All Things Considered

As consumers become more comfortable with tablet devices like Apple's iPad, their sales are seeing a boost. And industry analysts are expecting sales to ramp up even more as parents look to equip their kids for the upcoming school year. Michele Norris speaks with Sean Murphy, an industry analyst with the Computer Electronics Association, about tablet sales — and the role they are playing in back-to-school sales.

Yemen, the poorest of the Arab countries, has a population of 24 million. There are persistent anti-government protests. Activists say at least 30 demonstrators were killed by security forces overnight. Government forces have also launched a drive on a provincial capital, hoping to take it back from Islamist rebels. Yemen's president of 33 years, Ali Abdullah Saleh, is in Saudi Arabia, having suffered serious burns from an explosion inside his palace.

Robert Siegel talks with New York Times business columnist David Carr about News America Marketing, an arm of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp empire. Carr reports that News America is an in-store and newspaper insert marketing business that News Corp has paid more than $650 million in settlements to make corporate espionage and other allegations for the company disappear.

The Obama administration Monday threatened to veto a Republican bill that would sharply reduce federal spending, both now and in the future. The Republican-controlled House is expected to vote on the measure Tuesday. Lawmakers and the president are also wrangling over how to increase the federal debt limit, so the government can keep paying its bills. President Obama met privately Sunday with the top House Republicans John Boehner and Eric Cantor.

President Obama Monday nominated former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray to be the first director of the federal Consumer Protection Bureau. The bureau's architect is Elizabeth Warren, who was favored for the post by the left — but she's a lightening rod for the right. While the president ducked that fight with the GOP, it's far from clear that Cordray can win confirmation.