Naoto Kan takes charge as new PM

Japan’s parliament elected outspoken populist Naoto Kan as prime minister Friday, handing the political veteran the immediate task of rallying his party and reclaiming its mandate for change before elections next month. The 63-year-old with a reputation for confronting Japan’s powerful bureaucrats must contend with a daunting list of problems. The world's No. 2 economy is burdened with the largest public debt in the industrialized world, sluggish growth and an aging, shrinking population. Kan succeeds Yukio Hatoyama, who stepped down Wednesday after squandering the public’s high hopes with broken campaign promises, including moving a U.S. Marine base off Okinawa island, and financial scandals.