Monday, May 14

At a time when tribal police are understaffed and county jails are over crowded, there's a tribe in South Dakota joining forces with city government to start it's own police force. The joint force aims at providing better service, while giving tribal and city officials more control. Mainstreet Radio's Cara Hetland reports many involved believe their goals are already realized.

It's back to work today at the Capitol for Governor Ventura after a weekend of beautiful weather on Pelican Lake for his annual fishing opener. Minnesota Public Radio's Jeff Horwich was there and has this Mainstreet report.

A Russian all-star baseball team is traveling around the upper Midwest this week, playing exhibition games with teams in the Northern League. The Russian team lost 8-3 to the Fargo Moorhead RedHawks last night, but hope the tour through the Northern League will help improve their level of play. Minnesota Public Radios Dan Gunderson Reports.

President Bush is planning to unveil that energy policy during a visit to St. Paul on Thursday. The President will also tour an alternative energy plant while he's here. With rolling blackouts in California and rising gas prices across the country, energy is becoming a high profile issue for the Bush administration. Joining us to discuss the politics of energy is Stephen Schier is chair of the political science department at Carleton College in Northfield.

Thirteen Twin Cities hospitals and the Minnesota Nurses Association will continue negotiating the financial portion of a new contract today. The contracts for 9,000 nurses in the Twin Cities expire on May 31. Throughout contract talks, the union has been asking for higher pay, but says more nurses and better care are their top priorities. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

Lawmakers at the Minnesota Capitol have until one week from today to wrap up the session. Among other things, that means agreeing on a tax bill, a health and human services bill, and possibly a Twins stadium bill. Minnesota Public Radio's Capitol Bureau Chief Laura McCallum is on the line now.

Chris Farrell joins us with this update on the economy.

A wet spring has put many farmers behind schedule planting their crops. In fact inclement weather in the northern part of North Dakota has put some farmers way behind schedule harvesting some of last year's sunflower crops. The wet spring is an unpleasant reminder of last summer when a early season storm moved through the Red River Valley and northwest Minnesota, dumping up to eight inches of rain in the area. The deluge caused millions of dollars in damage to homes and crops. Researchers at North Dakota State University not only lost last years harvest, but valuable time in developing new hybrid crops that farmers need to remain competitive. MainStreet Radio's Bob Reha reports.

It's looking like the state of Minnesota will have energy reliability legislation at the end of this session. The Senate recently passed its version, and last night the House passed its bill after nearly four hours of debate. One major point of negotiation in conference committee will be deciding what role conservation and renewable energy will play in state energy policy. A final state bill could look very much like the Bush-Cheney energy proposal, which President Bush will outline when he visits Minnesota on Thursday. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.

Later tonight the St. Paul Heritage Preservation Commission holds their 11th annual awards ceremony honoring those who have protected the city's history. Among the winners is the Rondo Community Land Trust, which built two homes in the historically African-American neighborhood near downtown. The two homes were built with renewable materials salvaged from other homes. Joining us in the studio is Greg Finzell, executive director of the Rondo Community Land Trust.

The Minnesota Nurses Association and 13 Twin Cities Hospitals ended negotiations last night on a proposed contract the nurse's union says is unacceptable. After negotiating for 14 hours yesterday, the hospitals came forward with their final contract proposal which one hospital spokesperson called "unprecendented." The union says the raise isn't adequate and will recommend that its members reject the proposal when the union votes on Thursday. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

The University of Minnesota has fired its women's basketball coach. The school says Cheryl Littlejohn committed a pattern of deliberate rules violations. A university investigation found she gave money to a player, and interfered with a previous investigation by telling players to lie. The school says the violations will likely be considered a major infractions case by the NCAA. Murray Sperber is a professor at Indiana University, and author of Beer and Circus: How Bigtime College Sports is Crippling Undergraduate Education. He's on the line now.

America's war on drugs is almost 30 years old now and costs taxpayers $40 billion a year. Those who fight the war on drugs point to successes: drug cartels busted, tons of drugs confiscated, drug dealers jailed. Yet, today the price of cocaine is at an all-time low, the purity of heroin is at an all-time high, and new designer drugs, such as ecstasy and methamphetamines, are everywhere. Illegal drugs are part of the fabric of American life. The following is an excerpt from a new hour-long special from American RadioWorks, America's Drug War. Host Deborah Amos explains that one of the hardest parts of the business for the drug lords is managing the profits.

Here in Minnesota, officials are working to keep drugs under control as well. Tim O'Malley is a special agent in charge of one of the investigative units at the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. He says there are three drugs that his office is has been dealing with for some time.

Gun-control advocates have successfully blocked a move to loosen the state's handgun permit laws. Yesterday supporters of so-called concealed-carry reform withdrew their bill after opponents amended the measure to preserve the discretion of local police chiefs in approving or denying handgun permits. The move has effectively killed the issue for the legislative session. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.

House and Senate committees will vote today on legislative redistricting proposals designed to account for population shifts in the 2000 census. Senate DFL'ers released their plan yesterday, and Republicans immediately attacked it as blatantly partisan. The posturing comes as time is running short for a redistricting agreement yet this session. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.

President George W. Bush will visit St. Paul tomorrow to release his national energy policy. He's expected to call for making power plant construction faster and easier and promoting tax incentives for conservation and renewable energy sources. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.

Hillary Boyce, an editor at New Moon: A Magazine for Girls and their Dreams, joins us to talk about "Turn Beauty Inside Out Day."

Today, the Minnesota Department of Transportation is holding its 10th Annual B-BOP Day across the Twin Cities. B-BOP is meant to encourage people to commute using bikes, busses, or car pools. It's an effort to cut traffic congestion and pollution. Joining us on the line is Brad Beagle, who rides his bike from the Macalester neighborhood in St. Paul, to his workplace in the northwestern suburb of Plymouth.

The University of Minnesota Law School today officially names its home "Mondale Hall," for the school's most acclaimed alumnus. Walter Mondale has been a United States ambassador to Japan, vice president, U.S. senator and Minnesota attorney general. But virtually nothing has been written about Mondale's time at the University of Minnesota law school and how his education and contacts there shaped his future, and ultimately the future of Minnesota and the nation. Minnesota Public Radio's Elizabeth Stawicki reports.

The state Legislature appears one step closer to a special session. The House, the Senate, and Governor Jesse Ventura were unable to reach agreement last night on a budget deal for major tax and spending bills. With only five days left before the Constitutional deadline for adjournment, all three sides say reaching agreement could prove elusive. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.

Nearly 9,000 nurses will vote today on a proposed contract for 13 Twin Cites hospitals. Earlier this week, the union's leadership rejected a final contract offer by the hospitals and are urging the membership to vote against the proposal. Since the nurses at each hospital will either ratify or turn down the proposed contract, the nurses, hospitals and prospective patients will be watching the vote closely to see if the nurses will strike. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

When President Bush lays out his administrations energy agenda today in St. Paul he is expected to call for new nuclear energy plants, and the extension of the lives of current plants. While there no immediate plans to break ground for additional nuclear plants here in Minnesota, the state Legislature is pondering a controversial proposal to increase storage capacity at the Prairie Island nuclear plant. Minnesota Public Radio's Erin Galbally reports.

Now it's time for your comments. With president George W Bush is in Minnesota this morning to unveil his energy plan, we asked you, the listeners and visitors to our web site, for comments on what you think America's energy policies should be. And you responded with comments to our Soap Box feature at mpr.org.

President George W. Bush is scheduled to arrive at the Twin Cities International Airport in just over half an hour. The President is coming here to announce his long-awaited national energy policy. He'll make that announcement at RiverCentre in downtown St. Paul and that's where Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik is standing by. Good morning Mark.

Critics of President Bush's energy plan say it doesn't place enough emphasis on alternative or renewable sources of power. Here in Minnesota there may not be the sun of Arizona nor the wind of the Dakotas or California, but there are plenty of cows. Mainstreet Radio's Jeff Horwich reports on a farm near Princeton, tapping the power of Minnesota's own "natural gas."

Mark Seeley joins us to talk about the record-setting high temperatures this past week and the tranquil weather ahead.

Nurses at 12 of 13 Twin Cities hospitals have rejected a contract proposal and say they'll strike when their contract runs out on May 31. Eleven-hundred nurses at North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale ratified their contract after hospital management broke ranks with the other hospitals by offering better terms. The union says the vote allows 7,700 nurses to strike on June 1. They say a voter turnout of more than 80 percent should send a strong message to the hospitals that nurses are prepared to mount the metro area's first major nursing strike since 1984, unless they get a better deal. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports.

Prospects for an orderly resolution to this year's legislative session have grown dimmer. Yesterday Governor Jesse Ventura warned lawmakers he has no intention of calling a special session if they're unable to pass major spending bills by Monday's adjournment deadline. But after a second late night of negotiations, House and Senate leaders failed to reach agreement. House Republicans say they're skeptical about a Senate contingency plan to avert a government shutdown if a deal isn't forthcoming. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.

President Bush will be in Pennsylvania today promoting his energy agenda. The President unveiled his policy yesterday in St. Paul, saying the nation needs to increase energy production for economic and national security reasons. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

With just four days to go until legislators are required to adjourn, there is a lot left to do. There is still no agreement on major spending bills, and other issues are also far from being settled. The House and Senate have passed bills dealing with racial profiling, but a long meeting yesterday failed to produce a compromise. St. Paul NAACP President Nathaniel Khaliq has been in on the negotiations. He likes the Senate bill because it includes money to buy video cameras for squad cars.