Good morning, and welcome to another Monday.
The 2022 legislative session starts at noon.MPR's Tim Pugmire has a preview: Lawmakers return to the Minnesota Capitol Monday with an overflowing state treasury and lots of ideas about what to do with a projected $7.7 billion budget surplus, even though it's not the traditional year to focus on the budget. Gov. Tim Walz wants a $2.7 billion package of public construction projects, which would be a record-size bonding bill if it passes. He wants increased education funding, and paid family and medical leave. The governor is also proposing what he calls "Walz Checks," which are $700 million in one-time direct payments to income eligible Minnesotans in the amount of $175 or $350. Also still hanging are bonus payments to frontline pandemic workers. Lawmakers earmarked $250 million for that last year, but a commission deadlocked on the details of how many workers should get the bonuses and how much. Republicans in the Minnesota Senate are proposing ongoing tax breaks for businesses and individuals, and elimination of any tax on Social Security income. The number one issue Republicans plan to push is public safety. With crime rates on the rise, they're stressing the need for law and order. The Senate Republican plan would increase prison sentences for carjacking and other violent crimes, prevent county attorneys from ignoring low level crimes and help cities hire more police officers.
Speaking of crime, Stephen Montmayor of the Star Tribune says expect to hear a lot about it between now and Election Day: A persistent rise in violence in the Twin Cities metro area and beyond has prompted proposals for new tough-on-crime legislation from Republicans and calls for more money for community policing and restorative justice from Democrats. Both parties identify crime as a top priority this session, but with statewide offices and control of the Capitol up for grabs this November, the topic is fast becoming a platform to lob attacks across the aisle.
Dennis Smith, one of the Republicans running for Attorney General, says he will skip the GOP endorsement process and take his run directly to the primary. Smith apparently thinks Doug Wardlow, who unsuccessfully challenged DFler Keith Ellison for the job four years ago, has the inside track with party delegates. "It has become clear that the endorsing convention is a game for insiders," Smith said in a statement Sunday. "The current party favorite is the 2018 failed candidate for AG, who, with an extensive politically damaged opponent, couldn't win then, and certainly won't win now. I have been campaigning since last June and it has become apparent to me, that I need a broader reach and scope to include Democrats looking for a new direction, Independents, unsure of where to go, and Republicans who are not satisfied with the current selection of AG candidates."
And former judge, legislator, and Hennepin County Commissioner Tad Jude is running for Attorney General on the Republican side. "I am running because Minnesota needs a new Attorney General who is non-partisan, fair and in pursuit of liberty and justice," Jude said in a statement on Twitter this morning. "Keith Ellison is a hyper-partisan politician who has used the office to push his radical agenda that includes defunding our police, attacking small business owners for trying to survive during the pandemic, and supporting radical leftists who believe in a revolving door for repeat criminals."
A Hennepin County judge has upheld Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's vaccine mandate for bar and restaurant patrons, denying several business owners' request for a temporary restraining order against the measure.MPR News reports the mandate that took effect this month requires customers to show proof of COVID vaccination, or a negative COVID-19 test administered professionally within the last 72 hours. A group of bar and restaurant owners — including the owners of Smack Shack and the downtown bars Gay 90's and Sneaky Pete's — filed suit against the mandate. They said they support vaccines, but argued that Frey doesn't have legal authority for such an order. They also said their staffers are not equipped to enforce the order. In a ruling filed Friday night, Hennepin County District Judge Laurie Miller denied the businesses' request for a temporary restraining order against the mandate. The lawsuit continues through the courts. As to Frey's authority to issue such a mandate, Miller wrote that the businesses "have identified no instances in which Mayor Frey's actions violated the letter of any state or municipal law." After Frey announced the policy, it was ratified by the City Council.
From the Associated Press:Former President Donald Trump is dangling the prospect of pardons for supporters who participated in the deadly Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol if he returns to the White House. "If I run and if I win, we will treat those people from January 6th fairly," Trump said Saturday night during a rally in Conroe, Texas. "And if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons because they are being treated so unfairly." The offer represents an attempt by Trump to further minimize the most significant attack on the seat of government since the War of 1812. Participants smashed through windows, assaulted police officers and sent lawmakers and congressional staff fleeing for their lives while trying to halt the peaceful transition of power and the certification of rival Joe Biden's victory. More than 700 people have been arrested and charged with federal crimes in connection with the riot, marking the largest investigation in the Justice Department's history. The tally includes more than 150 people charged with assaulting police officers, more than 50 charged with conspiracy, and charges of seditious conspiracy against the founder and leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group, and 10 other members or associates. | 
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