Category: Minnesota

Hennepin County Attorney’s Office Grapples with ‘Destabilizing’ Turnover ‘Crisis’

Alpha News
Lawyers

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office is in crisis, hemorrhaging attorneys at a rate that would make even a fast-food chain flinch.

That’s according to AFSCME Local 2938, a labor union that represents Hennepin County attorneys and legal support staff. In contract negotiation documents from August, the union warned that even with immediate pay adjustments, it could take years—if not decades—for some divisions within the office to regain “their pre-2023 levels of proficiency, professionalism, and recognized statewide leadership among fellow county attorneys’ offices.”

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Somali Pirate from Minneapolis Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison for Kidnapping

Alpha News
Abdi Yusuf Hassan

A Minneapolis man is one of two Somali pirates convicted of kidnapping this week and sentenced to federal prison for 30 years.

Abdi Yusuf Hassan, now 56, a naturalized U.S. citizen and prior resident of Minneapolis, along with Mohamed Tahlil Mohamed, now 43, of Mogadishu, Somalia, held American journalist Michael Scott Moore hostage for nearly three years in Somalia after kidnapping him in 2012.

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Minnesota Public School Teacher Tells Students to ‘Take Today to Mourn’ Following ‘Heartbreaking’ Election

Alpha News
Brian Isles

A teacher at Minnesota Connections Academy, an online public school, sent an email to eighth grade Language Arts students saying he wondered how he “could possibly come to school” following last week’s election of President Donald Trump.

“It’s the fact that it’s pushing an agenda. The Democrats are saying that it’s not happening, but it very clearly is,” Antonio Pici, a law enforcement officer and veteran, shared with Alpha News.

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‘Difficult Day’: Workplaces, Schools React to Trump Election with ‘Aromatherapy’ and ‘Angry’ All-Staff Emails

Alpha News
Donald Trump

As local Republicans celebrate President Donald Trump’s historic reelection to the White House on Nov. 5, Minnesota workplaces, schools, and local leaders have responded by creating safe spaces and mourning.

“We have been through a Trump presidency before and we made it through,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said in a somber video posted to X. “We will make it through again.”

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GOP, DFL State House Leaders Prepare to Negotiate ‘Power-Sharing Agreement’

Alpha News
Hortman and Demuth

With almost all the dust settled the day after the election in Minnesota, caucus leaders in the Minnesota House faced the media for the first time since they learned that Republicans and DFLers are likely to be deadlocked in a 67-67 tie when the 2025 legislative session starts on Monday, Jan. 13

Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman and House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth both acknowledged that their caucuses will have just a few weeks to structure the organization of their chamber in a challenging, but not unprecedented, “power-sharing agreement.”

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U.S. House Report Says Walz ‘Colludes with the Climate Cartel’ in Managing Public Pension Fund

Alpha News
Tim Walz

A new report from the U.S. House Judiciary Committee claims that Gov. Tim Walz’s handling of Minnesota’s $140 billion public pension fund is driving up energy bills for consumers in Minnesota and other states.

Titled “How Governor Tim Walz’s State Public Pension Fund Colludes with the Climate Cartel to Raise Energy Costs for American Consumers,” the report accuses Walz of using the Minnesota State Board of Investment (MSBI) to push overly ambitious climate goals that are being felt in consumers’ wallets.

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Minnesota County Fires Election Worker After Republican Spots Ballot Security Lapse in Realtime

Daily Caller News Foundation
Election Ballots

Hennepin County, Minnesota, fired an election worker who left several boxes of mail-in ballots unattended after a local GOP group exposed the alleged negligence, according to a statement from county officials released Friday.

Minnesota Senate District 50 Republicans — the Republican Party’s official political unit for portions of Minnesota cities Edina and Bloomington — snapped a photo outside of Edina City Hall Friday showing a courier vehicle’s “rear door ajar with ballot transfer cases inside.” A review of parking lot surveillance footage found the ballots were not tampered with, and a comparison of the votes with the statewide voter registration system for absentee ballots found a perfect match.

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‘Women’s Sports Are Legal’: Female Athletes Challenge Trans Activists at Minnesota Supreme Court

Daily Caller News Foundation
San Jose State Volleyball

In the absence of NCAA rules limiting eligibility for women’s college volleyball to females, several teams forfeited games against San Jose State University this season without explicitly citing a player on SJSU’s team who allegedly is a transgender athlete.

The University of Nevada overruled its team this week when players voted to forfeit its Oct. 26 match against SJSU, claiming a forfeit would violate state and federal law and NCAA and Mountain West Conference rules, but promised not to punish individuals for sitting out.

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Minnesota Teachers Union Conference to Feature Sessions on ‘Pronoun Usage,’ ‘2SLGBTQIA+’ Ideology

Alpha News
Education Minnesota

Public school teachers from across Minnesota will meet in St. Paul Oct. 17 to participate in a conference put on by Education Minnesota, the state’s teachers union.

At Education Minnesota’s 2024 MEA Conference, educators will learn about, and discuss, various public education topics in conference sessions throughout the day. While some of those sessions appear to cover noncontroversial topics, others are steeped in what Center of the American Experiment policy fellow Catrin Wigfall described as “ideological agendas.”

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As Minnesota Governor, Tim Walz Signed Legislation to Bypass Electoral College

Alpha News
Tim Walz

Over the span of 48 hours, national news outlets have reported that Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz went from declaring he’d like to see the Electoral College abolished in favor of a national popular vote to seemingly walking back that statement in a sit-down interview on ABC News.

But those who pay attention to not just what the Minnesota governor says on the national campaign trail, but what he has done in his capacity as governor, know better.

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Minnesota Housing Development Company with Plans to Build ‘Valuable Asset to the East African Community’ Sued for Fraud

Alpha News
Nolosha Development

In a lawsuit filed by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, an Eden Prairie business is accused of engaging in deceptive trade practices and defrauding Somali families.

Founded two years ago by “passionate Somali-American public health professionals,” Nolosha Development, LLC says it seeks to “address the housing disparity affecting East African households in the Twin Cities.” As such, the company allegedly has been working on the construction of a housing development in Lakeville called “Nolosha-Lakeville.”

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Angie Craig Voted Against Bill to Establish Protections for Babies Who Survive Attempted Abortions

Alpha News
Angie Craig

Republicans in Congress are working to add new protections in federal law for babies who are born during attempted abortions.

In January of 2023, the Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. According to the bill’s chief author, Congresswoman Ann Wagner, the bill “will provide commonsense protections for innocent children and their mothers and will ensure all babies receive the essential care they need at an incredibly vulnerable moment.”

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Walz Administration to Hold Racially Segregated Retreat for ‘BIPOC’ Librarians

Daily Caller News Foundation
Tim Walz

Minnesota State Library Services, part of Democratic Gov. Tim Walz’s administration, plans to use public funds to pay for a retreat intended exclusively for “BIPOC” librarians, according to documents obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The Walz administration describes the event, which will take place in October, as “a day of professional development and network-building designed specifically for BIPOC library workers of Minnesota,” according to a registration page. Minnesota will use public funds to cover hotel lodging, meals and other fees for those attending the program, state documents show.

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Minnesota Man Believes He Was Recruited to Run a ‘Spoiler’ Campaign to Help Democrat Angie Craig

Alpha News
Angie Craig

A Brooklyn Center man who will appear on ballots this fall as the “Constitutional Conservative” Party candidate in Minnesota’s Second Congressional District has told a national media outlet he believes he was recruited to run as a third-party “spoiler” candidate for Democrats in one of the nation’s most closely watched U.S. House elections.

The Republican challenger in that race, Joe Teirab, is calling the act “blatant election interference” orchestrated by political allies of Democratic incumbent Angie Craig.

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Minnesota Department of Corrections Employee Quits After Men Inmates Are Allowed in Women’s Prison

Alpha News
Alicia Beckmann

After working for more than a decade as a GED instructor, Alicia Beckmann recently left her job because of a new transgender policy. According to Beckmann, the policy puts both corrections staff and inmates at risk.

The Minnesota Department of Corrections first transferred biological males Christina Lusk and Bradley Sirvio to Shakopee after Lusk successfully sued the state in 2023. A New York Post report last week revealed Gov. Tim Walz’s administration paid nearly $449,000 to a left-wing legal nonprofit as part of the resolution of Lusk’s case.

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Legislators Call on Walz to Condemn A.G. Ellison After He Tweeted ‘Thanks’ to Brazil Hours After Banning X

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Gov Tim Walz and A.G. Keith Ellison

Republican legislators are calling on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to condemn a comment Attorney General Keith Ellison posted to social media on Monday that seemingly endorsed a court ruling in Brazil to block its citizens from accessing the X social media platform.

Ellison posted “Obrigado, Brasil!” from one of this two X social media accounts, just hours after the Supreme Federal Court of Brazil upheld a measure which bans Brazilians from using X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

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Former Minnesota School Board Member Sues over Explicit Snapchat, Seeks Board Return

Alpha News

A former West Central Area School District board member is suing multiple individuals after resigning last year over a sexually explicit video he posted on Snapchat.

According to the lawsuit, Jared Olson, who recently filed to return to the school board, claims the video was intended for his wife, but was instead shared to his Snapchat “stories” by accident.

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Poll: Harris’ Lead Cut in Half in Minnesota After Adding Walz to the Ticket

Alpha News
Kamala Harris

Is it possible that a two-time elected Democratic governor of Minnesota is a drag on his presidential running mate in his own state?

That’s one takeaway from a poll conducted late last month on the race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump in Minnesota, which shows Trump cutting Harris’ lead in half since she tapped Tim Walz to join her ticket as her vice presidential nominee.

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Minnesota School Board Member Questions If People Will Survive Climate Change, White Supremacy

Alpha News
Jen Westmoreland

At a recent school board workshop meeting, Hopkins School Board member Jen Westmoreland questioned whether people will survive climate change and white supremacy.

“If we look at climate grief, if we look at the impacts of white supremacy, if we look at all of these systems of oppression that are bearing down—I mean, there’s like a survival element that we’re talking about, right?” Westmoreland said. “So it’s not like, are you going to go out and get [inaudible] job? It’s like, are you going to survive?”

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Illegal Immigrants, ‘Justice Impacted’ Individuals Among Groups Who Could Receive New Protections in Minneapolis

Alpha News

A series of potential additions to the Minneapolis Civil Rights Ordinance are under consideration in Minnesota’s largest city. Should these additions be authorized, illegal immigrants, the homeless, and so-called “justice impacted” persons could receive new protections.

Last week, the Minneapolis Civil Rights Commission held a meeting to discuss potential changes to the Minneapolis Civil Rights Ordinance. At that meeting, Minneapolis City Council Member Jason Chavez outlined what he referred to as “our plan” to add “homeless status, immigration status, and justice impacted status as protected classes” in the city’s civil rights ordinance.

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Minnesota Special Education Program Hands Out $10 Million in Grants

The Center Square
Young boy in learning environment

Minnesota’s Department of Education awarded $10 million in education grants to support and train special education teachers in more than 35 public school districts, charter schools and co-ops. 

“As a former classroom teacher for over 20 years, I understand the impact a dedicated teacher can have on their students’ lives,” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said Wednesday. “By investing in our special education workforce, we can help ensure every student in Minnesota receives the support they need to thrive in their education.”

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Hennepin County Board Approves Pay Rate Increases for Themselves and Other Elected Officials

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Hennepin County Board of Commissioners

The Hennepin County Board of Commissioners, the Hennepin County sheriff, and the Hennepin County attorney are set to receive significant pay rate increases in the next two years after a pair of 6-0 votes from the county commissioners.

On Tuesday, the commissioners held one vote to increase their own pay rates and a separate vote to increase the pay rates of the county sheriff and county attorney. One commissioner, Debbie Goettel, was not present for the votes.

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Walz Repeatedly Implied He and His Wife Used IVF but Harris Campaign Says They Did Not

The Center Square
Tim Walz

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democrats’ vice-presidential nominee, repeatedly implied he and his wife used IVF procedures in order to conceive their children. However, the couple never used IVF.

According to both the New York Times and CNN, the Harris-Walz campaign recently disclosed that Walz and his wife, Gwen, did not use IVF to conceive their children. Instead, the couple used a very different procedure called IUI. For months, Walz had been heavily implying that he and his wife used IVF to conceive their children.

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Former Walz Supporter Says Governor ‘Flipped Out’ When Questioned About Vaccine Mandates

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Tim Walz

“He’s being portrayed as this blue-collar, likable, rural guy, and he’s the furthest thing from it,” said Nate O’Reilly, a 30-year veteran of the construction industry and former president of the Southeastern Minnesota Building & Construction Trades Council.

The Zumbrota resident once considered himself a staunch DFL supporter who strongly backed Gov. Tim Walz.

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RNC, Minnesota GOP Raise Alarm after Report of Non-Citizen Receiving Primary Ballot

Admin

The Republican National Committee (RNC) and the Minnesota GOP are raising concerns about Minnesota’s election system after a non-citizen, lawfully residing in the U.S., reportedly received a primary ballot.

The incident, first reported by Breitbart, has prompted calls for an immediate review of voter rolls and stricter citizenship verification measures.

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Former SEC Attorney Puts Spotlight on Teacher Pension Fund Overseen by Walz

Admin
Tim Walz

A former attorney for the Securities and Exchange Commission who conducts independent investigations on pension funds is blowing the whistle on behalf of a group of Minnesota teachers who have hired him to investigate claims that their retirement investment returns have been inflated.

Edward Siedle is well known across the nation in circles that closely scrutinize pension fund investments. He’s alleging that the state’s Teachers Retirement Association recently sent emails to its board and staff and to liaisons in the administration of Gov. Tim Walz warning them of Siedle’s investigation.

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Cartel-Linked Minnesotan and 14 Others Are Indicted in Mexico-Based Drug Trafficking Operation

Admin
Clinton Ward

A Minnesota man and over a dozen co-conspirators have been charged with trafficking over 1,600 pounds of methamphetamine and other drugs from Mexico to Minnesota in what U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger described as a “sprawling” Mexican-based drug trafficking organization.

Luger’s comments came during a press conference on Tuesday during which he named Clinton James Ward, 45, as the leader of the organization who has been operating for years.

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Kamala Harris’ VP Pick Gov. Tim Walz Signed Bill Allowing Illegal Aliens to Get Driver’s Licenses in Minnesota

Admin
Minnesota Driver License

Democrats’ new running mate for presidential nominee Kamala Harris signed a bill last year allowing illegal immigrants to receive Minnesota driver’s licenses.

In March 2023, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed legislation allowing Minnesota residents to apply for and attain standard state driver’s licenses regardless of immigration status.

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Commentary: Voting Against Antisemitism in the Ilhan Omar Race

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Rep Ilhan Omar

All eyes are on Minnesota, now that Vice President Harris has picked Governor Tim Walz to be her running mate in November. But that is not the only North Star State race voters should be watching.

Unbeknownst to many, Minnesota has an open primary system. This means that, according to Ballotpedia, “a voter can participate in the party primary of his or her choice.” Whether residents of the district are Republicans, Independents, or Democrats they can all vote in the Ilhan Omar primary on August 13th.

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Rochester Public Schools Threatened with Lawsuit over District’s Transgender Policy

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Classwork

A pair of non-profit public interest law firms have threatened to sue Rochester Public Schools (RPS) if the district utilizes its new pro-transgender policy to “transition a child without parental consent.”

Just weeks ago, the RPS school board gave final authorization to a new policy governing how the district will “address the needs and concerns of transgender and/or gender-expansive students” in its schools. According to that policy, if a child changes their name, or begins using a different bathroom, the school district will only alert the child’s parents if the parent specifically asks about such information.

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Minnesota Republicans Demand Walz Condemn, Fire DNR Staffer Who Cheered Trump Assassination Attempt

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Gov. Tim Walz

Prominent Minnesota Republicans are demanding Democratic Gov. Tim Walz terminate the employment of a Department of Natural Resources (DNR) official who cheered the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, arguing that failure to do so would constitute an endorsement of political violence.

State Sens. Andrew Matthews, Steve Drazkowski, Cal Bahr, and State Reps. Pam Altendorf, Shane Mekeland, and Ben Davis issued a joint statement in which they pushed for Walz to act. The statement referred to the assassination attempt as “a disturbing example of political violence and Americans rightly were disturbed by the attack, regardless of political affiliation.”

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ICE St. Paul Field Office Removes Illegal Immigrant Wanted for Rape of a Minor in Mexico

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Andres Palacios Pizano

A federal immigration enforcement office based in St. Paul has removed an illegal immigrant who was wanted in Mexico for rape of a minor.

On July 18, Andres Palacios Pizano, a 25-year-old illegal immigrant, was transferred to Mexican authorities after being picked up by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) St. Paul Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) office. A “recidivist offender of U.S. immigration law,” Pizano has been removed from the United States by ICE six times since 2017.

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Kamala Harris Faces Renewed Criticism for Support of Minnesota Bail Fund That Helped Free Violent Offenders

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Kamala Harris Speaking

Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, likely to succeed President Joe Biden as the Democratic nominee in the 2024 presidential election, is facing renewed scrutiny for her past support of a controversial bail fund with a history of springing violent offenders from jail.

Harris, despite often citing her experience as a district attorney and attorney general as a demonstration of her law and order credentials, endorsed the Minnesota Freedom Fund (MFF) in a tweet from June 1, 2020, declaring, “if you’re able to, chip in now to the MN Freedom Fund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota.” The fund received a $40 million cash windfall after it was promoted by celebrities like Harris, Seth Rogen and Chrissy Teigen.

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Minneapolis City Council Approves New Contract and Pay Raises for Police Officers

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Minneapolis Police Department

The Minneapolis City Council voted on Thursday to approve a new contract with the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis (POFM), the union which represents officers with the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD). In accordance with that contract, officers with the city are set to receive pay raises.

For well over a year, Minneapolis police officers have been working without a contract. As such, the new contract applies retroactively, covering a three-year period from January 2023 through December of 2025.

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Minnesota Public School System in Hot Water over DEI, Social Justice Trainings Kept Secret from Parents

Peter D'Abrosca
Teacher in Class

One Minnesota school system has found itself at the center of controversy over staff trainings regarding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), along with social justice. 

“Rochester Public Schools provides training that has staff participate in a “Social Justice Stretch” [and] staff are taught to embrace LGBTQ ideology with the ‘Genderbread Person,’ [and] staff are told not to tell parents about their children’s gender identity,” according to a watchdog group called Parents Defending Education (PDE). 

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Potentially Dangerous Minnesota County Court Order Reversed Just Three Weeks After Being Issued

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Judge Kerry Meyer

A recently enacted Hennepin County Court policy that could have had deadly or dangerous results for domestic abuse victims was suddenly reversed over the weekend.

In mid-June, Hennepin County District Court’s Chief Judge Kerry Meyer issued a Standing Order altering the pre-appearance release procedures and bail for some domestic abuse suspects. The order replaced a prior Standing Order that had been in place since 2019 that required suspects arrested on probable cause misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor domestic assault charges to be held without bail until they were brought before a judge to have bail and/or conditions set, such as a no-contact order with the victim.

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Funds for African Immigrants and Delivery Fee Among New Laws on the Books in Minnesota

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African Immigrants

The latest round of legislation passed by the Minnesota Legislature includes $1 million in funding for the African Immigrants Community Services nonprofit and an added delivery fee on retail orders.

The Minnesota House of Representatives released a list of legislation which was due to go into effect on July 1, all of which were sponsored by members of the DFL. Chief among the pieces of legislation passed during the most recent session is new spending. $23.85 million was delegated to the Department of Employment and Economic Development for “job training and economic development programs in fiscal year 2025.” Included in that spending was “$1 million to African Immigrants Community Services for workforce development for new Americans” as well as “$1 million to the Minnesota Black Chamber of Commerce for technical support to Black-owned small businesses.” Furthermore, “the law also appropriates General Fund money to support programs through Explore Minnesota Tourism,” including “$400,000 to Ka Joog for Somali community and cultural festivals and events.”

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Judge Who Supported Trump Reprimanded After Denying Felons the Right to Vote

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Judge Matthew Quinn

A Minnesota district court judge was publicly reprimanded by the Minnesota Board of Judicial Standards after denying several convicted felons the right to vote when issuing probation orders to those felons.

On June 27, Judge Matthew Quinn of Minnesota’s Seventh Judicial District was reprimanded by the Minnesota Board of Judicial Standards (MBJS). According to the Board’s findings, Judge Quinn began issuing probation sentencing orders to convicted felons in October of 2023 which denied those individuals the right to vote.

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Minnesota City Council Votes in Favor of Moratorium on Mosque-Centric Development

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Lino Lakes Council Meeting

The Lino Lakes City Council has voted 4-1 to postpone development of a new residential community centered around a mosque, with a final vote to decide the moratorium coming on July 8.

The development, with the proposed name of “Madinah Lakes,” was slated to cover 156 acres in Lino Lakes’ northwest quadrant. 434 housing units, businesses, and a grocery store, along with the $15 million, 40,000 square foot mosque at its center, were to be built on an area formerly dedicated to sod farming. The community was specifically marketed as “Masjid-Centric” in reference to the mosque.

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RFK Jr. Cleared to Appear on Minnesota Presidential Ballot

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Independent candidate for president Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been officially approved to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot in Minnesota, officials with Secretary of State Steve Simon’s office have confirmed.

Field staff for Kennedy’s campaign in Minnesota submitted their ballot petition — which includes the requisite minimum of 2,500 signatures and a list of presidential elector nominees — to the secretary of state on Jun 7. The secretary of state then engaged in a standard review of the signatures and application materials.

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10 More Minneapolis Gang Members Charged with Illegal Gun Possession and Drugs

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Andrew Luger Press Conference

Ten more alleged Minneapolis gang members have been charged in federal court for various crimes including illegal possession of firearms, possession of a machine gun, and drug trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger in a Tuesday press conference.

Luger was joined by Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara and FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Leah Greeves in announcing charges against the “10z” and “20z” (pronounced “tens” and “twenties”) gang members who they say operate mainly in the area of East Franklin and Chicago avenues in south Minneapolis and are part of a two-year crackdown on gangs in the city.

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Minnesota Parents Petition School Board for Improved Safety in Schools

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Ashley Ashbeck

A petition was presented to the Hopkins School Board during a June 11 meeting, calling on the board to provide a safe environment for students in Hopkins Public Schools following a violent incident that occurred at the end of May.

“We, the undersigned members of the Hopkins Public Schools community, are deeply concerned about the violent assault last Thursday against a transgender student at Hopkins High School,” the petition reads. “Just two days prior, there were three fights at the high school and the police were called to prevent a fourth.”

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