USA GAME 1
Twins lose. Canes win and lead the series 3-2.
Team USA’s first game in the FIFA World Cup is tonight at 8:00 p.m.
Current and former MN United stars are playing for New Zealand, Panama, Colombia and Canada in the World Cup — but not the U.S. LIST: https://fluence-media.co/4ehdJxp
Emerson finds that 55% of U.S. voters are interested in following the World Cup, but interest is sharply divided by age — 82% for 18-29 and 40% for 70+. POLL: https://fluence-media.co/4onmN8R
Pew Research asked Americans to name the best president of the last 40 years — the top three were Barack Obama at 36%, Ronald Reagan at 21% and Donald Trump at 19%. POLL: https://fluence-media.co/4gcnkIr
Tomorrow is Free Park Day for all 72 state parks and recreation areas.
Happy National Peanut Butter Cookie Day.
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RADIO: Sunday Take featured a recap of post-convention dynamics and CD1 DFL candidate Jake Johnson discussing his campaign priorities. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4easFO8
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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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A year ago, we had no idea how waking up Saturday AM would change Minnesota. It still feels surreal, and the feelings seem to be rushing back this week. Being in the courtroom yesterday with the Hoffman family added to the images and memories of a nightmare of public service.
A few legislators have posted text messages on the guidance and words Speaker Emeritus Melissa Hortman sent them. Tonight on TPT’s Almanac Mary Lahammer will interview Patrick Murphy the Chief Clerk of the House about the behind-the-scenes stories of the late Speaker. All of it is worth the reflection, but also the reminders of lessons that we can take from Melissa.
In an era of some elected leaders, who seek higher office or serve spending less time on relationships, Melissa rarely didn’t engage. She was responsive and at many times wanted transparency that the budget negotiations didn’t provide.
Hortman and Speaker Lisa Demuth were guests on the Sunday Take just before the budget was passed last Spring. A civil thoughtful discussion, providing access before the budget was passed and explaining how the deal got done. It is the relationship and mutual trust that it brings that those seeking higher office – especially this year could learn from.
Here’s the Sunday Take episode six days before she and Mark were assassinated. She appeared jointly with Speaker Lisa Demuth. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4e62c5l
The texts with Melissa reveal how responsive she could be to help shed light on the process, or her political views and personality.
It didn’t mean there was a “deal” it meant that Hortman understood the role of the media and journalists who covered the process. The trust was formed when she swore at a constituent and was worried about blow back, and we met via phone. She asked what she should do. I explained that men had been swearing in public office for years, and she shouldn’t worry about the words but rather the tone and intent. For the readers here, the listeners on the air and the tipsters who text. Even the public officials that call, that trust helps the entire process. As 20 percent plus of the legislature turns over, remember that relationships matter, and they take time to build. Take the time, have the public debate, and don’t shy from answering tough questions if you’re running or serving. We need more trust, and as I often say “transparency = trust”.
A peek into a couple text exchanges with Melissa and myself.
The first one was after that final Sunday Take appearance when I asked her if House DFLers holding out was a good idea or led to the delay in the session.
A few others were at critical moments including when Sen. Tina Smith announced she wouldn’t run again, in the days before the election that made the tie a reality, and reflections of negotiations when the Senate was controlled by Republicans. Note the dates.
On Sunday Take, at 9AM on WCCO Radio we’ll recall the events of last year and hopefully tell some more stories.
A deep dive into the CD1 race between Rep. Brad Finstad and Jake Johnson for MNSider subscribers. HERE: https://fluence-media.co/49OqNJu
RACES + REVENUE
SENATE RACE: The photo of GOP Rep. Tom Emmer hugging DFL Rep. Angie Craig, seen in yesterday’s morning take, is already being used for attacks by Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan’s Senate campaign. After Craig posted on X that “experience matters” in the Senate, Flanagan shared Emmer’s photo with the caption: “Experience like… being the only Minnesota Democrat to vote with Tom Emmer on the Laken Riley Act?” Craig then responded directly to Flanagan: “If you think this photo means anything more than the GOP praying to face you in the general because you’re a weak candidate due to the fraud scandal — you’re not ready for the job.” TWEETS: https://fluence-media.co/4xplcn0
SOS RACE: via Chip for SOS, VERBATIM: “George ‘Chip’ Tangen has qualified to appear on the general election ballot for the office of Secretary of State. To qualify as a third-party candidate, Tangen needed 2,000 eligible voters to sign his candidate nominating petition. … Tangen [is] endorsed by the Libertarian Party of Minnesota.” TANGEN: “For too long, Minnesota legislators and secretaries of state have ignored the interests of voters who are political independents. Our ballot access laws and rules make it overly difficult for alternative candidates to get onto the ballot. As a candidate for Secretary of State, I’m going to raise those issues front and center so that voters have more choices in future elections.” WEBSITE: https://fluence-media.co/4fGE4HH
CD1: via Jake Johnson, DFL candidate in CD1, JOHNSON: “This summer, we’ll be holding an in-person town hall meeting in every county across Minnesota’s first congressional district. … [Rep.] Brad Finstad hasn’t held a single in-person town hall in four years. … That’s why I’m visiting all 21 counties this summer to hear directly from the people of southern Minnesota.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4xo2coN
REVENUE: via MMB advisory, VERBATIM: “Net general fund revenues totaled $2.101 billion for the month of May, $50 million (2.4 percent) more than forecast. Net receipts from individual income tax for the month were higher than forecast, while corporate franchise tax net revenues, general sales tax revenues, and other tax revenues were less than forecast. For fiscal year 2026, year-to-date receipts are now $29.592 billion, $98 million (0.3 percent) more than forecast.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43PpnuZ
MEDICAID: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Department of Human Services on Thursday said it’s restoring payments to more than 2,000 Medicaid providers after cutting off [3,400] providers in programs considered high risk for fraud. … Most of the dis-enrollments were due to incomplete paperwork, state officials said. … Providers have 60 days to appeal decisions.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4up4S2N
MORE: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “The state human services department [lifted] payment suspensions for those service providers who submitted appeals by Tuesday, June 9. ‘Additionally, DHS is allowing providers an additional 24 hours to submit their claims for this warrant cycle,’ the notice reads, extending the claims submission cut off to 11:59 p.m. on Friday.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4utItBm
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)
PUBLIC SAFETY
BOELTER: Via KSTP, U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen disputed reports that the U.S. Dept. of Justice had fully ruled out a death sentence for Vance Boelter, explaining that it was only taken off the table because Boelter pleaded guilty. ROSEN: “The direction that we had was that we will not seek the death penalty provided that Mr. Boelter enters into the plea agreement. … [Boelter] was certainly death penalty eligible, and we would’ve prevailed. … [But] when you have a defendant who is prepared to plead guilty to consecutive life terms plus, to ensure that he never sees freedom again in his entire life, that is an opportunity that we just could not pass up.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4xk80Qt
ICYMI: Yesterday’s lunch take featured additional info on Vance Boelter’s guilty plea. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4fCuPZb
HORTMANS: Sunday, June 14 will mark one year since Melissa and Mark Hortman’s passing. Via FOX 9, Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith honored the Hortmans’ legacy with speeches in Congress yesterday. VERBATIM: “Klobuchar stood in front of a family portrait of the Hortman family as she spoke about the victims of the shootings. … [Smith] highlighted the good Melissa did during her time in the Minnesota legislature, including passing the bill for free school lunches and much more.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4v1m7bH
REVIEW: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley said after attending [Vance] Boelter’s plea hearing [that] an after-action review is underway and nearing completion regarding the murders of Melissa and Mark Hortman. … The review is being conducted through the International Association of Chiefs of Police. … The cost of the study is being shared by Brooklyn Park, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety and the cities of New Hope and Champlin, where Boelter showed up at the homes of lawmakers.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4eB7QfY
SECURITY: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “A year out from the political assassination of one of their colleagues, Minnesota lawmakers are honoring her memory [by trying] to prevent future tragedies. … State legislators approved new funding to keep new security in place at the Capitol. They’re also adding new threat response measures as menacing and often violent comments directed at them have surged. … State public safety officials said the new tools will help them root out and address potential risks sooner.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4voLdSd
TRANSIT: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “Metro Transit police are increasing their presence across the system this summer as ridership grows and calls for service continue to rise. The agency said riders are noticing improvements as more officers, Community Service Officers, TRIP agents and security staff are deployed across trains, buses and stations.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4xq8Gn4
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CD + MN
DEFENSE: via House Democrats, VERBATIM: “Republicans on the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee today advanced their 2027 funding bill during a closed meeting. The bill sets the Pentagon budget at more than $1 trillion – the largest in U.S. history and a $234 billion increase over 2026. … The bill provides $1,072,210,299,000, which is equal to the [Trump] Administration’s request.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Qkqtvj
RESPONSE: via DFL Rep. Betty McCollum statement, McCOLLUM: “Pouring over a trillion dollars into the Department of Defense will not keep Americans safe if it requires us to mortgage our nation’s students, our future workforce, and our strategic diplomatic efforts to pay for it.”
SCREWWORM: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Sen. Amy Klobuchar urged the Trump Administration on Thursday to hire more veterinarians and marshal a robust response to the flesh-eating fly species that has crossed the southern border. … In Klobuchar’s letter, signed by 20 Democratic colleagues including Sen. Tina Smith, the senator called for more research on the production of sterile flies, which can neutralize New World screwworm. Scientists say the worm does not endanger the U.S. food supply, but could infect and kill cattle. It could become a pocketbook issue for consumers if a constrained supply of cattle re-inflates the price of beef.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3S2jzvu
IMMIGRATION: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “Inside the Whipple Federal Building on most weekdays, the immigration court is quietly enacting President Donald Trump’s mass deportation efforts, [with] 118 hearings scheduled [in one] day. … Advocates say immigration judges, including those in Minnesota, are being saddled with higher workloads and that immigrants seeking asylum are facing bigger obstacles as the executive branch, which controls the immigration court system, seeks to meet their stated goals of deporting a million people a year and attempting to address the backlog of more than 3 million cases in the country’s immigration courts.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eHgUz1
PROFILING: via ACLU-MN, VERBATIM: “The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota today announced that it is seeking dismissal of Hussen v. Mullin, the lawsuit filed to stop federal immigration agents from unlawfully stopping, arresting, and racially profiling Minnesotans. … The Hussen v. Mullin plaintiffs have filed administrative claims with the federal government, and once that process is complete, they will return to federal court to resume their fight for accountability.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4xqpSZP
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)
MPLS
FLOYD SQR: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “The Minneapolis City Council voted Thursday to deny a contract with the Minnesota Agape Movement to develop the Peoples’ Way, sending plans for a new building in the square back to the drawing board. It also agreed to waive a special tax for property owners, as construction in the square begins. … City council member Soren Stevenson represents the area. He urged the council to waive the fees, [arguing] ‘You can’t do something for the community and then charge them for it.’ … Stevenson said he’s in talks with Mayor Jacob Frey to make up the money with city funds in next year’s budget.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4vOdlxU
SELF-DRIVING: via KSTP, VERBATIM: “Some Minneapolis council members introduced plans Thursday for regulations on autonomous vehicles. … City council members introduced the proposal as Waymo prepares to launch service in Minneapolis as soon as this fall, according to city leaders. … Minneapolis City Council Member Robin Wonsley led the introduction Thursday and outlined the next steps to build a legislative policy by 2027. … Wonsley said a priority is protecting rideshare drivers and community members.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4aKMtXc
UPTOWN: via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “More housing is coming to Minneapolis in the form of a new apartment building. The new building in Uptown is called ‘Seven Points.’ … Doran Companies and Northpond are behind the new project, with leadership taking part in a groundbreaking ceremony. … The apartment building will include 228 units across five floors. … Completion is anticipated for the fall of 2027.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4opqgno
(DISCLOSRE: Northpond is a client of Fluence Advisory)
ACROSS MN
UMD: via Duluth News Tribune, VERBATIM: “The University of Minnesota’s Board of Regents will convene Thursday and Friday to discuss potential cost increases for the coming year, and the University of Minnesota Duluth is not immune. … University of Minnesota students are facing a 3.8% tuition hike that will impact every campus in the university system. Additional increases in room and board costs and student services will increase costs on the Duluth campus by 4.6%, or an estimated $1,206 per student.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ekMaDu
UMR: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “The University of Minnesota Board of Regents approved plans to expand local university lab and classroom space in the Discovery Square complex. The $10.38 million University of Minnesota Rochester expansion project is expected to start this summer, with new facilities available in the fall of 2027.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fFQL5J
OUTAGES: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “Utility crews continued chainsawing their way through downed trees and branches Thursday to restore power to several thousand homes and businesses in central Minnesota, well over a day after severe storms. … Alexandria-based Runestone Electric Association said Thursday morning that an estimated 3,000 members remained without power. That number dropped to about 2,000 as of midday.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eD2jFJ
BWCAW: via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “Less than a week after the U.S. Forest Service announced a campfire ban in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) due to wildfire risks, the restrictions have been lifted. A ban on campfires, grills, and charcoal or wood-fire stoves went into effect on June 6 due to dry conditions. Officials with the Superior National Forest issued a notice on Thursday that restrictions will be lifted [today].” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3PVZczp
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: COPAL and the Immigrant Defense Network will host a summit on “rising threats facing immigrant communities and democratic participation across the Midwest,” per a release. The event is in Minneapolis at 9:00 a.m.
TODAY: Therapists at LynLake Centers for Wellbeing will host a press conference in Minneapolis celebrating their recent vote to unionize with SEIU Healthcare and announcing next steps. The event is at 9:00 a.m.
TOMORROW: ISAIAH will host a kickoff event for its “Childcare for All MN” campaign in Minneapolis on Saturday, June 13 at 12:00 noon.
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IN MEMORIAM: morning take is dedicated in memory of Melissa Hortman.