Feb 12, 2001
State House Majority Leader Rep Tim Pawlenty (R-38B, Eagan) will freely admit he is open to ideas and solutions from other places. His latest proposal for “Tax Free Zones” is something he said, “I stole from Governors John Engler and Tom...
Feb 12, 2001
The Board of Regents Candidate Advisory Council brought forward its recommendations for the 3 at-large seats, the fifth congressional district seat and the student seat for the University of Minnesota Board of Regents. The committee selected 13 people from a pool of...
Feb 12, 2001
The effort taken by the DFL House Minority to defend against the Republican House Majority’s usurpation of the Emergency School Heating Assistance Bill was futile at best and is an example of the need to rethink the strategy for the House Minority. The 2000 election...
Feb 8, 2001
Last week Checks & Balances Publisher Shawn Towle sat down with one of the most interesting figures in Minnesota politics, Governor Jesse Ventura. During the half-hour long interview in the Governor’s office, the two discussed a broad range of topics from...
Feb 3, 2001
Dear Editor: Thursday’s [2/1/01] article by Dane Smith didn’t reflect the same election I, or any DFLer in this state, experienced. Smith leads people to believe the DFL wins without trying and Republicans are somehow experiencing a rising tide with a new...
Jan 26, 2001
Every person in the Minneapolis City Hall will to some degree feel the effects of Councilmember Brian Herron’s bribery conviction. Mayor Sharon Sayles-Belton (DFL-Minneapolis), Council President Jackie Cherryhomes (DFL-Ward 05, Minneapolis) and Council member Lisa...
Jan 25, 2001
We have heard members of the legislature are meeting with representatives of the Minnesota Twins and discussing the possibility of a new financing package for a Twins’ Stadium. The structure of the deal is similar to the package assembled for the financing of the...
Jan 25, 2001
Governor Jesse Ventura (IP-MN) is continuing to take steps to smooth relations with the state legislature. He visited with a number of legislators on their turf. Both last week and again this week he has met with Reps. Dan McElroy (R–36B, Burnsville), Ron...
Jan 25, 2001
During the 2000 election, we saw a number of instances where the Republican Party attempted to reach out to various members of minority communities in their quest to show the GOP as the “Big Tent” Party. The efforts became suspect when during the Republican Party...
Jan 25, 2001
It is clearly evident the state of Minnesota has a significant backlog of unfunded transportation projects. The state is years behind in general repair and maintenance let alone new Highway construction. Governor Jesse Ventura (IP-MN) has even added new projects to...