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Texas Governor George W. Bush began the final full week of the presidential campaign in the West today, trying to pry loose the biggest prize of all -- California and its trove of 54 electoral votes. Polls show the race tightening on the West Coast, where Bush has been outspending Vice President Al Gore in recent weeks. Gore now plans a return visit of his own to the state this week. NPR's Andy Bowers is based in Southern California and has been following the presidential campaign.

Linda talks with Paul Christian, Chief of the Boston Fire Department about three fires over the weekend in South Boston that destroyed ten apartment buildings -- known in Boston as "triple deckers." The fires were whipped by strong winds, and nearly all of the city's fire fighting forces were brought out in response.

Robert Siegel talks to NPR's David Welna, who is in Missouri covering the announcement by Jean Carnahan, the widow of Gov. Mel Carnahan, that she will accept appointment to the Senate if her late husband is elected next week. Mel Carnahan was campaigning against Republican Senator John Ashcroft when he died in a plane crash two weeks ago. His death came too late for his name to be removed from the ballot, and so Democrats are urging a vote for Mel Carnahan -- the late Mel Carnahan -- as a tribute. Mel Carnahan's successor, Roger Wilson, had said he would appoint Mrs. Carnahan to the Senate if Ashcroft were to be defeated.

Republican leaders in Congress today vowed to stay and fight for their versions of the last few spending bills still pending before adjournment. President Clinton has threatened to veto the bills in current form because the spending levels and various policy changes are not to his liking. That means the legislators might not get out of town before Election Day a week from tomorrow. NPR's Brian Naylor reports.

Voters in 44 states will elect new legislatures next Tuesday. Although most of the campaigns revolve around local issues like traffic and sprawl, the outcomes are of great importance to both national parties. The state legislatures will draw the boundaries for new Congressional districts next year, giving them the power to erase or augment the gains made by either party in next Tuesday's election. NPR's Pam Fessler went to Blue Bell, Pennsylvania to see how the national attention on the race was affecting one close contest for the state Senate.

Robert and Linda observe the recent travel by the presidential candidates -- indicating which states are still hot contests.

NPR's Nina Totenberg reports on the arguments before the Supreme Court today on whether Clean Water regulations apply to a body of water contained within a state, but used as habitat by migrating birds. The justices are being asked to rule on whether the fate of the body of water is of concern only to that state, or, because of the impact on the birds, to the larger environment.

Robert talks to Richard Vara, religion editor for the Houston Chronicle, about the vote by the Baptist General Convention in Texas to withhold millions of dollars in funding from the Southern Baptist Convention. The Texas branch of the denomination cited concerns about the increasingly conservative positions taken by the national leadership of the church.

NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports from Rome that an Italian cardinal has denounced the growing popularity of Halloween as an unwelcome foreign import. Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini urged Italian children to follow traditional Catholic rituals honoring the dead tomorrow, November first -- when the Church celebrates as All Saints' Day. Italian sociologists worry about a revival of witchcraft. Until a few years ago, Halloween was unknown in Italy. This year, jack-o-lanterns adorn shop windows, and children are dressing up as witches and vampires.

The German media giant Bertelsmann AG - also known as BMG - announced today that it has formed a "strategic alliance" with the internet company, Napster. BMG's new e-commerce arm and Napster will develop subscription-based service for file sharing. Once that happens, BMG will drop its part of the music industry lawsuit against Napster -- which charges Napster with copyright violations. NPR's Rick Karr reports.

Critic Tom Moon reviews the new CD from the rock band P.J. Harvey, called Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea. The band is led by British singer/songwriter Polly Jean Harvey, who has earned a certain reputation for intensity. Her songs move from feverish punk distortion to rich acoustic blues, always with a heavy gloomy atmosphere. There is a sense of lives unraveling and promises shattered for her songs' characters. (4:45) Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea, is out today from Island Records, catalog # Islf 15162-2. See http://www.pjharvey.net or http://www.islandrecords.com for more information.

Robert talks to NPR's Eric Westervelt about the dismissal of attempted murder and assault charges against two New Jersey state troopers in a 1988 shooting on the New Jersey Turnpike. In dismissing the charges, the judge said prosecutors had abused their power and used unfair tactics. The troopers -- both white -- had argued that they fired in self defense injuring three of four men in a van they had pulled over for speeding. All four of those men are minorities. The case raised concerns about racial profiling. A remaining indictment against the troopers alleges the troopers tried to hid information about the race of the motorists.

A remembrance for comedian Steve Allen, who has died of an apparent heart attack at the age of 78. Allen was a pioneer of late night TV, as the original host of The Tonight Show on NBC in 1954. His prolific career in entertainment also included record albums, movies, Broadway shows, work as a disc jockey and forty books.

Host Lisa Simeone talks with Andrew Kohut, director of the Pew Research Center, in Princeton, N.J. about recent polls with undecided voters who are steadfast in their uncertainty: up to one in four voters say they haven't made a final choice between Vice President Al Gore or Texas Governor George Bush for the Presidential election this year.

NPR's Madeline Brand reports on Vice President Al Gore's short campaign trip ahead of Tuesday's third and final debate with Republican Presidential candidate George W. Bush. Gore has been raising the issue of health care in stump speeches since his last Presidential debate.

Members of the liberal wing of the Democratic party are staking claim that they won't be ignored this Presidential election season. NPR's Cheryl Corley reports.

When a group of alcohol and nicotine addicted pigeons are 'freed' from their cages at a University of California laboratory, crazy things can happen. Host Lisa Simeone talks to satirist C.D. Payne about his latest creations, the feathered characters of the novel Frisco Pigeon Mambo, (Aivia Press, 2000).

From Jerusalem, NPR's Jennifer Ludden offers a reporter's notebook on the crumbling relationships between Israelis and Palestinian neighbors.

With the presidential race now in a dead heat, Vice President Al Gore and Texas Governor George W. Bush are campaigning hard in key battleground states. Florida is one of them with 25 electoral votes at stake. NPR's Phillip Davis reports on why Florida has turned from solidly Republican to a state ripe for either candidate to win or lose.

Host Lisa Simeone talks to Tickey Pule, director of the Botswana National Museum, about the return of the remains of an unknown African man, which had been on display in a museum in Spain for over 100 years. The remains, called El Negro in Spain, were stolen from a grave in the early 1800s by two Frenchmen. Pule explains the importance of having the remains returned to Botswana for a proper reburial.