"ayudar a" usage
Is "ayudar a" standard before any object(noun or pronoun)? If not, why do I keep seeing it used in all cases? Two examples I have seen just today:
- "¿Puede la administración del presidente Obama ayudar a la democracia en Cuba?" (from a news headline)
- "Los puntos le ayudarán a tu pierna a curarse." (from a Spanish lesson)
Further Background (if interested): I understand a "personal a" is required in the usual places (e.g. "Ayudó a mi amiga hoy."). I also understand that an "a" is required between ayudar and an infinitive. But, it appears to me that, in my Spanish lessons and elsewhere, I´m seeing the "a" being used every time, no matter what the object ("object" here meaning noun or pronoun) following is. I have a list of verbs that require an "a" before an object (e.g. asistir, entrar) but "ayudar" is not on that list. I´m not understanding what´s going on.
4 Answers
Verbs of movement towards someplace or goal are normally followed by 'a' plus the goal. If the goal is an action the verb following the 'a' appears in its infinitive form.
Voy a ayudarlo a leer. I'm going to help him to read.
Just as a side point, you will often see and hear ayudarle instead of ayudarlo but technically, given that ayudar is a transitive verb I believe it should be followed by a direct object pronoun 'la or lo' instead of the indirect 'le'.
Julian:
I couldn't think of those two sentences not having an "a"
Don't ask me why. 
"¿Puede la administración del presidente Obama ayudar a la democracia en Cuba?" (from a news headline)
The a here is not required. People who write news stories make mistakes all the time.
"Los puntos le ayudarán a tu pierna a curarse." (from a Spanish lesson)
This sentence is a real mess from using English sentence structure. Spanish structure would be something like: Los puntos ayudarán a que tu pierna se cure / Los puntos ayudarán a curar tu pierna.
El presidente Obama tiene pensado ayudar en la lucha contra el narcotráfico.
Derribó la puerta ayudándose de/con un hacha
