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Excelsior petitions for delay in PUC ruling on Mesaba project
Excelsior Energy’s Mesaba Energy Project will not be on the docket for Thursday’s Public Utilities Commission meeting. The PUC had been expected to rule on two key aspects of the proposed coal gas plant, but Excelsior asked for and received a delay. Why? Some mumbo jumbo about an appeal to a previous administrative decision. The…
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Obama blasts through cable news flak
Well, I watched several consecutive minutes of cable television news last night and at no point did I feel the need for alcohol. That’s a good night. Barack Obama has Fort Clinton surrounded on all sides. He should offer to pay her campaign debt and end this thing. Meantime, let’s take a look at his…
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Obama, Clinton bar fight reaches "hard to watch" stage during awkward moment between de facto conclusion and police arrival
So you all know I’m in the tank for Obama so I’ll spare the feigned objectivity here. I am, however, finding ways to enjoy this protracted race for the Democratic nomination even though it hasn’t been very good for my guy. Have you ever been to an Iron Range bar? At night? Sometimes, around 11…
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Oberstar gears up for campaign today
The Eighth Congressional District DFL Convention opens today in Duluth. I’ll be covering the convention from the audience of Hibbing Community College Theatre’s production of “Born Yesterday” (tonight at 7:30 with a Sunday matinee!) via my cell phone that will be switched off. I expect my coverage of the convention to be among the worst…
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The Empire Strikes Barack
Got five minutes to burn on Friday afternoon? Familiar with the Star Wars series? Support Barack Obama? Or, do you support Hillary Clinton and want to see the what these crazy kids voting for Obama can do with all their digital editing software and idle time? Check out this video. That’s right, folks. We can…
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OMG! I’m a Millennial! WTF!
Good news. I’m a Millennial (born after 1978). Apparently that’s a good thing. There’s more of us than there are living baby boomers. We like the Internet. A lot of us have blogs. A recent research paper available at this Case Foundation blog suggests that we Millennials might try to survive without a government in…
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The magic number is 22%
From AP via Yahoo: The White House said Wednesday that President Bush has paid a price for the “Mission Accomplished” banner that was flown in triumph five years ago but later became a symbol of U.S. misjudgments and mistakes in the long and costly war in Iraq. Thursday is the fifth anniversary of Bush’s dramatic…
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Franken handles tax situation with perfect P.R.
Sure, you can dismiss this because my blog has been supportive of Al Franken’s bid for the U.S. Senate. But I also know quite a bit about public relations and the news as part of my past career as a newspaper editor. I don’t think Al Franken could have handled this tax story any better…
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Governor signs miners’ health study funding bill
This was out earlier, but I’ll make belated mention that Gov. Tim Pawlenty signed a bill funding research about the cause of higher-than-average rates of a rare form of cancer in former Iron Ranger miners. As I’ve said, this will provide a whole lot of people a whole lot of answers about the risks of…
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Souls of future candidates at stake in Democratic race
Andrew Sullivan of the Atlantic has a good post today putting perspective on the situation for Barack Obama and his supporters. Watching shows like “Good Morning America” and any of the 24-hour cable news networks reminds me that the national media is increasingly devoid of perspective. Hence why the last 72 hours of news has…
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Wide open spaces (will build to suit)
The Duluth News-Tribune reports today on the practice of public entities building speculative buildings on the Iron Range to attract business. The appeal, according to the stories sources (all governmental), is that these buildings are modern, attractive and can be customized at public expense for any company willing to sign a long term deal that…
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Political blogs at the Minnesota Capitol
The Forum Communications legislative bureau ran a story on the role of blogs in Minnesota politics in their state papers. Marisa Helms interviewed me and used a quote at the end of the story. I was dubbed a “liberal blogger” in the story, though I bet other “liberal blogs” don’t support legalized moonshine and automatic…
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Overheard at Senate District 3’s endorsing convention
Today, the Minnesota Senate District 3 Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party held its endorsing convention for House district’s 3A and 3B. Rep. Loren Solberg (DFL-Grand Rapids) and Rep. Tom Anzelc (DFL-Balsam Township), both incumbents, were endorsed for re-election. The biggest news of the day was the terrible weather that many believed would keep people away from the convention.…
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Sertich’s take on state budget fix
Iron Range State Rep. Tony Sertich (DFL-Chisholm), the Minnesota House Majority Leader, offers his take on the state budget fix over at MNPublius. Related posts: No related posts.
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Update: 4A endorsement race
It’s looking like Irene Folstrom vs. John Pernell for the DFL endorsement in House District 4A. For now, I’ll just try to share as much information as I can. Irene contacted me with information about a candidate meet and greet next week. Meet the Candidate:Irene FolstromFriday, May 25-8 p.m.At her home, 300 Irving Beach DriveBemidji,…