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Walz, Jensen unleash pointed attacks during final debate for Minnesota governor
The final debate between Gov. Tim Walz and his Republican opponent Scott Jensen on Friday had one rule: No talking over one another. Neither candidate adhered to it. The candidates for governor didn’t hold back on their attacks during their final debate, which was broadcast on MPR radio. MPR’s debate moderator Mike Mulcahy had to […]
Abortion rights advocates to hold get-out-the-vote event in St. Paul on Saturday
Abortion rights advocates had hoped the U.S. Supreme Court’s June Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade would finally persuade voters that the Republican pledge to ban abortion was real and now possible in all 50 states. But polling suggests the electorate is less focused on abortion rights in recent weeks, and in the process moving […]
Scott Jensen’s unconventional health care views spread beyond COVID-19
Republican nominee for governor Scott Jensen rose to national prominence by sharing unconventional COVID-19 views with right-wing talk radio and cable TV hosts like Laura Ingraham, who were eager to hear him downplay the pandemic and attack the public health measures put in place by government officials. He minimized the seriousness of the virus — […]
Scott Jensen provides more details about plan to eliminate personal income tax
Republican nominee for governor Scott Jensen says he wants Minnesota to become the tenth state in the U.S. without a personal income tax, which economists say would require steep cuts to education and health care and/or increases in sales and property taxes. Earlier this month, the Chaska family doctor and former one-term state senator provided […]
Fact-check: Minnesota students of color aren’t doing better than peers, as Walz said
During the first and only televised debate between Gov. Tim Walz and Republican nominee Scott Jensen on Tuesday, the DFL governor praised Minnesota’s performance in education, especially among the state’s students of color. The moderators asked the candidates about declining test scores and learning loss caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and distance learning. Walz used […]
Key moments from first televised debate in governor’s race between Walz, Jensen
Gov. Tim Walz and his Republican challenger Scott Jensen debated abortion, crime, the state budget and opioids Tuesday in Rochester — their first and only joint televised appearance. Walz hit Jensen for the Republican’s shifting stance on abortion and his proposal to eliminate the state’s personal income tax. Jensen sought to shift the conversation to […]
DOJ awards Minnesota-based advocacy group $500,000 for review of wrongful convictions
The U.S. Department of Justice awarded a $500,000 grant to a local advocacy group to investigate the legal cases of people who have been convicted of crimes but are believed to be innocent. The grant will fund Minnesota’s Conviction Review Unit, which was established in 2020 in partnership with the state Attorney General’s Office and […]
U.S. Supreme Court to consider case that could radically reshape the country’s elections
The U.S. Supreme Court could soon grant state legislatures unconditional control over federal elections, clearing the way for lawmakers to gerrymander their states with impunity and pass voter restriction measures without interference from state courts. The high-stakes election case, Moore v. Harper, comes out of North Carolina after its Republican-controlled legislature passed in November 2021 […]
State aid per student has decreased by 20% in Minnesota in last two decades, report finds
State aid per student has declined by 20% in the past 20 years, according to a new report by the progressive think tank North Star Policy Action. Relying on Minnesota Department of Education data, the analysis found a sharp decline in per pupil aid once adjusted for inflation. In the absence of help from the […]
Klobuchar at U of M event touts voting rights record, work on Electoral Count Act
At one time Sen. Amy Klobuchar may have rather led the Senate Judiciary Committee or a similarly high-profile panel, but chairing the Senate Rules Committee has placed her in the middle of arguably the most important issue of this American moment: The future of democracy. Klobuchar used a speech at the University of Minnesota Thursday […]
Legal Marijuana Now candidate for 2nd Congressional District dies
Paula Overby, the Legal Marijuana Now candidate in the race for Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District, has died at 68. Overby’s son, Tyler, told the Reformer his mother died at M Health Fairview on Wednesday morning from heart valve complications, though her official cause of death hasn’t been determined. Tyler Overby said his mother had been […]
Who would serve in a Scott Jensen administration?
The last time Minnesotans elected a Republican governor, Apple had yet to release the original iPhone. Tim Pawlenty was the last Republican governor, and he left in 2011. Many of his senior advisors have since retired or cashed in on their government service by becoming lobbyists and consultants. If Republican nominee for governor Scott Jensen […]