Morning Edition

Jeremy Lin was an unknown benchwarmer for the New York Knicks until a few weeks ago. But after a series of breakout performances, the Taiwanese-American, who is a Harvard grad, is the toast of the NBA. NPR's Margot Adler caught up with some Knicks fans before Wednesday night's home game to get a taste of Linsanity.

China vice President Xi Jinping first encountered America through the eyes of Iowans. In 1985, he was just a mid-level Communist Party official on an exchange trip to the Hawkeye State. At a formal dinner Wednesday night, he fondly remembered his initial visit to America.

Steve Inskeep has business news.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Today's last word in business is: snap, crackle and crunch.

Kellogg, the name behind many boxes in the cereal aisle, will now have its name on cans of Pringles. Kellogg bought the potato chip brand from Proctor and Gamble yesterday for $2.7 billion. The company put down the big bucks for Pringles to capitalize on yet another growing consumer demand in places like China and India - a new taste for snack.

And that's the business news from MORNING EDITION on NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep. Good morning.

What's the best way for Mitt Romney to stop Rick Santorum?

For the answer, we went to someone who has done it before.

Democratic strategist Saul Shorr helped Bob Casey defeat then-Sen. Santorum, R-Pa., in a landslide in 2006. Santorum lost by 18 points.

But Shorr says that was a general election; in a Republican primary, Romney will have a much harder job.

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Congress appears to have avoided another showdown over the payroll tax reduction that has been pumping billions of dollars back into the economy. There may even be a deal ahead on jobless benefits and payments to Medicare doctors.

The last time Congress extended the payroll tax holiday was in December, when it passed a two-month extension tied to two other measures. One extended unemployment benefits, and the second fixed a formula by which Medicare doctors are paid. The Medicare fix would stop big cuts in reimbursements for doctors.

Steve Inskeep and Renee Montagne have business news.