// a href = ./ //

GRANITE CITY, Ill. (AP) - Kraft Foods is weighing whether to spend $40 million to expand a southwestern Illinois plant if the city and state provide about $400,000 to widen a road in front of the site.

The Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis reports that the move would add 30 jobs to the 660,000 square foot plant and warehouse. The facilities now have more than 400 workers. The plant produces Capri Sun and Kool-Aid beverages.

As part of the project, the Illinois Department of Transportation would provide $300,000 for the road widening. Kraft says it's needed to allow trucks to turn into the plant.

Granite City Economic Development Director Jonathan Ferry says the matter may go before the city council sometime between April and June.

The Granite City facility became part of Kraft in 1991.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republicans say President Barack Obama's second-term agenda will bring more tax increases and deficit spending, hurting middle-class families at the expense of economic growth.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio says in excerpts released ahead of his Republican response to Obama's State of the Union address that he hopes the president will "abandon his obsession with raising taxes" and try to grow the economy.

Rubio says the nation needs a balanced budget amendment to curb spending and says he won't support changes to Medicare that will hurt seniors like his mother.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, in excerpts from his tea party response, says Washington acts in a way that your family never could - spending money it doesn't have and borrowing from future generations.

Local governments may soon lose the power to ban smoking in casinos within their jurisdictions.

That's what State Rep. Bill Otto is proposing. The St. Charles Democrat is sponsoring a bill that would prohibit local smoking bans if smoking is still allowed at a competing casino within 75 miles.

If passed, the measure would prevent the St. Louis County Council from ending the casino exemption in the county's smoking ban -- a move that has been debated in the county council in recent weeks.