WELCOME WINTER ❄️
As the Turkey Committee debates with Chairman Patrick Reusse, we are considering a list of stuffing filled issues that will make your Thanksgiving dinner “lit”. Prices for your dinner are below.
Loons lose. Wolves win. Sports Take today will no doubt cover the JJ situation.
Gov. Tim Walz will pardon a Turkey today, and likely face some questions on healthcare, fraud and maybe his statement that Minnesota had “all day Kindergarten” – or even when he will name a running mate.
The latest angle on “The Fraud Story” is that the state didn’t pass computer security tests. Paging MNIT Commissioner Tarek Tomes.
Next Monday attorney Chris Madel will announce his candidacy for Governor as a Republican. Expect him to make a different kind of case.
Out this morning, BBY hiked its full year forecast Tuesday, as it topped Wall Street’s quarterly sales expectations and customers turned to the retailer to upgrade tech devices and splurge on new computers, gaming consoles and smartphones. CNBC: https://fluence-media.co/4ptCQky
While Minneapolis is celebrating the #2 latest “bike friendly” in the US and 44th in the “world” rating for Minneapolis perhaps we should look at how many people in Minnesota and Minneapolis bike. A quick Google search shows The League of Bicyclist ranks Minneapolis #13 with only 2.6 percent of residents commuting…which claims ~6,000 bike commuters in Minneapolis. That seems high based on bike lane traffic.
Only three walleyes on Mille Lacs through the winter….and State Fair tickets are at their “lowest price of the year” today only. BMTN: https://fluence-media.co/44iGpC8
Happy National Blasé Day…except the weather.
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Rep. Brad Finstad was on Sunday Take discussing agriculture, immigration, the government shutdown and more. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/48BQRpV
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The latest insight from Fluence Advisory on the loss of institutional knowledge from the Minnesota Legislature. READ:https://fluence-advisory.com/insights/
ECONOMY
PRICES: via Minnesota Farm Bureau, VERBATIM: “The American Farm Bureau Federation’s 40th annual Thanksgiving dinner survey provides a snapshot of the average cost of Thanksgiving staples that make up a classic holiday feast for 10, which is $55.18, [or] a 5% decrease from 2024. … In Minnesota, the average cost of a dinner for 10 is above the national average at $60.66. … While the wholesale price for fresh turkey is up from 2024, grocery stores are featuring Thanksgiving deals [for] lower retail prices. … Half of the ingredients in the survey declined in price, including dinner rolls and stuffing, [but] items like fresh vegetables and sweet potatoes increased – a veggie tray is up more than 61% and sweet potatoes are up 37%.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ipCVUs
BANKRUPTCY: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “Bankruptcy filings are rising across the nation and in Minnesota. … Minnesota District Court data shows 8,601 filings so far in 2025, up from 8,508 in 2024 and 6,898 in 2023. That marks a 20% yearly increase since 2023. Andrew Walker, managing partner at Walker & Walker Law Offices, says the increase is concerning but reflects a return to pre‑pandemic levels.” QUOTE: “It’s alarming to see that it’s increasing, [but it’s] a regression to the mean. … Wages aren’t really keeping track with cost of living like they did in the COVID boom years. Prices have continued to go up, but people aren’t getting those nice hiring bonuses anymore.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3JUCtAN
HEMP/THC: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Minnesota’s Democrats in Congress say they will push to undo a federal ban on intoxicating hemp products before it takes effect in a year. … U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith as well as Rep. Ilhan Omar vowed to fight for a fix during a Monday news conference, [saying] the federal ban could result in the elimination of at least 2,700 jobs in Minnesota. … Omar [said] she’s considering whether to seek legislation overturning the ban or a ‘carve-out’ for states that already regulate the products, like Minnesota. … Rep. Tom Emmer, the No. 3 Republican in the U.S. House, seemed open to working on a fix in a brief interview. … Omar said Monday that Emmer [is] ‘much more amendable’ [than] the other Republicans in Minnesota’s delegation.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ii0Rch
(DISCLOSURE: Plift is a client of Fluence Advisory)
FED FUNDS: via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “Weeks after the longest shutdown in United States history, the effects are still being felt in Minnesota. Money meant for energy assistance programs like the one provided by Minnesota has been on hold. … Lissa Pawlisch, Assistant Commissioner at the Minnesota Department of Commerce in the Division of Energy Resources, says they typically receive around $112 million. … Pawlisch says the federal Health and Human Services Department sent a letter last week indicating that it hopes to have those funds released by the end of the month.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/486HUnW
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FRAUD
In a sit-down interview Rep. Tom Emmer with Morgan Wolfe at KARE 11, VERBATIM: “It’s fraud. You can call it racist all you want, which is what Ilhan Omar defaults to. The idea that you’re going to deflect and say, well, this is a political hack. What about the $250 million Feeding Our Future? What about the $61 million in the first six months of this year with the housing fraud? What about the $400 million in Medicaid fraud? What about the autism issue that has clearly been established in this community? Are we just going to ignore it yet again? Are we going to just point at people who want to talk about cold, hard truth and say, well, they just hate us, or this is a political attack. Those days are over. Minnesotans are smarter than that. Minnesotans deserve better than that…I have great relationships with the Somali entrepreneurs that are in my district. They’re not interested in the games that Ilhan Omar is playing. They’re not interested in the political games that the CAIR organization is playing...” WATCH/READ: https://fluence-media.co/4pQdVbt
AUDITS: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “The agency that oversaw Minnesota’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) did not perform required security reviews of a computer system critical to the program’s operation, according to audits reviewed by 5 INVESTIGATES. In 2020, and again in 2023, the state’s federal single audits found the Minnesota Department of Human Services ‘did not complete a recent information system security review’ of the system that determines who is eligible to receive benefits. … According to the audits, the failure to perform those checks [can] ‘increase the risk of a security breach or fraud.’ In both instances, officials at DHS cited a lack of resources in the department as the reason for not completing the reviews.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3XLnbRY
US ATTY: Via KSTP, a source at the U.S. Attorney’s office shared insight on Republican allegations, seen in yesterday’s morning take, that money stolen in fraud schemes is being sent to Somalia to fund Al-Shabaab militants. VERBATIM: “A source in the U.S. Attorney’s Office tells 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that they don’t have an exact dollar amount. However, they say that ‘Al-Shabaab controls much of Somalia and imposes a tax on all financial activity in the areas it controls. So a decent amount of Feeding [Our] Future and other fraud money almost certainly ended up in the hands of Al-Shabaab indirectly.’” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4igZCdb
FEED FRAUD: via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “A 36-year-old man has become the 78th person charged in the $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud scheme. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota said Abdirashid Bixi Dool is charged with four counts of wire fraud and three counts of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/48bTmig
MORE: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel on Monday imposed a 10-year prison term on the latest defendant to be sentenced in the Feeding Our Future case. Abdimajid M. Nur was one of five people connected to a small Shakopee restaurant convicted at a 2024 trial of stealing $47 million from government child nutrition programs. … Nur, 24, is the youngest of the 78 defendants charged in the case.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ohUBT0
DISSMISED? via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “At the August trial for Abdifatah Yusuf, the jury heard evidence that he ran his home healthcare company, Promise Health, out of a mailbox at a Central Avenue address where multiple other home healthcare companies were supposedly located. Yusuf and his wife Lul Ahmed were charged with stealing $7.2 million of taxpayer money through Medicaid overbilling. … Despite the jury swiftly convicting Yusuf, Judge Sarah West last week decided that they got it wrong, overturning the verdict and issuing a judgment of acquittal. … The Attorney General’s Office filed an appeal on Monday.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3M5nQem
DHS: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “Residents at care facilities were told last week they need to move out as the state conducts an investigation into fraud. The Department of Human Services says it’s withholding payments to several integrated community support providers after a credible allegation of fraud. … Nicole Patterson received a letter from her care group, Metro Care Human Services, that said she had 60 days to move out of her North St. Paul apartment. … [But] Metro Care Human Services, which operates buildings around the Twin Cities, said it would not force its clients to move out as it works with the Department of Human Services.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3KhvQs9
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)
IMMIGRATION
SOMALIA: via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison suggested Monday that his office may be prepared to file a lawsuit if President Donald Trump moves forward with a promise to remove Somalia from the list of countries covered by the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program. Appearing with other Democratic leaders at a rally inside the State Capitol, Ellison said that Trump is ‘wrong on the law’ and that his office ‘is looking at every option on the table to push back against this threat.’ … U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar and a group of state lawmakers forcefully condemned attempts to hold the [Somali] community collectively responsible for fraud scandals such as Feeding Our Future.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4iDGXIZ
MORE: via WCCO Radio, VERBATIM: “After questions from the media surrounding some of the fraud cases in Minnesota involving people from the Somali community, [Rep. Ilhan] Omar reacted with accusations of racism and cut short their press conference. Omar strongly criticized KSTP-TV reporter and fill-in host on WCCO Radio Tom Hauser and his questioning about the ‘perception problem’ of Somali Minnesotans being linked to fraud. … ‘Would you ask that question to a white lawmaker? You wouldn’t.’ Omar had a similar exchange with another reporter. … Omar [said] individual criminals should be held accountable, not the entire community, and refused to take further questions.” READ/LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4oiLDFk
MYANMAR: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Members of Minnesota’s Karen community are at risk of being sent back to Myanmar after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced Monday it was ending temporary asylum protections for the country’s citizens. … [DHS] is terminating Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for about 4,000 people in the U.S. from Myanmar, formerly Burma, effective Jan 26. Minnesota has the nation’s largest Karen population, [with] about 20,000 living mostly in Ramsey County. It was not immediately clear Monday how many have TPS.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49FeXSC
REFUGEES: via AP News, VERBATIM: “The Trump Administration plans a review of all refugees admitted to the U.S. during the Biden Administration, according to a memo obtained Monday. … The review is likely to sow confusion and fear among the nearly 200,000 refugees who came to the United States during that period. It is likely to face legal challenges. … The memo indicated that there will be a list of people to re-interview within three months.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ogCDAn
FED AGENTS: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Immigrants on the verge of becoming naturalized citizens are getting surprise home visits from federal agents who want to interview them about their applications without their lawyers. Immigration attorneys say dozens of green-card holders recently had in-office interviews canceled by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) only to have federal agents show up at their homes with no warning. … Federal officials say they’ve increased scrutiny on potential citizens to reduce fraud. … Immigration attorney David Wilson said [it’s] intimidation rather than fraud prevention.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49zAtbt
DEPORTATION: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “An immigration judge ruled Monday that [Northfield man] Adan Nunez Gonzalez does not have a reasonable chance of qualifying for asylum or other protections that would allow him to stay in the U.S. … Nunez Gonzalez told the judge that he feared being returned to his home country of Mexico because he was targeted for recruitment by a gang. However, Judge Monte Miller said that being pressured by gangs to join them is not, under current law, a valid reason for asylum, and he said the decision cannot be appealed.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3LRngkz
LAW + ORDER
RED FLAG: via FOX 9, VERBATIM: “Minnesota’s ‘Red Flag’ law is gaining traction as a key tool in preventing gun-related tragedies. … FOX 9 Investigators reviewed hundreds of cases filed since the law took effect last year. In total, more than 400 emergency petitions have been filed with courts statewide. … The number of filings is on pace to more than double in 2025 – from a total of 138 cases in 2024 to 263 already this year. … [There were] 71 petitions filed by private parties, 330 filed by law enforcement and city/county prosecutors, [and] 21 petitions (5%) outright rejected by the courts. 308 petitions (75%) resulted in bans of six months to one year.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4ogHBNx
FED AGENCIES: via Office of the Atty. General, VERBATIM: “Attorney General Keith Ellison won his lawsuit protecting four federal agencies from being illegally dismantled by the Trump Administration. … Ellison and a coalition of 20 other attorneys general [had] sued the Trump Administration to stop the implementation of an Executive Order that would dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), and the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH). The court’s order permanently blocks the administration from eliminating these four agencies.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49Fr1U4
BUSINESS EXCELLENCE: Flint Hills Resources was just awarded the 2025 Large Business of the Year award from the Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce at their annual Business Excellence Awards celebration. The award celebrates the outstanding achievements of businesses that exemplify the thriving and growing spirit of Dakota County. The businesses honored make an impact and contribute to the continued success of our community. LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/46lTpIs (SPONSORED: Flint Hills Resources)
VIOLENCE: via Office of the Atty. General, VERBATIM: “Attorney General Keith Ellison today secured an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) ensuring the DOJ will not apply…restrictions to critical Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) and Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) services supporting survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence. … The DOJ [has] agreed to a binding resolution guaranteeing the federal government will not apply the restrictions to states’ VOCA Victim Assistance and VAWA funds and ensuring that survivors can continue to rely on these crucial supports, regardless of immigration status.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/48E1rwD
AWARD: via MN Senate, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Broadcasters Association has honored Senator Ann Rest (DFL-New Hope) with its Lifetime Achievement Award for her decades of support for freedom of speech, protecting the First Amendment, and for understanding the important role Minnesota’s broadcasters play in keeping the state’s citizens informed.”
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CITIES
MPLS: via Sahan Journal, VERBATIM: “In 2018, state highway officials began fencing off public areas in the Franklin Avenue corridor to deter homeless encampments near busy roadways. Seven years later, with the fencing still in place, frustration is spilling over among those who use the high-traffic area and Native leaders who want to make it a cultural corridor. … Levi Brown, director of tribal affairs for the Minnesota Department of Transportation, [said] MnDOT had limited tools to address safety concerns along the corridor, [but] MnDOT is working on long-term engagement with the Native community and tribal government leaders for ‘community-led, community driven’ solutions.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/48bvQSA
ST PAUL: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “The St. Paul City Council will host its annual Truth in Taxation hearing at 6 p.m. Tuesday. … The council will discuss the fiscal impact of the mayor’s 2026 budget proposal, including a proposed 5.3% increase to the city tax levy. The budget, which was unveiled by St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter in August, will be finalized in December. Carter’s proposal would trim hours at some rec centers and freeze hiring for dozens of open city positions, while adding spending for housing initiatives, including $5 million for office-to-residential housing conversions and $1 million for emergency rental assistance.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3XMhSBJ
ROCHESTER: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “A last-minute addition to Rochester’s legislative priorities has spurred pushback from an area lawmaker a week later. On Nov. 17, a split Rochester City Council voted to include a request that would allow cities to use traffic cameras to monitor speeding and issue tickets. … Council member Nick Miller pointed to early results from a pair of pilot programs in Minneapolis and Mendota Heights, where cameras and signs have led to a 30% decline in [speeding]. … [But] Rep. Greg Davids (R-Preston) said in a statement released Monday [that] he plans to author legislation prohibiting automated speed cameras from capturing the image of a speeding vehicle and issuing a citation to its owner.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/44pQcpV
THE WEEK
TODAY: At 10 AM, Governor Tim Walz will present Minnesota’s Thanksgiving turkey to “celebrate the state’s nation-leading turkey industry,” with Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen will attend.
TODAY: via Robbins for Governor, VERBATIM: “[Rep.] Kristin Robbins will unveil the first part of her Prosperity Plan for Minnesotans this Tuesday, November 25 at 11:00 AM. … [The plan] starts with letting Minnesotans keep more of their hard-earned money by cutting taxes. Over the coming weeks, Robbins will unveil additional details of her prosperity plan.”
TODAY: via House GOP, VERBATIM: “Representative Dawn Gillman (R–Dassel) announced today that she will join students, educators, and community members at Glencoe-Silver Lake School to celebrate the district’s FFA Chapter winning the National FFA Chapter Title. … The celebration will take place on Tuesday [at] 9:50 a.m.”
TODAY: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “Faith leaders will join lawmakers and housing advocates for a 12-hour vigil on Tuesday at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis to protest recent cuts from the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development. … The event starts at noon with speakers and a candle light ceremony. The vigil goes from 7 p.m. until 7 a.m. on Wednesday.”
SUNDAY: via MNLEG advisory, VERBATIM: “On Sunday, November 30, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. (Parks’ Birthday), Rep. Samakab Hussein (DFL-Saint Paul), DFL Vice Chair of the House Legacy Committee, and Minnesota Senate Legacy Committee Chair Sen. Foung Hawj (DFL-Saint Paul), will be joined by Dr. Robin Hickman -Winfield, executive producer and CEO of SoulTouch Productions, Amy Mino, executive director of the Landmark Center, community members and legislative leaders at the Landmark Center to honor the legacy of Gordon Parks.”
BDAYS: critic Dominic Papatola, operative and operator Meredith Vadis, business leader Ryan Rutzick, fmr. Sen. Ellen Anderson
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IN MEMORIAM: morning take from now to the future is in memory of Melissa Hortman her accessibility, leadership and commitment to public service.
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