Nation briefs

Compiled from Times wires

© St. Petersburg Times, published October 3, 2000

Senate approves energy, water bill

WASHINGTON -- The Senate gave final approval Monday to a $23.3-billion package of energy and water projects, but the 57-37 vote fell well short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a threatened veto and was certain to further complicate efforts in Congress to complete work for the year.

The bill was stuffed with election-year projects to satisfy both parties and the White House. But President Clinton has vowed to veto it over a Missouri River water management provision that the administration and environmentalists say would favor barge traffic over the preservation of endangered wildlife.

Foes of war memorial location sue over approval

Opponents of the proposed World War II memorial site on the Mall filed suit Monday in U.S. District Court against the federal agencies and commissions that approved the location in 1995, citing violations of federal law and procedural irregularities.

The suit seeks to stop the National Park Service from issuing a construction permit for the $100-million memorial and to force the site selection process to begin anew.

A lawyer for the opponents, Andrea C. Ferster, said that when construction is about to begin, the court will be asked to issue an order to stop it. A ceremonial groundbreaking, such as the one scheduled for Veterans Day, Nov. 11, would not count, she said.

Recalled taco shells had banned corn, U.S. says

The government's own tests have now confirmed that taco shells recalled by Kraft Foods contained a variety of genetically engineered corn that isn't approved for human consumption.

Government officials are considering testing other foods to see if they may contain the corn as well, said Steve Johnson, a senior official with the Environmental Protection Agency, which is working with the Food and Drug Administration and the Agriculture Department on the project.

Also Monday...

THURMOND RELEASED: Sen. Strom Thurmond, the oldest senator in American history, returned to work after being hospitalized over the weekend for losing consciousness at a restaurant.

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