Weekly scorecard
Winners
U.S. Rep. Mike Pence: Hoosier Republican is recipient of Sunshine in Government Award given by Newspaper Association of America. Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., shares award, tells hundreds of editors and publishers that Pence is one of the most effective members of Congress. Meanwhile …
John McCain: Republican presidential candidate endorses pro-First Amendment media shield bill pushed by Pence to protect reporters who legitimately refuse to reveal confidential sources to federal courts.
Deshaun Thomas: Bishop Luers sophomore wins Tiffany Gooden Award for best basketball player in the Summit Athletic Conference.
Decatur: As heated presidential primary campaign goes beyond the state’s biggest cities, small area city – population 9,528 – gets visit from former President Bill Clinton, who fills Bellmont Middle School.
Toss-ups
United Way of Allen County: Despite difficult economy, organization meets 2007 workplace fundraising goal of $4.8 million for local social service organizations. But reduction in grants leaves agency raising less money than the year before.
Milestones
Diner’s Club: The world’s oldest credit card – dating to 1950 – is sold by Citigroup to Discover, expanding reach of the Discover brand beyond the U.S. to worldwide purchases.
Ollie Johnston: You may not know his name, but you know his work. “Snow White.” “Alice in Wonderland.” “101 Dalmatians.” “Mary Poppins.” Johnston was the last living member of the Disney studio’s core group of nine original animators responsible for many classic movies. Johnston, who died this week at 95, listed “Bambi” as among his best achievements.
Biggest airline: Delta and Northwest merge in $3 billion deal that will give the new Delta 17.5 percent of market share, outpacing current No. 1 American’s 15.8. Next up: United and Continental?
Losers
Barack Obama: “Bitter Midwesterners” remark, though taken somewhat out of context, poses setback for candidate, particularly in Pennsylvania and Indiana primaries.
Cindy McCain: “Favorite family recipes” attributed to candidate’s wife and posted on campaign Web site were actually lifted from Food Network site.
Last month, 303 people were murdered in the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez, which lies alongside El Paso. This month, the dead include three men killed by a sophisticated, remote-controlled car bomb – the first in Mexico’s drug wars.