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NPR's Don Gonyea reports on President-elect George W. Bush, who today resigned from the only political office he has ever held -- governor of Texas. The emotional speech by Bush ended 6 years at the helm in Austin and comes less than a month before he is to move to his new home at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Meanwhile, jockeying continues to go on behind the scenes for filling the remaining Cabinet slots.

In an effort to address an estimated $500-million budget deficit, the state of Connecticut lays off 6 percent of its workforce. Gov. John Rowland warns more state workers could lose their jobs if unions fail to agree to concessions in the coming months. Caitlyn Kim reports.

NPR's Peter Overby reports on today's budget surplus forecast by the Congressional Budget Office. The CBO is projecting a surplus of more than three-trillion dollars over the next decade -- or 5.6-trillion if you count the Social Security surplus. Republicans say that means there's plenty of room for a big tax cut. Democrats argue that the projections of a huge surplus may be overly optimistic in the long term. They are supporting smaller tax cuts.

Film Festivals abound in Park City, Utah this week, home of the Sundance Festival and its upstart rival Slamdance, as well as several others. Frank Stasio talks with Peter Baxter, Slamdance executive director and co-founder, about his alterna-festival's roots and commitment to independent film. (NOTE: for more info, please visit the Slamdance website: http://www.slamdance.com/2001/ (6:00).

WAMC's Dr. Alan Chartock discusses a federal judge's rejection of former President Donald Trump’s effort to block January 6 investigators from accessing White House records related to his attempt to overturn the 2020 election and more.

Melissa Block talks with John Reeves, self-described freeform industrial ice artist. Reeves is the artistic genius behind a 160-foot tall ice sculpture outside of Fairbanks, Alaska. Using strategically placed sprinklers, Reeves estimates that he flows about 6,000 gallons of water onto the sculpture every hour.

Germany unveils a memorial in central Berlin to the 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust. Politicians, Jewish leaders and Holocaust survivors were on hand for the solemn ceremony to inaugurate the monument designed by American architect Peter Eisenman. The opening ends 17 years of debate over how Germany should mark the darkest chapter of its past.

More than 6,000 police departments around the country now use tasers, the electronic stun guns that have been hailed as an alternative to lethal force. But Taser International, which makes the weapons, is facing questions about the safety of its products, and the accuracy of its sales reports. NPR's Laura Sullivan reports.

Wynton Marsalis has been playing the trumpet since he was 6, and won his first Grammy at 20 and has 9 total. He's also the first jazz musician to win the Pulitzer Prize. His latest album is The Magic Hour. (This Interview first aired Dec. 7, 1994.)

WAMC's Dr. Alan Chartock reflects on the importance of Independence Day following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and multiple hearings by the January 6 Committee. Chartock also comments on reports that Russian forces have captured the last Ukrainian-held city in the eastern province of Luhansk.