Bob CollinsHard as it is to believe now, it was quite scandalous back in the early ’70s when White House correspondent Dan Rather and President Richard Nixon butted heads over a question at a news conference. Read more →
MPR News Reflections and observations on the news
Politics
Economists haven’t been able to convince cities that there’s no monetary gain in dishing out millions of dollars to wealthy sports teams owners for sports stadiums.
Maybe it’s time for a comedian to take a crack at it. Read more →
Not to worry, Confederate flags fans. There are still plenty of ways to honor racism and segregation and all that ‘history’ and ‘heritage.’
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Minnesota Rep. Betty McCollum is getting some national press today for being on the ball and catching the late-night Republican shenanigans that sought to undo a ban on the Confederate flag at federal cemeteries. Read more →
This time it’s Erhard, Minn., south of Pelican Rapids, Minn., where someone thought a Confederate flag in the Fourth of July parade was the perfect way to promote the local NAPA auto parts store. Read more →
The people of Wisconsin did themselves proud on a weekend that celebrates freedom and democratic (small ‘D’) values.
They turned aside a Republican attempt to cloak the state’s government in secrecy. Read more →
Forum Communications is a fairly conservative media outlet whose editorials and endorsements have mirrored the tax policies of the Republican Party.
So it wasn’t insignificant yesterday when the company’s editorial in the Fargo Forum acknowledged when it comes to business, Minnesota — long painted as the anti-business state — has it over North Dakota.
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The plan from a private group to build high-speed passenger rail between St. Paul and Rochester probably isn’t going anywhere. Read more →
Minnesota has its political flaws, to be sure. Most of its important legislation is cut in back-room deals and we find out well after the fact that somehow, someway, an Iron Range lawmaker got a million dollars to replace an outhouse in the middle of nowhere.
Sometimes lawmakers vote for things without having a clue what the impact is and sometimes the impact is tragic, but for the most part their lack of vision is out in the open for most of us to see if we want to take a look. Read more →
The theory is that a second train would provide more reliability on a route that has absolutely none right now. Don’t get your hopes up. Read more →
Wade Yarbrough, of Apple Valley, waded into hostile territory in today’s Star Tribune with his op-ed urging restraint in judging people who fly the Confederate flag.
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The soap opera in Lake Elmo has taken another turn. The sixth member of the city’s government is quitting, adding to the perception of a city in turmoil following the election of a voting bloc on the City Council. Read more →
The King v. Burwell decision pitted Chief Justice John Roberts against Justice Antonin Scalia. Again. Read more →
Despite the small but significant steps to dismantle a symbol of institutional racism by way of removing a government-sponsored display of the Confederate flag in South Carolina, racist symbolism is still good for business for some companies. Read more →
Put up a sign that says people can’t go somewhere, and they’ll try to go there. Read more →