[00:00.00]Detroit declared bankruptcy today, the largest American city ever to do so. 
[00:05.58]The city's state-appointed emergency manager made the filing with a federal judge. 
[00:10.06]It would let him liquidate assets in a bid to pay off creditors and city pensioners.
[00:15.54]Those parties have rejected a fiscal restructuring plan that would have paid them pennies on the dollar.
[00:21.46]A new bipartisan has deal has been struck that surfaced in the Senate on student loans. 
[00:26.33]It's the latest attempt to rescind a doubling of interest rates on federally subsidized Stafford loans. 
[00:33.21]The compromise would tie rates to financial markets, as Republicans wanted.
[00:37.37]For now, the rates for undergraduate loans would fall back below 4 percent.
[00:42.04]Maine independent Angus King praised the agreement today.
[00:45.48]People signing up for loans in the next month for college this year are going to pay about half of 
[00:55.76]what they would have paid if the law had stayed as it was. 
[00:59.24]We were able to come together, talk to each other, listen to each other, 
[01:02.60]and find not only a compromise solution, but a good compromise solution.
[01:08.51]The rates could rise over time. 
[01:10.69]Undergraduate rates would be capped at 8.25 percent, something Democrats demanded. 
[01:16.05]The bipartisan deal is expected to reach the Senate floor in the coming days. 
[01:19.85]The House already has passed student loan legislation that also ties loan rates to the markets.
[01:25.71]The Senate confirmed two more members of President Obama's second-term Cabinet today. 
[01:30.75]A party-line vote cleared Thomas Perez to be the new secretary of labor. 
[01:35.41]He's currently head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
[01:38.96]Later, Gina McCarthy won confirmation as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. 
[01:44.74]The votes followed this week's agreement between Democrats and Republicans to end delays on nominees for top administration posts.
[01:52.54]In Jordan, Secretary of State John Kerry heard the sharp criticism of angry Syrian refugees 
[01:58.01]who demanded stronger action against the Syrian regime. 
[02:02.05]Kerry sat down with six refugees living in the Zaatari camp, where 115,000 Syrians have taken shelter. 
[02:09.52]They insisted the U.S. and the international community establish a no-fly zone and safe havens inside Syria. 
[02:17.48]The meeting lasted 40 minutes, and Kerry said he promised to relay the complaints to Washington.
[02:22.15]I think they are frustrated and angry at the world for not stepping in and helping. 
[02:29.74]I think there are -- and I explained to them I don't think it's as cut-and-dry and as simple as some of them look at it. 
[02:37.72]But if I were in their shoes, I would be looking for help from wherever I could find it.
[02:41.33]In Washington today, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army General Martin Dempsey, 
[02:46.19]said he's laid out options for President Obama on using U.S. military power in Syria. 
[02:51.98]Republican Senator John McCain pressed Dempsey to say what he would do, but the general declined.
[02:58.03]The decision to use force is the decision of our elected officials.
[03:03.08]You know, I just ask the -- Chairman, just ask you if you would give your personal opinion to the committee if asked. 
[03:11.36]You said yes. I'm asking for your opinion.
[03:14.78]About the use of kinetic strikes? 
[03:17.51]That issue is under deliberation inside of the -- our agencies in government, 
[03:22.18]and it would be inappropriate for me to try to influence the decision, 
[03:25.41]with me rendering an opinion in public about what kind of force we should use.
[03:31.59]Afterward, McCain said Dempsey must share his recommendations with the committee 
[03:36.29]and he will block Dempsey's nomination for a second term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs until he gets an answer.
[03:42.44]A military judge refused today to dismiss a charge of aiding the enemy against Army Private 1st Class Bradley Manning. 
[03:49.91]It's the most serious of 21 charges in Manning's court-martial for leaking of reams of classified documents to WikiLeaks.
[03:57.50]If he's found guilty on that count, Manning could serve life in prison without parole.
[04:02.26]A Southern California wildfire still is growing, after forcing 6,000 people from their homes. 
[04:08.17]The fire has burned across 35 square miles southeast of Los Angeles. 
[04:12.77]Residents from the town of Idyllwild packed up yesterday, as the blaze threatened more than 4,100 homes, cabins and hotels. 
[04:21.25]By today, it was only 15 percent contained.
[04:23.99]The U.S. credit rating got a boost today. Moody's investors service upgraded the outlook for federal debt from negative to stable. 
[04:31.08]It cited data showing the government is on track to record its lowest deficit in five years. 
[04:43.22]On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 78 points to close at 15,548. The Nasdaq rose one point to close at 3,611.
[04:45.28]Those are some of the day's major stories.