Florida
Space shuttle liftoff scheduled this morning
Just two weeks after wrapping up a construction mission, NASA sailed through the countdown at Cape Canaveral for the launch of space shuttle Discovery early today on a flight to take a new crew to the international space station.
Two Americans and one Russian will move into the space station for a 4 1/2-month stay, relieving the orbiting outpost's first, three-man crew.
The mood at NASA was strained, however, because of serious budget problems, or "muck" as the space station chief calls it.
An anticipated $4 billion overrun in the space station program has the Bush administration demanding a scaled-down outpost and NASA scrambling to come up with cheap alternatives for extra living space and lifeboats. "When we have a trillion-dollar surplus, I'm a little frustrated that we don't have a little bit more support," shuttle program manager Tommy Holloway said.
Arkansas
Couple drops bid for Internet adoption
The California couple who fought a British couple for the right to adopt 8-month-old twin girls bowed out of the fight Wednesday to concentrate on regaining custody of a 2-year-old boy.
Richard and Vickie Allen of Highland, Calif., lost custody of the boy, whom they are trying to adopt, after Allen was accused last week of molesting two family baby sitters. Allen, 49, pleaded innocent.
On Tuesday, the Arkansas judge who had approved the British couple's adoption of the little girls nullified his decision, saying the adoption was obtained fraudulently.
Until Wednesday, the Allens had been battling Alan and Judith Kilshaw of Britain for custody of the girls, who had been put up for adoption over the Internet.
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Poll: Clintons drop in public's esteem
The popularity of former President Clinton and his wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, has dropped sharply in the past two months amid questions about their exit from the White House and pardons he granted, a poll finds.
The number of Americans who viewed Mrs. Clinton, D-N.Y., in a favorable light dropped from half to a third since January in the NBC-Wall Street Journal poll released Wednesday. The number who viewed her in a negative light increased from a third to half.
Six in 10 said in the poll that they do not believe her comments that she was not involved in the pardons granted by the former president, although some have alleged that she received financial contributions, support and endorsements because of them. A third believed her. Just over half, 55 percent, said his actions over the past two months have made them feel less favorable about him. Four of 10 said it made no difference.
Washington
Police officer killed in highway shootout
A Des Moines police officer was shot and killed early Wednesday after stopping four teen-agers walking along a highway, police said.
The suspects, believed to range in age from 15 to 18, remained at large, Police Sgt. Steve Wieland said. The search for them involved officers from jurisdictions extending from Tacoma to Seattle, he said. No weapon was found, and Wieland said he didn't know if any bullet casings were recovered.
The 33-year-old officer, a veteran of six years on the force, apparently stopped the pedestrians about 5 miles south of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. He told a dispatcher by radio that he recognized one of them from an earlier felony case, Wieland said. A second officer arrived shortly afterward and found the officer by the road.
The wounded officer, who was married and had a 2-year-old child, died at a hospital, police said.
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