Farmers along the length of the Mississippi River and near the complex network of levees and spillways are suffering heavy losses this year. The financial and economic burden on agriculture is yet untold, and a timeline for recovery is, in some cases, undetermined. Host Liane Hansen talks with farmer Greg Gabrielson, who has recovered from flood losses before, about how he managed to turn things around.

Sen. Tom Coburn's exit from the so-called "Gang of Six" last week was just another moment of failure for such unofficial Senate groups. Host Liane Hansen talks with Ross Baker, professor of political science at Rutgers University, about why Senate "gangs" haven't had much success at bridging partisan gaps.

As the Louisiana levee system keeps New Orleans and Baton Rouge dry, some cities are preparing to get wet. Water spilling out of the Mississippi River and into the Atchafalaya Basin is starting to rise in more populated areas to the south. With a high-water mark not coming until next week, residents have had plenty of time to prepare. Almost too much time. Blake Farmer of member station WPLN reports.

This week in Washington, policymakers will still be wrestling with the domestic economy and the twin burdens of the federal deficit and debt. Host Liane Hansen talks with NPR's Senior Washington Editor Ron Elving about the issue that's driving the debate in Washington and vexing politicians of both parties: the massive federal budget deficit.

President Barack Obama will address the annual gathering of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on Sunday. AIPAC is the country's largest pro-Israel lobby, and Obama's remarks come just days after he sought to lay out a vision for a new Middle East. Host Liane Hansen speaks with former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk, who now serves as vice president and director of foreign policy at The Brookings Institute.

Musicians Local 802 is protesting the Broadway show Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert for its use of fewer musicians than the minimum required. The show is the first musical in Broadway history to use a prerecorded soundtrack that a small group of musicians accompany. NPR's Jeff Lunden reports.

Chrysler is going to repay about $7.5 billion in U.S. and Canadian government loans this Tuesday. With the repayment of those loans, Chrysler's image is starting to shine again. Those Eminem commercials apparently helped. NPR's Sonari Glinton reports.

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels announced early Sunday that he will not be going after the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.

The Associated Press reports that in an e-mail sent to supporters just after midnight, Daniels said that as he debated whether to run or not, "I was able to resolve every competing consideration but one. The interests and wishes of my family, is the most important consideration of all. If I have disappointed you, I will always be sorry."

The Cannes Film Festival has always screened the avante-garde, and this year there was a particularly quirky entry from Colombia. It's a film about a man, paralyzed after being shot by police, who grows so desperate for state compensation that he hijacks an airliner with two grenades hidden in his diaper.

What may be even stranger is that it's a true story — and in the film, the hijacker plays himself.

'I'm Going To Show The Government'

If there wasn't a spot for you at the cool table in the cafeteria, fear not: In her new book, The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth, Alexandra Robbins argues that the teen losers of today are the adult success stories of tomorrow.

Robbins wasn't an outcast in high school, but she wasn't a popular kid either. "I was what's known as a floater," she tells NPR's Liane Hansen. "I could sit at the edge of most cafeteria tables, but was never a part of any one group. I was also a dork. And still am. And proud!"