2020;2020届高考英语听力特训3（word文本）：26Virginia State authorities and agents from five federal law enforcement organizations raided the Leesburg, Virginia headquarters of independent presidential candidate, Lyndon LaRouche, this morning. NPRs Frank Browning reports. Three key members of the LaRouche organization were arrested this morning as scores of law enforcement agents swept in for a 6:45 am raid. Jeffrey and Michelle Steinberg were arrested on federal charges of credit card fraud and tax evasion. And another member of LaRouches inner circle was also charged with obstruction of justice. A federal grand jury in Boston has been investigating the LaRouche organization for several months in relation to charges that it has been involved in a variety of financial frauds of unsuspecting supporters. Ten of LaRouches followers have been charged with fraud so far. The criminal scheme, allegedly involved some 200,000 unauthorized credit card charges totaling more than $1,000,000. The Internal Revenue Service and Virginia authorities are also investigating a variety of other criminal charges. Im Frank Browning reporting.The Supreme Court began its 1986-87 term today under new Chief Justice William Rehnquist. The court agreed to decide whether government-run airports may prohibit the distribution of literature inside terminals. The Justices will also consider the right of ethnic and religious minorities to file racial discrimination suits.Japan has lowered its prime lending rate in a move designed to stimulate its economy and improve demand for US imports. The cut from 3.5% to 3% is part of a sweeping agreement reached today between the United States and Japan. In addition to cutting its prime rate, Japan has agreed to coordinate its foreign exchange policy with the USToday is the first Monday in October, and that means the opening day of the new Supreme Court term. NPRs legal affairs correspondent, Nina Totenberg was at the court this morning when the gavel went down. Nina:Well, as you know, by now, Terry, this was a rather special beginning with a new Chief Justice, William Rehnquist at the helm, and a new Justice, Antonin Scalia, in the junior Justices chair.So what was it like?Well, I gotta tell you. To someone who had never been at the court before, it may have looked quite normal. But to me, it was really quite strange. Very weird, in fact. For fifteen years, we watched this Court with Chief Justice Burger in the center of the bench. And now the whole Court has played a kind of musical chairs, with justice Rehnquist, who used to sit at the far right, moving to the center to run the Court. Chief Justice Burger is gone. Justice Sandra Day OConnor, who I used to look across the room at and used to look rather placid to me across the room, is now sitting just over my shoulder above me. Chief Justice Rehnquist seemed a tad nervous as he opened the term this morning. As far as the new Justice, Antonin Scalia, he waited only about ten minutes during the first case argued this morning before he joined in peppering the lawyers with questions. Actually he started to ask a question even earlier, but was cut off by Justice OConnor, and sort of hung back while a couple of other Justices asked questions. And then, Justice Seebans, who sits next to Justice Scalia, looked at Scalia as if to say Okay Kid, your turn now.Well, I can report to you, in general, that the Justices looked well rested and rather pleased at the look of the new Court. This mornings session was spirited with all of the Justices asking questions and a couple of them smiling rather broadly at the sight of Justice Scalia tearing into the attorneys arguing their cases.Okay. What about the upcoming term? What cases can we look forward to?Well, you know, Alexis de Tocqueville once wrote that, in the United States, almost every pressing social question eventually reaches the Supreme Court. And while last term was an unusual blockbuster of a year, this term is no slouch either.Later this month, the Court will hear what is probably the last broad based challenge to the death penalty. The Court must decide if capital punishment should be invalidated if statistics show that its imposed disproportionately more often on blacks than on whites, or more often on the killers of whites than on the killers of blacks. The decision in this case, will have an enormous impact on the more than 1,700 men and women currently on death row.Last year, the Court issued major decisions in the affirmative action area. What about this year?Well, last year, the Court ruled than affirmative action is generally acceptable in hiring, but not in lay-offs. This year, the Court will focus its attention on affirmative action in promotions and when that kind of affirmative action, if ever, is permissible. The Court will also hear a major sex discrimination case involving pregnancy. At issue is a California law that requires all employers to