MUGGY MONDAY
Twins win. Aurora win and finish the season undefeated.
If it wasn’t for the World Cup, this is the slowest sports season of the year, without hockey.
Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. MPR: https://fluence-media.co/4gLa51M
Developing this morning Comcast splitting into two companies. WSJ: https://fluence-media.co/44yrXph
Most of Minnesota sees an extreme heat warning today — it will feel like 110 degrees. MAPS: https://fluence-media.co/44FW1iJ
The U.S. and Iran traded missile strikes again this weekend. U.S. officials say the two sides are still talking, but Iran has threatened to cancel negotiations. ABC: https://fluence-media.co/4we6TQL
Gas prices are expected to remain above pre-war levels for several more months. AXIOS: https://fluence-media.co/441K1bk
Sunday Take featured a breakdown of 5 key things to watch before the Aug. 11 primaries in Minnesota. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4gca1bg
Happy National Camera Day – if you didn’t know I sold cameras during high school and college – remember when there were camera stores? The phone is nice, “the kids” are bringing digital camera’s back.
Steve Simpson’s last week on WCCO Radio, a true talent and great guy.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.
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
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It’s going to be a hot one, that will test tempers and thermostats this next week. A week that we celebrate 250 years as a country, and a reminder that we’ve been through worse. Politics and parades will be part of the week, but the other news that will impact the fall elections also deserves coverage.
WEEKEND: via KARE 11, VERBATIM: “Multiple instances of violence took place in the Twin Cities this weekend, leaving nine people hurt and one man dead.
The first shooting happened around 5 p.m. Friday on Humboldt Avenue North, where a 19-year-old was shot outside a home. Later around 9:30 p.m., two people were wounded on Logan Avenue North. READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eJk4lz
RATE HIKE: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “Inflation has been too high for too long. That was the central message of Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari’s statements at a Friday panel discussion. … Kashkari revealed Friday that he expects a hike before the end of the year, changing his mind from March’s dot plot, where he penciled in a rate cut. He said he’s informed by high inflation and uncertainty about the Iran War. … The expansion of data centers is also causing upward pressure on prices and interest rates, Kashkari said.” KASHKARI: “I don’t trust Iran to honor whatever agreement has been made…and that makes me cautious about feeling too good that the worst is behind.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eP3elk
WFH: via Minneapolis Fed, VERBATIM: “Nearly 22 percent of U.S. workers age 16 and older were working from home at least some of the time in 2025. That number is down just under 1 percentage point from 2024, despite the upturn of return-to-office announcements. … Among states in the Ninth District, Minnesota had the highest share of hybrid workers, while Montana had the highest share of fully remote workers.” Minnesota’s remote work rate is 12th in the nation. READ: https://fluence-media.co/4f7ydu9
STAYING OUT: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Rep. Angie Craig called [Gov. Tim] Walz’s lack of endorsement in the Senate race ‘interesting in the most Minnesota way’ [and] ‘something that Minnesota voters should pay attention to.’ … [But] Walz is hardly the only prominent political figure keeping quiet. As the August primary election nears, several top-ranking Minnesota Democrats and Republicans are [facing] the same issue of risking divisiveness, [said] former state GOP Rep. Vin Weber.” WEBER: “Members of Congress, at least that I have conversed with, are not sure where to go on this. … [But] there are people that want Tim Walz to endorse a candidate. They’re called Republicans.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4aL4NzN
FLANAGAN: Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan spoke to WCCO-TV about her Senate campaign yesterday morning. Notably, Flanagan indicated she is not concerned about GOP attacks on fraud issues sticking to her, saying they are overused and hypocritical. QUOTE: “Republicans are attacking every Democrat on fraud. They’re attacking Congresswoman Angie Craig — JD Vance attacked her online — Amy Klobuchar, Keith Ellison. This is their entire play. … [But] this president, he pardoned 70 white collar criminals who have engaged in corruption and fraud. … They’re going to have to answer for that.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3Sp6a0J
CRAIG: Rep. Angie Craig told Star Tribune’s Sydney Kashiwagi that if she is elected to the U.S. Senate, she is not committed to supporting New York Sen. Chuck Schumer as the next Senate Democratic leader. Craig said she plans to “sit down with those running” and “hear what their vision is.” QUOTE: “At the end of the day, I want to be satisfied that the next leader of the party in the Senate has a vision for what we’re going to accomplish. People are tired of a lot of people making promises and never delivering.” TWEETS: https://fluence-media.co/4aluTco
KLOBUCHAR: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “Three weeks after laying out a housing plan…Sen. Amy Klobuchar was in Rochester on Saturday to announce the next policy plank in her platform — this one to overhaul the state’s workforce development programs and to raise K-12 academic achievement. … Klobuchar’s plan [involves] adding 10,000 new apprenticeship and skills training opportunities in the state, essentially doubling the current count, [and] expanding three-year degree opportunities. … Klobuchar said a special emphasis on boosting in-person school attendance would feature in her policies, [plus] a universal ban on cellphones.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eAPb41
NICHOLSON: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “The running mate of the Republican-endorsed candidate for Minnesota governor was on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on Congress and says he has ‘no regrets’ about his participation in protests that turned to violent riots. Brian Nicholson, a businessman chosen by Kendall Qualls to run as his lieutenant governor, said in a statement to the Minnesota Star Tribune that he was [there], but he left the area ‘when things turned violent.’ … ‘I don’t apologize for being there,’ Nicholson said, adding that he does not support violence against law enforcement. … In the fall of 2021, 60% of Minnesota voters in a poll said they believed Joe Biden legitimately won the 2020 election.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4g7cKCI
RESPONSE: via Kendall Qualls on social media, QUALLS: “Brian [Nicholson] revealed this fact to me, voluntarily, when we met to discuss the lieutenant governor’s position. This article doesn’t come as a surprise at all. It wasn’t an issue for me then, and it’s not an issue for me now. … Minnesota needs a radical change, and it begins with a radical change in leadership.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4eJ2TAE
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SNAP: via AP News, VERBATIM: “Several dozen states, [including Minnesota], could have to fork over millions of dollars to provide food aid to lower-income residents if they don’t cut down on payment errors. … A cost-sharing requirement is included in the [Big Beautiful Bill]. … The federal government currently covers the full cost of SNAP benefits provided to people. But beginning in October 2027, states with SNAP error rates of 6% or greater could have to pay a portion of the benefits. … Those with error rates over 10% will have to pay 15% of benefit costs, [but] states whose error rates are at least 13.34% in 2026 could have their cost-sharing requirements delayed until the 2030 fiscal year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4aspCj9
MORE: If Minnesota’s SNAP payment error rate stays above 10% by late 2027, the state will have to pay 15% of the costs — using 2024 as an example, Minnesota received over $856 million for SNAP that year, 15% of which is $128 million. Friday’s morning take included the USDA data on Minnesota’s SNAP payment error rate, which was 12.58% overall in 2025. ICYMI: https://fluence-media.co/4gbaGtx
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
IFEED FRAUD: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “Four years after he was indicted and fled the United States, a Burnsville man was taken into custody [last week] in connection with the Feeding Our Future fraud scheme. … Abdikerm Abdelahi Eidleh, 42, of Burnsville, was taken into custody by Somali authorities who were working with the FBI. He was first charged in September 2022. … Court documents allege he ‘deposited more than $5 million in kickbacks, bribes, and other fraud proceeds.’” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4uYx0dl
POLLUTION: via MPR, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is proposing to add 46 new lakes, rivers and streams to its list of water bodies that fail to meet state water quality standards. The waters face a variety of pollution issues. … But there are also some signs of improvement [elsewhere]. The MPCA is proposing to remove impairments on nearly 50 lakes, rivers and streams. It’s the most the state has removed since it began the list back in 1992.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gLCwg0
UMN: via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “The University of Minnesota Board of Regents have approved a budget that includes a tuition hike of up to 4.5% and the sale of part of the Les Bolstad Golf Course, officials said Friday. … Tuition for resident undergraduate students at all campuses and for out-of-state students at the Greater Minnesota campuses will be going up by 3.8%, and there will be a 4.5% hike for nonresident students at the Twin Cities campus, officials said. … The move marks the sixth straight year tuition has increased.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4eQa0Y0
VETERANS: via MPR, VERBATIM: “A new plaque honoring military families could soon be added to a memorial on the Capitol grounds honoring those who served in various conflicts. The Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs has applied to add a plaque honoring Gold Star and Blue Star families to the Court of Honor. … The plaque was approved by the Legislature in 2025. It is moving through the approval process of the Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board, which is taking public comment through July 22 on the plaque.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4oXizoH
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
HENN CTY: via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty came into office in 2023, [and] at a forum [last week] for candidates vying to take her place, ‘experience’ became the oft-repeated word of the night. … The forum, hosted in Golden Valley by the League of Women Voters Minneapolis, focused heavily on how the candidates would hold the federal government accountable for Operation Metro Surge, forecasting what’s likely to become a foundational issue of the race. … All five candidates demanded more transparency from the office. … The candidates also took shots at what they see as misplaced priorities under Moriarty’s leadership, setting up what are likely to become campaign talking points.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3QPF6qJ
IGH: via MPR News, VERBATIM: “The Inver Grove Heights City Council voted 3-2 on Friday to pause the construction of data centers in the city. The vote on the one-year moratorium came after residents — who filled the meeting room — expressed opposition to data centers, including one project that’s currently proposed. … The council on Friday also postponed consideration of the site plan for the proposed data center.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gc8X78
LAKE ELMO: via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “Access to and from Minnesota 36 at Lake Elmo Avenue will soon close for two years as crews work on a $43 million grade-separated interchange with buttonhook-style ramps that officials say will improve safety and reduce congestion. … More than 200 collisions have occurred at the intersection of Minnesota 36 and Lake Elmo Avenue over the past 10 years, including three fatalities.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4beAxNA
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
DULUTH: via Duluth News Tribune, VERBATIM: “Devices like iPads and Chromebooks have made digital learning part of the educational norm in classrooms across the country. Over the last several months, though, conversations around artificial intelligence and technology accessibility have given way to a consistent community concern discussed during Duluth Public Schools meetings — has classroom technology use gone too far?” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4xTleUf
WILSON TSP: via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Immaculate Conception Catholic Church [may] soon go away because the Diocese of Winona-Rochester has the church, which no longer hosts services, marked for demolition after a lengthy consolidation process. … [For] families who attended and maintained Immaculate Conception, that means losing the building that has been an anchor in this community south of Winona. So now they, like Catholics in many shrinking rural parishes across Minnesota, are fighting church leaders to save the church.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3QPJJ45
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: Governor Tim Walz has no public events scheduled for Monday, June 29, 2026.
TODAY: Sen. Jen McEwen and Reps. Pete Johnson and Liish Kozlowski, all DFL, are hosting a town hall in Duluth Twins 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: Sen. Nick Frentz, WCCO Radio’s Brad Lane, TGT’s Breanna Schafer, MN Reformer’s Max Nesterak, agency exec Kara Buckner, lobbyist Dan Larson, MDH’s Bailee Payne
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IN MEMORIAM: morning take is dedicated in memory of Melissa Hortman.