October 21, 2003 - Mainstreet Radio's Bob Kelleher looks back to 1978, when two lawyers drafted an historic compromise that still guides activities in the Boundary Waters today. Report includes various interviews and speech excerpts.
October 21, 2003 - The University of Minnesota's clerical union is on strike today. Marisa Helms has followed the negotiations. She has spent much of the day at the Twin Cities campus of the U of M, where news conferences by the union and university administrators have just wrapped up. She joins us now.
October 22, 2003 -
October 22, 2003 - University of Minnesota officials say they're surprised that the U's largest union has gone on strike. Clerical workers represented by the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Local 3800 today begin a second day of picketing (Weds). Labor relations experts say the strike reflects the financial squeeze that a tough economy and rising health costs are putting on workers and employers alike. Minnesota Public Radio's Bill Catlin reports.
October 22, 2003 - Members of the University of Minnesota's clerical union are off the job and on the picket lines again this morning. Marisa Helms reports.
October 22, 2003 - The man who recently led Congress to monitor federal judges' sentencing practices says he's disappointed with what he terms the "rhetoric" of Minnesota U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson. Magnuson yesterday (Tuesday) sharply criticized policies instituted by Congress and the U.S. Attorney General as intimidation against judges over leniency in sentencing. Florida Republican Congressman Tom Feeney says the policies were merely meant to hold judges accountable, not to threaten the independence of the court. Minnesota Public Radio's Elizabeth Stawicki reports:
October 23, 2003 - A lawsuit over supplying anti-rejection drugs to an illegal immigrant may be close to resolution. The suit involves a 16-year-old illegal immigrant from Mexico who under went a kidney transplant at the Mayo Clinic earlier this year. At the time the cost of the transplant was covered by the state. So was aftercare. But since then Minnesota law has changed. And expensive drugs the young man needs are no longer covered. Minnesota Public Radio's Erin Galbally reports.
October 23, 2003 - The third day of the strike by University of Minnesota clerical workers passed with no sign of movement from either side to break the impasse. No talks have been scheduled since the negotiations broke off Monday evening. Since the strike began the two sides have disagreed about how many workers have taken to the picket lines. The university says nearly sixty percent of the 19-hundred workers covered by the clerical contract have shown up for work. Union leaders say the number is half that. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa reports.
October 23, 2003 - A year after the plane crash that killed Paul Wellstone and seven others, some Minnesotans are keeping his memory alive with bumper stickers, yard signs and more personalized memorials. Some of those who continue to display Wellstone campaign signs, says having them around comforts them. One of Wellstone's son says he and his brother welcome the support which David Wellstone says speaks to his father's legacy. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports...
October 24, 2003 - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is backing off reports that it doesn't plan to sue any cities and states that set up plans to import prescription drugs from foreign countries. The report first appeared this morning (Fri) in the Boston Globe and was inititally hailed by officials from Minnesota and other places that have prescription importation plans in the works. By this afternoon, though, the FDA would only say it won't consider any legal action until plans for importation are in place. Minnesota's human services commissioner says the state intends to move forward with the plan no matter what the FDA does. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...