Protesters gathered outside the home of Minneapolis’ interim police chief on Sunday night, following the death of Amir Locke last week. The activists said they were calling for Minneapolis Interim Chief Amelia Huffman, as well as Officer Mark Hanneman, and Mayor Jacob Frey, to resign.
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Several Minnesota officials have responded to the death of Amir Locke at the hands of Minneapolis Police earlier this week. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said, “Amir Locke’s life mattered. He was only 22 years old and had his whole life ahead of him. His family and friends must now live the rest of their lives without him.”
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A Minnesota gubernatorial candidate released a video statement saying that he stands with the Canadian truckers. Dr. Scott Jensen, a frontrunner in Minnesota’s 2022 gubernatorial election said, “From Minnesota, to Canada, and beyond… I stand with them.”
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The Interim Chief of Police with the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) notified a local Black Lives Matter activist about an officer involved shooting that left an African American man dead on Wednesday morning.
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About 100 Minnesota protesters filled a pedestrian bridge over a highway on Saturday, showing solidarity with Canadian truckers. Protesters held signs that said, “Thank you truckers,” “F— Joe Biden,” and “F— Trudeau.”
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According to a restaurant database called Open Table, seated dining in Minneapolis is down 76% since 2019. As of Monday, January 23, the database said dining rates were only down 67%, but it dropped another 9% on Tuesday.
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The governor of Wisconsin has announced that he has distributed over 5 million pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) to fight COVID so far in 2022. In a press release obtained by The Wisconsin Daily Star, Governor Tony Evers said, “Keeping Wisconsinites healthy and safe continues to be my top priority as the landscape of this pandemic continues to shift and evolve.”
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A Minnesota gubernatorial candidate released a statement saying Governor Tim Walz (D) is trying to buy the election with Walz checks. Kendall Qualls said, “Governor Walz is trying to buy the election with ‘Walz checks’ without providing any actual economic relief for Minnesota families.”
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A Wisconsin Representative responded to Dr. Anthony Fauci’s approach to masking school aged children. Representative Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08) said in a Twitter video, “By masking kids, you’re impairing their education, their development, and their childhood.”
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Minnesota Republican lawmakers criticized the new Afghan refugee resettlement programs by the Minneapolis-based social welfare group Alight, formerly known as the American Refugee Committee, which was announced at a Saturday press conference by former Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), where the two asked for donations to support the effort.
“My hope is that we have improved the process, learning from our failings of the past. The conflict in Afghanistan was our nation’s longest,” said State Representative Jeremy Munson (R-Lake Crystal) to The Minnesota Sun.
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A newly elected Minneapolis council member made a statement on Saturday after she defended a homeless encampment from eviction two weeks ago. Robin Wonsley-Worlobah, a Democratic Socialist, said that all pending evictions from Minneapolis homeless encampments need to be stopped. Wonsley-Worlobah was elected to the Minneapolis City Council in November.
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Wisconsin politicians and abortion organizations took to Twitter to ask state legislators to pass the Abortion Rights Preservation Act on Saturday, the 49th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade court decision. A Better Wisconsin, a self-proclaimed research and communications organization for progressives, tweeted out, “Together, we must ensure that abortions are legal and safe for ALL who seek one.”
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A 53 year old Minnesota TikToker pled guilty to impersonating a federal agent on Friday. According to the District of Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office, the TikToker had over 10,000 followers on his account where he used a fraudulent name and pretended to be a federal agent with the United States Department of Homeland Security.
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Several Minneapolis restaurants initiated a lawsuit on Thursday against the mayor of Minneapolis over the COVID vaccine mandate that took effect last week. According to the complaint, the restaurants are seeking a judgement from the court that the emergency declaration requiring restaurant and bar owners to verify COVID vaccine status from Mayor Jacob Frey be considered null and void.
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The Minnesota Democrat Farmer Labor (DFL) party has announced that they will be requiring proof of COVID vaccination during in-person precinct caucusing on February 1. They are offering a contactless caucus for the unvaccinated or others who are uncomfortable caucusing in person, while some entire districts will be utilizing the contactless caucus process.
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Governor Tony Evers (D) joined the push to pass Senate Bill 75, to repeal Wisconsin’s 172 year old abortion ban, which will eliminate certain abortion prohibitions and felony charges associated with obtaining an abortion under the old law. The abortion ban law has been unable to be enforced due to the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, but if that court decision were to be overturned, the law would have taken effect.
The bill reads, “This bill repeals a statute relating to abortion that has been held unenforceable by a federal court. Under that statute, any person, other than the mother, who intentionally destroys the life of an unborn child is guilty of a Class H felony.”
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The Minnesota Democrat Farmer Labor (DFL) Party released a statement commemorating President Joe Biden’s first year in office, saying that Minnesotans are better off today than they were last year.
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Representative Bryan Steil (R-WI-01) responded to President Joe Biden’s press conference, calling out President Joe Biden for questioning the integrity of future elections. Steil said in a press release to The Wisconsin Daily Star, “For over a year, Democrats have been saying anyone who questions election integrity is paramount to treason.”
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A bagel shop in Minneapolis made the decision to close indoor dining on Wednesday due to the COVID vaccine mandate taking effect. Rise Bagel Co., an organic artisan bagelry located in the North Loop of Minneapolis, announced in social media posts on Tuesday that they made the “tough decision” to close their indoor dining, saying that “All are welcome here.”
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Representative Bryan Steil (R-WI-01) is co-sponsoring the Open Schools Act with Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL-13), “to support students and allow parents to make the best decision for their family.” According to a press release from Davis, the Open Schools Act would provide families with up to $10,000 per student “to seek alternative forms of in-person education” if the public school that the students attend has switched to distance or online learning due to COVID.
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A local group called The Exodus Minnesota is hosting an alternative education expo. The Exodus is run by five black moms who want to show other families in the Twin Cities the benefits to alternative education. The website explains that they believe that public schools have become “centers of racist indoctrination.”
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Wisconsin Republican legislators introduced the Stronger Workforce Initiative to fight the growing labor shortage. According to a joint press release from the Wisconsin Senate Republicans and Wisconsin Assembly Republicans, the initiative would be a “multipronged approach to address the employment crisis facing small businesses throughout Wisconsin.”
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Wisconsin legislators are proposing making May “Law Enforcement Appreciation Month.” The resolution was introduced on Friday and is written and co-sponsored by over three dozen lawmakers in both the Wisconsin State Senate and Assembly.
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Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) responded to the recent spike in inflation, calling it a “tax on the middle class.” Johnson said in an interview with Fox News that “Biden and the Democrats have spent trillions to pay people to sit at home and not work.”
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A Rochester man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the May 2020 arson of a pawn shop that led to the death of a man. According to court documents, on May 28, 2020, in the riots that followed the death of George Floyd, Montez Terriel Lee, along with other unnamed individuals, broke into the Max It Pawn Shop on East Lake Street in Minneapolis.
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Citizens have begun a recall effort for Hennepin County Sheriff Dave Hutchinson following his refusal to resign over his recent DUI conviction. Details surrounding the petition are circulating online and it will need 132,451 signatures in order to succeed.
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Several Republican candidates responded to the recently announced COVID vaccine mandates in Minneapolis and St. Paul. The mandates will go into effect on Wednesday, requiring restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and any other place of “public accommodation” where food or drink is served to only allow vaccinated patrons inside.
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Several Wisconsin Representatives joined the call for President Joe Biden to fire Education Secretary Miguel Cardona for his involvement in a letter that labeled concerned parents “domestic terrorists.” The letter was spearheaded by Representative Lisa McClain (R-MI-10).
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Attorney General Keith Ellison has been “doing the bidding of special interest groups” regarding green energy, a lawsuit alleges. The New House Republican Caucus shared on their Facebook page that the oral arguments were heard in the Minnesota Supreme Court on Wednesday and a decision can be expected within 30 days.
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Hennepin County Jail is reportedly refusing to book suspects with warrants from other counties. In audio from the local police scanner, obtained by Crime Watch Minneapolis, the dispatcher can be heard announcing that “for the next two weeks, Hennepin Jail is not taking anyone with just warrants from outside Hennepin County.”
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State Representative Jeremy Munson (R-Lake Crystal) responded to Minnesota’s new COVID vaccine incentives for kids, calling it bribery and coercion. The State of Minnesota and Gov. Tim Walz (D) announced that they will be giving every family of 5 to 11 year old children $200 for getting fully vaccinated in the months of January and February.
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Wisconsin Representative Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI-05) introduced a motion to protect veteran G.I. Bill benefits from the Biden Administration’s COVID vaccine mandate. Fitzgerald shared his concerns on the floor, saying, “the Secretary of Defense issued a directive requiring mandatory COVID vaccination for all service members, including those in the Ready Reserve, and the National Guard. Despite the challenges this vaccine mandate currently faces in court, the Defense Department has proceeded to discharge those who refuse the vaccine.”
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Timothy Chmielewski, the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Deputies Association Union President, announced a COVID vaccine mandate for his union’s employees on an internal email with a subject line that read, “You will be terminated.”
John Gilmore posted a screenshot of the email on Twitter, which was from Chmielewski. It is unclear if the mandate applies only to those within the sheriff’s office or if it is a county-wide requirement.
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Empower Wisconsin, a conservative political organization, has claimed that Governor Tony Evers (D) hired a lawyer to “go after” citizens who were petitioning for the removal of District Attorney (DA) John Chisholm.
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Minnesota House Republicans responded to the formal announcement that the Minnesota School Board Association (MSBA) withdrew from the agreement with the national affiliate, the National School Boards Association (NSBA).
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A Brooklyn Park man was sentenced to over two years in prison and over $30,000 restitution for his participation in the May 2020 riots and arson. According to the District of Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office, “Samuel Elliott Frey, 20, and co-defendant McKenzy Ann DeGidio Dunn, 21, joined other individuals who had gathered near the Great Health and Nutrition store located at 1360 University Avenue West, in St. Paul.”
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Dominick Black, the friend of Kyle Rittenhouse who helped him purchase his AR-15, has taken a plea deal of a $2,000 fine. Black was charged with two counts of intentionally giving a dangerous weapon to a person under the age of 18.
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Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced the launch of a program ‘MN HEALS 2.0’ on Tuesday morning following several letters asking him to address the crime surge. “The crime rates experienced in our communities in 2021 have raised important questions and concerns about approaches to prevention, law enforcement and prosecutions,” Freeman said.
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The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is now studying COVID within the deer population. Tami Ryan, the chief of the DNR’s wildlife health section told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that “Wisconsin officials recently received guidance, funding and supplies from USDA to look for the virus in deer in the Badger State.”
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Five Hennepin County Commissioners have joined the call for the resignation of Sheriff Dave Hutchinson following his DUI conviction. Angela Conley, Chris LaTondresse, Marion Greene, Jeffrey Lunde, and Irene Fernando all have issued statements asking him to step down from his position as sheriff.
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Representative Dean Phillips (D-MN-03) introduced a resolution to deem January 6 “Democracy Day.” The resolution is also supported by Representative Betty McCollum (D-MN-04), saying that she is an “original cosponsor.”
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Milwaukee Public Schools voted to extend virtual learning another week, after making the last minute decision to not have in-person classes following Winter Break, which Representative Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08) said is based on ‘outdated science.’
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The Hennepin County Chiefs of Police Association as well as a group of mayors within the county wrote letters to the Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman asking for accountability and more prosecution of criminals.
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Wisconsin Representative Thomas Tiffany (R-WI-07) and Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08) joined Representative Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08) in demanding answers from the Biden administration regarding the use of COVID funds to house illegal immigrants.
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Wisconsin politicians responded to the anniversary of January 6 and President Joe Biden’s remarks on Thursday. Both Democrats and Republicans had differing opinions about what the nation’s perspective should be, with some calling it an “armed insurrection” and others saying that they believe the nation has more important things to focus on.
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Several Minnesota Democrat legislators made statements on the one year anniversary of January 6, 2021, where several protesters entered the U.S. Capitol building during the certification of the 2020 presidential election. All the remarks held a common theme, calling out the event as “insurrection” and an “attack on democracy.”
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A Wisconsin university has announced that they will be requiring the COVID booster shot for their students and “strongly recommending” it for faculty and staff. Marquette University, located in Milwaukee, has announced that all eligible students will need to have received a booster shot of the COVID vaccine by February 1.
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The Mayor of Green Bay is asking for sanctions against Michael Gableman, with the Wisconsin Office of Special Counsel, for his actions in the election investigation. Eric Genrich’s attorney Jeffrey Mandell made the request in Waukesha County Circuit Court, claiming Gableman made “incorrect statements.”
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Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) responded after backlash regarding his view on COVID vaccines. Johnson said, “I won’t apologize for being in awe of creation or for the assumption that immunity from COVID infection might outperform immunity created in a lab.”
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St. Paul and Minneapolis mayors announced on Wednesday morning that they are reinstating mask mandates for city buildings and licensed businesses when social distancing cannot be maintained.
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