January 4, 2002 - Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports on Governor Ventura’s final State of the State address of his term. He used the speech to provide Minnesotans with his perspective on the state's budget problems. The state faces a nearly two-billion dollar projected budget shortfall. The governor says if the Legislature doesn't act quickly to solve the problem, he'll use his authority to cut government spending.
January 8, 2002 - Judge Cohen reflects on his time on the bench.
January 8, 2002 - The 27 metro school districts that make up the Association of Metropolitan School Districts are together facing a budget cut. This correlates with the projected $2 billion shortfall in the state budget.
January 8, 2002 - In May, President Bush wanted to build more nuclear power plants. After September 11th, the public is realizing how powerful nuclear energy is and how vulnerable they are to terrorist attacks.
January 9, 2002 - Three gang members are indicted for killing a four-year old in 1996.
January 9, 2002 - Is America prepared for cyber warfare? US computer systems are not where they should be. They are completely vulnerable to viruses, crashes, and hacking.
January 9, 2002 - Today, the Metropolitan Airports Commission will discuss security at six small so-called reliever airports. Individual pilots, corporate jets, and many flight school instructors use these airports that are located in communities like Eden Prairie and Lake Elmo. This meeting comes just a few days after a 15-year-old pilot flew his small airplane into the side of a building in Tampa, Florida. Gary Schmitt, the Director of Reliever Airports, will brief the MAC on security issues and he joins us now.
January 9, 2002 - An attorney urged Minnesota Supreme Court justices to declare unconstitutional a state law that tacks on a year of prison time to crimes committed for the benefit of a gang. The Court heard arguments on whether the law violates constitutional guarantees of equal protection because 90-percent of those convicted under the law were people of color. Minnesota Public Radio's Elizabeth Stawicki reports:
January 10, 2002 - MPR’s Laura McCallum provides an overview of Governor Ventura’s budget plan. In a press conference, Ventura outlined his plan for addressing a nearly two-billion dollar projected budget deficit, saying he would not hide behind quick decisions and that everybody is sharing the hurt…and there's plenty of pain to go around.
January 10, 2002 - MPR’s Laura McCallum reports on comments from Ventura's finance commissioner, Pam Wheelock, who says the budget plan will include a combination of spending cuts, tax increases and dipping into the state's budget reserves. She says resolving a deficit of this magnitude will be painful.