Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• Biodiesel backers seek same boost as ethanol
  Minnesota already leads the nation in the manufacture and use of ethanol. Now the Legislature is considering a big boost for biodiesel.7:20 a.m.
• Pawlenty budget includes cuts to courts
  Judges and other court staffers are concerned about Gov. Pawlenty's proposal to trim state spending to cover a projected $1 billion budget shortfall. Pawlenty's plan would reduce state funding of district courts by about $7 million a year, or around 2.8 percent.7:50 a.m.
• Tales of a fourth grade opera
  Fourth graders at Linwood A+ Elementary in St. Paul created an opera to celebrate Minnesota's 150th birthday.7:55 a.m.
• Injecting culture into Spring Break
  The spring break season kicks off next week for many Minnesotans, which means parents will be facing the prospect of idle days with their children. Morning Edition arts commentator and St. Paul Pioneer Press theater critic Dominic Papatola has some ideas for injecting a little culture into the spring.8:20 a.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• Can Huckabee, Bush Aides Help McCain?
  Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is trying to help Sen. John McCain with conservative voters, and two of President Bush's top advisers are taking a role in the McCain campaign. But it may be an awkward fit.
• Pentagon Report Fails to Link Saddam, Al-Qaida
  A Pentagon report concludes Saddam Hussein's regime carried out terrorist operations and provided sanctuary and aid to terrorist groups. But confiscated Iraqi documents show no direct link between the former Iraqi dictator and al-Qaida.
• Huckabee: GOP Can 'Come Together' in Fall
  Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's conservative supporters are crucial to the general-election hopes of the GOP's presumptive nominee, Sen. John McCain. Huckabee says he hopes Republicans can "come together" to elect McCain.
• Spitzer Giving Way to Paterson in New York
  Saying he looks at his brief tenure as "what might have been," New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned Wednesday. The former state attorney general, who fought Wall Street and organized crime, was named as a client of a prostitution ring.
• Brazil Takes Big Bite of U.S. Meat Industry
  Brazil's JBS plans to acquire two more U.S. meat-packing companies will give it about 30 percent of the American market. The news is shaking up American meat packers.
• Role of U.S. Military Commands Shifting
  Adm. William Fallon resigned this week as commander of U.S. forces in Africa and the Middle East. His post is one of several powerful U.S. commands that increasingly touch on an array of diplomatic functions beyond military concerns.
• Square Boxes Ahead for Wrigley Gum
  Chewing-gum giant Wrigley is overhauling the packaging for Juicy Fruit, Doublemint and other brands. Wrigley gum will soon come in flat, square boxes, replacing the familiar slim rectangle.
• TV Anchor Apologizes for Drag Race
  Two local TV trucks turned up at a drag race in El Paso, Texas — one from CBS, one from ABC. Fans encouraged them to engage in a drag race of their own. And they did. An anchorman involved in the race has apologized, but will not be fired for what he describes as an "impromptu decision."
• Ferraro Leaves Clinton Campaign
  Geraldine Ferraro has given up her position on the finance committee of Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in the wake of a controversial remark about Sen. Barack Obama.
• U.S. Urges Trial for Iraqi Colonel
  U.S. officials are urging Iraq's government to try Col. Ali Abed Jasim, a high-ranking official, on torture charges. He is accused of torturing Sunnis at an infamous Interior Ministry prison.
• Jenna's Wedding Hits Bush's Wallet
  President Bush says he's made "very difficult spending decisions" that required "sensitive diplomacy." And he's not talking about the federal budget. Daughter Jenna's May wedding will be held at her parents' house in Texas. Details are top secret.
• Croat Generals on Trial at The Hague
  Three former generals in the Croatian army are on trial in The Hague. They are accused of driving thousands of Serbs from their homes in the 1990s, during the war in the former Yugoslavia.
• Nepal's King Finds Road to Republic Costly
  Nepal's 240-year-old Hindu monarchy will be abolished if a new assembly agrees to continue a path toward making the nation a republic. Now the king and his family face a mounting pile of personal debt.
• Immunity Issue at Center of FISA Fight
  Congress and President Bush continue their fight over the scope of the government's spying powers under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. A Senate bill would grant retroactive immunity to telcom companies that cooperated with warrant-less surveillance. House Democrats vote Thursday on a bill that does not call for immunity.
• EPA Sets New Limits on Smog
  Environmental regulators say the air in hundreds of counties is too dirty to breathe. The Environmental Protection Agency is ordering local officials to pay for a cleanup that will cost billions of dollars. But the EPA's goal for reducing allowable smog levels is less ambitious than the recommendations of its own scientists.

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