This Week in News Episode 17 Friday, June 15, 2012

Stephen This is This Week in News, episode 17, for Friday, June 15, This is the final episode of the year! Coming up: a tough week for Obama – we explain how last week could very well be the worst week ever for the Obama campaign. We’ll also cover the SpaceX Falcon – the first privately-owned rocket to be sent to the international space station. Finally, we will talk about the new One World Trade Center rising to the top of New York City. All of that, coming up next.

Michael Good afternoon and welcome to the final episode of This Week in News for this season. We start off the news today with politics. Last week was probably the worst week ever for the Obama campaign. First we had new unemployment numbers for the month of May, then we had a Republican victory in the Wisconsin recall elections, and finally a gaffe during an Obama press conference.

First, the economy. The May unemployment rate was released early last week. Going up to 8.2 percent with only 61,000 jobs created, it is grim news for a president who was about to make it a campaign talking point that the unemployment rate has steadily decreased since the start of the year.

Beck On the heels of the new economy report, the Obama campaign received another blow. The fierce recall election held in Wisconsin was the talk of the nation last week. Seeking to oust the current governor of Wisconsin, Democrats in Wisconsin signed a petition to perform a very rare political act: to recall a governor. An 18- month battle ensued, with millions spent on both sides. Scott Walker, the governor of Wisconsin, finally came in on top, defeating his chBeckger, Tom Barrett.

Michael Finally last week, on Friday, at a press conference, President Obama had a big “oops” moment: Obama’s chief Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, was quick to pounce on this remark. With Obama back on the defensive and trying to explain himself, and with his press spokespeople going on the Sunday talk shows downplaying his remark, this is another costly mistake for the Obama campaign.

Beck Moving on to other news, and the SpaceX Falcon. Early on May 22, SpaceX sent the privately-owned, towering white rocket Falcon on a mission to the international space station. The Falcon was carrying the unmanned Dragon capsule and at 3:44 EDT was launched from Cape Canaveral, Fla., marking the first time a private company has sent a spacecraft to the space station.

Michael Thank you, Beck. A decade after the original September 11, 2001 attacks on the Twin Towers in New York, the new One World Trade Center reclaimed its place as the tallest building in New York on Monday, surpassing the Empire State Building by 21 feet on April 30 when its first steel column on the roof of the 100th floor was raised and the fastenings were made firm.

The new One WTC will not reach its final height for several months, but now the building can officially claim to be the tallest building in New York. It definitely fills some empty space in the sky that has been missing ever since And it is a sign that America can recover from attack and start over again.

Beck This week’s Loopy Law of the Week is: In Louisiana, you could be imprisoned for up to 10 years for stealing an alligator. Also, in Richmond, Virginia, it is illegal to flip a coin in any eating establishment to determine who buys a cup of coffee.

Michael Thank you, Beck. That wraps it up for this week’s episode of TWiN, and the last episode of Season 2. Be sure to check out our website at Asdaqua.com, subscribe to us on YouTube, and download our podcast. Thank you for listening to This Week in News. I’m Michael, and we’ll see you in the fall!