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The Week In Seven Soundbites: April 4, 2014

From strained hearts in Fort Hood, Texas to shaken ground in Chile; broken parts for GM to a new voice for Microsoft. Seven days gave us seven sounds.

Tragedy struck again in Fort Hood, Texas. On Wednesday, Army Specialist Ivan Lopez opened fire with a .45-caliber handgun, killing three and injuring 16 of his fellow soldiers before taking his own life. The initial reports were startling. (NBC News):

President Obama cried victory on Tuesday. Facing heavy criticism and technical difficulties, the president’s push to enroll 7 million people in private health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act paid off. (White House):

General Motors CEO Mary Barra, in the hot seat this week – facing off with House and Senate committees investigating GM’s failure to fix an ignition switch connected to 13 deaths. Texas Republican Joe Barton wasn’t beating around the bush. (CSPAN):

On Wednesday in a 5-4 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court tore off spending caps for overall political donations in favor of the plaintiff in McCutcheon vs. Federal Election Commission. The lead plaintiff, Alabama businessman Shaun McCutcheon, called the ruling a victory for free speech. (On Point):

Afghans head to the polls this Saturday, under threat of violent attack by the Taliban. It will be the first time since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion into Afghanistan that acting president Hamid Karzai will not be on the ballot. Gathering at a rally for top presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah, men and women cheered his name. (WSJ):

A massive 8.2-magnitude earthquake stuck off the coast of Chile Tuesday night. 6 people were reported dead. In the Chilean city of Arica, one diner caught the moment on video. (AP):

And Microsoft released their answer to Apple’s Siri. They called it Cortana - a personal assistant that does not just answer questions (like Siri and Google Now), but interacts with you. (Mashable):

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