The FBI processed 55% more firearm background checks from Minnesota in January 2021 compared to the same month last year.
In the first month of 2020, the Federal Bureau of Investigation processed 56,561 background checks for gun sales through its National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) in Minnesota. In January 2021, that number jumped to 87,538 amid a record-breaking increase in gun-buying around the country.
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Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips apologized Thursday night on the House floor to his colleagues for having “privilege” during the Jan. 6 Capitol siege.
As congressmen spoke of their fears during the event, the 52-year-old heir to the Phillips Distilling Company issued contrition.
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Gov. Tim Walz announced a plan Monday to get more COVID-19 vaccine doses into the arms of senior citizens, but some Republican senators think the proposal comes up short.
State Sen. Karin Housley, R-Stillwater, chair of the Senate’s Committee on Aging and Long-Term Care, called a press conference Monday to unveil her “seniors first” vaccine plan.
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A Minneapolis man whose criminal behavior “raises significant concerns for public safety” was twice bailed out of jail by the Minnesota Freedom Fund.
The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office announced three new charges Thursday against 29-year-old Thomas Moseley.
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Minneapolis City Council members officially introduced a draft amendment to the city charter that would create a new Department of Public Safety and eliminate the Minneapolis police force as its own department.
After giving a notice of intent to change the charter’s current mandate — which requires funds for the MPD as a sole entity — to fund more general “public safety services,” City Council Members Phillipe Cunningham, Steve Fletcher, and Jeremy Schroeder introduced the draft of the amendment Friday. Their objective is to put the amendment up for a public vote during the next municipal election.
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On Friday, The Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities (CGMC) announced priorities for the 2021 legislative session for COVID-19 recovery, including Local Government Aid, child care, housing, and water infrastructure.
“The pandemic has taken a toll on our community,” Greg Zylka, mayor of Little Falls and CGMC president said in a Zoom meeting. “Some segments are still really struggling, and that pain has ripple effects across the city.”
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While Minnesota is recovering from a 2020 budget deficit and public health hangover, Gov. Tim Walz proposed a $52.4 billion budget – a $4 billion spending increase from the prior biennium budget and the largest proposed spending plan in state history.
“As a result of rising costs and inflation, it is expected that budgets will increase biennium to biennium,” Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB) spokesman Chris Kelly told The Center Square in an email.
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During the COVID-19 pandemic, states are turning to new revenue sources in an attempt to avoid raising taxes while filling a projected gaping budget deficit.
For Minnesota, that number is a $1.3 billion projected shortfall for fiscal year 2022-2023.
But top lawmakers say two revenue sources that have been popular in other states are unlikely to be signed into law this year; namely, the legalization of recreational marijuana and online sports betting.
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A review requested by House Speaker Melissa Hortman found “no actions or speech rose to the level of criminal activity” during a Jan. 6 protest at the Minnesota Capitol.
The rally, billed as a “Storm the Capitol” protest, took place the same afternoon as the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
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Some youth hockey associations could be fined if players and coaches don’t wear masks during practices or games.
Minnesota Hockey is the governing body of youth hockey in the state of Minnesota and teams are divided between twelve districts, including District 10. Each district includes several local hockey associations.
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A Minnesota Senator used her inaugural speech to demonize mostly peaceful protestors who occupied the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. on January 6, while simultaneously calling for unity.
“Two weeks ago, when an angry, violent mob staged an insurrection and desecrated this temple of our democracy, it awakened us to our responsibility as Americans,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) said, speaking to a sparse crowd. “This is the day when our democracy picks itself up, brushes off the dust, and does what America always does: goes forward as a nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
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Minnesota is launching a COVID-19 vaccine pilot program this week, but the number of vaccines available is extremely limited.
Nine appointment-only sites across the state will start offering vaccines on Thursday, Gov. Tim Walz said in a news release.
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The St. Paul City Council unanimously voted to approve the creation of a committee dedicated to researching reparations for descendants of slavery in order to engage in “racial healing.”
The resolution, which was approved during a Wednesday night meeting, names the new group the Saint Paul Recovery Act Community Reparations Commission. The main goal of the committee is to “make significant progress toward repairing the damage caused by public and private systemic racism in the City of Saint Paul.”
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State Sen. Chuck Wiger, DFL-Maplewood, introduced a bill Monday that would add Minnesota to a popular vote compact, securing the state’s electoral votes for the winner of the national popular vote.
According to a press release from the Senate DFL, Wiger’s bill would add Minnesota to the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. States that are a part of this agreement “pledge their states’ electoral votes to the presidential and vice presidential candidates who win the national popular vote as opposed to the popular vote in their particular state.”
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Minneapolis Police Union President Lt. Bob Kroll announced that he intends to retire at the end of January in a letter to union members, The Star Tribune reported.
Lt. Bob Kroll, 58, said he originally planned on retiring in May, but that he decided it was in his family’s best interest to retire sooner, according to The Star Tribune. Kroll attracted attention in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd, who died after a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck for several minutes.
“Most difficult for me as I made this decision was to see how our noble profession has been demonized,” Kroll wrote in the letter obt
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Former Sen. Scott Jensen said that Minnesotans are in an “abusive relationship” with Gov. Tim Walz during a recent livestream.
In a video explaining the checks in place against Gov. Walz’s emergency powers and why those powers have not been taken away, Jensen compared Minnesota’s situation to an “abusive relationship.”
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Details were released Monday regarding the search warrant executed at the family home of Dolal Idd, who was shot and killed by Minneapolis police last week during an attempted traffic stop.
Hennepin County Sheriff Dave Hutchinson is also defending the conduct of his officers during the search after the family made accusations of mistreatment.
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Let Them Play MN, a nonprofit, issued a press release outlining its concerns regarding the newest guidelines for youth sports.
A guidance released by the Minnesota Department of Health on Dec. 28 requires all youth sports players to wear masks during practices and, when the time comes, during games. A few exceptions exist, including wrestling, gymnastics, and swimming and diving.
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State officials are now seeking additional penalties against Larvita McFarquhar, a defiant restaurant owner in Lynd, Minnesota, who is being fined $250 per day for remaining open.
A Ramsey County judge ordered McFarquhar to close her restaurant earlier this month and comply with Gov. Tim Walz’s COVID-19 executive orders. But she refused and was found in contempt of court, which comes with a $250 daily fine for non-compliance.
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U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer, a Republican, was the only member of Minnesota’s congressional delegation to vote against a measure to increase COVID-19 stimulus checks to $2,000.
All of Minnesota’s Democratic members of Congress voted in favor of the proposal, which passed the U.S. House Monday in a vote of 275-134.
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The Minnesota Department of Health released guidance for youth and adult sports Dec. 28, announcing that games and scrimmages will be able to take place starting on Jan. 14, in addition to practices being allowed beginning on Jan. 4.
Masks will be required at all times for players during both practices and games, with very few exceptions. According to the guidelines, “People are not permitted to remove their face coverings during activities that involve a high level of exertion.”
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The Minnesota National Guard may deploy indefinitely to Minneapolis while the four former police officers involved in the death of George Floyd are on trial in 2021, an ABC affiliate reported Wednesday.
The National Guard’s 12-page plan dubbed “Operation Safety Net” details a worst-case scenario plan where all available state guard forces are deployed for an indefinite amount of time during and after the trials of former Minneapolis police officers Derek Chauvin, J. Alexander Keung, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao, local outlet KSTP reported.
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The Minnesota Department of Public Safety suspended the liquor license of Boardwalk Bar & Grill, a restaurant in East Grand Forks that reopened last week in violation of the governor’s coronavirus mandates.
The Polk County District Court granted Attorney General Keith Ellison’s motion for a temporary restraining order Friday to prevent the restaurant from remaining open. The business also was issued a cease and desist order by the Minnesota Department of Health.
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A St. Anthony resident claims to have received a letter in the mail on Monday that chastised her for her Christmas lights display.
The letter states that the “twinkling, colorful lights are a reminder of the division that runs through our country” and that such displays can have a “harmful impact.”
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Previously unseen costs of the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated lockdowns are coming to light.
Drug overdose deaths increased 31% during the first half of 2020 compared to the first half of 2019, according to new data released by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).
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More than half of Minnesota renters surveyed recently by the U.S. Census Bureau say they’re either “somewhat likely” or “very likely” to face eviction in the next two months.
This data comes by way of the bureau’s most recent Household Pulse Survey, which regularly collects information about American households. The bureau cautions that data collected by these surveys are considered “experimental” and “sample sizes may be small and the standard errors may be large.”
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The left-leaning Star Tribune, one of Minnesota’s largest news outlets, reported that technology from Dominion Voting Systems “delayed election results” in 2016.
Dominion is a Canada-based tech company responsible for supplying equipment that tabulates the vote at Minnesota’s central counting location and other polling places, per the Office of the Secretary of State. Since the 2020 election, Dominion has been at the center of several controversies related to allegations of election fraud. Those who support President Donald Trump and believe fraud occurred in November are critical of Dominion, while Democrats who believe that no fraud occurred tend to trust the company.
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Despite millions of dollars being spent against them, Republicans are on track to retain control of the Minnesota Senate, meaning Gov. Tim Walz will have to finish out the remainder of his term with a divided Legislature.
Democrats won an open seat in Senate District 44 and are on track to unseat Sen. Dan Hall in Burnsville, but Republican Zack Duckworth defeated Sen. Matt Little of Lakeville.
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Voters in Minnesota made their pick for president while holding negative views about the country’s direction, according to an expansive AP survey of the American electorate.
The race between President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden concluded Tuesday in a deeply divided nation struggling with a once-in-a-century pandemic and a severe economic downturn. AP VoteCast found that more than 3 in 10 Minnesota voters said the U.S. is on the right track and more than 6 in 10 voters said it is headed in the wrong direction.
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One section of the leaked manifesto, titled “Theory of What Will Happen,” declares that “mass mobilization will and must happen in Minnesota to defend democracy.”
A leaked document allegedly created by TakeAction Minnesota warns of “mass mobilization” and “unrest” in Minneapolis if President Donald Trump is reelected, or if the results of the election are contested.
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Absentee ballots received by 8 p.m. on Election Day must be separated from ballots received later in case of another order voiding those votes, a Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled.
In a 2-1 decision, the ruling didn’t determine the validity of the post-Election Day ballots but said the separation would allow for them to be “removed from vote totals in the event a final order is entered” finding the votes invalid.
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A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that mail-in ballots from Minnesota that arrive after Nov. 3 must be separated from those that are received on or before Election Day.
The ruling, which came from a three-judge panel from the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, authorized a GOP challenge against Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon order extending the ballot deadline by seven days. Ballots received after Election Day should be separated, the ruling said, in order “to be removed from vote totals in the event a final order is entered by a court of competent jurisdiction determining such votes to be invalid or unlawfully counted.”
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Ninety-four percent of Minnesotans who have died due to complications from COVID-19 had a significant underlying health condition.
That’s according to KSTP reporter Tom Hauser, who requested the data from the Minnesota Department of Health.
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Rep. Ilhan Omar called for “expanding” the U.S. Supreme Court Monday night after the Senate voted to confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett.
Barrett was confirmed in a vote of 52-48 Monday evening and was sworn in shortly after by Associate Justice Clarence Thomas during a ceremony at the White House. Every Democratic senator, including both of Minnesota’s U.S. senators, voted against her confirmation. Sen. Susan Collins was the only Republican to vote against Barrett’s confirmation.
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Three Ramsey County police unions filed a formal complaint with the county against an officer who publicly endorsed DFL House candidate John Thompson.
“John is wonderful. John is a leader. John is somebody that speaks truth to power,” Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Roy Magnuson said of Thompson, who threatened to burn down a neighborhood during a protest in August.
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Minnesota health officials announced a pilot program Thursday that will provide at-home COVID-19 saliva tests for residents in two dozen counties and tribal nations statewide in an effort to expand access to testing as the state experiences a surge in cases in recent weeks.
The program allows people to order a saliva test through the mail and perform the test in their own home with virtual help from a health care professional. The test will then be shipped to the state’s saliva lab in Oakdale, with results emailed within 24-48 hours.
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U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Republican challenger claimed that the first-term congresswoman has repeatedly backed out of forums and debates, making her one of the only incumbents who hasn’t participated in a debate.
Republican Lacy Johnson called on Omar to agree to a debate before the Nov. 3 election in a statement issued this week.
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Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis President Bob Kroll was interviewed on Alpha News’ Facebook live Monday night by Devin Foley, CEO of the Charlemagne Institute.
Kroll is now best known around the country as the man who dealt with Black Lives Matter protesters outside of his house in Hugo, Minnesota, this summer.
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Emails obtained by the Star Tribune indicate that Gov. Tim Walz’s administration decided not to reinstall a Christopher Columbus statue the same day it was toppled over by a group of protesters.
The statue, which stood outside the State Capitol building, was torn down in broad daylight by a group of vandals affiliated with the American Indian Movement (AIM). Mike Forcia, chairman of AIM, said he alerted Walz’s office of his plans prior to the June 10 incident.
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Democratic U.S. Sen. Tina Smith skipped a campaign event with Sen. Elizabeth Warren over the weekend after learning that a person who attended one of her events eight days earlier had tested positive for the coronavirus.
“I’m getting tested & I am quarantining until I test negative,” Smith tweeted Sunday. After learning Monday morning that she had tested negative, Smith tweeted that she was “Headed back to Washington to keep working for Minnesotans.”
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President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign knocked its one-millionth door in Minnesota over the weekend.
While Democrats have been hosting their events online, Republicans have been on the ground knocking doors and holding rallies in their push to turn Minnesota red. Democrats were previously critical of Republicans for campaigning in person during a pandemic, but supporters of Joe Biden recently took to knocking doors themselves.
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The $1.9 billion bonding bill passed last week by the Minnesota Legislature includes upwards of $11 million for “costs incurred” during May’s Minneapolis riots.
The bill appropriates more than $5 million from the trunk highway fund and $3.5 million from the general fund to the Department of Public Safety “for costs incurred related to the response to civil unrest in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.”
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Minnesota GOP Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan has accused Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison of abusing his power and threatened to file “a cease-and-desist order” against his office.
On Tuesday night, Felton Farms in Northfield, Minnesota, held a private MAGA rally with Eric Trump, where congressional candidate Tyler Kistner and Carnahan also made appearances. Carnahan, who accused Ellison of “using his office to play politics” and “threatening” the farm venue, announced that the Republican Party of Minnesota would be filing a cease-and-desist order against Ellison’s office.
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A study released by Education Minnesota, Minnesota’s teachers union, says that nearly one-third of the state’s educators are considering quitting their jobs due to stress and an overwhelming workload.
The study, which was conducted from Sept. 25 to Oct. 5, had 9,723 respondents, about one-sixth of the educators in the state, according to recent numbers. Overall, 29% of respondents said that they were “thinking about quitting or retiring,” with upwards of 70% saying they were feeling stressed or overwhelmed.
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A federal judge has upheld a Minnesota state court agreement that allows the counting of absentee ballots received up to seven days after Election Day.
Republicans had asked U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel to block the seven-day extension that said ballots postmarked on or before Election Day must be counted.
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More than 60 Minneapolis residents signed up to speak their minds at the two-hour virtual meeting, grilling council members on their “irresponsible rhetoric” and failure to adequately staff the Minneapolis Police Department.
“We should all know as adults that words such as ‘defund,’ ‘dismantle,’ and ‘abolish’ have severe consequences. We are a city in crisis and need action now,” said one resident who lives in the Loring Park neighborhood.
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It was not enough to allow the city to burn. Then it wasn’t enough to emasculate city law enforcement. Now the Minneapolis City Council is corrupting the absentee ballot count by stacking ballot boards with handpicked staff rather than following state law that requires regular ballot boards to include people from the major political parties. Hennepin County, the most populous in the state, is doing it, too.
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Gov. Tim Walz announced Wednesday a special session will take place Monday, Oct. 12, during which he intends to extend his peacetime emergency declaration for the seventh time.
In the governor’s Proclamation for Special Session, issued Oct. 7, Walz said an “extraordinary occasion” has ensued, and, therefore, “it is necessary to extend the COVID-19 Peacetime Emergency.”
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Gov. Tim Walz’s administration purchased a warehouse for $6.9 million in May to be used for the “temporary storage of human remains,” but the facility was recently converted into a storage space for vaccines and other medical supplies.
The facility was intended to serve as “a building where we can properly handle with dignity and respect and safety the bodies of Minnesotans who may fall victim to the coronavirus,” Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management Director Joe Kelly said at the time of the purchase.
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A recall effort has been filed against Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) over his mask mandate in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The Minnesota Supreme Court will now review whether the grounds for recall stated in the petition are sufficient and meet statutory requirements. Two earlier efforts to recall Walz were dismissed by the supreme court because the petitions did not meet the legal standards to recall an elected official.
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