Are all higher education sabbaticals worth the taxpayer cost?
Wry Wing Politics I’m a huge higher education booster. Minnesota under-invests in education at all levels, including higher education. Higher education is an economic engine for our state, and it...
View ArticleMimimum wage increase: DFL's legislative struggles a big surprise
When the DFL took control of the Legislature in November, most assumed that passage of a generous increase in the minimum wage would happen quickly.After all, what could be more DFL than holding out a...
View ArticleGo figure: 25% of Twin Cities home buyers paid in cash
When I was in the Peace Corps in Guatemala, my fellow volunteers and I developed a meteorological theory of underdevelopment. The Mayan people we worked with had become resigned to their lot — poverty,...
View ArticleOutlook promising for GOP to pick up seats in U.S. Senate
Democrats chances of holding onto their U.S. Senate majority in next year’s midterm election took another blow today with the announcement by Montana Sen. Max Baucus that he would retire rather than...
View ArticleSt. Cloud State to pay for three extra city police officers
St. Cloud State University is working on an agreement to pay the city of St. Cloud for three extra police officers who would patrol the university's neighborhood.The St. Cloud Times says the proposal...
View ArticleLosing bidder for St. Croix Bridge road work seeks injunction to stop...
The C.S. McCrossan construction firm, which was low bidder for roadwork on the St. Croix Bridge construction project but then lost the job, has sued the state and wants construction stopped while the...
View ArticleEducation Minnesota, the state teachers union, holds Saturday election for...
Delegates of Education Minnesota, the state's 70,000-member teacher's union, will meet this weekend in Bloomington to elect its president.Tom Dooher, president since 2007, is seeking election to a...
View ArticleDuluth airport gets more use
The number of people using Duluth International Airport is up 5 percent so far in 2013, reports Candace Renalls of the Duluth News Tribune. A total of 77,711 passengers have gone through the airport...
View ArticleGov. Dayton appoints three judges for northern Minnesota
Gov. Mark Dayton has filled three judicial posts in the state's Ninth Judicial District.Jana Austad will replace Judge John Smith, who has been appointed to the state Court of Appeals. Austad, who will...
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Senate DFL’s tax package would hit Minnesota’s top 7% of taxpayers
Senate Democrats dropped in the last piece of the state’s budget puzzle Tuesday, releasing a tax bill that calls for $1.8 billion in tax increases and a partial overhaul of Minnesota’s sales tax...
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GOP: Increased school funding means Big Government
Schools = Big Gummint.Tim Pugmire at MPR writes: “A $15.7 billion funding package for public schools is under fire from Republican lawmakers, who say the measure up for a vote Tuesday in the Minnesota...
View ArticleMSP among airports with sequester-related delays, FAA tracking website reports
Flight delays caused by sequestration furloughs of air traffic controllers are starting to affect the nation's airports, including the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.An FAA website gives...
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Marriage equality: Legislators, stand on the right side of love — and of history
Aaron Lee WittnebelLAKE PARK, Minn. — Late last year, the people of Minnesota turned down a constitutional amendment limiting the freedom to marry and, thanks in part to the amendment’s opponents, a...
View ArticleHouse approves free all-day kindergarten
All-day kindergarten took a large step forward Tuesday night. Says Tim Pugmire at MPR: “The Minnesota House has passed a $15.7 billion funding package for K-12 education that for the first time...
View ArticleDisability advocates to rally at Capitol for equitable state funding
People with disabilities and their advocates will gather at the state Capitol Thursday to urge legislators to provide funding for their programs.The "Disability Matters Day" includes briefings on the...
View ArticleUrban planner Ken Greenberg to speak at Landmark Center luncheon
Ken Greenberg, the noted international urban planner, speaks in St. Paul Thursday at Landmark Center's annual Legacy Luncheon.He'll talk about the defining roles and aspirations of great cities and...
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Senate DFL wants to bypass dicey bonding bill and fund Capitol renovation...
CC/Flickr/Jimmy EmersonThe Capitol renovation has enjoyed wide support from leaders in both parties, but the project hasn’t been enough to push Republicans into supporting a full bonding bill.Senate...
View ArticleRepublican businessman Scott Honour launches run for governor
Scott Honour, a Republican businessman from Wayzata, has launched a campaign for governor with a new website.MinnPost's Cyndy Brucato last month mentioned Honour as a possible GOP challenger, as the...
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Startling Minnesota numbers: black/white homicides/suicides
These are some startling numbers. Brandt Williams at MPR writes: “There are dramatic differences in the role that guns play in the deaths of white and black Minnesotans. African-Americans are much more...
View ArticleDemocrat Sona Mehring will not challenge John Kline
WASHINGTON — Just three weeks after announcing she would challenge 2nd District Republican Rep. John Kline in 2014, DFLer Sona Mehring said Wednesday that she is dropping out of the race.Mehring, a...
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