National

White House Calls for Drug Testing in Schools

October 31, 2003 • A new White House initiative promotes mandatory random drug testing in schools. The courts have cleared the way for schools to test children involved in sports and other competitive extracurricular activities, but so far few districts are opting for testing. NPR's Brian Mann reports.

FDA Draft Report Backs Cloned Food

October 31, 2003 • The Food and Drug Administration concludes that cloned livestock and their offspring are suitable for human consumption. The agency's draft report says that cloned animals would pose little or no risk to human health if they enter the food supply. NPR's Jon Hamilton reports.

Football Dreams, Ramadan Requirements Collide

October 31, 2003 • The Fordson High School football team in Dearborn, Michigan, is trying to make another championship run in the state playoffs this year. But the team faces one challenge that most other teams in Michigan do not have -- the holy month of Ramadan. All but two team members are Muslim. Jerome Vaughn of Detroit Public Radio reports.

Wildfire Victims Face Daunting Rebuild

October 31, 2003 • People in southern California want to return to their homes now that the wildfires are better contained. For many, returning means rebuilding. People with insurance policies hope their premiums can cover the damage. Those without a policy hope to receive low interest loans from government agencies. Eric Niiler of member station KPBS reports.

Husband of Sniper Victim Recounts Attack

October 31, 2003 • The jury in the murder trial of Washington, D.C.-area sniper suspect John Allen Muhammad hears emotional and explicit testimony from a widower who describes his wife's Oct. 2002 murder outside of a northern Virginia Home Depot. NPR's Brian Naylor reports.

Politics, Science Clash at Media Violence Conference

October 31, 2003 • Two child development experts pull out of a Federal Trade Commission conference session on marketing violent entertainment to children. The two say the session pandered to representatives of the media industry. NPR's Jon Hamilton reports.

Wary Residents See Fires Subside

October 31, 2003 • Fires continue to burn near Los Angeles and San Diego. Colder, damper weather is helping to contain the fires, but towns like Big Bear Lake are still threatened by advancing blazes. The possibility of a return to dry, windy weather in the next few days has some in the area on edge. NPR's Robert Siegel talks with KPCC reporter Rachael Myrow.

House Approves Money for Iraq, Afghanistan

October 31, 2003 • The House of Representatives approves $87.5 billion for U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Nearly $19 billion of that amount is earmarked for Iraq's reconstruction. NPR's Dave Mattingly reports.

House Approves Money for Iraq, Afghanistan

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Gephardt Hits the Iowa Campaign Circuit

October 31, 2003 • Democratic presidential candidate Richard Gephardt is campaigning hard in Iowa, a state he won in his unsuccessful bid for president in 1988. The Missouri congressman is tied with former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean in recent Iowa polls. NPR's Mara Liasson reports.

Senate Committee Presses White House for Data

October 31, 2003 • The Senate Intelligence Committee places demands on the Bush administration for documents relating to prewar intelligence on Iraq. The Republican chairman of the committee and the ranking Democrat have written to administration officials insisting on a Friday deadline for the information. NPR's David Welna reports.

New Orleans Police Found to Falsify Reports

October 30, 2003 • Five high-ranking New Orleans police officials are fired for falsifying crime statistics by downgrading reported crimes to lesser offenses. One example cited by city officials was renaming an aggravated assault as a "miscellaneous incident." Susan Roesgen of member station WWNO reports.

Fires Slow Advance, but Control Eludes Firefighters

October 30, 2003 • The advance of a wildfire in the San Bernardino Mountains slows as it nears Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear. Despite the calming effects of low winds and cooler temperatures, thousands remain displaced. Hear Alex Cohen of member station KQED.

Economy Soars; Bush Credits Tax Cuts

October 30, 2003 • The economy surged in the third quarter, expanding at a 7.2 percent annual rate. The growth reflects the strongest quarterly increase in the nation's gross domestic product since 1984. President Bush, welcoming news that could help his re-election effort, credited his tax cuts for the rise in GDP. Hear NPR's Jim Zarroli and NPR's Don Gonyea.

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Senate Rejects Global Warming Bill

October 30, 2003 • The Senate rejects a measure to curb carbon dioxide emissions from industrial plants as a source of global warming. It was the chamber's first vote in more than six years on the controversial issue of climate change. NPR's Richard Harris reports.

N.J. Doctors Hit the Campaign Trail

October 30, 2003 • New Jersey doctors are trying a new treatment to cure their state's high medical malpractice insurance rates. They're campaigning door-to-door in key legislative districts, trying to swing the state's balance of power toward Republicans who support lower rates. They're also pumping a lot of money into local races. Eugene Sonn reports.