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NPR's Julie Rovner reports on what voters are hearing -- and not hearing -- from Democrats and Republicans about their effort to add a prescription drug benefit to Medicare. Neither party plans come close to lifting the financial burden felt by Medicare recipients with high drug costs because a real solution would cost a fortune.

Reporter Alex Van Oss went in search of the perfect cup of coffee. He found it, not at some sterile, suburban Starbucks outlet in this country, but in the venerable, old world city of Budapest, Hungary. He brings us along for a most refreshing cup.

Host Jacki Lyden speaks with fire fighter Tim Duck about the fires in the West. Duck has been fighting the fires in the Salmon Challis National Forest in Idaho where U.S. Marines have recently joined the battle.

From member station WXXI in Rochester, New York Brenda Tremblay reports on a new biography about Martha Matilda Harper, one of the most successful and innovative female entrepreneurs of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. She is credited with inventing the concept of the Franchise. (3:09) Martha Matilda Harper and the American Dream : How One Woman Changed the Face of Modern Business (Writing American Women by Jane R. Plitt is published by Syracuse Univ Pr (Trade); ISBN: 08156

NPR's Scott Horsley reports that the shortage of electricity will be the top priority for California legislators who reconvene today. Across the state, the high demand for power has caused the electric bills to soar. And with no relief in sight, consumers are demanding the legislature steps in to regulate prices.

Host Howard Berkes talks with NPR's Cokie Roberts about political events this week. Vice President Al Gore has selected Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman to be his running mate. Lieberman, would be the first Jewish vice presidential candidate in American history. A formal announcement from Gore is expected tomorrow in Tennessee.

Host Howard Berkes talks with Sandy Tolan, author of Me & Hank: A Boy and His Hero, Twenty-five Years Later. Hank Aaron eclipsed Babe Ruth's career homerun record of 714 by 41, but Tolen says Aaron doesn't get the attention he deserves, particularly in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Critics point out that Aaron played in more games and didn't have Ruth's style, but Tolan suspects Aaron's outspokeness about race has affected his popularity. (5:46) Me and Hank: A Boy and His Hero, Twenty-Five Years Later by Sandy Tolan is published by Free Press; ISBN: 06848

NPR's Steve Krueger reports on an outdoor equipment company that hopes to capture the international market through its rapidly growing online store.

Jacki talks with George Hudler, professor of Plant Pathology at Cornell University, about a giant fungus. The fungus, which looks like a giant mushroom, is spreading across a forest in Eastern Oregon. It is thought to be the largest living organism in the world.

Liane reads letters from listeners.