HOLIDAY MONDAY
No matter how much sleep, the heat and golf meant still a tough Monday wake upl
Twins win a series against New York.
US plays Belgium tonight with a red card asterisk. The England – Mexico match last night was so good, and Norway
Some Twin Cities bars say World Cup enthusiasm has caused revenue to “skyrocket.” WCCO: https://fluence-media.co/4eVpABF
Donald Trump successfully lobbied FIFA to lift its ban on a U.S. star player before tonight’s World Cup match. GUARDIAN: https://fluence-media.co/4giQNAI
Star Tribune’s Jim Souhan has retired after decades covering Minnesota sports.
Sunday Take featured Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan discussing her Senate campaign, her time in state government and more. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3SBPx1V
Happy National Fried Chicken Day!
Blois - tips: bloisolson@gmail.com
SPONSOR: Sponsorships are available to reach over 30,000 readers per day on Fluence’s tip sheets and website, TheDailyAgenda.com – email BloisOlson@gmail.com.
Sunday Take featured a breakdown of 5 key things to watch before the Aug. 11 primaries in Minnesota. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4gca1bg
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
DEEPER: Check out a Fluence Forum podcast. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/FluenceForums
Want to manage your subscription to TheDailyAgenda.com ? HERE: https://fluence-media.co/managesubscription
250TH: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “Minnesotans across the state, asked about 250 years of ‘the American Experiment,’ told MPR News they felt a mixture of pride, unease, disappointment, hope and fear about the nation. … In Delano, about 30 minutes west of Minneapolis, the traditional idea of patriotism was on full display as the town readied for its daylong celebration in the morning. Locals geared up for the parade [wearing] red, white and blue. … At the same time in Minneapolis, around 400 people gathered at Chute Park to honor people who died as a result of federal immigration enforcement under the Trump Administration. Dressed in all black, the crowd formed a funeral procession to the federal courthouse.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4p9jse2
MORE: via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “Despite record-high temperatures, Julie Ramer, who ran Minnesota’s booth at the fair on the National Mall this week, said she’s had visitors from all over the United States and overseas. … Ramer said she volunteered to work at the booth and considers it a very positive experience, despite an air conditioner that kept breaking down [and] a few rude individuals.” RAMER: “They would say something like, ‘I don’t like your state’s politics’ or ‘I’m not going to your state until it changes its ways.’ When people make those comments, I just don’t engage.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4p5E9ar
NEW ADS: Rep. Angie Craig’s Senate campaign has released two new ads for TV and digital platforms. The first, “Hitting Back,” features Craig on a baseball field promising to fight corruption. The second, “Pulltabs,” has Craig in a bar discussing some of her specific anti-corruption policies. 1ST: https://fluence-media.co/44eAkGt 2ND: https://fluence-media.co/4vR0oUm
CD2: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Kaela Berg’s campaign illustrates a paradox that has become increasingly clear in Democratic politics. For years, the party has argued it needs more candidates who understand the economic realities facing working Americans, [but] the economics of congressional campaigns increasingly reward something else: personal wealth. … Berg joined four other Democratic congressional candidates with labor backgrounds to form the Blue Collar Brigade, a coalition meant to highlight what they see as the structural disadvantages facing working-class candidates. … Part of the challenge is simply finding time to fundraise. Berg said she still works full time.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4aAmcuN
ENDORSEMENT: US Rep. Chris Deluzio will endorse state Rep. Kaela Berg today.
DISMISSAL: Retiring GOP Rep. Ron Kresha announced that a civil fraud lawsuit against him was dismissed by U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez. Via his announcement, VERBATIM: “On July 10, 2025, a civil lawsuit was initiated under the False Claims Act with a filed Complaint pro se in Federal Court against Ron Kresha. … The motion against Kresha was filed as a qui tam motion; no charges were ever brought, and at no time was Kresha under investigation.” KRESHA: “I always knew my name would be cleared once the court had a chance to review the lack of evidence and the real facts of the case. While slow and painful sometimes, justice is served.”
CD6: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Doug Chapin, the Democrat challenging Rep. Tom Emmer in Minnesota’s deep-red Sixth District, says his campaign posted a record-breaking fundraising quarter, fueled in part by a surge of donations after Emmer’s recent remarks about Somali Minnesotans. The campaign said it raised more than $80,000 in June alone, including $10,000 online in the 24 hours immediately following Emmer’s comments.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4aAmcuN
NEXT WEEK: The FEC’s deadline for Q2 fundraising reports is on Wednesday, July 15. Some Minnesota campaigns are already releasing their numbers early, so stay tuned this week and next.
Over 25,000 visits so far, and now a refresh of the Fluence Election Tracker.
VISIT: https://fluence-media.co/electiontracker
CATCH UP
PARDON: Via Star Tribune, Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Speaker Lisa Demuth have responded to the news, seen in Thursday’s morning take, that Minnesota officials pardoned a child sex offender after the man’s victim asked them to do so. Both gubernatorial candidates indicated they would have handled the situation differently. READ: https://fluence-media.co/4w5T1sp
KLOBUCHAR: “I would want to look at the entire record before making a decision on any pardon case, but as a former prosecutor I have not supported pardons of sex offenders.”
DEMUTH: “[DFLers] weaken public safety and pardon heinous crimes. Under my leadership, nobody who commits horrific abuses against children will be pardoned.”
MNSURE: via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “When the state of Minnesota announced last fall that monthly premiums on MNsure, the state’s healthcare exchange borne out of the Affordable Care Act, would skyrocket 57%, state officials and healthcare advocates warned that an untold number of Minnesotans could no longer afford their insurance. … Last week, MNsure officials [said] there were 125,714 effectuated enrollments as of May, a 12% decline compared to May 2025. … Of the enrollees who stayed at their ‘medal level,’ 52% chose a less expensive plan, according to MNsure. There was also a 112% increase in consumers ‘buying down’ to a cheaper medal level.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eKrp5I
PREDICTIONS: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “A federal judge plans to decide soon if she’ll block a Minnesota law to effectively ban prediction markets. The sites and a federal regulatory body want an injunction to keep the law from taking effect in August. … U.S. District Court Judge Katherine Menendez heard arguments in the case brought by prediction markets sites Kalshi and Polymarket, as well as the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. … The law has gained national attention since it is the first in the country to prohibit the markets.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4y4x4Lt
FRAUD: via Rep. Brad Finstad advisory, VERBATIM: “Congressman Brad Finstad (MN-01) and Congressman Derek Schmidt (KS-02) introduced the National Fraud Enforcement Division Act of 2026, which would make permanent the newly established National Fraud Enforcement Division within the Department of Justice (DOJ). The legislation would establish an Assistant Attorney General, appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, to lead DOJ efforts to investigate, prosecute, and prevent fraud within federally funded programs.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4yd0SFZ
USPS: via AP News, VERBATIM: “A group of Democratic governors asked the U.S. Postal Service [last week] to withdraw its proposed rule seeking to implement an executive order from President Donald Trump to create a federal list of eligible voters and potentially limit who can receive a ballot in the mail. … A federal judge has blocked Trump’s executive order and barred agencies from implementing it. … The letter [was] organized by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and included eight other Democratic governors — from California, Connecticut, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4v7mUXH
A deep dive into the CD1 race between Rep. Brad Finstad and Jake Johnson for MNSider subscribers. HERE: https://fluence-media.co/49OqNJu
THE FEED
SETTLEMENT: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “More than two dozen projects to restore wildlife habitat or improve outdoor recreation will receive money from Minnesota’s 2018 settlement with 3M over PFAS. … The projects include park improvements, fishing programs and stream restorations in the Twin Cities east metro and downstream areas of the Mississippi and St. Croix rivers. They’ll receive a total of $20 million.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4p6sE2K
AG GRANTS: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “Starting Monday, July 6, first-time farm buyers will be able to apply for up to $20,000 to go toward the purchase of a new farm. Minnesota Department of Agriculture Program Manager Jenny Heck said that money can account for about 5 percent of a farm’s purchase price.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eLgHMn
PEACE: via MFU advisory, VERBATIM: “National Farmers Union (NFU) and Minnesota Farmers Union (MFU) mourn the passing of David Velde, a long-time Farmers Union leader and General Counsel for the organizations. Velde, 74, of Alexandria, died June 26. … He grew up in a Farmers Union family and was the director of public affairs for Minnesota Farmers Union before serving as NFU and MFU General Counsel.”
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)
METRO
ST PAUL: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “The promise was huge: St. Paul residents could see $100 million in medical debt erased. The city would use just $1.1 million of federal money to accomplish the feat. But the payoff wasn’t quite as big as hoped. In the end, the city spent just a third of that fund to erase $15.4 million in [bills]. … The ‘Medical Debt Reset’ program was quietly defunded in June when the City Council voted to reallocate the remaining money — nearly $800,000 — to other city departments. The move ended one of former Mayor Melvin Carter’s signature programs.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3R1fbwl
CYBERATTACK: via City of St. Paul, VERBATIM: “The City of Saint Paul is completing individual notifications to employees and residents whose personal information may have been accessed during the July 2025 cyber incident. … The City has partnered with federal, state, and local law enforcement partners and contracted with a forensic investigator to securely review the affected data to identify individuals whose information may have been improperly accessed. Since that review is now complete, the City is sending individual notification to affected employees and residents. … The City is offering all persons affected by this breach one year of IDX identity protection services at no charge.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3SBzYHw
EAGAN: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “For the second time in about as many years, it’s back to the drawing board for the future of a sprawling swath of Eagan real estate. Real estate developers Opus of Minnetonka and Capital Partners of Edina have withdrawn their application to redevelop the former Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota site in Eagan. … The planned redevelopment of the site, which hinged on a land-use change from major office to a mix of business park, medium- and high-density residential, faced opposition from community members.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gsBgyt
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)
ACROSS MN
IRON RANGE: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Minnesota’s first new mine in half a century is just weeks away from its expected opening. … Major permits are in hand and financial backing is secured to launch the Mesabi Metallics mine and taconite facility complex. At a cost of $2.5 billion, it is one of the biggest economic investments in Minnesota’s history. … [It] has economic boosters and officials on the Range feeling cautiously optimistic.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4aFjPH3
RPD: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “Rochester police were the state’s top deployers of drones in 2025, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension’s yearly report. … Rochester police used UAVs, or drones, 1,009 times when a warrant wasn’t required between Jan 1 and Dec. 31, 2025. … Minnetonka, another city with a similar program, ranked third in the state just after the Minnesota State Patrol in drone deployments — 611 to the MSP’s 633.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4vMV4kD
DULUTH: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “The College of St. Scholastica in Duluth has a new president. Brenda Kelly began work [last] week as the 14th president of the college. … For the past eight years, Kelly was provost and dean of Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn. … The school is confronting a budget deficit of more than $5 million, and has laid off several faculty members. Kelly declined to talk in more detail about the school’s budget issues.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4w5OYfH
ST JOSEPH: via St. Cloud Live, VERBATIM: “The St. Joseph City Council will consider [today] how to use the remaining $5.5 million in community center bond proceeds and may direct staff to begin developing alternative plans following the project’s termination earlier this year. … $803,094 has been spent, leaving $5.51 million in Capital Project Fund 402. According to the agenda, that money could go to transportation improvements, community facilities such as the senior center or branch library or regional parks and trails.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4y7Jwdr
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)
DAYBOOK
TODAY: Gov. Tim Walz has no public events.
TODAY: Allina hospice nurses will hold a one-day strike in Minneapolis from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with a rally on the picket line at 12:00 noon.
TOMORROW: Pastors, imams and rabbis with Faith in Us will host a press conference at the Capitol to advocate for voting rights as part of a “National Day of Clergy Action.” The event is at 10:30 a.m.
TOMORROW: Sen. Bobby Joe Champion, Rep. Esther Agbaje and Rep. Fue Lee, all DFL, will host a joint town hall meeting for Senate District 59 constituents in Minneapolis at 5:30 p.m.
TOMORROW: Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan is hosting a Zoom event with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith at 7:00 p.m.
WEDNESDAY: The Office of the Legislative Auditor will release an evaluation report on Minnesota voter registration at 12:00 noon, followed by a presentation to the Legislative Audit Commission at 1:00 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.
We won’t ask for “membership” to list your BDAY, and we won’t have pledge drive but you can support the Fluence work by paying for premium content.
BDAYS: ag leader Jeanne Poppe, restauranteur Brent Frederick, energy developer Julia Sonnen
SPEAKER: If you’re looking for a speaker about the “Signal vs. Noise” dynamic of today’s politics and the 2026 election. EMAIL: BloisOlson@gmail.com.
SPONSORS: Sponsorships are available to reach over 30,000 readers per day on Fluence’s tip sheets and website, TheDailyAgenda.com – email BloisOlson@gmail.com.
Send us your tips at BloisOlson@gmail.com
IN MEMORIAM: morning take is dedicated in memory of Melissa Hortman.