christian wulff has said no. how do you read that?, i think there is a real conflict about the facts here. the president said in the interview that he had asked, his voice mail, for the paper, the tabloid newspaper, the bild, to delay a report that it was going to publish on his loans for the purchase of a private home. questions had been raised about whether those loans possibly subjected him to undue influence by the businessman who loaned the money. and he says that he only asked for a delay in this report that was going to be published. the papers is that is not true. they say he was trying to stop their coverage of this loan. as i say, that is a dispute about the facts, and the paper has said it, in the interest of the transparency that the president has claimed is essential, would like to publish the transcript. he has now said no. he possibly may be looking at taking legal action. it is unclear whether he would be successful in that. of course, this is all about the role of the press and about the president's respect for freedo

in germany, president christian wulff remain silent, despite calls -- claims that he allegedly tried to muzzle the press. 2012 presidential campaign for republicans. the german president is remaining silent, despite a barrage of calls on him to explain why he tried to suppress a newspaper story in december. his fitness for office, but have held back from demanding his resignation. the president is embroiled in scandal, stemming from a controversial loan he received. here is our report. >> the opposition takes an increasingly sharp recount in its criticism of president christian wulff. social democrats say he can no longer exercise his duties in partially. >> a president who threatens journalists in order to stop a critical report from coming out is acting in an absolutely unacceptable manner, and the chancellor can no longer look on and remain silent. >> before christmas, the opposition appeared to accept wulff's apology for covering up a loan he received from a friend, but now it is alleged he left a phone message to the editor of a newspaper, asking him to suppress a story. this ha

wulff says no. chancellor merkel is backing the president. >> what will happen -- and the chancellor has complete faith it will -- is the chance of -- the president will respond to complete questions, should they are, just as openly. at the same time,e are at the start of 2012. there is also a return to the official business of office. >> but whether christian wulff will be able to shake off the scandal and return to business as usual remains to be seen. >> the drama surrounding the president is not the only thing giving angela merkel a headache right now. her junior coalition partners, the fdp, are struggling to stay afloat. they were hoping to o righthe ship at the start of your confererence in stuttgard, when more trouble hit. the conservative leader in a tiny western state announced that she was booed in the fdp out of her coalition, saying it was in too much disarray to be part of her government. it added to a nightmare for the party's national leader. many are now asking whether he has what it

it says christian wulff might have used miles earned on official business to of great personal flight in 2007. both lawyers -- wulff's lawyer initially denied the claim but later said the miles in question were from his private account. the state government has had little to add so far. >> he had a private frequent- flier account and an official account. that is all th information i have at present. >> the state chancellery in hanover where wulff used to be state premier said he is 150,000 miles from his private account for a business class upgrade. the opposition says wulff must make a decision. >> can this discussion be reconciled with the dignity of his office? he has like we missed the best time to step down. >> on wednesday, the opposition in lower saxony's state parliament will be demanding answers to over 100 questions regarding the former state premier's controversial private loan. >> art curators have put together a retrospective of a -- that they hope will help revive interest in a female artist the revive the women's liberation movement here is expressed in her works for qu

the newspaper says wulff later apologized. wulff became the president with the strong endorsement of chancellor angela merkel. the scandal could be a major blow to merkel, who is trying to deal with the euro zone credit crisis and gain cooperation from opposition parties. >>> time to check on some of the stories we've gathered from broadcasters around asia. we begin with this item sent by mkot thailand. the thai government has authorized $57 million to restore about 3,000 buddhist temples damaged in the massive flooding last year. a senior government official said in bangkok on tuesday that the floods affected about 37,000 buddhist monks and novices. he added the majority of the funds will be used to restore a 400-hectare buddhist park near bangkok. measures will also be taken to prevent further flooding. the country's buddhist community is also donating funds to restore the damaged temples. >>> a new identification card has been introduced in malaysia. the card uses the latest laser technologies and security features and is a

but the media did not let the guests forget the wulff scandal . there were asked how the scandal affected their feelings for the president. >> it has already been damaged. he has had to face up to statements. >> the president should continue just as he has been doing. >> wulff seems to want to do just that, and chancellor martell -- merkel's presence in the case she thinks he should do just that. members of the anti-corruption group, transparency international, were conspicuous by their absence. >> stay with us. we will be going to slovenia and portugal to visit our two capitals of culture in europe. do not go away. >> welcome back. thank you for staying with us. every year, the european union names the city as its cultural capital. the aim is to showcase the rich local heritage. this year, but cities have been chosen. the city of guimaraes in portugal shares the honor with the slovenian city of maribor. let's go first to maribor. a writer takes us around the city. >> like an embrace, then you're- covered -- vineyard covered hills. on the streets,

. >> german president wulff 6 to silence his critics with the new television appearance. he admitted he had made mistakes particularly with regard to stop a tabloid from publishing a story on dubious loans he received. many germans are wondering whether the answers he has presided are enough. >> he was a celebrity when he has appeared for his interview. for days he stayed silent on allegations he pressured a newspaper editor and other influential figures. now he has gone on camera and given an explanation of his conduct. he says the whole thing should not have happened to him. >> : the editor of the newspaper was a grave mistake and i apologize. i also apologize personally, and that was accepted. >> he said he felt victimized because private details of this house purchase were being investigated. but over christmas, he realized he had to explain himself. >> i have to revise my relationship to the media, integrated more strongly as a means of communication. the media has an important job in a democracy. >> wulff says there's nothing in the accusations against him, concerni

abbas was locked on to berlin by president christian wulff.e's due for talks with chancellor merkel on thursday. he is looking for international support to stop israel from building settlements in the west bank. that is the main palestinian condition for the resumption of full peace talks. meanwhile, lawyers for christian wulff said it will publish the catalog of answers to journalist questions of the president's personal loan scandal. some 240-pages of answers will be uploaded on the internet. the president has been under fire over a private home loan and vacation stays at the homes of wealthy business friends. he promised full disclosure in a television interview last month, but until now, his lawyers have blocked the move. the berlin fashion week has kicked off, and alongside the traditional mainstay in fashion, a lot of petition will be played to green where an ethical levels. it is a trend that more and more designers are falling. includes a sequim material, applying fair labor practices, and using traditional made by hand techniques. we

. >> yes, new developments surrounding the affairs surrounding german president christian wulff.n thursday, police in lower saxony raided the home of his former top aide. olaf glaeseker resigned as the spokesmen in december without giving any reason. state prosecutors say they are investigating bribery allegations against olaf glaeseker, who took vacation paid for by a wealthy businessman. president christian wulff faces similar accusations of improperly benefiting from public office. to the united states now, and there have been two major twist to the republican presidential contest. texas governor rick perry pulled out of the race for the white house and endorsed newt gingrich as the best candidate to challenge president obama. the other surprise came as republican leaders said gop front runner mitt romney did not win the iowa caucuses after all. after a recount, former pennsylvania governor rick santorum was named the official winner. wikipedia is back up and running to the website had shut down for 24 hours to protest a u.s. bill and at stopping copyright infringement. wikipe

. >> christian wulff attempted to explain the loan in a speech before christmas. in the same speech, he praised freedom of the press. christian wulff and his lawyers say he has been transparent and the principal -- and the president and principal makes no disclosures of bows phone conversations. >> we ask why there was no confirmation the german president was trying to muzzle the press. >> certainly the president's office is not confirming it. they are only saying he is committed to freedom of the press. but we have seen partial confirmation from the tabloid newspaper that is involved. the editor in chief of the paper did indeed receive a phone call message from the president's. the president was not able to reach the editor in chief, so he left a message, saying he was angry that the paper was proceeding with stories about a questionable loan that had been made to them by a private businessman. the paper is not revealing details of that phone message, but we are hearing from other media here in germany that the president threatened war with the paper and said he

"the daily" says that wulff later apologized.ecame president with the strong endorsement of chancellor angela merkel. the scandal could be a major blow to merkel. she's trying to deal with the european debt crisis and gain cooperation from opposition parties. >>> most professional athletes retire by the time they reach 30, so it's unusual to find one who's still at it at age 40. we picked such an ageless wonder to start a three-day series on people and events we expect to stand out in 2012. she's still going strong on the pro tennis circuit at age 41. we asked how she stays in the game. >> hello. you must be kimiko. nice to meet you. >> nice to meet you. [ speaking native language ] [ applause ] >> reporter: she turned pro at 18 and ascended the rankings to number four in the world. she retired at the age of 26. at 37, she decided she wanted back in. 11 years is a long time away from a game, especially since speed and power have come to be even more important during that time. but she's still a contender. at the 2011 wimbledon ch

. >> joining our discussion this morning msnbc political analyst richard wulff and wiendy schillr fromrown university. richard, i want to start with you. within hours of romney releasing his tacks, the president took on allegations of class warfare head on calling for a buffett rule. take a listen to this. >> now, you can call this class warfare all you want, but asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes. most americans would call that common sense. >> so the secretary he was referring to, warren buffett's secretary, was sit with the first lady. a "new york times"/cbs poll shows a strong partisan split when it comes to the wealthy and taxes. how perfect was the timing of that spech speech, especially coming on the heels of mitt romney releasing his tax returns? >> you showed a republican/democratic split. independent voters who often decide these things just because they're in the middle there and they're the sort of swing bloc, they side with democrats on this issue, and the broader strategy here is that mitt romney humanizes this debate. he doesn't just o