Republican Lawmaker Proposes Bill to Sell Minnesota’s $6.9 Million COVID-19 Morgue

A Republican lawmaker has drafted a bill that would require Minnesota to sell a facility it purchased for the storage of deceased COVID-19 patients.

Due to a projected surge in COVID-19 fatalities, the state of Minnesota spent $6.9 million in May to acquire a warehouse for the “temporary storage of human remains.” As of early June, however, the facility had yet to be used.

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Minnesota Hasn’t Used $6.9 Million Facility It Bought to Store Deceased Coronavirus Patients

Due to a projected surge in coronavirus fatalities, the state of Minnesota spent $6.9 million to acquire a warehouse for the “temporary storage of human remains,” but the facility has so far gone unused.

“What’s contemplated by the purchase is to buy a building where we can properly handle with dignity and respect and safety the bodies of Minnesotans who may fall victim to the coronavirus,” Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management Director Joe Kelly said during a press conference in early May.

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Senator Warns of ‘Major Crisis’ in Minnesota Nursing Homes, Says No Indication Trend Is Reversing

A state senator warned of a “major crisis” in Minnesota’s long-term care facilities in a letter sent last week to Gov. Tim Walz.

State Sen. Karin Housley (R-St. Mary’s Point), chair of the Senate Family Care and Aging Committee, applauded the governor for releasing a “five-point plan” earlier this month on addressing the crisis, but said she has seen “few indicators the trend is reversing.”

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Gov. Walz Faces Backlash Over Controversial COVID-19 Model

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz called a press conference Friday afternoon to discuss the modeling the state is using in its coronavirus response, but faced harsh criticism for closing the briefing to the public.

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Minnesota Health Officials Will Release Info on Nursing Homes with Coronavirus After Facing Criticism

State Senator Karin Housley (R-St. Mary’s Point) said the Minnesota Department of Health’s decision to withhold information about the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on nursing homes “only brings unnecessary grief and frustration to many Minnesota families.”

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Karin Housley Challenger Touts Award from High School in Announcing Bid

  Sean Ryan, a Lake Elmo resident and former journalist, announced this week that he will seek the DFL endorsement in the race against Sen. Karin Housley for the Senate District 39 seat. In announcing his candidacy, Ryan touted the fact that when he was in high school—more than 20…

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NRSC Begins Targeting Minnesota’s Sen. Tina Smith, Other Vulnerable Battleground Dems

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) began targeting Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) and other swing-state Democrats Monday with a new billboard campaign. “Ask Tina Smith about the 430,478 Minnesota jobs at risk under the Green New Deal,” the NRSC’s new Minnesota billboard states. Smith has expressed support for the Green…

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What’s Wrong with the Minnesota GOP?

The Minnesota Republican Party continued its 10-year statewide losing streak Tuesday, but party leaders are hesitant to accept any blame for the disastrous performance. State Republicans lost up and down the ballot in both local and federal elections, losing races for the governorship, attorney general, secretary of state, state auditor,…

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Klobuchar and Smith Hang on to Minnesota’s U.S. Senate Seats

Both Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) hung on to their Senate seats Tuesday in a what turned out to be a big night for Minnesota’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party. While there was little doubt that Klobuchar would win her bid for a third term in the Senate,…

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Tina Smith Listed Among Top 10 Most Vulnerable Senators

Tina Smith

Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) was recently listed as one of the top 10 most vulnerable senators seeking reelection in the nation, joining fellow Democrats like Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND). Unlike like her Democratic colleagues, however, Smith is campaigning in her first race for the U.S.…

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Housley and Smith Meet for Final Debate in Front of Rowdy St. Paul Crowd

Minnesota’ candidates running in the special election to replace Al Franken in the U.S. Senate met for their final debate Sunday night in front of a raucous crowd at St. Paul’s Fitzgerald Theater. One of the topics discussed was the rise of incivility and “extremism” in politics, which was on…

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Karin Housley Campaigns Through the Night In Final Push

Republican Karin Housley campaigned through the night Friday in her final push against Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) in their race for the U.S. Senate. The Housley campaign kicked off its 18-stop, 44-hour get-out-the-vote bus tour immediately following Thursday night’s debate at Hamline University, arriving in Duluth at 11:30 p.m. to…

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Did Tina Smith Say She Supports the Border Wall?

Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) seemed to suggest during Thursday night’s debate that she would support President Donald Trump’s proposed border wall, but the Minnesota Republican Party called her comments insincere. Smith faced off against Republican challenger Karin Housley at Hamline University in St. Paul for the second-to-last debate of the…

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Tina Smith Praises Keith Ellison As ‘Terrific’ Candidate While Tim Walz Applauds

Most Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party candidates have avoided campaigning with Keith Ellison ever since he was accused of domestic abuse, but Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) praised him as a “terrific” candidate on Thursday. “Everybody, Keith Ellison is going to make a terrific attorney general,” Smith said during one of the first…

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Minnesota Democrats Hit ‘Panic Button,’ Drop $1.1 Million On Negative Housley Ads to Save Appointed Sen. Smith

Minnesota Republicans are in striking distance of former Sen. Al Franken’s (D-MN) seat, and national Democratic Party leaders are finally starting to take notice. Smith, who was appointed to replace Franken after he resigned, still leads in most polls, but received considerable criticism after skipping the only debate televised statewide.…

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Does Anybody Know Where Tina Smith Was Sunday Night?

Republican Karin Housley debated an empty podium Sunday night after Democratic opponent Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) declined to participate due to a “complicated schedule.” But nobody seems to know what scheduling conflicts in particular prevented Smith from attending, and Smith herself didn’t elaborate beyond saying that she has “just a…

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Karin Housley Attacks Dem Opponent for Not Showing Up to Sunday Night Debate

During Sunday’s night of debates, Republican Karin Housley repeatedly criticized Democratic opponent Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) for declining the opportunity to debate due to a “complicated schedule.” KSTP’s moderators began the live interview by questioning Housley, who appeared on the stage unopposed, about her 2009 remarks comparing Michelle Obama to…

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POLL: Housley, Johnson Within Three Points, Dems Less Favorable Than Republicans

A new poll shows that Republican Karin Housley is within three points of incumbent Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) who is running in her first election since replacing Al Franken. According to Change Research, 43 percent of likely voters support Housley in the special election while 46 percent said they support…

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Both of Minnesota’s Democrat Senators Refuse to Participate In Televised Debate

Both of Minnesota’s U.S. Senators are refusing to participate in any further televised debates but are still leading their opponents in the polls. 5 Eyewitness News invited Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) to participate in Sunday’s debates, which will also include the gubernatorial and attorney general…

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Karin Housley Calls On Minnesota Attorney General’s Office to Investigate Keith Ellison

Republican Senate candidate Karin Housley called on the Minnesota Office of Attorney General to conduct an investigation into the domestic-abuse allegations against Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN-05). In a Monday statement, Housley criticized her opponent, Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN), for campaigning with Ellison while requesting a “quick and thorough” FBI investigation…

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GOP Senate Nominee Karin Housley Calls Out Opponent’s ‘Hypocrisy’ In Response to Ellison and Kavanaugh Allegations

Republican senatorial candidate Karin Housley recently criticized her “opponent’s continued hypocrisy” on her handling of the abuse allegations against both Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN-03) and Judge Brett Kavanaugh. As The Minnesota Sun has extensively reported, Ellison currently stands accused of two domestic-abuse allegations, but is continuing his run for Minnesota…

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‘Abortion Senator’ Tina Smith Spent Years Lobbying Against ‘Commonsense’ Abortion Laws

Tina Smith

Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) spent years as an abortion lobbyist fighting against “commonsense” legislation throughout the Midwest before she ever entered politics. From 2003 to 2006, Smith served as Planned Parenthood’s vice president for external affairs for Minnesota, South Dakota, and North Dakota, where she fought against informed-consent laws as…

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Minnesota Fraternal Order of Police Endorses Housley for U.S. Senate, Stauber for Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District

The Minnesota Fraternal Order of Police made two big political endorsements last week. On Thursday, the powerful group endorsed Republican Karin Housley for U.S. Senate in her race against incumbent Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN), appointed to succeed disgraced former Sen. Al Franken (D-MN), who resigned in January after allegations of…

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New Poll Shows ‘Competitive’ Senate Race Between Karin Housley and Tina Smith

A new poll released Wednesday confirms that the race between Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) and Republican Karin Housley will be unusually “competitive” in a typically blue state. The poll, conducted by KSTP and SurveyUSA, shows that Smith, who was appointed to her position after Al Franken resigned, leads her opponent…

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Minnesota Candidates Break from the Campaign Trail to Commemorate 9/11

Minnesota’s political candidates took a brief pause from the campaign trail Tuesday morning to commemorate the seventeenth anniversary of 9/11. “Today, we both mourn and remember the tragedy of September 11. We’re reminded of those who gave everything serving and sacrificing for others. 17 years later, we remember those highest…

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EXCLUSIVE: MyPillow’s Mike Lindell Opens Up About Trump, Crack, ‘Evil’ Ellison, and More

Mike Lindell

Mike Lindell, founder and CEO of MyPillow, first met President Donald Trump the summer before the 2016 election. “When I met him, I go: ‘Wow, there’s nobody on this planet I’d rather have be my president than Donald Trump,’” he told The Minnesota Sun. Lindell was launched into the political…

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Sen. Tina Smith, Former Planned Parenthood Exec, Claims Women Can’t Have ‘Economic Security’ Without Abortion

Tina Smith

At a Friday press conference in downtown St. Paul, Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) claimed that women can’t have “economic security” without access to abortion. The press conference was organized in opposition to President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, who poses a threat to the pro-choice movement. “We know,…

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Report: Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith’s Husband Has $1 Million Invested in Bermuda-Based Hedge Fund

Tina Smith

New reports show that Sen. Tina Smith’s (D-MN) husband has up to $1 million invested in a hedge fund based in Bermuda, a well-known tax haven. The Washington Free Beacon was the first to discover the investment, noting that the senator’s husband, Archie Smith, has an investment of possibly $1…

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Republican Jeff Johnson Closing In On Tim Walz In Minnesota Governor’s Race

Jeff Johnson, Tim Walz

The latest poll out of Suffolk University shows that Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson (pictured, left) trails his opponent Rep. Tim Walz (pictured, right) by only five points in the race for Minnesota’ governorship. The poll, conducted between August 17 and August 20, surveyed 500 Minnesotans on their opinions of…

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