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Gene Lyons’ Obama problem and how it affects Minnesota
My “hometown” paper is the Hibbing Daily Tribune (in as much as I live in a very rural township with no paper and this one is somewhat close and runs my weekly column). The Tribune, like most small town dailies, doesn’t run nearly as many syndicated columnists as it used to for budget reasons. One…
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Chaffee opts out of 7B run
Blake Chaffee, a Duluth DFLer and campaign manager for Congressman Jim Oberstar, has opted not to enter the race for State Representative in District 7B. This comes on the day when Duluth City Council President Roger Reinert officially announced his campaign and leaves Reinert with uncontested frontrunner status. Chaffee issues the following statement this afternoon:…
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It’s official: Reinert announces 7B candidacy
I had already reported that he was planning a run, but Duluth City Council President Roger Reinert is officially announcing his candidacy for the House District 7B DFL nomination today at the Duluth Zoo. Reinert to Announce 7B Intentions Duluth City Council President Roger Reinert to Announce Candidacy for State House of Representatives Duluth, Minnesota…
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IRR budget tabled as meeting began to heat up; sympathies to the Rukavina family
Our sympathies go out to Rep. Tom Rukavina and his family after the news of his mother’s death arrived during last night’s budget meeting at Iron Range Resources. The meeting was adjourned and the budget issues will be resolved at a future meeting. During the meeting, Rukavina had just proposed cuts to the commissioner’s proposed…
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Norman and the green screen, UPDATED: no green screen, just weird
UPDATE: Coleman campaign releases statement insisting green screen rumors are false. This is old news to blogger types, but all over Minnesota’s blogsphere — especially among my friends at MNBlue and MNPublius — observers are chattering about Sen. Norm Coleman’s latest ad featuring his wife Laurie. If you didn’t know, one of the rumors that…
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Source: Oberstar’s campaign manager to seek DFL nod in 7B?
A source familiar with Duluth DFL politics says Blake Chaffee, Jim Oberstar’s campaign manager, is strongly mulling a run for State Representative in District 7B, the West Duluth seat being vacated by the retiring DFL Rep. Mike Jaros. I haven’t met Chaffee since he succeeded current Duluth Mayor Don Ness in the job of Oberstar’s…
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Iron Range Resources budget showdown tonight
A story in yesterday’s Hibbing Daily Tribune explained that tonight’s Iron Range Resources board meeting will explore the proposed $31 million budget for this unique state agency funded by taconite mining taxes. My friends Tony Sertich and Tom Anzelc explain the agency’s purpose in the Mike Jennings story: Two other IRRB members, Reps. Tony Sertich…
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Who’s in, who’s out in 7B?
The DNT has a nice story about the retirement of State Rep. Mike Jaros (DFL-Duluth) today. I don’t know Jaros, and I’ve learned that I didn’t know much about his very interesting background, either. I always hear he’s a good guy. In the story, Duluth city councilor Roger Reinert, after acknowledging Jaros in the story,…
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You can still get drunk on New Year’s Eve; just not on Duluth TV
St. Mary’s/Duluth Clinic announced they were ending their annual New Year’s Eve Ball, according to today’s Duluth News-Tribune. With a price tag of $125,000, the event has become too spendy, SMDC officials say. Also, WDIO Channels 10/13 had announced they would not telecast the Ball as they had in previous years, eliminating a valuable public…
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Before food/gas price spike, health care was important, too
Right now we hear plenty about the problem of rising food and gas prices. Indeed, these prices matter greatly in the lives of everyday Americans, but they’re explainable. Food prices are rising with global demand. Gas prices are actually just readjusting to inflation after years of relative American underpricing (and, again, rising global demand). But…
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If this is how we’re going to cover polls I am going to shoot myself in the face*
OK, not really. But I’ll want to. Maybe you care (I hope you don’t) but our Minnesota blogosphere is freaking out over SUSA’s latest poll on the state’s Presidential and Senate elections. The poll shows Barack Obama only up by one point (most other polls have him up by up by 8-12 points) and Norm…
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CONFIRMED: Duluth councilor Reinert to seek 7B seat
Duluth city council president Roger Reinert will announce his intention to run for the House 7B seat being vacated by longtime State Rep. Mike Jaros (DFL-Duluth), according to a political ally. Reinert will seek the DFL endorsement next month, according to fellow city councilor and DFLer Jeff Anderson. The only other announced candidate for the…
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Grandma’s public urination amnesty approaches
Duluth’s beloved Grandma’s Marathon is this upcoming weekend, which has prompted a series of preview stories in the Duluth News-Tribune. I doubt any stories will hold the clickability of this one from Monday, June 16. Janna Goerdt writes about the issue of runners urinating on the property of people near the starting line every year.…
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Duluth state rep Jaros to retire, UPDATED
Longtime State Rep. Mike Jaros (DFL-Duluth) will not seek re-election in 2008. He told fellow DFLers and the Duluth News Tribune he was retiring from his seat in solidly working class DFL West Duluth this afternoon. I need to do some research to see who the potential candidates might be in this race. Political novice…
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The coming internet crisis and why the Range can lead the way
Jason Baker of the Star Tribune has a must read piece for anyone who uses the Internet (and if you’re reading this, that means you). When I talk about building a fast, reliable public/private high speed internet network on the Iron Range this is what I mean and this is why it matters so very…