Tag: Minnesota

Republican Jeff Johnson Closing In On Tim Walz In Minnesota Governor’s Race

Anthony Gockowski
Jeff Johnson, Tim Walz

The latest poll out of Suffolk University shows that Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson (pictured, left) trails his opponent Rep. Tim Walz (pictured, right) by only five points in the race for Minnesota’ governorship. The poll, conducted between August 17 and August 20, surveyed 500 Minnesotans on their opinions of candidates running in the upcoming gubernatorial and senatorial races, all of which are guaranteed to be high-stakes races for the typically blue state. Recurring physical and mental health issues have sidelined Gov. Mark Dayton, who will not seek reelection, leaving the Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party endorsement open for Rep. Tim Walz, who is leading Johnson by a small margin of five points, according to Suffolk. In the governor’s race, Minnesota voters ranked healthcare as the most important issue facing the state, with gun control measures placing near the bottom at just 4.8 percent. The economy and taxes both tied for second at 16 percent. Among those polled, 47 percent answered that they are “extremely interested” in the race,” while another 32 percent responded that they are “very interested.” 90 percent of respondents said they will “almost certainly” vote in the upcoming midterm elections. Looking at the two Senate races in Minnesota,…

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Keith Ellison’s Daughter Criticizes Accuser for ‘Exploiting A Movement’

Anthony Gockowski
Amirah Ellison

Rep. Keith Ellison’s daughter is now speaking out against his father’s accuser, saying the Minnesota Democrat’s ex-girlfriend is “exploiting a movement.” In early August, accusations surfaced on Facebook that Ellison committed an act of domestic violence against his ex-girlfriend, who later claimed to have a “tape” of the incident. Ellison and his campaign for Minnesota attorney general have repeatedly denied the accusations, saying the “video does not exist” and “any characterization otherwise is false.” Ellison managed to win his primary election, but the controversy continues to loom over his campaign as it prepares for November. To help, Ellison’s daughter Amirah Ellison has decided to join the fight against Karen Monahan, Ellison’s accuser. “The kinds of accusations Karen Monahan has thrown at my dad, Keith Ellison, and her inability to stand firm on the truth are very much qualities inherent to the Karen I know,” the former congressman’s daughter wrote in a long-winded Facebook rant. “I can’t sit back and watch as Karen’s tried and true red flags appear and the public selectively ignore them,” she continues, detailing in length her personal experiences living with Monahan, which allegedly include losing her bedroom to store Monahan’s personal items, and being accused of…

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Democrat Congressional Candidate Dean Phillips Supports Making Minnesota A Sanctuary State

Anthony Gockowski
Dean Phillips

In a heated first debate, incumbent Rep. Erik Paulsen squared off against his Democratic challenger Dean Phillips in their battle for Minnesota’s Third Congressional District. Although Paulsen has safely held the seat since 2009, Minnesota’s Democractic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party is hopeful that their candidate can pull off an upset, since the district went to Hillary Clinton during the 2016 Election. At one particular tense moment of Tuesday’s debate, Phillips was cornered into revealing that he would support gubernatorial candidate Rep. Tim Walz’s plan to declare Minnesota a sanctuary state, but only after insisting that he’s “in favor of law enforcement.” “I believe we need comprehensive immigration reform because we need more thoughtful laws and regulations that are decent, that take into account all the dynamics and the context in which they exist. And we need to hold people accountable in all of our laws and regulations,” Phillips responded to the question, saying he believes “laws in this country should be followed.” Phillips’ answer prompted the moderator to repeat his question, to which the DFL-backed candidate admitted that he would offer “short term” support of a sanctuary state option. “I believe humanity transcends nations,” he continued. “Yes, humans come first in my…

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VP Pence Will Return to Minnesota, Highlighting High-Stakes Election for Republicans

Anthony Gockowski
Mike Pence

Vice President Mike Pence plans to return to Minnesota for the second time in one month, highlighting the unusual importance of the consistently blue state for the 2018 elections. On August 8, both Pence and President Trump visited Duluth, Minn. to campaign for Pete Stauber, a candidate for the state’s Eighth Congressional District who won last week’s primary. Republican Party of Minnesota Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan announced Pence’s return in an August 20 press release, expressing her excitement to welcome him back. “This election cycle, the future of our country and state are on the line and its a priority of the MN GOP to send more Republicans to Washington DC to support the President’s agenda,” Carnahan remarked. She went on to point out the high-stakes nature of Minnesota for Republicans in the 2018 election, calling it an “election year unlike any we have seen since perhaps the late 1970s.” “We look forward to supporting our current administration and carrying them through to the 2020 election,” she added. As indicated by Carnahan’s statement, the state GOP has stood by the Trump administration on the campaign trail, perhaps explaining former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty’s upset loss to Jeff Johnson in the primaries.…

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Keith Ellison Likely to be Replaced By Candidate With Equally Controversial Past in Minnesota’s ‘Anti-Israel Seat’

Anthony Gockowski
Ellison, Omar

Minnesota State Rep. Ilhan Omar is still serving out her first term as the first Somali-American legislator, but she is poised to inherit what some have called the “anti-Israel seat” in the U.S. House of Representatives. Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District has remained a Democratic stronghold since the 1970’s, and Omar should easily defeat her opponent Republican Jennifer Zielinski in the race to replace Rep. Keith Ellison, who left Congress to run for Minnesota attorney general. Like her soon-to-be predecessor, Omar brings with her a healthy resentment of the Israeli state, notoriously tweeting in 2014 that “Israel has hypnotized the world.” “May Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel,” the tweet continued, later referring to Israel as an “apartheid regime.” Omar’s intriguing past, which involves four years in a Kenyan refugee camp, goes well beyond her contempt for Israel. Minneapolis attorney and writer Scott Johnson, who dubbed MN-05 the “anti-Israel seat,” wrote a 2016 article claiming that Omar had married the father of her three children in 2002, but then married her alleged brother in 2009 for fraudulent purposes. Omar obviously denied the claims, calling them “baseless and absurd,” but Johnson insisted that the claims…

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Johnson and Walz Spar Over Taxes, Refugee Resettlement In First Minnesota Gubernatorial Debates

Anthony Gockowski
MN Governor Debate

It’s been just one week since Rep. Tim Walz and Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson won their respective primaries, but the two are already hitting the debate circuit in their race for Minnesota’s governor seat. On Friday, the two went head-to-head in front of a live audience in Nisswa, Minn., showing right off the bat that the fundamental differences between the two candidacies will come down to taxes and diversity-related issues. Johnson, on the one hand, promised not to raise a single tax, prompting his opponent Walz to criticize him for closing “the door on any potential negotiation.” He put himself “in a box that does not allow you ideologically to have that discussion,” Walz suggested. While both agreed that costs of healthcare in the state are too high, their visions of a solution were far different. Walz expressed support for a single-payer healthcare system, while Johnson favored a free-market solution. “I don’t believe that as governor I should be able to tell someone that if you think limited coverage is best for you, I know better. Let’s give people more options and choice,” Johnson commented, though Walz retorted by revealing that he believes “healthcare is a basic human right.”…

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Muslim Celebration of ‘Unity and Power’ at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minnesota, With Chants of ‘Allahu Akbar’

Anthony Gockowski

More than 20,000 Muslims are expected to gather at U.S. Bank Stadium Tuesday morning in celebration of the Islamic holiday known as Eid al-Ahda commemorating the sacrifice of Abraham. As such, the holiday, known as the “Feast of Sacrifice,” often involves the ritual sacrifice of an animal, though organizers of Tuesday’s event set to be held in the new Minnesota Vikings stadium have assured the public that no animals will be slaughtered inside the stadium. The two-day event was first announced to the public August 7 on Somali TV of Minnesota when a group of local imams gathered outside the stadium, calling the celebration an opportunity to display the “unity and the power of our community.” In attendance at the press conference was Dr. Waleed Idris al-Maneese, who leads the Islamic University of Minnesota and serves as the imam of a Bloomington mosque. His mosque has produced at least five Islamic extremists who have gone on to fight with either ISIS or al-Shabaab, according to WND. Leo Hohmann, an author and journalist who has spent much of his career covering radical Islam, had former imam Dr. Mark Christian translate Maneese’s comments made during the press conference. According to Christian, Maneese…

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NOW Calls on Keith Ellison to Drop Out of Race for Minnesota Attorney General Amid Abuse Allegations

Anthony Gockowski
Keith Ellison

Rep. Keith Ellison managed to win last week’s primary in his bid for Minnesota attorney general, but one organization is now calling on the controversial Democrat to drop out of the race amid abuse allegations. The Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party offered Ellison its official endorsement Saturday during its state executive committee meeting. Speaking to a room full of delegates, 82 percent of whom went for Ellison, the former United States congressman addressed the allegations. “Despite everything, I still care about her as a person and I don’t want anybody to say anything insulting to her at all. I want you to know that I am committed to listening to all of the voices of every victim of abuse,” Ellison said, according to Yahoo News. “I recognize and hear those voices of so many women who were silenced when they needed to be heard,” he continued. After Saturday’s endorsement, DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin released a statement in support of Ellison, saying that the “party stands with him in his campaign” and looks “forward to working together to keep this seat.” “As attorney general, Keith will be a champion for families and fight to hold powerful interests accountable,” Martin said of his…

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Keith Ellison Still Popular Among Dems Despite Abuse Allegations, Support of Cop Killers

Anthony Gockowski
Keith Ellison

Democrat Rep. Keith Ellison is facing accusations of domestic abuse from his former girlfriend, yet still managed to win in Tuesday’s primary for Minnesota attorney general. The outspoken critic of President Trump announced in June that he would be leaving his seat representing Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District, which has remained a Democratic stronghold since at least 1979 when Martin Sabo took office. On Saturday, abuse accusations against Ellison surfaced on Facebook when his ex-girlfriend’s son claimed to have seen video of the Democrat caught in the act. Karen Monahan later confirmed that what her son was claiming was true, and that she had in fact been physically dragged off of a bed by Ellison while he screamed at her. Monahan, arguing that she shouldn’t need to release the video, claims that she put her “camera on to video him,” but Ellison and his campaign have denied the accusations. “Karen and I were in a long-term relationship, which ended in 2016, and I still care deeply for her well-being. This video does not exist because I have never behaved in this way, and any characterization otherwise is false,” Ellison said in a statement, according to CBS. He also referenced the accusations…

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In Upset Over Pawlenty, Johnson Will Face Off Against Dem Walz in Minnesota Gubernatorial Race

Anthony Gockowski
Jeff Johnson, Tim Walz

After a shocking upset over former Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Republican nominee Jeff Johnson is set to face off against Rep. Tim Walz in the Minnesota gubernatorial contest. Pawlenty, the last Republican to occupy the Governor’s mansion, failed to secure the nomination from the state party, but vastly outspent the Hennepin County commissioner in his bid for his old job. Throughout the campaign, Pawlenty struggled to distance himself from his criticism of President Trump, previously calling him “unhinged and unfit.” Although Johnson had issues of his own with Trump, he managed to position himself as the Trump-favorite along the campaign trail, earning the president’s “total endorsement” after his Tuesday night win. “Jeff Johnson of Minnesota had a big night in winning the Republican nomination for Governor against a very strong and well known opponent. Thanks for all the support you showed me,” Trump tweeted. “You have my complete and total endorsement. You will win in November!” Jeff Johnson of Minnesota had a big night in winning the Republican nomination for Governor against a very strong and well known opponent! Thanks for all of the support you showed me. You have my complete and total Endorsement. You will win in November! —…

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Wisconsin and New Jersey are Among the States Looking To Copy Minnesota Model Of Using Federal Funds To Lower Insurance Premiums

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Minnesota capitol

by Evie Fordham   Several states including Wisconsin and New Jersey are seeking to copy Minnesota’s model of federal reinsurance program funding that contributed to a 13-percent drop in premium rates in the state from 2017 to 2018. The Minnesota legislature adopted the program, which uses mostly federal funds to help insurers cover people with medical bills typically between $50,000 and $250,000, in 2017, reported Kaiser Health News. The program enables insurers to lower premiums and is a policy encouraged by the Trump administration. Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker is focusing his campaign on his health care accomplishments, including support for his state’s reinsurance program, reported RealClear Politics. He says premiums will be 11 percent lower than they would have been without the program in 2019, reported HealthLeaders Media. Minnesota’s 2018 reinsurance program received $131 million from the federal government, and many other states have applied or are applying for reinsurance program funding. Alaska and Oregon have programs similar to Minnesota’s in place. The main difference between Alaska’s program, which started in 2016, and other states’ is that Alaska’s covers all costs for people with “highest-cost conditions.” Wisconsin and Maine were approved in July, while Idaho, Louisiana, Maryland and New Jersey are working toward having programs set up by…

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DNC Breaks Silence On Keith Ellison Domestic Abuse Allegations

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Keith Ellison

by Peter Hasson    – The DNC is “reviewing” domestic abuse allegations against Minnesota Rep. and Deputy DNC Chairman Keith Ellison.  – Ellison is accused of abusing his ex-girlfriend, Sierra Club activist Karen Monahan.  – The DNC should have suspended Ellison “at a minimum,” according to the former DNC communications director. After more than 72 hours of silence, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) weighed in Tuesday evening on domestic allegations against deputy chairman and Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison. “These allegations recently came to light and we are reviewing them. All allegations of domestic abuse are disturbing and should be taken seriously,” the DNC said in a statement to NPR. The DNC’s statement didn’t go far enough, according to former DNC communications director Luis Miranda. “The party has no choice but to suspend him at a minimum until they figure out what’s going on,” Miranda told NPR. “Frankly, it would be malpractice not to. We’ve made it clear we’re going to take these accusations seriously, at a minimum. We set too high a standard not to take this seriously.” The NPR storywent live just hours before polls closed in the Minnesota primaries, where Ellisonis favored to win the Democratic nomination for attorney general. Ellison’s…

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Turnout in Minnesota, Wisconsin Primary Elections at a Twenty-Year High

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voters polling place

Reuters   Voter engagement in the 2018 U.S. midterm races remains feverish, primaries in notable swing states Wisconsin and Minnesota showed on Tuesday. Both states showed sharp increases in participation as voters picked candidates for Congress, Senate and governor, with Minnesota’s turnout surpassing a two-decade high and Wisconsin’s hitting levels not reached for a state primary since at least 2002. Democrats are hoping to replicate successes seen around the nation throughout the past 18 months in local and state special elections, where high levels of enthusiasm have propelled them to victories in races from Alabama’s Senate seat in December to a southwest Pennsylvania congressional district in March. The party is desperately seeking to flip control of Congress and capture more statehouses across the nation, as Republicans have control of both houses of Congress and the majority of state legislatures. In Minnesota, more than 900,000 voters turned out in a state known for high levels of voter engagement, according to unofficial state figures on Wednesday. That equals a turnout rate of roughly 22 percent, according to Minnesota’s secretary of state. It was also the highest for state primary nominating contests since 1994, not including presidential primaries, according to state data. More…

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Dept. of Homeland Security Agents Conduct Massive Worksite Raid In Two States, Arrest Business Owners For Employing Illegal Aliens

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ICE arrest

by Will Racke   Federal agents conducted a multi-state worksite raid at several Midwestern agricultural businesses on Wednesday, arresting more than 100 people including owners and supervisors who allegedly conspired to employ illegal aliens at the expense of American workers. Homeland Security Investigations — the investigative arm of Immigration and Customs Enforcement — led the operation against at least 11 companies in Nebraska and Minnesota, the Grand Island Independent reported. Along with more than 130 suspected illegal workers, agents arrested 14 business owners and managers for allegedly using bogus social security numbers to build a workforce of underpaid, exploitable illegal immigrants. Three other people involved in the scheme were also indicted but not taken into custody during the operation. The operation was one of the largest worksite raids in HSI’s 15-year history, according to Tracy Cormier, the special agent-in-charge of the agency’s St. Paul field office, which covers Minnesota and Nebraska. “I would say the amount of criminal warrants that are being executed will be one of the largest for HSI,” Cormier said, according to the Associated Press. “I’m not aware of a bigger one.” Wednesday’s operation is notable because is targeted business ownership and management, not just illegal workers. Two of HSI’s…

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Study: Minnesota’s Minimum Wage Hike Cost Teenagers Thousands Of Jobs

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minimum wage protest

by Tim Pearce   Minnesota’s minimum wage has cost young and low-skilled workers thousands of jobs in the fast-food restaurant sector since 2013, according to University of Wisconsin economics professor Noah Williams. Williams tracked and compared employment data in Minnesota and Wisconsin from 2014 to 2018, over which Minnesota’s minimum wage increased incrementally from $6 an hour to $9.65 in January 2018. Wisconsin’s minimum wage remained at the federal level of $7.25 an hour, the Minnesota Watchdog reported. Generally, as the minimum wage increases “businesses will demand less labor, which could mean fewer workers and/or shorter hours per worker,” Williams said, according to Minnesota Watchdog. “There were workers willing to work for wages that were less than the new, higher minimum wage and businesses that were willing to hire them for that … The distortion is that the minimum wage rules out mutually beneficial agreements between workers and firms.” The fast-food industries in both states were growing at similar paces in 2014 when the minimum wage of each rested on the federal level. As the Minnesota’s minimum continued to rise, a disparity between employment growth in each state’s fast-food industry developed and widened. “In total, from July 2014 to May 2018, employment…

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Senator Al Franken (D-MN): Resignation to be Effective January 2, 2018

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After a spate of so-called “#metoo” allegations of sexual harassment – along with photographic proof – former TV comic-turned-politician Senator Al Franken announced on the Senate floor last week that he would resign his office. In his Senate speech, however, he did not say when he would resign,  only that it would be in ‘the coming weeks.’ After Judge Roy Moore was defeated in Alabama in the special election to replace Senator Jeff Sessions by Democrat Doug Jones, speculation that Franken would ‘un-resign’ ran rampant across the media in what could only be described as a trial balloon to see if the idea could gain support from key Democrats and the public at large. That possibility came crashing down on Wednesday as Franken announced he would be taking leave of his elected office on January 2. The legal blog Legal Insurrestion has a comprehensive review on the details of the scandal that most likely marks the end of Senator Al Franken’s generally unremarkable political career: Just breaking, Al Franken’s office has announced that his previously announced resignation will be effective January 2, 2018. The snowball started rolling downhill for Franken when he was accused of groping and non-consensually tongue-kissing a woman on USO tour,…

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Senator Al Franken Will Resign ‘In a Couple of Weeks’ Amid Sexual Misconduct Allegations

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Sen. Al Franken on Thursday announced he was quitting the austere upper chamber amid mounting accusations that he forcibly kissed or groped women, bowing to resignation calls from at least 32 of his fellow Senate Democrats. However, he said he was stepping down despite knowing he was not guilty of the behavior described by his accusers. He said it was the right thing to do for the people of Minnesota.

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Dr. Fakhruddin Attar and Wife Arrested in Michigan on Female Genital Mutilation Charges

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Tennessee Star

  The FBI has identified a Female Genital Mutilation ring, where young daughters of resettled Somalis living in Minnesota take what’s called a ‘Girls Trip’ to Michigan to undergo the horrific procedure. TownHall.com’s Katie Pavlich reports: Doctor Fakhruddin Attar and wife Farida were arrested Friday near Detroit for conspiring to commit and aiding in female genital mutilation [FGM] of girls as young as six-years-old. The Attars allegedly allowed the procedure to be carried in their Livonia medical clinic. Mrs. Attar even held the hands of the girls screaming in pain. One alleged co-conspirator of Attar and his wife was Michigan emergency room physician Jumana Nagarwala. According to the criminal complaint from the Department of Justice, the couple conspired with Detroit emergency room doctor Jumana Nagarwala. Nagarwale was arrested last week for performing the procedure on a number of girls. It appears as though Attar’s role was to supply the facilities so that the little girls could be mutilated by Nagarwala. The complaint states (embedded below): This investigation has identified other children who may have been cut by Nagarwala at Attar’s clinic, MBC, between 2005 and 2017, including children in Michigan. On April 10, 2017, child forensic interviews employed by the FBI and HSI interviewed several minor…

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