Morning Edition

Here's one thing President Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney could agree on during their first debate this week: Something has to be done about the enormous gap between what the federal government collects in taxes and what it spends.

But the two men fundamentally disagree on what to do about that budget deficit.

The Problem

American billionaire, casino mogul and Republican donor Sheldon Adelson has a new project: a $35 billion gambling megacity in Europe. He has chosen debt-ridden Spain as the location for "EuroVegas," which is expected to bring up to 250,000 much-needed jobs.

But many Spaniards are divided over whether they want casinos in their backyard.

Ken Rensink's path to special education teaching began when he was 19, just one day after he completed his training for the U.S. Army Reserves. He fell asleep at the wheel of his car, hit a telephone pole and nearly lost his life.

"I was paralyzed from the waist down," Ken told friend Laurel Hill-Ward, a Chico State University professor who trains special education teachers. "My left arm was so weak, I could barely hold a plastic cup of water."

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne. Canadian police say they've seized thousands of gallons of maple syrup. They found the sweet stuff in the storehouse of an exporter. The truckloads of syrup appear to be a small part of a heist that siphoned off much of the strategic reserves of a producers cooperative in Quebec. The total amount missing: about $20 million worth. Still, it's a bit of a sticky investigation, as maple syrup is near impossible to track. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright National Public Radio.