Lincoln Journal Star from Lincoln, Nebraska • 1

to- -Xj. MyjK FiiiSSips on the move Husker tight end could see reps at fullback Sports, ID Details. 8B WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 2007 LINCOLN, NEBRASKA LINCOLN Cooking comes out of the kitchen and goes online with the debut of JournalStar. corn's videocast Savor, 1C 71 JJOURNAIf )( mAR 17 1 jAulj THE DEBATE 9 i il-rtHt-'ihiir'iprif 'rt'-iiin'lh'Hiiin'HmMMi -i-'- (s i i Bush: Congress can talk to aides But they can't speak in public or under oath about prosecutor firings, president says; Democrats say they will seek subpoenas. BY LAURIE KELLMAN The Associated Press WASHINGTON A defiant President Bush warned Democrats Tuesday to accept his offer to have top aides speak about the firings of federal prosecutors only privately and not under oath or risk a constitutional showdown from which he would not back down.

Democrats' response was swift and firm: They said they would start authorizing subpoenas as soon as today for the White House aides. "Testimony should be on the record and under oath. That's the formula for true accountability," said Patrick Leahy, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Bush, in a late-aftemoon statement at the White House, said he would fight any subpoena effort in court. See PROSECUTORS, Page 2A Hagel votes no on limit The Senate, by a 94-2 vote, passed a bill Tuesday limiting the attorney general's power to appoint U.S.

attorneys. Sen. Chuck Hagel, was one of two senators to vote against the measure. NewsExtra12A Six of the eight U.S. attorneys fired by the Justice Department ranked in the top third among their peers for the number of prosecutions filed last year, according to an analysis of federal records.

Proposal to abolish the death penalty in Nebraska fails by one vote. BY JoANNE YOUNG Lincoln Journal Star The Nebraska Legislature inched close to passing a death penalty repeal on first-round discussion Tuesday, but the proposal fell one vote short A 24-25 vote shortly before noon ended the two-day debate of Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers' attempt to replace the death penalty with life without parole and an order of restitution. "Really, I've been fighting this issue for three decades, so expectations are never high that success will come," he said after the vote. A miss is a miss, he said, no matter how close.

Sen. Mike Flood of Norfolk, speaker of the Legislature and the bill's most vocal opponent during the debate, said he hadn't known the senators were so divided. "It could have gone either way," he said, but added he would have thought more senators would have voted to keep the death penalty. Proponents of the repeal did a good job of making their case, Flood said, although he remained solidly opposed, his stand fortified by a 2002 attempted bank robbery in his home district, wiiich includes Norfolk, that left five people dead. Chambers said some senators who voted against his bill (LB476) apologized to him afterward, saying they were afraid politically to abolish the death Eenalty because of cases in their ome districts.

See REPEAL, Page 2A 'John Paul II and I agree on (this) completely, and Benedict XVI has joined us. And now we have, in a sense, a trinity, or maybe a Bermuda triangle, and within that triangle disappears the death Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha 'An individual from his cell who commands respect of his followers or adherence such that they are willing to kidnap and to murder in order for him to be turned loose because they are persuaded of his innocence and lightness of his cause may require society to use absolute Sen. Tony Fulton of Lincoln 'It can be argued that the execution of a murderer, a state-sanctioned execution, can actually express a certain type of respect for human life. It sends a moral message that that innocent life was so precious, that the crime committed so horrific, that that particular person forfeits his or her right to remain Sen.

Mike Friend of Omaha 'Quite frankly, being tough on crime does not necessarily mean being for the death penalty. I'm now becoming convinced of that' Sea Brad Ashford of Omaha 0 Roll call of the Legislature's vote Tuesday on a bill (LB476) to repeal the death penalty: Yes (24): Adams, Aguilar, Ashford, Avery, Carlson, Chambers, Cornett, Dterks, Dubas, Howard, Johnson, Kopplin, Kruse, Lathrop, McDonald, McGill, Nantkes, Pedersen, Preister, Raikes, Rogert, Schimek, Synowiecki, Wallman No (25): Burling, Christensen, Engel, Erdman, Fischer, Rood, Friend, Fulton, Gay, Hansen, Harms, Heidemann, Hudkins, Janssen, Karpisek, Langemeier, Louden, Mines, Nelson, Pahls, Pankonin, Pirsch, Stuthman, White, Wightman 'I just can't help but think violence begets violence, that when the state acts in a violent manner, it sets a Sen. DiAnna Schimek of Lincoln Drought news good in the east Central Nebraska looks good, too, analyst says, but the Panhandle is still dry, dry, dry. 'I think the electric chair does not violate either the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution or the Eighth Amendment of the Nebraska Speaker Mike Flood of Norfolk 'I do not believe that (the death penalty) has been or will be imposed in a way that's free from racial or socioeconomic bias, a bias that's so severe that it rises to the level of constitutional Sen.

Danielle Nantkes of Lincoln 'How do I go home to Scottsbluff and look in the eyes of the Gomez family, the Guerrero family, and see sadness and say to them, "We just made this right for youj'? We've just given the two men who murdered your children, took their life away and took your hope away a life Sen. John Harms of Scottsbluff New study looking at State Fair sites would be ready for next year's Legislature. Other legislative news. Photos by ROBERT BECKERLlncoln Journal Star Cyberspace civility: Online and out of bounds BY ALGIS J. LAUKAITIS Lincoln Journal Star If you're a farmer near Mead, drought is the last thing on your mind these days.

The soil is so saturated with moisture that it can't hold much more, said state climatologist Al Dutcher. In some places, he said, farmers are using all-terrain vehicles to get around in their fields, and they are getting mired in mud. The soil is pretty wet in central Nebraska, too, especially in the Kearney area. Farmers there are anxious about wet fields because they are delaying spring planting. But in western Nebraska, its a different story.

After eight consecutive years, drought has become a way of life. The state's Pannandle region is extremely dry, With less than 2 inches of moisture in the ground near Scottsbluff. It's so dry it's causing See DROUGHT, Page 2A Widespread anonymous postings allow for more nastiness. overweight, I'm going to be a bad mom," Branum says. "And that is not one little bit true" It was yet another example of how the Internet and the anonymity it affords has given a public stage to people's basest thoughts, ones that in earlier eras likely never would have traveled past the watercooler, the kitchen table or the next barstooL Such incidents and there are many in cyberspace also raise the question: Is there anything to be done about it? Or is a decline in civil discourse simply the price that we pay for the advance of technology? "The Internet really amplifies everything," says Jeffrey Cole of the An-nenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California.

"We have a lot of opinions out there. All Sm ONLINE, Pagt 2A BY JOCELYN NOVECK The Associated Press When a California woman recently gave birth to a healthy baby just two days after learning she was pregnant, the sudden change to her life was challenging enough. What April Branum definitely didnt need after the media published her story was a deluge of nasty Internet comments. Postings on message boards made cracks about Branum's weight (about 400 pounds one reason she says she didn't realize sooner that she was pregnant). They also analyzed her housekeeping ability, based on a photo of her home And they called her names.

"A pig is a pig," one person wrote. Another suggested that she "go on the show "The Biggest "The thing that bothered me most was, people assumed because I am BUILD WEALTH NOW! See how to start in today's Liberty First ad.jVdv. Local 1B-6B Lotteries 2A Movies 2C Nation 3A, 7A-10A Nebraska 2B Opinion 7B People 10A Savor Sports 1D-8D Television 5C BUSINESS Dow 61.93 12L2S8.10 Nasdaq 13.S0 Pact 11A LocalIB: Prosecutors lay out their case in trial over farmer's death Nation3A: Tribe unveils new glass skywalk over the Grand Canyon Advice 5C Births 2B Bridge 9C Business 11A Calendar 2C Classifieds 6C-12C Comics 4C Crossword 5C, 12C Deaths 4B-5B Horoscope 9C Jumble 11C CONTACT US Delivery and LsSJ subscriptions 473-7300 jfT" Newsroom 473-7301 Classified ads Retail ads 473-7450 1 Toll-free (800)742-7315 CooyngM 2007 Im Enterprise Inc. 2 40 pages il to 1 9.