Newscast for Friday, July 31, 2009

Taxpayers fund lavish executive compensation packages
Wall Street financial firms have been paying huge bonuses to their top executives while accepting taxpayer-funded bailouts. The exact figures were a matter of speculation until now. A new report from the New York Attorney General shows just how much of that bailout money was going into bankers' pockets. Meanwhile, Congress continues to look for ways to get executive pay under control. Tanya Snyder reports.

California coalition urges cuts to state prison system to ease budget crunch
As states struggle to deal with the recession, many have turned to cutting money from law enforcement and state penitentiary budgets.  California has the largest prison population in the US and the budget signed this week cut a billion dollars from the state’s prison system. Prison reform advocates say the correctional budget cut doesn't go far enough.  Africa Jones reports.

Bomb attacks in Spain as Basque separatist group ETA marks 50th anniversary
The Basque separatist group ETA marked it´s 50th anniversary today, as Spain held an official ceremony for two civil guards killed yesterday by a car bomb. ETA has not claimed responsibility, but the Spanish government blames the armed separatists for the attack.
While many Basques advocate for greater autonomy from Spain's central government, not all support total independence. To learn more about this conflict, FSRN spoke to Andre Lecours, a professor of Basque history and politics at Canada´s Concordia University. Lecours is the author of Basque Nationalism and the Spanish State.

Honduran police crack down on anti-coup demonstrations
The political crisis in Honduras continues, more than a month after a military-backed coup. The de-facto government has issued orders for police to disperse any and all demonstrations that block public roads. Police actions to break up protests have led to dozens of injuries and over a hundred detentions. Tim Russo has more from Tegucigalpa.