New Orleans in town against the Wolves. Wild host the Sabres tomorrow.
Spring is here, but Minnesota still might get some snow this weekend. MAPS: https://fluence-media.co/4iJO6WY
Elon Musk’s PAC is offering Wisconsin voters $100 to sign a petition denouncing “activist judges” as a state Supreme Court election draws near. AXIOS: https://fluence-media.co/4kMTKtg
Fewer than one in five current or prospective U.S. college students (18%) believe four-year colleges charge fair prices for what they offer students, while a majority (59%) disagree. GALLUP: https://fluence-media.co/4bQglkA
Americans’ job anxiety soars to highest level in 10 years. AXIOS: https://fluence-media.co/4ioFo0s
Tune-in to Sunday Take at 9AM on WCCO Radio.
Happy National French Bread Day!
Blois
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Peter Callaghan is retiring from politics reporting, but he joined Sunday Take to discuss his time at the Capitol and his thoughts on transparency in politics and the media. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3DzQosN
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Medicaid Supports Health Care for All of Us. It keeps Minnesota’s hospitals strong and ensures communities across the state have access to care. Policymakers must protect Medicaid so every Minnesotan—regardless of income or health status—can get the care they need, when they need it. LEARN MORE: Medicaid in Minnesota – Protect MN Patients (SPONSORED: Minnesota Hospital Association)
TODAY: Via Fluence’s Blois Olson, Gov. Tim Walz will release his supplemental budget proposal today. TWEET: https://fluence-media.co/4bSth9p
TOMORROW: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “Gov. Tim Walz, who has spent time in recent weeks holding events in states such as Nebraska and Wisconsin, is set to have a town hall in Rochester on Saturday. The town hall will be from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday. The location of the event has not been announced.” This is Walz’s first town hall in Minnesota since he became governor. READ: https://fluence-media.co/4hIFGOJ
NOTE: The town halls are being organized by the DFL including the distribution of tickets.
MORE: Via CNN’s Edward-Isaac Dovere, some House Democrats who won in districts that voted for Donald Trump at a presidential level said off-the-record that they were disgruntled by Gov. Tim Walz’s national town hall tour, saying his “red district tourism” is a reminder of a failed campaign that Democrats need to distance themselves from to win again. Notably, Rebecca Cooke — the Democrat running in 2026 for the House district that includes Eau Claire, WI — did not attend Walz’s event in Eau Claire this week. TWEET: https://fluence-media.co/4bJsZBK
FAVORABILITY: via a recent statewide poll of 1,000 Minnesotans from Fluence Advisory, here are the Favorable / Unfavorable ratings of Minnesota elected officials.
CD1: via KAAL-TV, VERBATIM: “District 1 Representative Brad Finstad has announced he will be running for re-election next year. Finstad first took the seat after winning a special election in 2022, and voters re-elected him again last year.” FINSTAD: “The American people voted for us to take action to ensure we leave a strong nation to our children and grandchildren. There is a lot of hard work to be done, but I know America’s best days are still ahead of us.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kLlr5G
MEDICAID: via Minnesota Reformer, VERBATIM: “Democratic U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar and Kelly Morrison, a physician, joined Hennepin Healthcare leaders and patients Thursday at one of the health care provider’s downtown Minneapolis buildings — across the street from the already-overwhelmed Hennepin County Medical Center — to raise awareness of the potential impacts of the proposed cuts. … Cuts to federal spending would force Minnesota leaders to choose whether to spend extra money to maintain the same level of coverage, or to cut services.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41ItIi4
ELLISON: Attorney General Keith Ellison hosted a “community impact hearing” in the Twin Cities with fellow Democratic attorneys general from Arizona, Illinois and New York. The panel discussed how they are responding to what they called federal overreach from the Trump Administration. The full discussion is available to view online. WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4kH8Dgx
RESPONSIBLE GAMING: Legal sports betting platforms offer responsible game tools that offshore and illegal sports betting don’t offer. In fact, age verification is not required with most offshore providers. Learn more about why legalized sports betting is more responsible. WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4kgJoS4 (SPONSORED: Sports Betting Alliance)
SD6: via Brainerd Dispatch, VERBATIM: “Shortly after Republican State Sen. Justin Eichorn announced his resignation on Thursday, March 20, Emily LeClaire announced her intention to seek a DFL endorsement to run for the Senate seat. LeClaire, a lifelong Brainerd resident, was the DFL-endorsed candidate for the Minnesota House District 6B in the 2024 election but lost. … LeClaire said she was already considering a run in 2026 for the Senate 6 seat prior to Eichorn’s Monday arrest. … Priorities outlined by LeClaire included protecting children, caring for and supporting veterans and protecting small businesses, educators, farmers and laborers.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41C4zFC
SPOTTED: Via Axios’ Torey Van Oot, former state Sen. Carrie Ruud was spotted in the Minnesota Capitol yesterday. Ruud retired from the legislature after redistricting put her and former Sen. Justin Eichorn in the same district, with Eichorn getting the endorsement of the GOP. TWEETS: https://fluence-media.co/4iIeYGJ
MORE: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “[Sen. Justin Eichorn’s] resignation triggers a special election to fill his northern Minnesota seat. Republicans would be favored, but an election wouldn’t come until late in the session at the earliest. Democrats have a temporary 34-32 edge. … [Mark] Johnson and [Erin] Murphy said they remain hopeful that they’ll be able to pass a two-year state budget — their main responsibility this session — even with a temporary vacancy.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bIz6pX
IRRR: via an IRRR Board press release, VERBATIM: “As a result of today's resignation by former Sen. Justin Eichorn from the Minnesota State Senate, he is no longer a state senator and therefore no longer the chair of the Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation (IRRR) Board. Rep. Roger Skraba, the vice chair of the IRRR Board, has initiated the call for a special meeting to reorganize the board and select a new chair. Additional information about this meeting will be provided at a later time.”
FRAUD: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “As prosecutors celebrate the conviction of former Feeding Our Future director Aimee Bock as a victory for accountability, the effort to recover taxpayer money lost to the fraud continues. Investigators revealed Wednesday that they have clawed back about $60 million of the nearly $250 million stolen. … About half of the money recovered is cash seized from bank accounts, but the remainder is tied up in property including vehicles and real estate spread across the country and the world. … Investigators acknowledge it will be difficult to recover every dollar due to the depreciation of vehicles and other property seized as well as money that disappeared with co-conspirators who have fled the country.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4ikYVPl
FRAUD: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “Minnesota Department of Human Services Interim Commissioner Shireen Gandhi sent a letter to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee [this week] and expressed legal concern over a proposed bill to create an Office of Inspector General. In the letter, Gandhi told lawmakers duplicative investigations could jeopardize fraud investigations and federal funding — specifically Medicaid funding. … David Feinwachs, former lead attorney for the Minnesota Hospital Association, handled Medicaid regulations for years. He told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that duplicative investigations are already occurring.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4kHrY14
CHILD CREDIT: via House Session Daily, VERBATIM: “Minnesota currently has a child tax credit that allows taxpayers a credit equal to $1,750 per child, up to age 17. But that credit would increase by $400 for each child born during the taxable year under HF2254, a bill sponsored by Rep. Jessica Hanson (DFL-Burnsville). … The committee laid the bill over for possible omnibus bill inclusion. It was one of a suite of bills related to the child tax credit that were laid over: HF2502 would increase the credit’s phaseout amounts, while HF2302 would increase the age of eligibility to 18.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4irh8Lg
EDUCATION: via CNN, VERBATIM: “President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to begin dismantling the US Department of Education, [but] shutting down the department wholesale would require an act of Congress. … Trump officials acknowledge they don’t have the necessary votes to dissolve the department that way; instead, the order Trump signed Thursday instructed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take ‘all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education.’ … White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said ahead of Thursday’s signing that the order would move to ‘greatly minimize the agency,’ but that certain ‘critical functions’ like student loans and administering grants for at-risk students would remain.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4kGfKWv
MORE: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Minnesota receives about 10%, or $1.4 billion, of its school funding from the federal government. … The Minnesota Department of Education criticized the action and launched an online portal soliciting thoughts from Minnesotans.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4krIAcV
RESPONSES: Minnesota lawmakers shared partisan reactions to the president’s executive order downsizing the Department of Education.
● Via a Rep. Angie Craig statement, CRAIG: “The Administration’s executive action gutting the Department of Education is a non-starter. … The reality is they can’t shutter a government agency without Congressional action and support. I’m standing with Minnesota’s students, parents and teachers.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bIqz6r
● Via a Rep. Tom Emmer post, EMMER: “The best education is closest to the child. This is a win for America’s children! Thank you, POTUS.” TWEET: https://fluence-media.co/4iqYtPI
UMN: University of Minnesota President Rebecca Cunningham spoke to WCCO-TV about what it’s like leading the school as it is investigated by the Trump Administration. Cunningham said her previous experience working in an emergency room has helped her prepare. CUNNINGHAM: “It's wonderful training. I woke up every day for 25 years focused on how I would address whatever crisis and chaos walked into my doors.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4inPEGj
MPS: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “Minneapolis school board members on Tuesday are expected to detail their plans to close a $75 million gap for next school year. District leaders have signaled already that school nutrition and special education will be affected. Some layoff notices have already been sent…Officials in recent months have also been examining the district’s building use for possible savings. They’ve estimated Minneapolis Public Schools is operating now at 65 percent of the enrollment the buildings could ideally support, though district leaders haven’t said whether they plan to close buildings.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4hKWNPX
BRINGING SAFETY TO ‘THE NEXT LEVEL’: As part of Enbridge’s work on the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Reservation in northern Minnesota, Enbridge has brought in family-owned and Indigenous-owned Northern Lights Family Outfitters to fully outfit project workers right on the job site with personal protective equipment (PPE) from its 48-foot mobile trailer. “Enbridge really brings safety to the next level,” says Patti, a project liaison for Enbridge and the Fond du Lac Band. “It’s really helpful to have a mobile unit, especially for this kind of work.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3OQYmjn (SPONSORED: Enbridge)
ST PAUL: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “On Thursday, state lawmakers from both parties reminded [St. Paul] that none of their [renovation] asks would come cheap, if they get funded at all. Sitting shoulder to shoulder within a State Capitol hearing room, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter and Minnesota Wild owner Craig Leipold asked a key committee of House lawmakers for nearly $400 million in state bonding funds to cover half the proposed cost of a $796 million renovation of the Xcel Energy Center. … [Lawmakers] called the size of the Xcel Center ask nothing short of startling, given grim state budget forecasts, growing talk of a possible national economic slowdown and uncertain federal grant funding for public infrastructure.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bHXb01
MORE: via Axios Twin Cities, VERBATIM: “A dispute over where St. Paul's new garbage hauler will store and repair its trucks could leave the city without trash pickup service on April 1, Mayor Melvin Carter warned Thursday. … St. Paul City Council members voted 5-0 on Wednesday to block the new hauler, FCC Environmental, from placing its truck yard on a lot the company purchased last summer. … In a letter to council members, Carter wrote that the vote sets up the possibility the city will breach its new garbage contract, which ‘would expose taxpayers to costly litigation and interrupt trash hauling service.’ … Carter urged council members to call an emergency meeting to immediately reconsider their vote.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41Ijo9O
MPLS: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Minneapolis' North Side, long plagued with the city’s highest rates of gunfire, is experiencing a decade low in shootings. … In 2024, the diverse enclave recorded 35 fewer gunshot victims – a 21% reduction from the prior year – returning those communities to pre-pandemic levels. … [It] also observed a dramatic decline in Shotspotter activations and reports of automatic gunfire last year. Mayor Jacob Frey and Chief Brian O’Hara lauded the development in a Thursday news conference, crediting state and federal partners for helping local police drive down violence.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kLabGo
MORE: via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “Copper wire theft continues to be a growing issue in Minneapolis. … All told, roughly 15 miles of below-ground wiring is missing throughout Minneapolis, according to the city, with streetlight wiring repair costs between $30,000 to $40,000 per mile. The city said they are testing ways to harden the bases of streetlights. They have also used aluminum wire for lights, marked with the message ‘no scrap value.’ Despite the markings, even those wires have been swiped.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4hvugO7
PERMITTING REFORM FOR RESPONSIBLE INDUSTRIES: Jobs for Minnesotans is committed to advancing responsible industrial projects through a predictable, timely and transparent permitting process. Broad permitting reform for all responsible industries is essential to strengthening Minnesota’s communities and advancing our state’s clean energy future. (SPONSORED: Jobs for Minnesotans)
PUBLIC SAFETY: via Office of the Governor, VERBATIM: “Governor Tim Walz and the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) today introduced a new statewide prevention strategy designed to enhance public safety and prevent acts of targeted violence before they occur. … This strategy applies scientific research and evidence-based practices to prevent targeted violence in schools, workplaces, and public spaces. It focuses on identifying, assessing, and managing potential threats while ensuring privacy rights and civil liberties remain protected.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4iLGEKX
MPD: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “The Minneapolis Police Department’s pending federal consent decree will stay on pause for another month, after a judge Thursday approved the U.S. Department of Justice motion requesting the extension. While the city of Minneapolis and Justice Department had reached an agreement soon before President Donald Trump took office that would hold MPD to federal court-enforceable reforms, it has yet to be approved by a federal judge.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4iIbyns
PFAS: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Minnesota now has the nation’s most far-reaching ban on toxic ‘forever chemicals’ in consumer products, so dental floss, children’s clothing, makeup and many other items you find on store shelves should be safe from PFAS. … A day after the ban took effect, on Jan. 2, reporters bought 20 items from local retailers. We took those products to a laboratory, where parts were incinerated to test for total organic fluorine, the screening method the state uses. … Four of them, including two makeup products, were above the [legal] threshold.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4inMB0P
FRESH15: The latest season of Fresh15 includes interviews with new Minnesota House members. So far, five new members have shared their goals, background and fun facts before they take office in a historic session this January.
Rep. Kari Rehrauer
Rep. Wayne Johnson
Rep. Julie Greene
Rep. Keith Allen
Rep. Peter Johnson
Follow on your favorite podcast platform, or at www.TheDailyAgenda.com/Podcasts. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Telecom Alliance)
DULUTH: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “A study of the Duluth International Airport’s economic impact on the region shows it directly supported more than 3,000 jobs and contributed more than $208 million to the state’s economy last year. … The study comes as the airport authority seeks millions in federal and state funds for a new air traffic control tower, hangar and taxiway, planning to spend nearly $150 million on projects over the next five years.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kHSojk
WAITE PARK: via St. Cloud Live, VERBATIM: “Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison will host a community forum on Saturday, March 29, in Waite Park. Ellison will address topics including ‘federal attacks on citizenship, privacy, funding, immigrants, LGBTQ+ people, abortion rights and more,’ according to an event description. The event from noon to 1:30 p.m. will be at St. Joseph's Catholic Church.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4iKJj7C
CROSSLAKE: via Pine & Lakes Echo Journal, VERBATIM: “The Ricketts Conservation Foundation announced a donation of $1 million to the National Loon Center in Crosslake. … This dedicated gift will establish the Ricketts Conservation Center within the National Loon Center to support conservation and research efforts. The groundbreaking of the center is planned this June. This capital gift is coupled with an additional commitment of $100,000 annually over the next five years — totaling $500,000.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kGAXj5
PRODUCING THE FUELS THAT HELP KEEP MINNESOTA MOVING: Flint Hills Resources, one of the Midwest’s leading producers of transportation fuels is hiring! With openings in IT, accounting, engineering, operations, procurement and asset management, Flint Hills Resources’ goal is to match talented individuals with their passions and interests to truly shine. APPLY TODAY: Flint Hills jobs (SPONSORED: Flint Hills Resources)
From yesterday’s Fluence newsletters:
GOV RACE: via KNSI Radio, VERBATIM: “A former St. Cloud city councilman is throwing his hat in the ring in the race for governor. Jeff Johnson made the announcement Tuesday in an official campaign launch video.” QUOTE: “My fellow Minnesotans, I’m running for governor because I want to help you find your happy place. And your happy place is not in a position of being continuously taxed to death. … We could do so much better. It’s time for a change.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4hoJYdU
MINING: via Iron Range Today, VERBATIM: “Iron Range State Sen. Grant Hauschild said Thursday that Cleveland-Cliffs is planning to lay off 600 miners from its Minorca and Hibbing Taconite operations in northeastern Minnesota. In a Wednesday press release, Hauschild said he was informed by Cliffs that approximately 340 Steelworkers at Minorca and 250 Steelworkers at HibTac will be impacted. The DFL senator added that Cliffs cited challenging economic conditions for the automobile industry, the company’s biggest steel customer, as the backdrop for temporary idles and layoffs.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bKjUJ1
TARIFFS: via Northern News Now, VERBATIM: “Duluth’s Perrault Construction has been serving the Northland for 50 years and has seen its fair share of economic uncertainty, especially during the pandemic. But now, they are trying to get ahead of the newest round of tariffs. The company focuses its work on roofing, siding, window, and deck construction. Although they work on the smaller side of construction, they still use large amounts of lumber, shingles, aluminum, and steel parts. Mike Stroede is the co-owner of the company and said at the moment they have not seen any direct impacts, but he knows they are coming soon.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4hoCCXO
MENTAL HEALTH: From New Brighton-based Nystrom via PR Newswire, VERBATIM: “Minnesota House Rep. Robert Bierman (DFL-Apple Valley) recently met with mental health and substance use treatment clinicians at Nystrom & Associates Apple Valley Clinic to discuss the urgent need to increase funding for mental health and addiction treatment. … Bierman [introduced] a bill to address the chronic underfunding of the program. BIERMAN: "Reimbursement rates to providers who serve these Minnesotans have fallen woefully behind. Our current rates are unsustainable and have created a crisis in access to care." READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bFNpM1
SESSION: No House floor session. No Senate floor session. HOUSE: No House committee meetings. SENATE: Judiciary & Public Safety hears a number of public safety bills involving unmanned aerial vehicles, data practices, child welfare, a new Office of Animal Protection and more. Agriculture, Veterans, Broadband & Rural Dev. hears expanded eligibility for beginning farmer tax credits, cell-cultured meat rules, animal breeder rules, broadband access and more. State & Local Govt. hears a requirement for one-half of an agency’s advertising expenses to be paid to local news organizations, among other bills. CALENDAR: https://fluence-media.co/4kI10GE
TODAY: Governor Tim Walz will chair meetings of the Executive Council, Land Exchange Board, and State Board of Investment.
NOTE: Will there be any discussion about the state pension fund holding Tesla stock ?
TODAY-TMRW: Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan announced she will take her “Kitchen Table Conversations” tour to St. Cloud today at 3:00 p.m. and Wood Lake tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. These will be the sixth and seventh stops on her tour, respectively, as she campaigns for senate.
TODAY: Rep. Ilhan Omar announced she will “host a press conference on the unconstitutional dismantling of USAID by the Trump Administration,” per a release. Minnesota Farmers Union president Gary Wertish will attend. The event is at 4:30 p.m. DETAILS: https://fluence-media.co/4ikwAJ2
TUESDAY: via an MN Senate advisory, VERBATIM: “At 6:00 pm, the Senate Minnesota Asian Pacific Caucus will hold a panel discussion on legislative issues impacting the Asian American Pacific Islander community in Minnesota.” Senators Foung Hawj, Susan Pha and Tou Xiong will attend.
APRIL 10: Citizens League will honor Peter Bell, former Metropolitan Council chair, and Sharon McMahon at the 2025 Civic Celebration. The annual Civic Celebration is an inspiring evening, gathering hundreds of Minnesotans from diverse backgrounds, parties and ideologies to celebrate our state’s enduring civic culture, leadership, and commitment to public service. REGISTER: https://fluence-media.co/3EKmNge (SPONSORED: Citizens League)
BDAYS: lobbyist Jess Lindeen, sports guy Bill Robertson, comms pro Kevin Olson. SAT: public affairs pro Chris Tiedeman, fmr. STP city council member Mitra Jalali SUN: PUC Chair Katie Sieben, fmr. Rep. Phyllis Kahn
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