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Two dozen new state governors start their jobs this month. Robert Ehrlich will be Maryland's first Republican governor in 36 years. Like many of his fellow newcomers to state office, the former congressman is contemplating budget shortfalls and tough spending choices. NPR's Steve Inkseep reports.

Fidel Castro, now 76, is the subject of Ann Louise Bardach's new book Cuba Confidential: Love and Vengeance in Miami and Havana. She believes rapprochement is near for Cubans and the stridently anti-Castro Cuban-American community in South Florida. Bardach speaks with NPR's Steve Inskeep and NPR's Tom Gjelten.

A 32-year-old Chicago man is in custody, accused of running a child prostitution ring in five Midwestern states. Authorities say he lured girls -- many of them runaways -- with offers of free jewelry, then held them hostage and made them perform sex acts. Shirley Jahad of Chicago Public Radio reports.

For many states, after school programs have proven to be a successful way to help poor and minority kids stay out of trouble, and learn. But cuts in state budgets mean cuts in education, and these programs are first in line for reduction. NPR's Nancy Solomon reports from Newark.

NPR's Steve Inskeep has a brief rundown of other stories in the news this weekend.

News that airlines are testing the idea of selling in-flight meals to passengers sparks a fresh debate on the quality of airline food. Hear from NPR's Scott Simon and celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck.

Giuseppe Verdi's opera Il Trovatore, which premiered 150 years ago this weekend in Rome. It remains one of the most romantic and popular operas of all time. NPR's Scott Simon talks to Philadelphia Inquirer music critic David Patrick Stearns.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth seems to be trying to update the royal image by adopting a common touch. She's taken a ride on the London Underground, had a pint in a pub... and now she's wearing pants in public. After her recent knee surgery, photographers captured the queen walking out of the hospital in a gray pantsuit. She had never done that before -- apart from wearing traditional riding gear. The Times of London has devoted team coverage to resulting uproar. NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with Times lifestyle columnist Damian Barr.

The Hollywood awards season moves into high gear tonight, with the 60th annual Golden Globe Awards. More viewers have been drawn to the award show in recent years, but the organization that selects the winners is not widely known by the public. Film commentator Kevin Murphy turns the spotlight on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the U.N. nuclear agency, and chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix arrive in Baghdad for talks with Iraqi officials. They are expected to warn Iraq that it must cooperate more intensely with arms inspectors. Hear NPR's Kate Seelye and Walter Russell Mead of the Council on Foreign Relations.

For the second year in a row in Brainerd, Minn., a mysterious hole has appeared in a frozen lake. Locals and experts can't determine why a certain area of North Long Lake won't freeze over -- even though the ice around the area is 15 inches thick. Steve speaks with Marlene Hudalla, co-owner of Iven's On the Bay, a restaurant and bar located on the lake.

Steve checks in on some other stories in the news.