MEMPHIS (AP) ‘ Sen. Ward Crutchfield, the last of five state lawmakers charged in the Tennessee Waltz corruption scandal to remain in office, pleaded guilty Thursday to bribery. In return for the Chattanooga Democrat’s guilty plea, a more serious charge of extortion was dropped by federal prosecutors. Crutchfield, 78, admitted taking $3,000 from an undercover…

By Gene Lyons News bulletin: George W. Bush doesn’t give a flying fandango what you peasants think. If commuting Lewis “Scooter” Libby’s prison sentence for obstruction of justice and perjury proved nothing else, it’s this president’s sheer contempt for the rule of law, not to mention for his own easily duped supporters. Not that many…

By Jim Mullen DEAR LITTLE MISS KNOW-IT-ALL: My fiance and I want to hold our wedding in a historic, 80-room castle in France and fly all our friends and family in for free. At the reception, we want a 12-course French meal served by waiters wearing outfits of my own design. The guests must wear…

Editorial – Our Viewpoint Student drug testing has worked well for nearly a decade in Warren County. It’s a shame to think the program could be suspended because of a recent opinion by the state attorney general. The opinion points out a problem with Warren County’s current policy that randomly drug tests students in grades…

By James Clark The city of McMinnville has an interesting group called the Historic Zoning Commission which tries ‘ with varying degrees of success ‘ to regulate what downtown property owners can and cannot do with their buildings. As you might expect, the Historic Zoning Commission is not always embraced. That’s especially true when you…

NASHVILLE (AP) ‘ The long-term future of the Nashville Predators hasn’t been settled yet, but the NHL team that’s up for sale will open the season in Music City on Oct. 4 against the Colorado Avalanche in a schedule released Wednesday. The Predators, who will be celebrating their 10th year as a franchise and ninth…

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) ‘ Dale Earnhardt Jr. was a freshman in high school when he figured out that image is everything and for him to be considered cool, he had to have a pair of old-school adidas Samba Classic sneakers. With a clean look and simple colors, the Sambas were an extension of Earnhardt’s…

Warren County’s 13-year-old Babe Ruth all-stars will be traveling to Cookeville today to compete in the substate tournament after winning the District 4 championship last week. Pictured are, from row, from left, Zack Rubley, Aaron Taylor, Austin Green, Nick Grandey and Jordan Dennis. Second row, Brett Mullican, Logan Walker, Logan McCormick, Justin Ware, J.T. Morgan…

KNOXVILLE (AP) ‘ The head coach isn’t getting a raise this year, but Phillip Fulmer’s nine assistants will be getting a collective $161,000 boost in pay, Tennessee Athletic Director Mike Hamilton said Thursday. They also are getting contract extensions. ‘Coach Fulmer has done a tremendous job assembling one of the best staffs in the SEC…