Weekend Edition Sunday on NPR & Classical Music

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LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

Cooking on hot summer days tends to be something we either do outside, or try not to do at all. But at the same time, we are in the season of wonderful food. And if you're lucky enough to live near farm stands in the country or farmers markets in the city, real tomatoes, fresh corn and new potatoes are all around. For inspiration, I get out a worn, stained paperback book written by an Englishwoman, Elizabeth David, in the 1950s. It's called "Summer Cooking."

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LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Linda Wertheimer.

Once again, taxes will be a major part of the battle for the 2012 election. Conservative ads out last week seek to savage what they call Obama's Tax Hike, a reference to letting the Bush tax cuts for wealthier families expire at the end of the year.

(SOUNDBITE OF A POLITICAL AD)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Liberals say raise taxes on the rich. But Reid's Senate passed Obama's tax hike, hurting so many small businesses.

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LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Linda Wertheimer. The race for the White House is nearly in full swing. The presumptive Republican ticket is now set. Both parties are gearing up for their respective conventions, which are coming right up. Both President Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney are waging a tough battle over the future of Medicare. In Florida yesterday, Romney's running mate, Paul Ryan, enlisted an important ally.

PAUL RYAN: I want to introduce you to my mom.

(SOUNDBITE OF CHEERING)

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LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Linda Wertheimer.

Four years ago, American voters were presented with a unique choice and elected Barack Obama the first African-American president. Now, for different reasons, the choice is again unique. This year, for the first time since the founding of the republic, there is no white, Anglo-Saxon Protestant represented on either major presidential ticket. What might that mean? Is the face of the American ruling class changing?

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We talked to voters in Virginia this week in Henrico County, a tossup county in a swing state. On state maps, Henrico County seems to be draped over north Richmond like a shawl. It's a critical region for both parties. President Barack Obama was there in mid-July. He carried Virginia last time and wants to hold on. Both Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan were in Henrico County in the last couple of weeks.

(SOUNDBITE OF CONVERSATIONS)

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On-air challenge: This week's puzzle is called "Anagram K-pers." Every answer is a familiar word starting with the letter "K." You identify the words from their anagrams. For example, K + vane will make "knave."

Last week's challenge: Name two insects. Read the names one after the other. Insert an "H" somewhere in this string of letters, and you'll complete a familiar word that is the opposite of what either of these insects is. What word is it?

Answer: Behemoth (bee, moth)

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Ari just mentioned a couple of the details the Romney campaign provided about their vice presidential selection process. There are many more twists to this real-life cloak and dagger story that have been kept under wraps for months. Ari joins us now to describe exactly how the Romney campaign maintained the secrecy of the vice presidential pick.

Ari, let's start with the day that Mitt Romney offered Paul Ryan the job. The campaign says this was August 5th. What happened?

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And now, a final check-in, alas, from the Olympics.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GOLD")

SPANDAU BALLET: (Singing) Gold. Always believe in your soul, you've got the power to know you're indispensible. Always believe in you are gold...

WERTHEIMER: Gold, and a handful of other precious metals are what the U.S. Olympic team has racked up. For more on the final tally, we're joined by NPR's Mike Pesca, who is in London. Mike, welcome.

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And now another gloomy financial message. Nouriel Roubini is a New York University professor and former economic advisor to the Clinton administration. And he has the nickname Dr. Doom. Roubini is next in our series of conversations with topnotch economists. But unlike some of his colleagues, he does not claim to have a crystal ball; he makes warnings, not predictions. Nouriel Roubini joins us from New York.

Welcome. So why do they call you Dr. Doom?