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House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) has sponsored a change in House ethics rules to allow members of Congress to take free trips to charity events. One such event is the spring excursion sponsored by DeLay's own foundation for the benefit of foster children. NPR's Peter Overby reports that the rule change has critics crying "foul."

NPR's Lynn Neary talks with New York Times reporter Ben Weiser about Attorney General John Ashcroft's decision to pursue the death penalty in 12 cases in New York and Connecticut, against the wishes of local federal prosecutors.

We read from listener comments to the program including thoughts on our coverage of the cost of medical malpractice insurance, our series on debt and the food Lewis and Clark's expedition survived on during their expedition.

Storyteller Kevin Kling remembers being young and in great fear of a young girl with a baseball bat. The story turns to thoughts of war, Vietnam draft-dodging and friendship.

Bishop Richard Lennon, appointed to replace Cardinal Bernard Law in Boston, draws criticism from advocates for victims of priest sexual abuse. They want him to spend more time with the concerns of the laity and less on church finances. Monica Brady-Myerov of member station WBUR reports.

The United States destroys some intelligence sources when Secretary of State Powell presents new evidence on Iraq to the U.N. Security Council Wednesday. But intelligence agencies contend that the loss is outweighed by the need to convince the world that Iraq still hides illegal weapons. NPR's Mike Shuster reports, and NPR's Michele Norris talks with Raymond Zilinskas, a former U.N. bioweapons inspector.

NASA is exploring several theories about what could have caused the break-up of the space shuttle Columbia. One likely cause also is one of the most difficult to prove -- that the space shuttle was hit by a piece of debris in orbit. NPR's Richard Harris reports.

NASA's investigation into the Columbia disaster is now wide open. The space agency says there's just not enough evidence to back the theory that damage to the shuttle's protective heat tiles caused the crash. At today's memorial service for the Columbia astronauts at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., NASA chief Sean O'Keefe pledged the agency would find the cause of the accident and continue with space exploration. NPR's Richard Harris reports on the progress of the investigation.

John Dillon reports one in seven Vermont dairy farms are expected to go out of business within the year, victims of the lowest milk prices in 25 years. The situation in all the northeastern states is just at grim. Economists say the smaller New England farms just can't compete with bigger operations in the west.

NPR's Robert Siegel talks with documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman about his first feature film, Le Derniere Lettre, ("The Last Letter.") It's in French with English subtitles and has one actor, Catherine Samie. The film is a black and white adaptation of a short story by Soviet writer Vassily Grossman, about a letter written in 1941 by an elderly Jewish woman to her grown son, while living in a small Ukrainian village under Nazi occupation.

NASA engineers are pursuing competing theories about what may have caused the catastrophic breakup of the space shuttle Columbia. NPR's Larry Abramson reports on how forensic investigators keep a constantly open mind until the evidence for one theory becomes so strong that it leaves no room for doubt.

A video filmed in the Caribbean island of Dominica shows workers, who were clearing part of a rainforest, hoisting an enormous boa constrictor off the ground with the help of construction equipment.

Today at the U.N. Security Council, Secretary of State Colin Powell presented newly declassified satellite photos, voice intercepts and intelligence from human sources, trying to make the case that Iraq is deliberately deceiving weapons inspectors rather than complying with them. For example, one set of photos purported to show four active chemical munitions bunkers with a decontamination vehicle nearby in case of accidents. Photos taken later, as U.N. weapons inspectors were arriving at the site, show that the bunkers had been sanitized and the telltale decontamination vehicle removed. Powell's remarks had little immediate effect on other council members. France and Russia, both of which have veto power, continued to argue that the inspectors should be given more time before a decision is made on whether to go to war against Iraq. NPR's Vicky O'Hara reports.

At the Security Council today, Iraq's U.N. ambassador dismissed the evidence presented by Colin Powell. Mohammed Aldouri said the Secretary of State could have "spared the council the time." Programs to develop weapons of mass destruction are "huge" Aldouri said, and not "easily hidden." He accused the United States of fabricating evidence. Meanwhile, in Baghdad, Gen. Amir al-Saadi told a news conference, "What we heard today was for the general public and mainly the uninformed in order to influence their opinion and to commit aggression on Iraq." NPR's Michele Kelemen reports.

Alex has vanished after Vegas, and the whole team wants to know where she went. Bradley and Laura find their relationship outed, and Stella struggles to find her footing.

This week, New Jersey physicians are staying off the job to protest rising malpractice prices. In doing so, they join the ranks of doctors in several states who've taken similar action. President Bush and Congress are seriously considering putting caps on jury awards to try to bring expenses down. That is a very controversial idea. In this report Patricia Neighmond talks to experts about why expenses are rising.

Commentator Stephen Kuusisto recalls a night in his childhood when he and some friends broke into an abandoned farmhouse in western New York state. The evening is tinged with anxiety about going to fight in the Vietnam War, since the boys all are teenagers.

NPR's Richard Gonzales reports that several of the jurors who convicted a California man on marijuana charges last week took the unusual step this week of issuing a public apology. Grower Ed Rosenthal was convicted under federal law, which does not allow marijuana to be cultivated for any reason. During the trial, jurors were not told that Rosenthal was growing marijuana for medicinal purposes, which is allowed in California and eight other states. When they found out afterward, they called for a new trial.

Secretary of State Colin Powell provides detailed evidence against Saddam Hussein to the U.N. Security Council and lists ways America says Iraq is continuing to develop weapons and help terrorists. Iraq's U.N. ambassador responds. Hear reports from NPR's Vicky O'Hara and NPR's Michele Kelemen.

The remains of Columbia astronauts are flown to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, while investigators continue to recover and study shuttle fragments. Meanwhile, two in Texas are charged with theft of government property for looting shuttle debris. Hear NPR's Richard Harris and NPR's Larry Abramson.

The new CD by minimalist composer Terry Riley is a spiritual and personal journey for the composer. In Atlantis Nath, Riley uses common sounds such as street sounds, his keyboard playing and his voice to take the listener on a journey. Michelle Mercer has a review.

A federal judge has restored high school basketball standout LeBron James' eligiblity to play for his school. The young man who is expected to turn pro right out of high school was declared ineligible by the Ohio Athletic Association because he'd accepted valuable jerseys from a Cleveland sporting goods store, a violation of the code of conduct for high school athletes. NPR's Michele Norris speaks with Vincent Duffy of member station WKSU in Kent, Oh.

Mitch Daniels, the White House budget director, undergoes bipartisan grilling by the Senate Budget Committee over the $2.23 trillion budget President Bush sent to Congress. Committee members pressed Daniels to answer how the budget could assume a new round of tax cuts amid forecasts of record red-ink spending. NPR's David Welna reports.

Six school districts are suing the state and say the Department of Health’s basis for issuing a rule giving parents the right to opt out of mask mandates is wrong.

Since the end of the Cold War, civilian contractors become vital to the military as armed forces shrink by more than a third. If America goes to war against Iraq, not everyone in battle will be in uniform -- and many civilians will be close to the frontlines. NPR's Scott Horsley reports.