Monday, December 4

As lawyers for George W. Bush and Al Gore battle over the presidency in the courts, the candidates and their surrogates wage parallel campaigns trying to convince the public of the merits of their arguments. Polls show Americans getting impatient, even though they remain split over what the outcome should be. Like most Americans, Minnesotans are talking about the state of the nation. Some are indignant, some say it's about fairness, and others are just sick of the whole thing. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.

A public hearing in Superior, Wisconsin today will give people a chance to sound off on a controversial power line proposed between Duluth and Wausau. Its the latest in a series of hearings begun last week along the line's proposed route. Opponents of the project say they're encouraged by a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources report saying no one has shown a need for the line. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports.

A group of La Crosse Wisconsin residents and city officials is scheduled to make a decision Monday about what to do with a popular city landmark that's fallen into disrepair. It will cost tens of thousands of dollars to shore up the concrete statue "Hiawatha". But some critics say the statue represents an outdated and offensive view of Native Americans that the city should get of. Mainstreet Radio's Art Hughes reports.

A new case of E. coli infection has been reported to state health officials. If confirmed, it would bring the number of illnesses in the current outbreak to at least 22. The new case is the sibling of a child who developed the illness after eating ground beef purchased at Cub Foods. Joining us with the latest is Buddy Ferguson, a spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Health.

OnFuture Tense IBM appoints a Chief Privacy Officer.

Minnesota Public Radio's Chief Correspondent Chris Farrell talks about the stock market.

On Future Tense, labor organizing in the dot com world.

Northwest Airlines' unionized mechanics to continue working indefinitely under a preliminary injunction barring illegal work actions. Judge Doty has yet to decide whether the union should be found in contempt for violating his preliminary order two weeks ago. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

When an attempted drug sting by Minneapolis police ended in a fatal shooting in Saint Paul last month, the event raised questions about a part of the capital city that's seen a number of changes in recent years. Charitable groups have long provided services to the poor on or near seventh street at the western end of downtown. Now, that area is also home to attractions, such as the Minnesota Children's Museum and Saint Paul's new hockey arena, that draw visitors to a refurbished business district. Minnesota Public Radio's William Wilcoxen reports on the sometimes uneasy coexistence of the area's inhabitants.

3M announced today that General Electric executive James McNerney will be 3M's next Chief Executive Officer. He will replace Desi DeSimone who has reached the mandatory retirement age of 65. McNerney is 51 years old. He is currently the CEO of GE's Aircraft Engines subsidiary in Evendale, Ohio. University of St. Thomas professor Fred Zimmerman says McNerney was chosen because he comes from General Electric.

The U.S. Supreme Court is sending back a Florida Supreme Court decision that allowed manual recounts in the Presidential race to continue past a certification deadline. The high court is asking the Florida court to take another look at the case, and clarify the reasoning behind its decision. In its opinion, the high court cited the State of Minnesota versus National Tea Company, a case involving tax law that was argued in 1940. Joseph Daley is a Professor at the Hamline School of Law, and he's on the line now.

The United States Department of Agriculture is asking a Wisconsin based beef processor to recall one point one million pounds of meat for fear it may be tainted with E coli. The move follows Friday's move by Twin Cities based Supervalu to recall beef from it's Cub Foods stores. An E coli outbreak has made at least 22 Minnesotans sick and hospitalized seven. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing announced yesterday that General Electric executive James McNerney will be its new chairman and CEO. The move ends months of speculation over who would take over when current CEO L.D. DeSimone retires. McNerney's challenge will be to apply General Electric's decisive, profit-centered management philosophy to 3M's culture of innovation. Minnesota Public Radio's Andrew Haeg reports.

The next chancellor of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities has spent the past 17 years leading a similar state higher education system in Pennsylvania. After a grueling two days of interviews, James McCormick emerged from a field of three finalists Tuesday as the MnSCU Board of trustees' unanimous choice for the job. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota will issue a new report later today on how to assess the performance of public schools. The researchers say the report provides a way for parents and policy-makers to judge schools and hold them accountable. Joining us on the line is Joe Nathan, director of the Center for School Change at the Humphrey Institute, and co-author of the report.

Both sides in Minnesota's Second Congressional District claim they've picked up votes in a recount which is about half over. Republican Mark Kennedy defeated four term DFL'er David Minge by 155 votes in the November 7 election. Minge officials claim they've picked up 41 votes so far in the recount. Kennedy's staff says they've upped their lead by about 8 votes. Mainstreet Radio's Mark Steil reports.

Governor Jesse Ventura is the keynote speaker today at a national conference of government ethics officials in Tampa, Florida. Ventura's own ethics have come under fire since his decision to take a job as an announcer for the XFL football league. On Minnesota Public Radio's Midday program yesterday, Ventura said the job would not degrade his position as governor.

The Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Chicago Bulls 100-90 last night at the Target Center. The Bulls, now one of the worst teams in the NBA, were playing without two of their leading scorers: Elton Brand and Ron Mercer. That put three rookies in the starting lineup including Khalid El Amin who was playing in Minneapolis for the first time since leading Minneapolis North High School to three state titles. MPR's William Wilcoxen was at the game and he joins us now.

The Working Group on Minnesota's Economy convened by University of Minnesota President Mark Yudof has reached consensus on the major concerns to be addressed in its economic agenda for the state. The fundamental issues the 21 member group has identified involve workforce training, increasing the state's capacity for research and innovation, and improving the business climate. The panel has been at work for two months. The final shape of their recommendations remains to be hammered out. Minnesota Public Radio's Bill Catlin has this update.

Last night hundreds of proud parents, children, and friends gathered at Sabathani Community Center in Minneapolis, to watch a student-led Kwanzaa program. Though Kwanzaa is the celebration of African American culture and heritage, a diverse group of students from elementary through high school appeared onstage to pay tribute to the holiday. Minnesota Public Radio's Brandt Williams reports.

LTV Corporation is closing a Minnesota iron mining operation earlier than expected. The Cleveland-based company says its LTV Steel Mining Company located in Hoyt Lakes, Minn. will close February 24. LTV had planned to keep it open through the middle of next year. LTV says the mine can no longer provide taconite pellets of competitive quality and cost. This is the latest in a series of recent setbacks to Minnesota's iron mining industry. Ann Glumac is the president of the Minnesota Iron Mining Association. She says the health of the industry in Minnesota is directly tied to the health of the U.S. steel industry.

Tonight Twin Cities theater goers will get a rare opportunity to see one of America's premier experimental theater ensembles - the Wooster Group. Minnesota Public Radio's Euan Kerr reports the New York based company is presenting North Atlantic a satire on cold war spy shows, among other things.

The University of Minnesota Women's Volleyball team is in Honolulu, Hawaii preparing for tonight's game against Cal State-Santa Barbara. The Gophers are competing in the NCAA regional semifinals. That's the equivalent of basketball's sweet sixteen. It's the fourth time in school history they've made it this far, but they've never advanced to the final eight. Pam Schmid covers Gopher volleyball for the Star Tribune. She talked about the team with Minnesota Public Radio's Jim Bickal.

Dairy farmers across the nation are dealing with record-low prices for milk. Even with extra assistance from the government, in the form of a check mailed out this month, farmers are finding the dairy industry is no longer as stable as it once was. Mainstreet Radio's Tim Post takes a look at how the dairy industry is changing, and what that means for Minnesota agriculture.

Mark Seeley looks ahead to the weekend and the possibility of some wicked winter weather.

The recent E.coli outbreak in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa has renewed calls by some food safety experts for improved ways of protecting the food supply. One proposal gaining support in some quarters is the creation of a single federal agency to oversee food safety. The idea is to replace the plethora of federal and state agencies now charged with the responsibility. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

Environmental groups are calling on Congress to reform the Army Corps of Engineers in the wake of a Pentagon report confirming that the Corps doctored numbers in a feasibility study of expanded locks on the Mississippi River. Critics say the Corps of Engineers is too quick to back massive engineering projects. But farm groups say they need bigger locks on the Mississippi to reduce their shipping costs. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports.

The University of Minnesota football program and the Minnesota Vikings are considering working together to build a new stadium. Minnesota Public Radio sports commentator Jay Weiner believes that's a bad idea, unless the Gophers can get something really big in exchange from Red McCombs.

Most of us stopped believing in Santa Claus at a certain age. But not Dick and Lois Kohns of Stillwater. They are smitten by Santa. They've been collecting Santa figures for 15 years, and they're hosting a public open house this weekend. The Cones have over 5,000 Santas, some of them a century old, all over their house. I went out to have a look at the collection and talk with Lois and Dick. Lois says it all started when her kids gave her a small Santa one Christmas.