U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach of Minnesota introduced two pro-life bills in the U.S. House of Representatives this month.
The Republican congresswoman’s proposed pieces of legislation include the Defund Planned Parenthood Act (H.R. 371) and the Protecting Life and Taxpayers Act (H.R. 372), according to a press release.
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Minnesota Democrats are attempting to push through the legislature a bill to make the state 100 percent carbon-free by 2040.
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The Minnesota Department of Corrections will now pay for any inmate’s abortion, regardless of the reasons for seeking the procedure, according to a new policy.
The new policy, adopted January 10, replaces a 2018 policy that limited the department’s coverage of abortion to cases where the pregnancy resulted from rape or incest or if the life of the mother was at risk.
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On the latest episode of “Liz Collin Reports,” Liz sat down with incoming Minnesota state representative Dawn Gillman to discuss Republican priorities for the new legislative session, advice for Minnesota parents trying to navigate left-wing ideology in their children’s schools, and more.
Gillman was the founder of Let Them Play Minnesota, a grassroots movement that successfully pressured Gov. Tim Walz into reopening schools and their athletic programs in the fall of 2020. She said the movement grew to a whopping 25,000 members and raised over $500,000 in under a year.
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Minnesota’s Management and Budget estimate a general fund budget surplus of $17.6 billion for the fiscal year 2024-25 biennium.
“Strong collections and lower-than-projected spending add to the FY22-23 surplus,” the agency said. “Economic headwinds lower expected growth but large leftover surplus and healthy net revenues in FY24-25 create estimated $17.6B available for budget.”
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Dr. Scott Jensen repeatedly called on Gov. Tim Walz to provide direct answers to Minnesota voters during a debate Friday afternoon in what was the last and most intense meeting of the two candidates before the election.
The last time Jensen was on a debate stage, he stood next to an empty podium.
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Attorney General Keith Ellison scrambled to defend his oversight of Feeding Our Future after two of his former staff members spoke out in a Star Tribune article published Thursday night.
The article highlights the state’s shortcomings in preventing the fraud and culminates with the analysis of two former senior members of Ellison’s team, both of whom asked to remain anonymous “for fear of retribution.”
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National Republicans now view the Minnesota gubernatorial contest as a potential pickup and are sending in reinforcements with two weeks to go before the election.
The Republican Governors Association (RGA) transferred $750,000 to a local group called Heal Minnesota Tuesday and more money could be on the way. Heal Minnesota placed an initial ad buy with WCCO.
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The DFL coverup of the great Feeding Our Future (FOF) caper has now begun. We need to begin with the mess Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, and the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) created. Make no mistake, their malfeasance cost taxpayers $250 million.
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Republican gubernatorial candidate Dr. Scott Jensen has accused Gov. Tim Walz and his administration of a “cover-up” in the Feeding Our Future scandal and called for the appointment of a special investigator.
Jensen held a press conference Monday in response to Ramsey County District Court Judge John Guthmann’s correction of “inaccurate statements by the Governor, the Commissioner of Education, and the media regarding the investigation of Feeding Our Future (FOF) and resulting federal indictments.”
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After taxpayers lost $250 million in what federal officials deemed “the largest pandemic fraud” in the nation, the government agencies involved are blaming each other.
The Department of Justice charged 47 people with the fraud, alleging they exploited federal money left unguarded by lax COVID rules meant to feed hungry kids.
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Calling climate change an “existential threat,” Gov. Tim Walz has announced an “ambitious” plan to combat its effects.
Alongside Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and various state leaders, Walz officially launched Minnesota’s Climate Action Framework this past Friday to help meet several climate-related goals over the coming decades.
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The first-ever Alpha News/Trafalgar Group statewide Minnesota poll was released Tuesday morning, marking Alpha News’ expansion into polling.
Republicans could be on the verge of winning their first statewide race since 2006, with the attorney general’s race representing the best opportunity for a GOP pickup, according to the results.
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by Rose Williams A second retired command sergeant major who served alongside Gov. Tim Walz in the National Guard is speaking out, saying the governor “left his troops high and dry” before a deployment to Iraq. Paul Herr served in the military for 34 years in a variety of…
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Gov. Tim Walz’s vision for a carbon-free Minnesota could have a devastating impact on family budgets, according to a new report released this week.
The report was authored by the Center of the American Experiment’s Isaac Orr, Mitch Rolling, and John Phelan, who used economic modeling software to predict the impacts of Gov. Walz’s proposal to create a 100% carbon-free electric grid by 2040.
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On a 150-year-old farm in Brewster, Tom Behrends hopes his tell-it-like-it-is style will finally get the attention he believes it deserves in Minnesota’s race for governor.
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Gov. Tim Walz, running for reelection on a promise of “One Minnesota,” once described Republicans as naturally inclined to “demonize” others before mockingly accusing them of using “The Handmaid’s Tale” as an “operator’s manual.”
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Minnesota farmers are urging Gov. Tim Walz and state lawmakers to reject California’s new zero-emission standards that will all but prohibit sales of gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035.
The Minnesota Corn Growers Association (MCGA) recently expressed its opposition to any future adoption of California’s new standards for vehicles manufactured in 2026 and beyond, which replace the state’s current “clean car” standards.
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Gov. Tim Walz’s very first executive order, issued on his second day in office, established the “One Minnesota Council on Inclusion and Equity.”
This is not to be confused with the “Governor’s Community Council on Inclusion and Equity,” established at a later date to advise the first council.
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The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension’s 2021 Uniform Crime Report shows a 21.6% increase in violent crime in the state.
Local law enforcement agencies submit the crime summary data to meet state and federal reporting requirements. A BCA crime data tool explores crime trends.
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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz claimed that a whole host of “rights,” such as “women’s rights to work in the workplace,” may be targeted following the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade.
At a Tuesday press conference discussing the “future” of abortion with Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, Walz stressed the importance of ensuring continued abortion access in Minnesota, vowing that the state will never curtail it under his leadership.
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Gov. Tim Walz suggested sending half of the state’s $9.2 billion surplus back to taxpayers in a 15-minute special session.
Walz last weekend proposed sending individuals $1,000, and married couples $2,000.
Only Walz can call a special session, but he hasn’t after a GOP and DFL broad deal for $4 billion in tax relief and $4 billion in savings disintegrated in May as the regular session concluded.
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As poll numbers for Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz continue to fall, one major pollster has labeled the state’s gubernatorial race a “toss-up.”
RealClearPolitics, an independent poll aggregator and media company, is giving Walz an average point advantage of 3.5 over Dr. Scott Jensen, the Republican-endorsed candidate for governor.
Read MoreSome Minnesota landlords are blasting Gov. Tim Walz and his eviction moratorium for costing them more than $100,000 to repair the mess some tenants left behind.
They are sending a message in hopes it will help others speak up after a tenant went 18 months without paying rent or utilities before they were forced to hire an attorney to get her to leave.
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The chairman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL) is now sitting on a state government board that hands out taxpayer-funded arts and culture grants.
On Monday, Ken Martin was appointed as a member of the State Arts Board by Gov. Tim Walz. Martin occupies the seat previously held by Sean Dowse, former mayor of Red Wing in southeast Minnesota, who recently resigned from the post.
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Minnesotans are calling on Gov. Tim Walz and the Legislature to return the record-breaking $9.3 billion budget surplus to the people by permanently cutting taxes.
A crowd gathered inside the Minnesota Capitol rotunda Saturday for the “Give it Back Tax Rally.” The rally was hosted by the Center of the American Experiment and involved several speakers including multiple radio hosts and a former U.S. congressman.
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The Center of the American Experiment is hosting a tax rally outside the Minnesota Capitol to call for the return of the state’s enormous budget surplus to taxpayers.
The event, the “Give It Back Rally,” will take place on Saturday, April 23, at 11 a.m.
“We’re hosting a Tax Rally in St. Paul to pressure Gov. Tim Walz and the legislature to return the record-breaking $9.3 billion budget surplus to the hardworking taxpayers of Minnesota,” according to a press release.
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In a tough reelection battle this year, Gov. Tim Walz is changing his tune on gas taxes.
The Minnesotan joined five other Democratic governors urging the U.S. Congress to suspend the federal gas tax amid soaring prices at the pump caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and President Joe Biden’s ban on importing Russian oil this week.
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Two governors who serve as co-chairs of the bipartisan, presidentially-appointed Council of Governors – meant to give advice and opinions to the United States President’s Office along with heads of executive branch agencies like the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) – Friday denounced Russia’s…
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Democrats announced a plan Monday to promote police officer recruitment that mirrors proposals of Gov. Tim Walz and Republicans.
House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler authored the bill, HF 3581, which was developed in consultation with the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association, Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association, and Minnesota Department of Public Safety. He said at a news conference announcing the bill that law enforcement leaders want to recruit officers who reflect the community, have a high social-emotional set of skills and are committed to community services, but they’re struggling to do that.
“[The bill] is built on the premise that Minnesota can recruit, can hire, can train and can retain the kinds of police officers who reflect our communities’ values,” Winkler said.
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Gov. Tim Walz says he plans to send 2.7 million Minnesotans “Walz Checks” up to $350 as part of his 2022 Local Jobs and Projects Plan.
“To continue growing Minnesota’s economy, we must invest in the people who made it strong in the first place,” Walz said in a statement. “By investing in workforce development, cutting taxes for the middle class and working families, lowering costs, and expanding access to resources like technical education and high-speed broadband, we will improve economic prosperity across the state and grow the workforce we need to compete.”
The proposal aims to deliver $700 million in direct payments to Minnesotans funded by Minnesota’s tax surplus.
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The Minnesota Medical Association (MMA) has announced its support for renewed mask mandates in the Twin Cities.
In a statement released Thursday, the MMA said it “fully supports the decisions by Minneapolis and St. Paul to re-institute mandatory mask use while indoors” and urged “other communities to consider similar actions.”
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In 1995, Minneapolis saw a record-setting 97 homicides. Operating by the strict definition of a homicide as an event where one person intentionally kills another, there were 97 homicides in the city last year.
The final homicide of 2021 occurred just hours before the new year as a 15-year-old boy was gunned down in north Minneapolis. No arrests have been made. The shooters are believed to have fired from a vehicle.
Some homicides, like the killing of Winston Smith in June, were justified and non-criminal. Technicalities aside, most share a concern about the high number of murders in 2021.
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Republican Kendall Qualls announced Tuesday that he is stepping down as president of TakeCharge, a nonprofit he founded earlier this year, prompting speculation that he will be running for governor of Minnesota.
Qualls first gained notoriety in 2020 during his unsuccessful bid against Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips in Minnesota’s Third Congressional District. A few months later, he launched TakeCharge, which has focused on inspiring a “new movement in the black community to return it to its cultural roots of faith, family and education.”
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Gov. Tim Walz announced Tuesday via Twitter that he and other members of his family have tested positive for COVID-19.
Gus, who is vaccinated, had “some sniffles” over the weekend, tested negative for COVID-19 with a rapid test and then tested positive, the governor said in a video message on Twitter.
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A Soros-backed activist who allegedly lied about her Native-American heritage and headed the Minnesota Freedom Fund (MFF) during its most controversial moments currently sits on the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Commission (MSGC).
Tonja Honsey was removed from all her major leadership roles except for one after it was revealed that she allegedly lied to and defrauded those around her. Now, she only sits on the MSGC that Gov. Tim Walz appointed her to, helping to decide what punishments should be available for Minnesota judges to dole out. In this position, she’s presently advocating for a measure that would eliminate stronger sentences for criminals who commit more crimes while on probation or parole.
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A woman who kept her restaurant open against Gov. Tim Walz’s orders was convicted and began her jail term the same week the state dropped charges against the man who toppled and destroyed a statue of Christopher Columbus at the Minnesota Capitol.
Lisa Hanson owns The Interchange Wine and Coffee Bistro in Albert Lea, Minnesota. When Walz issued an executive order last year demanding that all bars and restaurants close their doors in the name of COVID-19 prevention, she did not comply. This resulted in her being convicted of six criminal misdemeanors on Thursday following a trial that took less than a week and a jury deliberation that took only a few hours.
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Gov. Tim Walz announced he’s preparing the Minnesota National Guard to provide public-safety assistance if necessary during the trial of former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter.
The mobilization to readiness follows a request made by the Brooklyn Center and Hennepin County.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we are prepared to ask members of the Minnesota National Guard to be available to support local law enforcement with the mission of allowing for peaceful demonstrations, keeping the peace, and ensuring public safety,” Walz said in a statement.
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Minnesota schools are struggling with an increase in student violence, yet Gov. Tim Walz’s Department of Education (MDE) lobbied against a measure to quell the chaos.
Rochester schools are “taken over with violence,” a fight between students at Hopkins High School recently left three staff members with injuries, and ISD 728 is accused of not cracking down on student-on-student sexual abuse. Meanwhile, Rochester is banning parents who don’t wear masks from school grounds for a year, a St. Louis Park Catholic school has rolled out a new “social justice algebra” class, and some other schools are moving back to “distance learning.” Critics say that spending time and money on initiatives like these distracts from what schools should be focused on: stopping classroom violence.
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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has admitted that declaring another state of emergency in the face of rising COVID cases would lead to negative political repercussions.
In a Wednesday call with reporters — from Finland, no less — the governor said he won’t invoke emergency powers while Minnesota’s COVID cases spiked to the highest 7-day average in the United States.
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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz snapped at reporters Friday when he was asked about Republican priorities for a special session that has been in the works for months.
“They wanted an absolute ban on vaccine passports, which we don’t have a damn vaccine passport so quit pretending on the politics. My patience level is gone,” Walz said Friday during a visit to North Memorial Hospital.
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A judge who was once praised by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for his “open-mindedness” and “compassion” released an accused pedophile with zero bail required earlier this month.
Jonathan Alton is a 22-year-old Coon Rapids man who is accused of trying to solicit a 15-year-old girl to engage in sexual conduct. Prosecutors are pursuing felony charges after Alton allegedly contacted an undercover investigator who he believed to be a child and pursued a sexual relationship with her while acknowledging the illegality of his actions.
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Minnesota long-term care facilities like nursing homes and memory care centers say they’re in an impossible situation.
President Joe Biden unveiled a mandate last month that effectively requires U.S. employers to make their workers receive the coronavirus vaccine or face termination. This is likely to force a significant portion of workers in long-term care facilities out of their jobs. However, the industry can’t afford to lose more staff as it’s already overburdened and unable to provide care for patients amid a labor shortage.
“There is going to be a mass exodus” of workers, warned Natalie Zeleznikar, a nursing home administrator and executive.
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The state of Minnesota is expected to receive 275 Afghan refugees, according to a new Axios report.
Senior Biden administration officials speaking to Axios said that governors and mayors across the United States have recently been notified on the number of refugees they should be receiving.
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Two high-profile endorsers of now-expelled State Rep. John Thompson (D-District 67A) remained silent Thursday when asked whether they still support the embattled congressman.
Thompson was expelled earlier this week from the Minnesota House Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) caucus after a string of incidents stemming back to August of 2020, and the resurfacing of allegations of domestic abuse in his past.
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The Minnesota State Fair has asked a conservative group to remove a “disrespectful” caricature of Gov. Tim Walz from its booth.
Action 4 Liberty President Jake Duesenberg told Alpha News that he was asked to remove the display by the end of the day Friday.
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Democrats said Monday that Gov. Tim Walz’s emergency powers will most likely continue into August.
Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman, D-Brooklyn Park, thinks both the governor and the legislature “foresee an end to the peacetime emergency sometime in the not-too-terribly distant future,” she said during a press conference Monday regarding the start of the special session.
She later indicated an end to the peacetime emergency sometime in August.
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Gov. Tim Walz plans to extend his emergency powers for another 30 days on Monday, making it the 15th month in a row that the peacetime emergency has been extended.
A Minnesota statute says that a governor who declares a peacetime emergency may have emergency powers for only five days, after which he must ask his Executive Council to extend his powers for an additional 30 days.
Walz has requested that his powers be extended 15 times since first declaring the peacetime emergency in March of 2020, and thus has had emergency powers for over 450 days.
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Gov. Tim Walz has proposed the use of incentives like shopping vouchers and fishing licenses for Minnesotans who receive a COVID-19 vaccination.
Walz spoke at the Mall of America Wednesday at an event intended to encourage children to get vaccinated. Currently, 62% of the population aged 16 and older have received at least one round of the vaccine. The governor is hoping to grow that number to at least 70%.
Walz said some states are offering prizes that are “a little gimmicky,” when “what really gets people is knowing they can take the afternoon off, or if they’re not feeling good the next day, they’ll still get paid and their employer will let them.
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DFL senators claimed on Tuesday that Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka’s decision to end all coronavirus restrictions on the Senate floor was “unnecessary, premature, and unwise.”
Just two days later, several Senate DFL members threw their masks in the air in what they called “Mary Tyler Moore style” after hearing about the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s new mask guidance.
A photo from Senate Media Services shows eight maskless Democratic senators tossing their masks in the air.
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