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Good afternoon, I’m Naamua Delaney at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Here’s a look at what’s happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

President Bush is talking about the US economy in suburban¹ St. Louis today. He toured a technology company that has benefited from tax breaks included in this year’s economic stimulus² package. That package also involves tax rebate³ checks which are going out to millions of Americans this month. The President says the economy should get a much needed boost when consumers spend their checks. He has acknowledged the economy is in a slowdown, but is not saying it’s a recession.

It turns out the US employers cut fewer jobs than expected last month. April’s unemployment rate dropped to 5%. That’s down a tenth of a percent from March.

A state of emergency has been declared in central Arkansas after deadly storm ripped through the state, killing⁴ at least three people early this morning. A number of homes have been damaged and thousands without power. Meanwhile, hurricane-force winds, hail and heavy rain damaged and destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses in Kansas City. The National Weather Service says at one point winds reached 18 miles an hour blowing over an 18-wheeler and toppling five empty train carts. Several people were hurt, though the exact number is unclear.

The candidates are campaigning hard as voters in North Carolina and Indiana goes to the polls Tuesday. Hillary Clinton is stumping⁵ with the new endorsement⁶ from the Indianapolis Star Newspaper. New polls suggest she’s closing the gap between her and Senator Obama. Obama is crisscrossing Indian and North Carolina. Yesterday Obama picked up an Indiana super delegate and former Bill Clinton appointee. Obama and Clinton have several more events planned today.McCain is also meeting voters in Colorado today. The presumptive Republican nominee⁷ raised eyebrows⁸ at a town hall meeting in Iowa yesterday when he said he vetoed the farm bill currently moving through the Congress. He said he opposes the bill because it contains farm subsidies⁹.

A portion of Harvard square remains¹⁰ closed to traffic because of an underground electrical fire early this morning. It burned for hours before it was extinguished. Officials say the fire may have resulted from a cable malfunction¹¹.

All those are the headlines at this hour. Stay with CNN for more on these stories and the other news of the day.