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From elephants to otters to armadillos, all sorts of animals get a kick out stomping, rolling and eating the orange gourds.

Linda Wertheimer talks with Lawrence B. Lindsey, the chief economic advisor to President Bush, about the president's tax cut plan. There is some question about whether the votes exist in Congress to get the plan passed.

Eric Engleman reports from Moscow that Russian space officials have rebuffed a U.S. request to delay Saturday's scheduled lift-off of a Soyuz spacecraft bound for the International Space Station. NASA wants the Russians to delay their flight, because the U.S. space shuttle Endeavour has to spend extra time docked to the space station working on computer problems. The Soyuz will be carrying two Russian cosmonauts and American millionaire Dennis Tito. Over NASA objections, the Russians agreed to take Tito up to the station after he reportedly paid $20 million.

Chris Kraft was NASA's first flight director. He joined the aeronautics and space agency right at its inception. Kraft saw the thrilling and grueling early days of the space program up close, from the dangerous re-entry of Aurora 7 to the Apollo 1 launch pad explosion, to the triumph of man on the moon. He has just published a book about his experiences called Flight -- My Life in Mission Control, and joins Liane to talk about his days at NASA. (10:15) (NOTE: FLIGHT - MY LIFE IN MISSION CONTROL IS PUBLISHED BY DUTTON ISBN # 0525945717).

NPR's Barbara Bradley reports that the Bush administration has decided to end the practice of consulting the American Bar Association about potential nominees for federal judgeships before making their names public. For nearly 50 years, both Republican and Democratic presidents have consulted the ABA about judicial nominees before announcing them. Conservatives are pleased with the decision because they say that the ABA has a liberal bias.

Amal is a nine-year-old Syrian refugee. She's also a giant puppet. Theater director Amir Nizar Zuabi discusses how art can deliver a new message on the plight of refugees in his project "The Walk."

Eugene Sonn reports that just three days after kicking off his gubernatorial campaign, New Jersey's acting governor is pulling out of the race. Donald DiFrancesco stepped up to the post when former Gov. Christine Whitman joined the Bush administration. DiFrancesco is accused of misconduct in an earlier political position.

NPR's Allison Aubrey reports on a group of people who have learned to ride the ups and downs of the current "bear market." They're day-traders, and while many of the amateurs in their ranks were driven out after a few initial lucky trades, some are still plugging away -- and making a profit.

New numbers from the American Public Transportation Association say that public transportation use rose 3.5 percent in the past year, the highest level in more than four decades. Americans also drove 2.7 trillion miles last year, the same amount as in 1999. Linda Wertheimer speaks with James Hughes about the figures and what they mean for public transportation. Hughes is the dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University.

Robert Siegel talks with Bill Cappuccio, Iowa State Coordinator of the Federal Flood Insurance Program. They discuss what's required of people who build in a flood plain to be covered by flood insurance. And they talk about how changes in flood insurance rules have affected development along rivers.