Election saga rumbles on

The American presidential election saga continues - but there is little sign of fatigue in the newspaper coverage.

The Mirror dedicates the first seven pages to the legacy of candidate George W Bush.

A front-page picture of Mr Bush set against a dark background and the headline: "Lethal", is followed by six pages filled with the faces of all those who have been executed in Texas while Mr Bush has been state Governor.

"It's scary to think he might become the world's most powerful man," says the paper.

The Financial Times is also worried. It argues that no one will ever know who "really" won the election.

The Daily Telegraph focuses on the psychological fallout for the eventual loser.

Both men, it says have been robbed of the traditional rituals of victory and defeat and are now trapped in limbo - nine days on and with no definite end in sight.

Euro debate

The Financial Times believes Peter Mandelson might have reopened the Cabinet debate over Labour's strategy on the euro.

The paper reports a speech given by the Northern Ireland Secretary to a private dinner of business leaders on Wednesday.

It says Mr Mandelson admitted that a tactical error had been made in believing the British people could be persuaded to join the euro, by economic arguments alone.

He said the political ground needed to be prepared also.

The Financial Times says Mr Mandelson's comments come at a time when ministers have been trying to close down the issue and are certain to irritate the Chancellor, Gordon Brown.

Air traffic clash

Both the Daily Telegraph and The Guardian predict a constitutional clash between Lords and Commons over the partial privatisation of Britain's air traffic service.

Conservative peers tell the Guardian that the halving of the government's Commons majority on the issue gives them a legitimate right to vote again to delay the sell-off.

The Times says time is running out for the current Parliamentary session and ministers might have to consider dropping the sale to avoid losing their whole Transport Bill.

Desert stars

There is renewed interest this morning in the ancient Pyramids at Giza - the mystery of whose construction has been entombed for almost 5,000 years.

The Daily Mail notes that teams of archaeologists have failed to explain convincingly how the Egyptians worked out the wonder's perfect alignment between north and south - in an age before they had the luxury of a pole star.

But now an Cambridge University Egyptologist, Doctor Kate Spence, has concluded that the Pyramids' engineers achieved the feat by using a pair of stars which never set.

Spending spree

The papers have fun with Elton John's revelations in the High Court about his spending habits.

The Times publishes a guide for anyone wanting to emulate the pop star's feat of blowing £40m in 20 months.

Among his outgoings were £293,000 on flowers, £50,000 a week on jewellery and a one-off Versace shopping trip costing an estimated £250,000.

Morse mourned

There is widespread reaction to the final episode of the television detective drama, Morse, broadcast on Wednesday.

The nation is in mourning, declares the Daily Express; it describes the hero's demise as probably the most public and well-predicted since the shooting of J.R. Ewing in 'Dallas'.

Up to 20 million viewers are thought to have tuned in.

The Independent sums up the thoughts of many: "Farewell, Inspector. Now long live all the repeats".