FIRST FORE
KPMG Women’s PGA Championship starts today at Hazeltine.
Twins are swept. Lynx win.
Wolves pick Isaiah Evans of Duke and Trey Kaufman-Renn from Purdue. NHL Draft starts tomorrow.
Sports Take later today: Wolves bold moves, NCAA gets it right, Twins sell out and more. Coming this afternoon.
Vance Boelter’s sentencing date has been scheduled for July 23. WCCO: https://fluence-media.co/4vuA1Dh
Some House Democrats are predicting a “Freedom Caucus of the left” as progressives oust incumbents across the U.S. AXIOS: https://fluence-media.co/4xSp6oQ
CBS News finds that Americans are mixed on having data centers built in their area — 50% oppose, 20% approve and 30% are unsure. About 6 in 10 say data centers are “mostly bad” for utility costs, resources and the environment. POLL: https://fluence-media.co/44sDmH4
Early voting for the primary starts tomorrow.
The debate schedule is being finalized, a couple sponsor spots are still open, send me a note if you’re interested. On Sunday July 29th, CD2 DFL candidates will debate on Sunday Take.
Happy National Bomb Pop Day!
Blois - tips: bloisolson@gmail.com
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LISTEN: Sunday Take covered the status of third parties in Minnesota with Chip Tangen, Libertarian candidate for secretary of state, and Jay Reeves, Forward Independence candidate for state auditor. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4uICwRf
SPEAKING: Do you have a summer or fall conference that your audience wants to hear about the insights of the election? “Signals vs. Noise” of the election. is scheduling now. EMAIL bloisolson@gmail.com
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SMARTER: Long Term Care – Is Minnesota Ready? Care Providers Minnesota and LeadingAge Minnesota hosted providers, Senator Grant Hauschild (03, DFL), Representative Natalie Zeleznikar (03B, GOP), and Representative Nathan Nelson (11B, GOP) for a conversation about the future of careing for our seniors. This coming week the conversation moves to St. Cloud. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4ue3YXA
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FIRST
Over 25,000 visits so far, and now a refresh of the Fluence Election Tracker.
VISIT: https://fluence-media.co/electiontracker
TAFOYA AD: via Tafoya for Senate, VERBATIM: “Michele Tafoya launched the first TV ad of her campaign leading up to the Republican primary election for Minnesota’s U.S. Senate seat. The 30-second spot highlights Tafoya’s years covering the biggest moments in sports before turning to the challenges facing Minnesota families, including rising crime, government dysfunction, and political leaders who have lost touch with everyday Minnesotans.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4oKCNC5
LINDELL: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “The company formerly known as Dominion Voting Systems is ending its $1.3 billion defamation lawsuit against MyPillow and its CEO, Mike Lindell. The voting machine company, which was sold last year to a former GOP election official and is now called Liberty Vote, agreed to dismiss the long-running lawsuit in a federal court filing. … Lindell said the lawsuit’s dismissal is ‘great news,’ [but] Lindell still faces a federal defamation suit from Smartmatic, another voting technology company.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3QmiVIN
KLOBUCHAR: via MPR, VERBATIM: “Amy Klobuchar is starting to lock in TV ad time for the general election. Klobuchar’s campaign placed its initial blast of ad reservations on Monday. Unless she accelerates her plan, the first spots won’t go up until the week of Aug. 18 — after the primary that will most likely make her the DFL nominee and sort out who will challenge her from the Republican Party. … If history is any guide, expect Klobuchar to run a batch of positive or biographical spots about what she’s done as a U.S. senator and what she wants to do as governor. Unless the race gets close, she’ll probably leave the negative ads to outside groups.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3SvyrCC
FLANAGAN: North Star Dawn, a PAC supporting Rep. Angie Craig, has filed a complaint to the FEC calling for Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan to be investigated because the Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association accepted donations from CoreCivic, Inc. while Flanagan was chair. Via the complaint, EXCERPT: “Flanagan and CoreCivic blatantly violated the [Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971] prohibition on soliciting and accepting contributions from federal contractors. … We further request that the Commission authorize an investigation into Flanagan’s role in soliciting, authorizing, approving, ratifying, or permitting CoreCivic contributions during her tenure as chair of DLGA.” COMPLAINT: https://fluence-media.co/4eBH7P9
MORE: The North Star Dawn PAC is now paying for sponsored Google search results that suggest a “fact check” website when you look up terms related to Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. The website, also paid for by North Star Dawn, claims that Flanagan’s commitment to reject corporate donations is “false” because the DLGA accepted such donations while Flanagan was chair. AD: https://fluence-media.co/3QXdZds WEBSITE: https://fluence-media.co/4g0p3AI
RESPONSE: Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan’s campaign told Politico earlier this year that the DLGA donations were solicited by staffers before Flanagan became chair, but the money arrived after she became chair, and Flanagan wants the DLGA to return these donations. READ: https://fluence-media.co/43QroHf
PROGRESSIVES: Advocacy group TakeAction MN announced that its members have voted to endorse Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan in the DFL Senate primary, encouraging supporters to vote for her to repeat the recent success of progressives in New York’s Democratic primaries. Co-executive director Elianne Farhat said the group is “done with the status quo” because “candidates with the winds of the people at their backs beat mountains of corporate cash.”
AMID RURAL HEALTH CHALLENGES, ESSENTIA HEALTH INVESTS IN NEW IRON RANGE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT: Essentia Health is investing in a $13 million project to remodel and expand its emergency department in Virginia, MN. With support from the Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation Board and philanthropic partners, the project will improve emergency care and mental health resources through new technology, safety and security measures, and a behavioral health suite. READ MORE: https://fluence-media.co/4o79h9j (SPONSORED: Essentia Health)
QUALLS: Republican Kendall Qualls spoke to MPR about his plan for a $9 billion “fraud rebate,” as seen in yesterday’s morning take. VERBATIM: “He said his state tax cut would be made over two years, but he hasn’t settled on the mechanism for delivering it. Asked where the money would come from, Qualls said there’s room to cut in the state budget. … He said employee attrition, hiring freezes and dictating no increases to spending would help reach his target.” QUOTE: “Doing a 10 to 12 percent budget cut is normative for any organization going through basically austere times, so we’re looking at a 12 percent budget decrease across the board, and you can manage that with little-to-no impact at all.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3SvyrCC
ENDORSEMENTS: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “The value of political party endorsements in Minnesota is being put to the test like never before in 2026. All three of the Republican and DFL candidates in competitive races who were endorsed at their party conventions for governor and U.S. Senate are trailing in polls and fundraising. … Larry Jacobs of the University of Minnesota [said] the endorsed candidates all trailing could be the death knell for the endorsement process.” JACOBS: “It has lost its meaning. … We’re seeing, in both parties, real serious consideration of doing away with it and instead moving the primary earlier in the year.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4vxdfLf
A deep dive into the CD1 race between Rep. Brad Finstad and Jake Johnson for MNSider subscribers. HERE: https://fluence-media.co/49OqNJu
DC DRIP
TIME CAPSULE: Via a joint statement from all 10 members of Minnesota’s federal delegation, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Congressional Delegation announced that it is contributing a collection of original images of Minnesota in 2026 for a Congressional Time Capsule in honor of America’s 250th Anniversary. The Minnesota collection includes photographs from across Minnesota’s eight Congressional Districts as well as accompanying letters from the delegation that explain their significance to their districts, state, and nation. The capsule…will be sealed in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center to be opened on America’s 500th Anniversary on July 4, 2276.” PHOTOS: https://fluence-media.co/4exV8gI
HOUSING: via NBC News, VERBATIM: “President Donald Trump abruptly canceled his plans to sign a major bipartisan housing bill Wednesday, saying he will not do so until Congress passes the SAVE America Act, a sweeping elections bill. … It was not clear whether he still plans to sign the housing bill or veto it. Trump did not address the bill at all in comments to reporters after he met with Republican senators for lunch on Capitol Hill. … Trump’s undercutting of a rare bipartisan achievement frustrated many [GOP] senators, who say they need to show voters results on key economic concerns ahead of the midterm elections.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4oRBstg
RESPONSE: via statement from Rep. Mike Howard VERBATIM: “The 21st Century ROADS Act is bipartisan achievement that will build scores of new homes, reduce costs, and create more opportunities for families to buy a home they can afford. It is beyond mystifying that our President would snatch defeat from the jaws of victory by refusing to sign this bill.”
● PORT: “President Trump’s rejection of a bipartisan, noncontroversial bill would be absurd if we weren’t well acquainted with his petty, egotistical style of politics. … I urge members of Congress to use any methods in their power to pass this commonsense bill in spite of President Trump’s dangerous games.”
ABORTION: DFL Rep. Kelly Morrison and GOP Rep. Michelle Fischbach both commemorated the four-year anniversary of Dobbs v. Jackson yesterday from opposing perspectives. Morrison introduced a House bill that would “support better access to clinical training opportunities, including abortion care, for OB-GYN residents training in states with abortion bans.” Meanwhile, Fischbach and the rest of the Pro-Life Caucus issued a joint statement to “renew the call to end abortion violence and support women and unborn babies.” MORRISON: https://fluence-media.co/4ahTZc1 FISCHBACH: https://fluence-media.co/4vwHTED
ASYLUM: via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “While immigration case law was already unfavorable to most asylum applicants, it has been further constricted in the past 18 months by Justice Department decisions and administrative changes. The result is that the door to lawful permanent status for many immigrants appears to be closing fast, with asylum approval rates at Fort Snelling dropping from over 10% in 2024 to less than 2% in President Donald Trump’s second term.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3QLnnRc
ELECTIONS: via ABC News, VERBATIM: “A federal judge on Wednesday permanently blocked the Trump Administration from enforcing an executive order signed last year that required proof of citizenship to register to vote and demanded mail-in ballots be received by Election Day. Judge Denise Casper ruled that the president lacks the authority to oversee elections and rejected the Trump Administration’s unsupported claims of ‘widespread illegal voting.’ … The decision is more than a year in the making, with a group of state attorneys general [including Minnesota’s] filing a lawsuit.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4eJLZ50
VOTING: via Rep. Angie Craig advisory, VERBATIM: “Representative Angie Craig helped introduce legislation [for] establishing a first-ever statutory right to vote in federal elections. … The bill would allow Americans to legally challenge any policy that illegally restricts ballot access and would require states attempting to restrict voting access to meet a high bar to justify any policy that makes it harder for U.S. citizens to participate in federal elections.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4vptKsA
SMALL BIZ: via Rep. Kelly Morrison advisory, VERBATIM: “The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed Congresswoman Kelly Morrison’s (D-MN-03) bipartisan Native American Entrepreneurial Opportunity Act. This bill will support Native Americans in establishing and expanding small businesses across the country.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4evxbbq
CLEAN | RELIABLE | AFFORDABLE: via Xcel Energy, VERBATIM: “We’re powering the Upper Midwest with clean, reliable, and affordable nuclear energy. For more than 50 years, our Prairie Island Nuclear Plant, located near Red Wing, MN, has been a workhorse of reliable, carbon-free energy. With two pressurized water reactors producing about 1,100 megawatts, Prairie Island generates enough electricity to power 1.5 million homes across the Upper Midwest. Unlike sources that depend on weather, nuclear energy delivers 24/7 reliability — providing the power we need today while protecting the environment for tomorrow.” LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/4oCHdK9 (SPONSORED: Xcel Energy)
STATE FEED
GRANTS: via AARP advisory, VERBATIM: “AARP today announced 18 organizations throughout Minnesota will receive 2026 Community Challenge grants. … The grants are part of an $8.3 million commitment [to] fund 750 quick-action projects nationwide aimed at making communities more livable for people of all ages, especially older adults. The funds will support improvements to public spaces, transportation, housing, digital connectivity, disaster preparedness, and other local priorities.” LIST: https://fluence-media.co/3R1qWTx
DHS: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “A lawsuit filed in federal court [this week] alleges that Minnesota’s Department of Human Services is intentionally dismantling its Family Residential Services program through a shift to a new, less flexible Medicaid reimbursement system, which only applies to Family Residential Programs and another program. … The flat-rate system at the heart of the lawsuit went into effect earlier this year and was introduced at the Legislature as a cost-saving measure. Sen. [Bill] Lieske, who opposes the rate change, said the state won’t end up saving money through the program.” LIESKE: “It does cost money to take care of people and that’s the discussion, but is it the right place to be making cuts?” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4oIlAZK
MEDICAID: via Senate GOP advisory, VERBATIM: “Senator Andrew Mathews (R–Princeton) and Representative Shane Mekeland (R–Clear Lake), along with leaders of Big Lake’s Options, Inc., hosted a public town hall to discuss problems with the Minnesota Department of Human Services’ provider revalidation process. In May, Options, Inc. was notified by DHS that it had been disenrolled. Its ability to bill for services was paused and later restored in June. However, the nonprofit still received notice that it would need to shut down operations by the end of July.” MATHEWS: “The disruption, fear, and uncertainty that DHS caused through its own administrative mistakes threatened the care of vulnerable adults. … The Governor and DHS need to fix their broken process immediately.”
ICYMI: Yesterday’s lunch take had more coverage of the town hall featuring Options, Inc. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4b6GYCk
EVICTIONS: via Axios Twin Cities, VERBATIM: “Eviction filings in the Twin Cities metro are on pace for a record year, tenant advocacy organization HOME Line reports. … Through May, year-to-date filings were up 3.6% in the metro compared to last year — the previous record-holding year for evictions — and up 11.5% over the previous three-year average.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4vwf8YE
HIGHER ED: via OHE advisory, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Office of Higher Education (OHE) announced the 2026 recipients of the Dual Training Grant. In total, $4.87 million was awarded to 71 Minnesota businesses and five regional organizations that represent multiple employers. The funds will allow companies in high-demand industries to fund dual training programs for 867 employees.” LIST: https://fluence-media.co/4eFX7zT
METRO
MPD: via City of Minneapolis, VERBATIM: “The Minneapolis City Council Committee of the Whole advanced a legislative directive seeking accountability and transparency from Mayor [Jacob] Frey, the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) and the Office of Community Safety (OCS) on their plans for a stable public safety system following the resignation of MPD Chief [Brian] O’Hara last month. … The City Council will take a final vote on the legislative directives on Thursday, June 25, 2026. If approved, the Frey administration is expected to present a public response by August 10, 2026.” DIRECTIVE: https://fluence-media.co/4oQsNqT
SPPS: via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) Board of Education has approved its budget for the upcoming school year, which includes ‘necessary reductions and staffing adjustments.’ … School board members approved the $814.5 million budget, taking into account the $14.35 million shortfall. … District leaders blame the budget gap on increased expenses, which have outpaced aid revenue from the state, and declining enrollment. … The district notes it was able to avoid larger cuts thanks to a referendum passed by voters last November.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fZoFT4
ST PAUL: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “The St. Paul City Council, unlike their 13 counterparts in Minneapolis, are not considered full-time municipal employees, [so] council members in the capital city earn $79,000 annually, while Minneapolis council members take home about $110,000. … St. Paul City Council Member Nelsie Yang urged the seven-member council to take steps toward ditching the part-time council structure, raising their salaries as elected officials by as much as 40%, and bringing their pay on par with that of Minneapolis and other peer cities.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3QmiRsx
HABITAT RESTORATION: Flint Hills Resources has earned Tandem Global WHC Gold Certification for habitat restoration at its Cottage Grove fuel terminal. The certification comes after two years of work in partnership with Friends of the Mississippi River to implement a restoration and monitoring plan to re-establish the 6.5-acre site’s natural prairie and savannah. Flint Hills has held gold certification for its work done with community partners over the past 25 years to restore more than 200 acres of the Pine Bend Bluffs, a critical natural area along the Mississippi River that is adjacent to Flint Hills Resources Pine Bend refinery. This makes two Flint Hills gold-certified sites in Minnesota and the first two gold-certified sites ever in the Twin Cities. LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/3VASKg4 (SPONSORED: Flint Hills Resources)
AROUND MN
COLD SPRING: Gov. Tim Walz announced that the 2027 Governor’s Fishing Opener will be held in Cold Spring for the first time.
WINONA: DFLer Dan Wilson, candidate for House District 26A, released a statement in response to the news last week that Acuity Brands Lighting is closing its Winona facility, impacting 86 workers. WILSON: “Georgia-based Acuity Brands has chosen to desert its workers in Winona despite its $563 million profit. … It is this exact motivation of profit over people that makes our communities weaker and harms Greater Minnesota. … [I] will defend 26A from corporate greed and fight for the union workers whose commitment and hard work we all rely on.” BACKGROUND: https://fluence-media.co/4oQyg0T
DULUTH: via Duluth News Tribune, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota and Wisconsin transportation departments opened bids [this week] for the Blatnik Bridge replacement project and announced Ames-Kraemer Joint Venture II was the apparent best-value proposer. The joint bid by Ames Construction and Kraemer North America was $930 million.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4w2ilii
PROUD TO CHAMPION ATHLETES EVERYWHERE: Minnesota’s 24,000 family corn farmers may come from different fields than the athletes participating in the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games, which are set for June 20-26 in Minnesota. But they share the same values, including dedication, hard work, and perseverance. This summer, Minnesota Corn salutes the talented athletes participating in the games. We’ll be cheering them on from our fields as they shine in yours. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Corn)
WHAT’S NEXT
TODAY: Gov. Walz has no public events.
TODAY: FCR will host a press conference discussing a FOIA lawsuit they filed to obtain “federal agency records related to Operation Metro Surge,” per a release. The event is at 9:00 a.m.
TODAY: Allina Health Cancer Institute will host a ribbon cutting event in Coon Rapids at 10:00 a.m. to celebrate the launch of its mobile lung and breast cancer screening programs.
TODAY: Sec. Steve Simon will host a media briefing on the start of early voting for the Aug. 11 primary at 1:30 p.m.
TOMORROW: Early voting for Minnesota’s Aug. 11 primary begins on Friday, June 26.
MONDAY: Sen. Jen McEwen and Reps. Pete Johnson and Liish Kozlowski, all DFL, are hosting a town hall in Duluth on Monday, June 29 to “inform constituents of legislative achievements from the 2026 session,” per a release. The event is at 6:00 p.m.
JULY 13: Attorney General Keith Ellison will host a community listening session on Monday, July 13 to discuss the proposed acquisition of Allina Health by Sutter Health. The event is in St. Paul at 6:00 p.m.
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BDAYS: community leader Elizabeth Patty, political insider Sarah Kruger, agency leader Patty Voje, CFAN’s comms leader Tim Loesch, truth speaker Billy Dinkel, professor Rand Park, Strib spin guy Chris Iles
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IN MEMORIAM: morning take is dedicated in memory of Melissa Hortman.