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Republicans begin push for voter ID law even after voters rejected it in 2012
Minnesota Senate Republicans, defending a narrow 35-32 majority in the November election, signaled a major push for a new voter ID law in the upcoming legislative session that begins Feb. 11. Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, a Nisswa Republican, released a video on social media channels Friday saying the caucus will advocate hard for a law […]
Daily Reformer: immigration, people and manure.
Good morning. Today is Holocaust Remembrance Day. This morning at the Reformer I came out of reporting retirement to write a little piece about the Senate Republican push to pass a voter ID law in the upcoming legislative session, even though Minnesota rejected just such a measure in 2012, by 110,000 votes. Also this morning, […]
Daily Reformer: Lewis and his no lose campaign
Good morning! A programming note: I’m in Washington for meetings and will have no Daily Reformer on Friday. This morning at the Reformer, Rilyn Eischens tallied up the 2018 CEO and worker pay at Minnesota’s Fortune 500s and determined CEOs make 278 times the pay of the average worker. The data is all there in […]
Coolican: Amy Klobuchar and the scourge of the bullying boss
Sen. Amy Klobuchar shared the endorsement of The New York Times with Sen. Elizabeth Warren this week, one of several events indicating a wisp of momentum for our senior senator. Her legendary work ethic — which has taken her to all 99 Iowa counties in a replay of her approach here in Minnesota — seems […]
Daily Reformer: Warsame leaving the council? Trouble at DHS
Good afternoon! Toddler got a double ear infection so you’re getting your Daily Reformer during his nap. Let it be an epic nap! The mess gets messier: Dept. of Human Services CFO Alexandra Kotze is leaving to become CFO of Ramsey County. Last day Feb. 7. Recall this Star Tribune story from November: “The Minnesota […]
Daily Reformer: Happy MLK Day
Good morning and happy MLK Jr. Day. Government is closed for the day, but Daily Reformer is not. Gov. Tim Walz was at the 30th Annual MLK Holiday Breakfast at the Armory in Minneapolis this morning and then will host the 34th Annual MLK Day Celebration at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in […]
Daily Reformer: Klobuchar’s trouble on the home front
Good afternoon! Happy early voting day! Read Aaron Booth’s Minnesota presidential primary primer, filled with recent polling and data-rich maps. It should give you a decent idea of the state’s current political profile, especially on the DFL side, which is where all the primary action is. A side note: Aaron is a sharp but entirely […]
Daily Reformer: Biden’s Irish grief & Gazelka lets his hair down
Good morning! Exclusive on the Reformer: Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka gave an interview in November to Andrew Wommack, a televangelist with very conservative politics who makes all sorts of faith healing claims, including that his child rose from the dead cuz prayer. Anyway, Gazelka, who comes across as an avuncular, gentle soul around the […]
Daily Reformer: Klobuchar takes credit for Minnesota civic activism
Good morning! New this morning: In an unsurprising hit to the presidential campaign of Sen. Amy Klobuchar, TakeAction Minnesota has endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders for president. The lefty grassroots groups boasts 50,000 members — a strong army of volunteers for Sanders campaign here. The Dems debated with less than 3 weeks until Iowa. No one […]
Daily Reformer: Who will be the next Senate minority leader?
“You think they're going to take down one of their own when they have this reapportionment coming?”
Welcome to the Minnesota Reformer
Our family visited the Minnesota History Center last weekend, and I was struck by the simple power of an exhibit showing a tiny prairie homestead from the 1870s. It’s a dark, earthen hovel with little more than a bedroll and a stove. A video projection shows the harsh weather out the “window,” first rain and […]