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The Senate Judiciary Committee votes along party lines to endorse Miguel Estrada for a federal circuit court post. He's the first judicial nominee sent to the full Senate under Republican management. Democrats say Estrada's record doesn't merit a lifetime appointment and hint at a filibuster to defeat him. NPR's David Welna reports.

Born James Todd Smith, LL Cool J was fascinated with rhyme and rap in high school, an obsession that made him Def Jam Records' first recording artist at age 15. The two-time Grammy winner also has launched a clothing line and acted in films. (This interview originally aired Sept. 25, 1997.)

A living legend, Tom Verlaine is known for his work as lead singer and guitarist for the '70s art-punk band Television, as well as his fruitful solo career. His lyrically innovative guitar lines and song structures, along with his oft-cryptic lyrics, have earned him a place in the rock-guitar canon.

In Sri Lanka, government forces say they've won crucial victories, allowing them to cut off the rebel Tamil Tigers' supply line and secure terrain used to shell a naval base. But for 40,000 Tamil refugees displaced by civil war and a tsunami, the question is when — and how — they'll be able to return home.

As the war moves into Baghdad, anxiety grows among the parents of those on the front lines -- as does their hunger for information. Because legal and other constraints often prevent the parents of U.S. Marines from getting information from the military, they're turning to an unofficial Web site called MarineMoms.us. NPR's Wendy Kaufman reports.

Britain's experimental rock group Gomez is known for blurring lines between musical forms and genres, creating an entirely original sound nearly impossible to pin down to any one style. The band visited Washington, D.C. for a full concert June 22, webcast live on NPR.org with jazz trio The Bad Plus.

The Philadelphia band Dr. Dog makes the sound of tomorrow's classic rock today. The group's latest album evokes the past while still sounding new, and features crafty guitar lines alongside Dr. Dog's signature piano sound. Hear Shame, Shame in its entirety a week prior to its release on April 6.

Violence mars the beginning of the World Trade Organization talks in Cancun, Mexico, Wednesday when a Korean protester stabs himself in the heart, dying moments later. The otherwise peaceful protests have brought together an array of people lined up against the WTO, from farmers to anarchists to animal rights activists. Hear NPR's Gerry Hadden.

Benevento strips "You Know I'm No Good" of its memorable trappings (brassy voice, bold horns) and gives it a jazz piano treatment. At the outset, Benevento keeps the listener waiting, pumping the piano with a vamp that says, "Something is going to happen... but not yet." Then, out of the blue, comes the familiar Winehouse-ian melody line.

On March 26 and 27, the Ultra Music Festival closes out Miami's weeklong Winter Music Conference for electronic and dance music. The sounds coming from the stages at the annual festival are becoming increasingly diverse. Though the event's roots are in house, trance and techno, the 2010 line-up mirrors dance music's recent tendency to mix genres.

The national narrative about Barack Obama's rise to the presidency often takes root in Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy. But one author says not enough attention is being paid to the other main line of succession in African-American leadership — the one that stems from Malcolm X, Stokely Carmichael and the black power movement.

After six years, author Walter Mosley breathes life back into his detective hero Easy Rawlins — thought dead after crashing his car off a cliff. Easy embarks on another case, but as the lines blur between death and dying, he may discover answers to questions he hadn't thought to ask.

NPR's Kelly McEvers speaks with Robin deJarnette, a poll worker in Culpeper County, Va., who has over a decade of experience. She's at a precinct located at St. Luke's Lutheran Church. She talks about what's happening there and what the lines are like, how this compares to past years, and whether voters seem excited or agitated.

As companies have moved away from traditional pension plans, they've been shifting employees to 401(k)s that transfer the cost — and the risk — to workers. Companies have claimed for years that old-style pensions were unsustainable. But author Ellen Schultz says the shift has helped firms boost their bottom lines.

Some critics claim that Lester Young never sounded the same after his stint in the military in the '40s, but The Complete Aladdin Recordings proves otherwise. This classic two-album set showcases Young's unique ability to float over bar lines with a light tone, rather than the forceful approach that was dominant during his time.

The Battlefield Where The Moon Says I Love You may be more than 15,000 lines of almost entirely unpunctuated poetry, but author Steve Stern says this Southern gothic fun house is so bewitching you'll have to finish it. Do you have a favorite impossible book? Tell us in the comments.

High oil and gas prices are emerging as a big issue in the 2012 presidential campaign. Oil market analysts say recent price hikes have more to do with turmoil in the Middle East than with administration policies. Still, potential Republican candidates are trying to draw a direct line between high gas prices and President Obama.

High oil and gas prices are emerging as a big issue in the 2012 presidential campaign. Oil market analysts say recent price hikes have more to do with turmoil in the Middle East than with administration policies. Still, potential Republican candidates are trying to draw a direct line between high gas prices and President Obama.

After determining that the Syrian government has crossed a red line by using chemical weapons, the White House has agreed to start sending military aid to the rebels. Some analysts think it may be too late to tip the balance in Syria, where Assad's forces backed by Hezbollah, Iran and Russia have been gaining ground.

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld again dismisses talk that his time is short as the top civilian at the Pentagon. The Washington rumor mill has put Rumsfeld's job on the line in the past -- and been wrong. Renee Montagne talks to John Hendren about Rumsfeld's status, and the status of the initiatives he brought with him to the Pentagon five years ago.