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The former House speaker says the troubled mortgage giant paid him the consultant fee in 2006 for his "advice as a historian" — and that he was not a lobbyist. Strictly speaking, that's right. But one expert says what Freddie really wanted was "political protection and cover."

For British economist Sir John Maynard Keynes, consumption — economic or otherwise — was what made the world go 'round. His ideas about how to nurture national economies, and when to intervene, are still being debated, 65 years after his death.

Workers at the world's largest gold mine, located in Indonesia's remote Papua province, have gone on strike for higher pay; several people have died in clashes with police. Critics say the mine's owner, American mining conglomerate Freeport-McMoRan, operates with impunity because of powerful friends.

With limited budget resources, the U.S. is focusing on trade and debt relief in an effort to encourage democratic and economic reforms in North Africa and the Middle East. It's also a way to tackle youth unemployment, one of the main problems that sparked the Arab uprisings.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu will face scrutiny on Capitol Hill Thursday over loans to the failed solar firm. But the government has a long history of subsidizing many kinds of energy, from coal to oil to wind. Still, different sectors disagree on whether tax deductions should be considered a subsidy.

The House Financial Services Committee voted on Wednesday to suspend nearly $13 million in bonuses paid to executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The measure would also prohibit future bonuses. The Senate is expected to take up similar legislation.

One of Japan's most venerable corporations is facing possible bankruptcy and its executives face jail time. The corporate scandal has stunned the nation. Olympus, a maker of cameras and medical equipment that is a household name in Japan, has been cooking its books and covering losses dating back to the 1990s.

Australia is the latest stop on President Obama's tour of the Pacific Rim countries that the president thinks should be the new focus of U.S. foreign policy. It is already the focus of a competition for influence with China.

Despite threatened attacks by the Taliban, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has convened a grand assembly in the capital Kabul. Among other things being discussed, is the prospect of a strategic partnership with the United States that would keep American troops in the country after the 2014 drawdown.

But with one week go to before the so-called supercommittee is supposed to announce a deficit-reduction plan, it's still far from certain that the lawmakers will reach that goal.