Trump is
the real deal from OK Quite interesting

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board to come on that topic I'm sure

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a moving on the investigation into Russian
meddling in the 26000 presidential

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election continues the
Trump administration does

00:13:59
a good knowledge that the Russians did
in fact meddle in the election but it

00:14:04
continues to insist that there was no
collusion between the Trump campaign and the

00:14:10
Kremlin that's a significant
difference meantime in the last week

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a very significant development
13 Russian individuals and

00:14:19
a handful of Russian organizations 3 I
believe have been formally accused by the

00:14:24
United States by the special prosecutor
or Robert Muller of crimes concerning all

00:14:30
of this stuff bring our listeners
around the world up to speed on this

00:14:34
investigation Tom Well part of me
says that what Mr Miller did is

00:14:39
a tactical move clearly he has his prosecutors
think that the evidence is there to

00:14:45
charge these Russians in
of sencha but it's also

00:14:49
a way to say in effect
anyone who says this is all

00:14:52
a hoax look at these indictments again the
real argument is was anyone in the trunk

00:14:57
campaign and actively colluding with the
Russians to help Hillary Clinton lives and

00:15:04
that debate will be
continued for for quite

00:15:07
a long time president was told this would
be over by Thanksgiving that he was told

00:15:12
Christmas and he was told by January and I
think we're looking at weeks and months

00:15:16
of

00:15:16
a continuing investigation by Mr Maule the
special prosecutor to say Thanksgiving 2017

00:15:22
different between 20 who knows I mean there
are new. Indictments against President

00:15:27
Trump's former campaign manager Paul man
of Ford and his deputy and so indictments

00:15:34
plea bargains. All sorts of things continue
to happen on the real problem I think

00:15:40
for President Trump as it's just it's

00:15:42
a distraction and it will hang over as
president say until the report is finally

00:15:46
issued and who knows when that will be the
day you know if President Trump keeps

00:15:50
saying no collusion no collusion there's
nothing to see here why if that's the case

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why does he keep trying to undermine
this investigation if there's nothing to

00:16:02
nothing there why does he seem so desperate
for Mahler to go away why be so worried

00:16:08
about it well he doesn't he thinks they're
out to get him if he believed that it

00:16:11
was

00:16:12
a truly straightforward legitimate I guess
investigation then he should say there's

00:16:17
nothing to see here have at it I'm clean.
But he just he doesn't trust them he

00:16:24
should trust Robert Mueller I can't think
of anybody. A straighter arrow than

00:16:29
Robert Mueller and I think what we've
seen to date is an investigation that is

00:16:34
happening in complete confidentiality
I mean what's fascinating to me in

00:16:39
a city that leaks like

00:16:40
a sieve that none of these recent developments
leaked in advance so anybody who's

00:16:46
making predictions about anything with this
investigation don't pay any attention.

00:16:51
Because we don't know what Mahler's got or
what he's going to come out with there's

00:16:55
another aspect of this that goes to the
psyche and the President Trump I mean he

00:17:01
seems obsessed with the notion that somehow
his his election last November was was

00:17:08
ill gotten it was. It has been tainted there
I've heard Crump and his aides use the

00:17:15
phrase. Dealer generalizing my presidency
or his presidency the the notion that the

00:17:21
Russians helped even if there was no collusion
the notion that the Russians were up

00:17:26
to their eyeballs in trying to
get Hillary Clinton to lose so

00:17:33
is seen by President Trump as an effort
to deal as you know my eyes as presidency

00:17:37
and it would with with all respect it
drives him nuts and I think that's the

00:17:42
emotional component here and one of the
things I learned in covering Watergate as

00:17:46
a very young reporter was. A cardinal rule
of damage control is if you don't have

00:17:52
anything to hide don't behave like you do
and as Linda has said for more eloquently

00:17:56
than I time and again it looks like the
president is not something to hide Now that

00:18:01
may be grossly unfair but it's optics if
you don't have anything to hide don't

00:18:06
behave like you do it's a very important
phrase All right we're going to take

00:18:11
a short break here more
issues in the news in just

00:18:14
a moment. This program is coming to you
on The Voice of America in Washington

00:18:21
a reminder that issues in the news is
available for free download on i Tunes Just

00:18:25
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Heeling is dot com And don't forget to

00:18:30
like us on Facebook current affairs with
Carol Castillo Now back to our panel Linda

00:18:35
Feldmann Washington bureau chief for The
Christian Science Monitor and Tom De Frank

00:18:40
contributing editor to The National Journal
moderator is Paul Brandeis the White

00:18:44
House correspondent for West Wing reports.
Welcome back the Winter Olympics are

00:18:50
winding down in South Korea 2 weeks of
competition and by competition I don't

00:18:56
necessarily mean on the ski slopes or the
ice rink North Korea has participated in

00:19:02
these games at the opening ceremony the
sister of its leader Kim Jong own showed up

00:19:07
for a couple of days and now we've
learned that there was nearly

00:19:10
a meeting between her and vice president
Mike Pence that apparently fell apart at

00:19:16
the last minute Linda what happened.
That I don't know I mean the pence

00:19:23
agreed and then members of the North
Korean delegation backed out at the last

00:19:26
minute maybe they thought that
this would be bad for them I

00:19:33
don't honestly don't know maybe Tom can
offer some vice president Pence's office

00:19:38
has said that. The North Koreans thought
that they could sway Pince and they could

00:19:44
make it

00:19:45
a propaganda process their propaganda moment
but then again this is with the pince

00:19:50
version of what was in the North Korean's
mind but after parents started giving

00:19:56
interviews and was making it clear that the
United States was not going to blink on

00:20:00
sanctions or they're going to be even more
stringent sanctions against the North

00:20:06
Korean regime that the North Koreans
were just enraged and backed out 2 hours

00:20:12
before the meeting and so politically it
probably helps the administration either

00:20:17
way when they were willing ruling to to
go down the diplomatic path but to the

00:20:23
North Koreans look how shall we say so.
All petty not committed to diplomacy

00:20:30
and but I think that that's what the White
House and the vice president's office is

00:20:35
saying and by way of explanation they say
they're not necessarily committed to

00:20:39
diplomacy but they haven't invited the
South Korean president moon to come to

00:20:44
appealing gang for a meeting perhaps
they're kind of pursuing this on

00:20:48
a different track Well I'm talking about
bilateral diplomacy between the United

00:20:53
States and the North Koreans All right then
to what at this closing ceremony Ivana

00:20:59
Trump we know is going to be there
what are you hearing about who

00:21:06
anyone she might possibly interact
with well the North Koreans sent

00:21:11
a general as soon as it was announced
that he was coming but frankly I can't

00:21:16
imagine that this will amount to anything
I'm not hearing any rumblings that

00:21:21
there's going to be some
kind of meeting between

00:21:23
a North Korean general any general
any funk a trump I think this is

00:21:27
a Trump is being more so the glamorous
Emmerson emissary for for Donald Trump in

00:21:32
fact you know after Kim Jong un sister went
to the Olympics he was being called the

00:21:38
evolved to trump of North Korea so we are
responding with the actual event the

00:21:43
Trump. They've you know they've she's had

00:21:47
a meeting at the blue house with the South
Korean president you know we've just

00:21:51
gotten

00:21:51
a report from American reporters on the
scene what they had for dinner so I think

00:21:56
this is kind of a soft ending to

00:22:00
a 2 week episode that could have produced
something but I think clearly will not

00:22:05
President Trump has said that he would be
willing to meet with North Korea's Kim

00:22:10
with the caveat if the conditions were
right are we any closer to that at this

00:22:16
juncture in your view I don't think
so but I think that posture is

00:22:20
a reflection of the fact that the North and
South Korean slight melting of tension

00:22:27
. INS has has made the United States
odd man out and that the U.S.

00:22:32
Therefore has decided has to kind of
get back into this game and look look

00:22:35
reasonable look willing to talk with Tom
I agree with the Trump administration is

00:22:41
is very low I don't like the notion of
the North Koreans and the South Koreans.

00:22:48
Talking much and they especially do not
like the notion of the South Korean

00:22:51
president traveling north to militarize
to militarize zone to have meetings with

00:22:56
Kim Jong Il. They've been trying to dissuade
the South Koreans they're probably not

00:23:01
going to be successful in that endeavor but
but you're right the United States want

00:23:06
to be front and center here and they're
very they're very they're very wary of

00:23:11
South Korea's president and
his to them alleged alleged

00:23:16
a little too pacifistic attitude towards
the north supporter member when you're

00:23:21
talking about North Korea and all of that
that technically we are still at war on

00:23:27
the Korean peninsula the 1953 there
was a bruise a truce signed never

00:23:33
a peace pact so that kind of

00:23:35
a complication you think that officially
we're still at war with these bright it's

00:23:38
in our it's an armistice on the other hand
the sister of Kim Jong Il and crossed

00:23:43
the D.M.Z.

00:23:44
In the other direction to attend the
Olympics so so it's technically it is you're

00:23:50
absolutely correct Paul the 2 Koreas are
still at war technically but I don't think

00:23:57
that would be

00:23:57
a huge impediment or it finally here in the
United States of Billy Graham has died

00:24:03
at the age of $99.00 for listeners around
the world who might be unfamiliar with

00:24:09
who he was he was for decades

00:24:12
a leading Christian leader in this country
spiritual advisor counselor I think to

00:24:19
a dozen American presidents going all the
way back to Harry Truman and he leaves

00:24:24
quite

00:24:25
a legacy and Tommy. You have some interesting.
Thoughts on Billy Graham Well Graham

00:24:31
was referred to often in print as America's
pastor and it's true that he did

00:24:36
counsel a lot of presidents beginning
with Truman as you say who didn't like

00:24:40
a much but Dwight Eisenhower who liked him

00:24:42
a lot and he became indispensable I you
know even Richard Nixon in the darkest days

00:24:47
of Watergate for Nixon he asked to see
Reverend Billy Graham I also also think that

00:24:54
he had more also had an international
following because I think he was the 1st

00:24:58
pastor Evangel evangelist to to embrace
the larger stage in the sense of

00:25:03
international Crusades in Western Europe
all around the country and he would have

00:25:08
these huge huge crowds and this was before
the age of televangelism like we see it

00:25:15
today in this country where you have these
mega churches with tens of thousands of

00:25:19
people showing up and it
all goes on television as

00:25:22
a matter of fact there was once allegedly
was some counseling by Queen Elizabeth to

00:25:27
Queen Elizabeth the 2nd by by Billy Graham
at the moment when she was trying to

00:25:32
decide what to do with her uncle the
former king Edward King Edward the 8th who

00:25:38
became the Duke of Windsor because he
renounced the throne and anyone who's seen

00:25:42
the mini series The Crown there's an
almost an entire episode talking about the

00:25:48
queen's faith and her entry with not
intrigue him her fascination with with the

00:25:53
message of Billy Graham So he was quite an
accomplished international global pastor

00:25:59
I would say and Linda kind of bring this
up to kind of the modern sort of current

00:26:04
era sort of the force of even Jellicoe
Christians has really become quite

00:26:10
influential in American politics Ronald
Reagan for example had their support and

00:26:17
there's also

00:26:18
a fair number of reasons to believe that
Donald Trump might not have won the

00:26:22
presidency without their support either
absolutely I mean be. Lee Graham was

00:26:28
a unifying force in
politics he was actually

00:26:31
a registered Democrat. But that didn't
matter he he appealed to both Republicans

00:26:38
and Democrats he was annually the most
admired man in the world in the Gallup poll

00:26:43
but his part of his legacy
has so Billy Graham has

00:26:46
a very positive legacy and his passing I
think is emblematic of the passing of

00:26:53
any kind of bipartisan comedy in the
United States he gave us among his 5

00:27:00
children he gave us his son Franklin
Graham who has inherited the Empire and

00:27:06
Franklin Graham endorsed Donald Trump
and was important in establishing and

00:27:12
promoting Evangelical support for Mr
Trump who of course has a very has had

00:27:17
a very messy personal life but they put
that aside it's all the name of policy he

00:27:22
is so Franklin Graham and others in the
evangelical community have established that

00:27:29
policies are more important than character
frankly in the president surprised how

00:27:34
they could sort of

00:27:35
a split there bore ality like that and kind
of and not pay attention to things had

00:27:40
say a Democratic president done
something like that they would have had

00:27:44
a far different view absolutely but you
look at the Supreme Court we've got Neil

00:27:49
Gore such as

00:27:49
a new justice he's. Very conservative would
presumably vote against abortion rights

00:27:55
if it were to come up. I'm assuming on gun
rights as well even though that's not

00:28:00
really an evangelical issue but it's all
sort of piece of the conservative movement

00:28:04
and you know they are willing to look the
other way when when policies that are

00:28:10
dear to their heart are on the line as

00:28:13
a country overall though Tom's were the
United States is becoming more secular the

00:28:19
issue of the power of Christian evangelists
is it what it used to be and what might

00:28:26
the political implication. an to be going
forwards probably nut not is much what

00:28:30
are used to be but the point is the political
strength of the of the evangelicals

00:28:36
he's is paramount in his growing
constantly with donald trump space they or

00:28:42
a lynch pay on of the base those he strives
to protect that's 30 to 35 percent of

00:28:49
the cause of the country that show every
indication of sticking with him no matter

00:28:53
what a huge component of that base is

00:28:56
a is the her or of the evangelicals and
so it's it may add maybe it may be end

00:29:02
a client overall but i think it as
it is still extremely critical to to

00:29:09
a republicans and

00:29:11
a political sanson especially present
trop at this particular moment to surly

00:29:15
potent enough as he heads into his presumed
reelection campaign exactly right all

00:29:20
right we're going have to ended at right
there are thanks this week to tom de frank

00:29:25
contributing editor to deschanel journal
and linda felled been she's with the

00:29:29
christian science monitor this program was
produced by the voice of america current

00:29:34
affairs are engineer just inthe weights and
i'm paul brand us of west wing reports

00:29:39
thank you for listening

00:30:02
well con that to

00:30:03
a learning english from the voice
of america i'm katie we've far

00:30:10
on the show today we hear

00:30:12
a report from suzyn shand and part
of up pod cast from the american

00:30:19
academy of achievement as always we
close they shout with and american

00:30:25
story but 1st african nations
appear at the bottom of

00:30:32
transparency international's latest
corruption perceptions and dax

00:30:40
Transparency gave the East African
nation of Somalia its lowest

00:30:47
rating on the list for the
12th time in 12 years

00:30:54
transparency is

00:30:56
a non governmental anti-corruption
organization it rated

00:31:02
a total of $180.00 countries
on how corrupt their

00:31:08
governments and public services
appear to be the ratings are

00:31:15
based on findings by X.

00:31:18
Birds and public opinion
studies the index uses

00:31:25
a 100 points kayo to show
corruption levels more than 2

00:31:31
thirds of the countries received
less than 50 points with an

00:31:38
average rating of $43.00.
African nations had an

00:31:44
average rating of 32 points
no nation has ever earned

00:31:51
a perfect rating of 100 New
Zealand leads the 2017

00:31:57
index with 89 points Somalia received 9

00:32:06
Kate Milwaukee is Transparency
International's expert on Southern Africa

00:32:14
she says most African governments
are failing to deal with corruption

00:32:21
however she says there are some leaders
who have invested in systemic action

00:32:28
to change behavior walkies spoke to V.O.A.

00:32:34
From Berlin where Transparency
International has its headquarters.

00:32:42
She praised

00:32:43
a number of African countries where
corruption does not appear to be

00:32:49
a major problem they include
Botswana Seychelles cab over

00:32:56
day Rolonda and Namibia all 5 received

00:33:02
a rating of over 50 in the
latest index She also

00:33:09
noted that South Sudan is near some
Malya at the bottom of the list

00:33:17
and transparency identified rising
corruption levels in Malawi

00:33:23
Madagascar Mozambique and
Guinea Bissau how yet

00:33:30
Mo walkies suggested that things may
change because the African Union

00:33:37
and several African leaders
have made clean governance

00:33:43
a top goal the past year
will be remembered as

00:33:49
a time when several African leaders
accused of questionable activities

00:33:56
left office no fewer than 4
heads of state suspected

00:34:03
of financial crimes resigned over
the past 12 months they are Gambia

00:34:10
as yeah. And go less choose

00:34:14
a word to do send to
Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe

00:34:21
and Jacob Zuma of South Africa

00:34:26
a higher level corruption case also
affected the government of Ethiopian prime

00:34:33
minister Haile Mariyam.
He resigned this month

00:34:39
following anti-government protests.
Yet the corruption accused

00:34:46
President of the Democratic
Republic of Congo has repeatedly

00:34:52
postponed elections and
the leaders of Uganda

00:34:59
equitorial Guinea Gabb own
Congo and Cameroon have all

00:35:06
remained in power while being
suspected of wrongdoing

00:35:12
corruption investigations continue into
current and former officials across the

00:35:19
continent the new president
of South Africa Cyril

00:35:25
Ramaphosa has made fighting corruption

00:35:29
a major goal of his administration
this week he called for an

00:35:36
investigation of the behavior of
top government officials starting

00:35:43
with himself in Nigeria
President Mohammad to

00:35:50
boo Hari announced that all
national property of IRD in an anti

00:35:56
corruption campaign would be sold
he said the money from the sales

00:36:03
will go to the country's treasury
to Harry is the chairman of the A U

00:36:10
anti-corruption effort Transparency
International's Kate we walk he

00:36:17
says her group has noted and
welcomed these developments but

00:36:24
she is urging people to keep up the
pressure by shining light on suspected

00:36:30
corruption.

00:36:49
An $1830.00 law forced thousands of
American Indians from their lands in the

00:36:56
southern United States to areas
west of the Mississippi River

00:37:03
expressions of support for the
law are part of advertising for

00:37:08
a new exhibit about Native
Americans the exhibit called

00:37:15
Americans opened last month at the
National Museum of the American Indian

00:37:22
in Washington D.C.

00:37:25
It explores the use of American
Indian imagery over the years 2

00:37:31
centuries ago some people imagined

00:37:34
a country free of American Indians
others thought the removal of the

00:37:41
Indians would lead to expanded wealth from
cotton fields where millions of blacks

00:37:48
worked as slaves Cecile began Thoma

00:37:53
a CO curator of the exhibit
admits the show is provocative

00:37:59
critics have praised the exhibit they
say it pushes the national debate over

00:38:06
American Indian imagery and sports
teams named the Chiefs Braves

00:38:13
and Black Hawks Washington is home to the
National Football League's Washington

00:38:19
Redskins. The team's colorful
logo on one wall is meant to make

00:38:26
visitors fink about why
it has been described as

00:38:31
a unifying force in D.C.

00:38:34
And offensive yet some people
say the exhibit and its website

00:38:41
failed to capture the violence and
harbor of the Indian Removal Act

00:38:48
The advertising is

00:38:50
a strange way to explain an effort
that lasted many years said Ben

00:38:57
Barnes 2nd chief of the Shawnee
tribe he noted that at one

00:39:04
time one 5th of all federal
money went to the acts

00:39:10
enforcement the law led to the deaths
of thousands of people who were marched

00:39:17
from their homes without full payment
for the value of their land and it

00:39:24
affected far more tribes than the 5
described on the museum's website

00:39:31
Barnes said it made it seem like it was

00:39:36
a trivial matter that turned out
best for everyone he said I

00:39:43
cannot imagine any exhibit at the
newly established African American

00:39:49
Museum that talked about how economically
wonderful slavery was for the

00:39:55
South. Again tome said the website
doesn't cover the subject in detail

00:40:03
and neither it nor the exhibit is
meant to dismiss the experiences of

00:40:10
American Indians instead
she said it asks people to

00:40:16
recognize and explore their
relationship with American Indians

00:40:23
the exhibit has hundreds of images
of American Indians on alcohol

00:40:30
bottles

00:40:31
a bag of sugar motor oil and other
forms of product advertising

00:40:38
several videos show how the imagery is

00:40:41
a large part of American
television and film but when

00:40:48
historic or cartoonish images are
the only pictures people have

00:40:55
of what it means to be Native American
they can't imagine American Indians

00:41:02
in the modern world
said Julie Reed Reed is

00:41:07
a history professor at the
University of Tennessee and

00:41:13
a member of the Cherokee tribe
even when I'm standing in front of

00:41:19
students identified as

00:41:22
a Cherokee professor making the point
from day one that I'm still here

00:41:29
and other Cherokee people are
still here I still get mid term

00:41:35
exams that talk about the annihilation
of Indian peoples she said

00:41:43
again Toma said that while native people
have strong histories in other countries

00:41:50
the United States is more likely
to focus on images of them. The

00:41:57
exhibit expands on what is well known
to most Americans the Trail of

00:42:04
Tears Pocahontas and the
battle of Little Big Horn

00:42:11
a film on the American celebration
of Thanksgiving starts with

00:42:17
a once widely used television
screen test showing an Indian head

00:42:25
it goes on to question the importance of
Thanksgiving when the country already had

00:42:32
Independence Day Eden Sloan

00:42:35
a graduate student in museum studies
said she liked the exhibits design and

00:42:42
interactive touch tables I think
the exhibit was carried out well

00:42:49
and it definitely makes you think of
Native American imagery she said when I

00:42:56
see images like that I'll think
more about where it came from

00:43:03
Read the University of Tennessee professor
and Cherokee woman fears people will get

00:43:09
the wrong idea about the Indian
Removal Act from the website yet she

00:43:16
plans to visit the museum Reid said she
will go because it is important to be

00:43:23
fair and look at it before it is
criticized She added The exhibit may

00:43:30
be better then the website
I'm Susan Shand Next up

00:43:37
we listen to another what it
takes podcast. The subject today

00:43:44
is the famous British runner Roger
Bannister Well I've always been very

00:43:50
impatient and I frankly found life aged 10

00:43:57
in this suburb and at this school
boring. And I can remember aged

00:44:04
9 having the awful thoughts as
it seems now looking back on it

00:44:11
a war. That should liven things up

00:44:14
a bit. The 1st air raid siren

00:44:21
sounded when I was still in London and
I ran back from the park where I'd

00:44:28
been playing home hearing this side and.
Of course nothing happened for 6 months

00:44:35
with what we called the phoney war in Iraq.
But when I went to Ba'ath there were

00:44:41
some reprisal bombings and our house was
actually bombed and the roof fell in and

00:44:47
we were sitting in the basement. Under the
under the stairs of the basement and we

00:44:53
were quite safe yes but it brought home
realize ation I'm in tonight's 400

00:44:59
people were killed in this relatively
small town and so on the 3rd night I

00:45:05
persuaded my parents that we should leave
there was no RAID expected but as it

00:45:11
happened on 2 nights we went out to
Boston camp Teva night about 4 miles away

00:45:18
in

00:45:19
a wood but my discovery involved was of
the countryside I love the countryside I

00:45:26
cycled from the age of sort
of 10 to 15 all around Botham

00:45:33
some

00:45:33
a set and Cheddar Gorge and the sites
of call souls and country houses.

00:45:41
And I remember that as a time
of freedom. From perhaps

00:45:47
a bit solitary but great excitement
of discovery and exploration.

00:46:02
With my patients I think I enjoyed
running to get about more quickly

00:46:09
and I never found it any effort. Now
it's time for an American story

00:46:16
today we hear

00:46:17
a pair of silk stockings
by Kate Chopin. Here is.

00:46:25
Mrs. Found herself the unexpected.

00:46:31
$15.00 it seemed to her

00:46:35
a very large amount of money the
way it filled up perm Warren money

00:46:41
holder gave her

00:46:43
a feeling of importance that she
had not enjoyed for years the

00:46:49
question of investment was one
she considered carefully for

00:46:56
a day or 2 she walked around in

00:46:59
a dreamy state as she thought about
her choices she did not wish to

00:47:06
act quickly and do anything she
might regret during the quiet hours

00:47:13
of the night she lay
awake considering ideas

00:47:18
a dollar or 2 could be added to the
price she usually paid for her daughter

00:47:25
Janie's shoes this would
guarantee they would last

00:47:30
a great deal longer than usual. She
would buy cloth for new shirts for

00:47:37
the boys her daughter Maggie should
have another dress and still there

00:47:44
would be enough left for new
stockings 2 pairs per child what

00:47:50
time that would save her always
repairing old stockings the idea

00:47:57
of her little family looking fresh
and new once in their lives made her

00:48:04
restless with excitement. The neighbors
sometimes talked of the better

00:48:10
days that little Miss Summers had known
before she had ever thought of being Mrs

00:48:17
Somers she herself never looked
back to her younger days she had

00:48:24
no time to think about the past the needs
of the present took all her energy.

00:48:41
Mrs Summers knew the value of finding
things for sale at reduced prices

00:48:48
she could stand for hours making her way
Little by little toward the desired

00:48:55
object that was selling below cost
she could push her away if need be.

00:49:03
But that day she was tired and a
little bit weak she had eaten

00:49:09
a light meal no she thought about her day

00:49:16
between getting the children fed and the
house cleaned and preparing herself to go

00:49:22
shopping she had forgotten to eat
at all when she arrived at the

00:49:29
large department store she sat in front
of an empty counter. She was trying

00:49:36
to gather strength and
courage to push through

00:49:40
a mass of busy shoppers She
rested her hand upon the counter

00:49:47
she wore no gloves she slowly
grew aware that her hand had felt

00:49:53
something very pleasant to touch she
looked down to see that her hand

00:50:00
lay upon

00:50:01
a pile of silk stockings. A sign
nearby announced that they had been

00:50:08
reduced in price

00:50:11
a young girl who stood behind the counter
asked her if she wished to examine this

00:50:17
silky leg coverings she smiled she
had been asked to inspect diamond

00:50:24
jewelry with the aim of purchasing
it but she went on feeling the soft

00:50:31
costly. Now she used both hands
holding the stockings up to

00:50:38
see the light shine through them to
read Marx suddenly showed on her

00:50:44
pale face she looked up at the
shop girl do you think there are

00:50:51
any size eights and a half
among these there are

00:50:56
a great number of stockings
in her size Mrs Somers chose

00:51:02
a black pair and looked at
them closely at Tyler and 98

00:51:09
since she said aloud Well
I will buy this pair

00:51:16
she handed the girl

00:51:18
a $5.00 bill and waited for her change
and the wrapped box with the stockings

00:51:25
what

00:51:25
a very small box it was it seemed
lost in her worn old shopping bag

00:51:33
Mrs Somers then took the elevator which
carried her to an upper floor into the

00:51:40
ladies' rest area in an empty corner
she replaced her cotton stockings

00:51:47
for the news. For the 1st
time she seemed to be taking

00:51:53
a rest from the tiring act of thought.
She had let herself be controlled

00:52:00
by some machine like force that
directed her actions and freed her of

00:52:07
responsibility how good was the
touch of the silk on her skin

00:52:14
she felt like lying back in the soft
chair and enjoying the richness of it

00:52:21
she did. Then she put her
shoes back on and put

00:52:28
her old stockings into her bag next
she went to the shoe department

00:52:35
sat down and waited to be fitted
the young shoe salesman was

00:52:42
unable to guess about her background
he could not resolve her old

00:52:48
shoes with her beautiful
new stockings she tried on

00:52:54
a pair of new boots she held back
her skirts and turned her feet one

00:53:01
way or another way as she looked
down at the shiny pointed boots

00:53:08
her foot and ankle looked very lovely
she could not believe that they were

00:53:15
a part of herself she told the
young salesman that she wanted an

00:53:21
excellent and stylish fit she said
she did not mind paying extra

00:53:28
as long as she got what she desired
after buying the new boots

00:53:35
she went to the glove department it was

00:53:38
a long time since Mrs Somers had been
fitted with gloves when she had bought

00:53:45
a pair they were always bargains so cheap
that it would have been on reasonable to

00:53:51
have expected them to be fitted to her
hand. Now she rested her arm on the

00:53:58
counter where gloves were for
sale a young shop girl drew

00:54:03
a soft leather glove over Mrs Somers
hand she smoothed it down over the

00:54:10
wrist and buttoned it neatly
both women lost themselves for

00:54:16
a 2nd or 2 as they quietly
praised the little gloved hand.

00:54:28
There were places where
money might be spent

00:54:32
a store down the street. Mrs Summers too

00:54:39
costly magazines that she used to read
back when she had been able to enjoy other

00:54:45
pleasant things she lifted her skirts
as she crossed the street her new

00:54:52
stockings and boots and gloves had worked
wonders for her appearance they had given

00:54:58
her a feeling of satisfaction

00:55:01
a sense of belonging to the well
dressed crowds. She was very hungry

00:55:09
Another time she would have ignored the
desire for food until reaching her own home

00:55:16
but the force that was guiding her
would not permit her to act on such

00:55:21
a thought there was

00:55:22
a restaurant at the corner she had never
entered its doors she had sometimes

00:55:29
looked through the windows she had noted
the white tablecloths shining glasses and

00:55:36
waiters serving wealthy people when
she entered her appearance created no

00:55:43
surprise or concern as she had
half feared it might. She

00:55:49
seated herself at a small table

00:55:53
a waiter came at once to take
her order she ordered 6 oysters

00:56:00
a chop something sweet a glass of wine and

00:56:05
a cup of coffee while waiting to
be served she removed her gloves

00:56:11
very slowly and set them beside
her then she picked up her

00:56:18
magazine and looked through it
it was all very agreeable the

00:56:25
table cloths were even more clean and white
than they had seemed through the window

00:56:31
and the crystal drinking glasses shined
even more brightly there were ladies and

00:56:38
gentleman who did not notice her
lunching at the small tables like her.

00:56:45
A pleasing piece of music
could be heard and

00:56:48
a gentle wind was blowing through the
window. She tasted. And she read.

00:56:58
Drank the wine. Moved around
in the silk stocking. The.

00:57:07
Difference. When she was finished counting
the money out to the waiter and left an

00:57:14
extra on his tray. A Princess of royal

00:57:21
blood.

00:57:30
Money. And her next gift to
herself presented itself as

00:57:36
a theatre advertisement. When she entered
the theater the play had already

00:57:43
begun she sat between richly dressed
women who were there to spend the

00:57:50
day eating sweets and showing off
their costly clothing there were many

00:57:57
others who were there only to
watch the play it is safe to say

00:58:04
there was no one there who had the same
respect that Mrs Summers did for her

00:58:10
surroundings she gathered
in everything stage and

00:58:17
players and people in
one wide sensation she

00:58:23
laughed and cried at the
play she even talked

00:58:28
a little with the women one
woman wiped her eyes with

00:58:33
a small square of lace and passed
Mrs Somers her box of candy

00:58:40
the play was over the music
stopped the crowd flowed outside

00:58:46
it was like

00:58:47
a dream ended Mrs Somers went
to wait for the cable car.

00:58:55
A man with sharp eyes sat opposite
her. It was hard for him to

00:59:02
fully understand what he saw in
her expression in truth he saw

00:59:09
nothing unless he was

00:59:11
a magician. Then he would sense her
heartbreaking wish that the cable

00:59:18
car would never stop anywhere
but go on and on with.

00:59:28
That was

00:59:29
a pair of silk stockings by Kate
Chopin. We have come to the

00:59:36
end of today's show but we'll be
back tomorrow same time same place

00:59:44
for. Learning English I'm Katie Weaver.

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