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Italians voted overwhelmingly in four referendums to overturn key legislation passed by the government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. The prime minister had urged voters to boycott the votes on nuclear power, privatization of water utilities and a law allowing government ministers to avoid trial hearings. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports the vote is a humiliating defeat for the scandal-prone prime minister but does not automatically lead to his government's collapse.

General Motors is about to surpass Toyota in sales. That's after Toyota cut its sales projections following supply chain disruption because of this year's earthquake and tsunami. The last time GM beat Toyota worldwide was in 2008.

The field of GOP presidential contenders appeared onstage for their first major debate in New Hampshire, taking aim at President Obama, criticizing his handling of the economy and vowing to repeal his health care overhaul.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the presumed front-runner, set the tone for Monday night's debate by explaining that any of the Republican contenders present "would be a better president than President Obama."

Just how powerful is Medicare as a political weapon? So powerful that for the past two election cycles it's been a favorite cudgel for both Republicans and Democrats.

And the election of Democrat Kathy Hochul to fill a traditionally GOP seat in upstate New York in May is just the latest demonstration.

Hochul and the national Democratic party ran a campaign based on large part on the House Republican Budget passed in April that would essential privatize the government program for the elderly and disabled. And their campaign worked.

Authorities in Europe are trying to pin down the cause of a widespread and deadly outbreak of food poisoning. In the U.S., the Obama Administration is wrestling with a proposal to screen hamburger for additional varieties of deadly E.coli bacteria.