October 26, 2000 - Governor Jesse Ventura spent a final day in Mexico City meeting with President-elect Vicente (vee-CEN-tay) Fox. Later he went to a Hospital to see how technology developed by Twin Cities-based Medtronic is helping victims of epilepsy and Parkinson's disease. Today Ventura's six day trade mission to Mexico is in the city of Guadalajara. Minnesota Public Radio's Andrew Haeg is travelling with the governor. He has this report.
October 30, 2000 - A teenager shot by an Apple Valley police officer over the weekend had allegedly taken the drug LSD before the officer arrived to investigate a reported disturbance. The boy is listed in fair condition but may be paralyzed from the waist down. Police say he was shot when he tried to take the officer's weapon. Pat Harrison is the co-director of Health Care Research for the Minnesota Department of Human Services. She says nationally about 5-thousand emergency room visits are connected with LSD use. Harrison says alcohol and marajuana are still the most popular drugs of choice for Minnesota teens---but LSD use is not uncommon:
October 30, 2000 - On election day this year, voters in Minnesota's sixth congressional district will choose between two familiar candidates. Democratic incumbent congressman Bill Luther and republican challenger John Kline squared off in 1998 in a race that was decided by four percent of the vote. For this year's rematch, Kline has raised nearly a million dollars to help him win the seat. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...
October 30, 2000 - Health care has become the biggest issue in Minnesota's U.S. senate race. You can't listen to a candidate's stump speech without hearing about cheaper prescription drugs, a patient's bill of rights and affordable health insurance. Despite a variety of positions, the three major senate candidates agree whoever's elected on November seventh will have to address the issue in the Senate. Minnesota's Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...
October 30, 2000 - Republican Vice Presidential candidate Dick Cheney focused on education at a campaign appearance today (MONDAY) in Rochester. The stop at a Catholic high school comes at a time when polls show the Republican presidential ticket within site of winning Minnesota for the first time since 1972. Minnesota Public Radio's Art Hughes reports.
November 1, 2000 - in Minneapolis. Bush stressed tax cuts, and attacked Democratic opponent Al Gore as a big spender who's achieved little as vice president. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports...
November 1, 2000 - Tomorrow (Thursday) on the North Shore, state biologists will be looking for insect larvae in the Beaver River. Last week a broken pipline at Northshore Mining in Silver Bay spilled tons of taconite tailings into the river. Researchers say the spill will likely suffocate the tiny creatures on the river bottom, and cut into the food supply for the river's fish in coming years. The spill is reviving memories of past concerns about tailings pollution. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Julin starts our two part report.
November 1, 2000 - Voters from across the state will decide the fate of more than fifty school referendum proposals when they head to the polls next week. School districts are asking for more money for everything from day to day operations to brand new facilities. Minnesota Public Radio's Erin Galbally reports from Rochester. On November 7th Rochester schools will ask for tax payer support to save them from a projected multi million dollar deficit. Rochester is hardly an anomaly this election cycle. Faced with dwindling enrollment, the Blooming Prairie School District plans to ask for more money... and in Lakeville approval of a school referendum will mean five million dollars more for the district for the next seven years. Northern Minnesota's Greenway school district says without referendum money its schools could go bankrupt. Back in Rochester schools are looking for an annual infusion of ten million dollars for the next ten years. School Board Member Lori Jonason says like referendum proposals in Farmington and Crookston schools need the money to avoid massive cuts. Jonason:
November 2, 2000 - Employers are bracing for another round of double digit increases in the cost of health care premiums. Next year's projected increase will mark the fourth year premium costs have swelled between 10 and 20 percent. Some companies are starting to pass the extra cost on to their employees. In St. Cloud, about 1600 fridgidare workers are on strike, in part because the raise management was offering didn't cover the extra cost employees were asked to pay in insurance premiums. Carolyn Jones is the director of health care and transportation policy at the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce. She says there are two main reasons health care costs are climbing:
November 2, 2000 -