MISSOURIANA

When Gov. and Mrs. Carnahan took off for a European vacation, it was the first time in 12 years our chief executive didn't have to worry about what a Democratic lt. governor was up to back home.

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Texans elect a new senator who promises to cut taxes just as soon as Congress restores funds for a built-in-Texas space station and a multibillion-dollar super collider.

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Members of the state's new Ethics Commission meet for the first time and promptly go into a closed executive session. So much for ethics reform in Missouri.

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A Louisiana college gives full 4-year scholarships to the sons of both of the state's U.S. senators. It's pretty obvious something is fishy because neither kid plays basketball.

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There are complaints our state Highway Patrol tricked drug-carrying motorists by setting up a checkpoint at an exit. Critics say troopers violated the constitutional provision requiring cops to be dumber than criminals.

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A Senate panel has been formed to investigate violence on television, which could make future presidential press conferences only suitable for adults.

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Missouri bumper sticker: "Rush is right --- of Mussolini."