A daily dose of online news from beyond the Beltway.

By Ryan Thornburg
Washingtonpost.com Staff
Thursday, April 8, 1999

A failed effort to legalize concealed guns in Missouri is already a hot issue in the 2000 gubernatorial and Senate campaigns, after voters rejected the measure Tuesday. The National Rifle Association, which outspent the measure's opponents by a 5-to-1 ratio, said it blamed Gov. Mel Carnahan (D) for its defeat. Carnahan is challenging Republican Sen. John Ashcroft (R), who made radio ads supporting the measure.

"I'll go with Aunt Jemima Lite. I think he watches his weight." – Iowan Susan McKinney, while choosing the syrup she will serve Vice President Gore during his Thursday night stay with her and her husband. (The Des Moines Register, April 7)

Rep. Jim Talent (R), who is running for governor, said that although he supported the measure he would not sign similar bills if they came to him.

• Carnahan, NRA Square Off After Gun Vote Fails (The St. Louis Post, April 8)
• Talent Says He Would Not Sign Gun Measure as Governor (The St. Louis Post, April 8)

Texas Lawmakers Approve Bush Plan,
Pass Backup Just in Case
Texas Republican legislators helped to advance Gov. George W. Bush's plan to cut taxes and increase school funding, but they also proposed a "backup plan" that wouldn't cut so deeply into the state treasury. Democrats, too, are floating an alternative school funding plan.
• Key Parts of Bush's Tax Plan Advance (The Austin American-Statesman, April 8)
• Democrats Want Higher Teacher Raises (The Dallas Morning News, April 8)

Bush also reiterated his support for the state's charter schools on Wednesday and said Texas needed more of them. On the campaign front, a key Bush supporter resigned as assistant chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, which frees her up to work for Bush's presidential campaign.
• Governor Praises Charter Education (The Dallas Morning News, April 8)
• Key GOP Planner Ready to Join Bush's New Hampshire Staff (The Austin American-Statesman, April 7)

Arkansas Gets Tough on Juvenile Killers
Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee signed a bill on Wednesday that allows juveniles convicted of capital murder or first-degree murder to serve adult sentences in prison. The new law comes a little more than a year after two Arkansas students shot and killed four students and a teacher at their Jonesboro middle school.
• Huckabee Signs Measure to Put Harsher Sentences on Youths Guilty of Murder (The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, April 8)

Californians Favor Hillary Clinton for Senator – From New York
Hillary Clinton has achieved her highest approval ratings in the latest California Field Poll, with most Californians also saying she should run for New York's U.S. Senate seat.
• New State Poll Favorable to Hillary (San Francisco Chronicle, April 8)

Gore Challenges Bradley for Washington State Money
Vice President Gore made his first 2000 presidential campaign appearance in Washington on Wednesday. Gore will likely target the state's technology workers for money, but Bill Bradley has already scheduled a $1,000-per-person dinner for April 22, with a host committee headed by Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz.
• Gore Launches Campaign Here for 'A Critical State' (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, April 8)

Neely Announces Bid for N.C. Governor
North Carolina Republican Chuck Neely resigned his seat in the state House on Wednesday to run for governor in 2000. He joins fellow Republicans Richard Vinroot, who lost the GOP nomination in 1996, and House Republican leader Leo Daughtry, in the race. Democratic Gov. James B. Hunt is term-limited.
• Neely to Join Race for Governor (The News & Observer, April 8)

Isakson, Barr Host Cobb County Anti-Tax Fest
Rep. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), who replaced Newt Gingrich in Congress, held an anti-tax rally with Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.) in his home district on Wednesday. Isakson and Barr are pushing for a constitutional amendment that would make it tougher for congress to increase taxes. Bob Terrell, Georgia chairman of Citizens for an Alternative Tax System, who attended the rally, said of Barr, "I wish he'd push the national sales tax as hard as he does impeachment."
• Tax Opponents Make Their Point (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 8)

Ryan Thornburg can be reached at ryan.thornburg@washingtonpost.com