A daily dose of online news from beyond the Beltway.

New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman (R) denied Thursday any ethics violations regarding a $1.6 million state grant awarded to an Internet company with close ties to her husband. A government watchdog group said John Whitman's role as a board member and large stock-holder in Mail.com – which received financial compensation last year to move from New York to New Jersey – raises the possibility of a conflict of interest for Gov. Whitman, and should increase scrutiny of ethical violations by elected officials.

Whitman said everything was "above-board," but acknowledged that, with business transactions involving the family of office-holders, "we need to draw lines somewhere."

"I think he flirted with New Jersey." New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman (R), on CNBC's "Hardball With Chris Matthews," on whether George W. Bush, during a recent trip to New Jersey, politically "flirted" with her as a possible vice presidential nominee. (Trenton Times, Apr. 7)

• Watchdogs Question State Grant for Company Tied to Whitman's Husband
(New Jersey Online NewsFlash, Apr. 7)
• Conflict of Interest?
(The Trentonian, Trenton, N.J., Apr. 7)
• Critics Say Work May Bring John Whitman Too Close to His Wife's Office
(The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J., Apr. 7)

Amid Dueling Rallies, S.C. March Ends
The five-day, anti-Confederate flag march across South Carolina ended Thursday at the statehouse, with supporters rallying against protesters and Gov. Jim Hodges (D) saying the flag must come down.
• Dueling Flag Rallies Greet March
(The Post & Courier, Charleston, S.C., Apr. 7)
• Confederate Flag Protestors Reach Capitol
Spartanburg Herald-Journal, Apr. 7)
• Flag Supporters Call Upon History to Defend the Flag
(The State, Columbia, S.C., Apr. 7)
• Charleston Mayor Challenges Legislature to Take Down Flag
(The State, Columbia, S.C., Apr. 7)

Though the state Senate finally took a step forward Thursday and agreed to set a flag bill on priority status – and possibly open up floor debate within a week – the escalating costs of security at demonstrations, the lost revenue of a tourism boycott, and the continued public relations beating are all taking a financial toll on South Carolina.
• State Handling Bill for Security for Rally
(Spartanburg Herald-Journal, Apr. 6)

L.A. Mayor Steers Democratic Convention
Amid a floundering fund-raising effort that now appears to be worse than previously disclosed, Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan has essentially taken control of his city's planning and development for this summer's Democratic National Convention. Yet organizers are still $9 million short of their $35 million goal.
• Lagging Democratic Convention Plans Picking Up Steam
(Los Angeles Times, Apr. 2)
• A GOP Rescue for Democrats
(The Philadelphia Inquirer, Apr. 3)
• Parties Seek More State, Local Aid for Conventions
(The Washington Post, Apr. 5)

Organizers of the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia viewed last weekend's NCAA Women's Final Four basketball tournament as a kind of warm-up "practice" before the city's big event later this summer.
• A GOP Rescue for Democrats
(The Philadelphia Inquirer, Apr. 4)

Democrats Count on Female Candidates for Deliverance
Not only will Florida play an important role in this fall's presidential election, but the Sunshine State should be a congressional battleground as well – most notably, for two House races Democrats have targeted as crucial to the party's bid to regain majority status.
• Democrats Pin Hopes on Two Florida Women
(Miami Herald, Apr. 5)