Minnesota Public Radio Stories

• DFL Senate candidates run quiet campaign for delegates
  DFLers Mike Ciresi and Al Franken are working behind the scenes to win the support of party activists who will likely vote to endorse a candidate for Senate at next year's DFL state convention.4:50 p.m.
• Pawlenty vetoes construction projects bill
  Rather than sparing any projects he liked, Pawlenty vetoed the entire $334 million bill and told legislators they'll have to scale it back to must-do items if they want his backing.5:20 p.m.
• Hatch's resignation doesn't satisfy Republicans
  Former Attorney General Mike Hatch, who took a job under his successor, has abruptly quit his post amid a growing controversy over his role in the office. Hatch's resignation comes at a time when members of the Minnesota House were considering an investigation into Swanson's office.5:24 p.m.
• Minnesota Senate agrees to let the seriously ill smoke pot
  The bill passed on a preliminary vote of 33-31, after debate over the agonies of the sick and the danger of sending mixed messages to youth about illegal drugs.5:25 p.m.
• Steven Hall and the Great (Virtual) Shark Hunt
  In Steven Hall's new novel "The Raw Shark Texts," a young man wakes up in a room he doesn't recognize. He gets nervous when he realizes he doesn't know where he is. He gets scared when he realizes he doesn't know who he is. Then he learns he's being hunted by a virtual shark....6:20 p.m.

National Public Radio Stories

• FDA Finds More Contamination in Animal Feed
  The recent tainted pet food episode took the U.S. Food and Drug Administration by surprise, but Chinese say melamine is often added to animal food there. The FDA's new food-safety chief says melamine is more toxic than the agency thought.
• Bush Vetoes Iraq War Bill on Day of Political Theater
  President Bush has made good on his promise to veto a $124 billion spending bill for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that includes a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops. The president vetoed the measure a few hours after Congress sent it to him, capping a day of political theater in Washington.
• Turkey Is the Scene of Violent Rallies, Arrests
  Turkey's Islamist-rooted government has vowed to press on with presidential elections after the top court annulled the first round of voting. This paves the way for early general elections. The opposition, backed by Turkey's powerful military establishment, is trying to block the election of a moderate Islamist as the country's new head of state.
• Turnout Is Lower at L.A. Immigration Rallies
  Los Angeles braced for a large turnout for two immigrant rights demonstrations this May Day. The focus on pressuring Congress to adopt broad immigration changes could draw large enough crowds to bring downtown businesses to a halt.
• Tenet Answers Criticism from Retired CIA Officers
  Former CIA Director George Tenet responds to criticism from a group of retired CIA officers who point to hypocrisy and failed leadership. They wrote, "By your silence, you helped build the case for war."
• Filmmaker Dodges Criticism, Refuses to Alter 'War'
  Ken Burns has drawn criticism in the past for omissions to his PBS series on baseball and jazz. Now the documentary filmmaker is drawing fire for leaving Hispanics and Native Americans out of his 14-hour World War II story.
• Caltech Students Strike Oil ... Olive Oil
  California Institute of Technology sophomore Dvin Adalian and junior Ricky Jones successfully produced olive oil from olives collected on campus. Last fall, the two collected some 30 pounds of olives, used blenders in the dorm kitchen, pressed the olives between window screens and purified the oil by spinning it in centrifuges in a biology lab.
• Border Town Residents Fight New Towers
  The Department of Homeland Security is installing nine high-tech towers as part of its Secure Border Initiative Network along the Arizona-Mexico border. Local residents of Arivaca, Ariz., say the towers will be eyesores and an invasion of their privacy.
• Hearing Metro Escalators in Decay — or Sick Whales?
  Listener Sarah Schmelling rides the Washington, D.C., Metro system and enjoys the soothing sounds of dying escalators. She shares this SoundClip with us all.
• Iraqi Sunnis Say They Killed Al-Qaida Leader
  Reports surfaced Tuesday that the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, Abu Ayyub al-Masri, had been killed in fighting between Sunni insurgent groups. A coalition of insurgent groups claim that al-Masri is alive. But the incident shows the escalating tensions between al-Qaida in Iraq and other Sunni groups.
• Changing Code May Upgrade Credit Card Security
  New technology meant to protect credit-card users relies on a built-in, constantly changing digital code. Innovative Card Technologies is proposing an electronic display on credit cards that would show a changing security code. Buyers would have to have the card in their possession to know the code at the time of purchase.
• Democrats Can Revel in GOP's Troubles, for Now
  The Democrats might be celebrating in the midst of the showdown with the White House over funding the war in Iraq. But they should look beyond politics, because the problem could soon be theirs to solve.
• Court Settles Fight Between Boehner, McDermott
  The D.C. Circuit Appeals Court resolved a lawsuit stemming from a decade-old political battle between two lawmakers: Republican John Boehner of Ohio and Democrat James McDermott of Washington. The court said McDermott broke a law when he gave an illegally intercepted phone recording to The New York Times.
• Nebraska Paratrooper Among Fallen in Iraq
  Lt. Kevin Gaspers, 26, a native of Hastings, Neb., was killed April 23 by a suicide bomber in Iraq. The quiet, well-mannered student and athlete mentored young cadets in his college ROTC program. He helped his father build houses, loved watching Top Gun, and dreamed of being a paratrooper since elementary school. From Nebraska Public Radio, Avishay Artsy reports.
• Castro Does Not Make May Day Appearance
  Today was May Day around the world. In Cuba, hundreds of thousands gathered for Workers Day parades and speeches. But despite widespread speculation that ruler Fidel Castro would appear, he was a no-show. Castro hasn't been seen publicly since having surgery last summer.

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