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Governor orders work on state’s broadband needs
From the governor’s office: Today, Governor Mark Dayton issued Executive Order 11-27, establishing the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband and continuing his commitment to strengthening our state’s infrastructure and fostering a strong business climate. The Task Force will be charged to expand broadband access in Minnesota. Dayton’s stated goal is “border-to-border” high-speed internet and cell…
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We govern in a van down by the river
On the subject of town halls, here are some more. Rep. Chip Cravaack (R-MN8) is sending his staffed mobile office to the Range on Thursday, Aug. 25 and Friday, Aug. 26. This after his hotly discussed town hall in Duluth today. The congressman’s mobile office will be at the Keewatin City Hall from 2-4:30 p.m.…
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Cravaack to hold town hall meeting today in Duluth
According to reports, Rep. Chip Cravaack (R-MN8) has scheduled a last minute, long-anticipated town hall meeting in Duluth, the district’s biggest city and historic center. The town hall will be held at 4 p.m. today, Wednesday, Aug. 24, at the Duluth International Airport. This came together quickly and there was some confusion about whether it…
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Editorial asks necessary questions on Excelsior’s Range dealings
The Duluth News Tribune ran an pertinent editorial today after its must-read, two–part series investigating Excelsior Energy’s Mesaba Energy Project on the Iron Range. Worth reading entirely, here is the thrust: Questions abound: Why didn’t elected leaders demand more spending scrutiny? Why has Rep. Anzelc been largely alone in waving a red flag? Why did…
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One vision for Range economic diversification
Today I follow up on last week’s post about the meaning of temporary prosperity in Iron Range mining. I’ve come up with a working list of things we (that is, the people, by way of our institutions) can do to diversify our economy and bolster our communities. The links go back to previous writing I’ve…
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DNT continues must-read investigation into failed Range project
Peter Passi of the Duluth News Tribune continues his must-read investigation into the troubles facing Minnetonka-based startup Excelsior Energy. Over ten years Excelsior received more than $40 million in public funds for its “clean-coal” Mesaba Energy Project on the Range but has little to show for it. Today, the story is where Excelsior stands today.…
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A final word on Range political history and voting patterns
The history keeps coming! My Silent Cal post from two weeks ago and my update about historical Range voting patterns last week have elicited an important clarification from the Iron Range’s most prominent and respected working historian, Pam Brunfelt. Actually, it is not accurate to state that voters had to request a ballot for the…
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Another thought on early GOP politics in Range history
Folks seemed to like my Aug. 2 post “Silent Cal at the Hull Rust Mine” detailing the visit of President Calvin Coolidge to the Iron Range on that same date in 1928. I gave a brief overview of the Republican politics in the early 20th century on the Range. David Bednarczuk wrote me with this…
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County schools scolded for referendum stumping
The state court of appeals rapped the St. Louis County School District for campaigning for the 2009 referendum that funded the district’s current consolidation and construction plan. (Story: MPR’s NewsCut) This could have a big impact on the way districts handle future bond referendums. This is no small thing, as the state school funding shift…
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The grand dupe in the great north woods
In 2009 this blog and most northern Minnesota lawmakers, business people and policy types backed the idea of a legacy forest in Itasca County. This would be private land owned by UPM Blandin made available for public use for the vast majority of time it’s not being logged. Blandin took a $44 million payday from…
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COLUMN: History echoes through our modern democracy
This is my weekly column for the Sunday, July 24, 2011 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. History echoes through our modern democracyBy Aaron J. Brown Maybe you’ve got a book like this in your house, a big one: heavier than most new computers, too big to hide. For me this book was “The Rise…
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Successful first term, future cuts leave Duluth’s Ness unopposed
And in regional political news, Don Ness will be unopposed this fall in his bid for a second term as mayor of Duluth. That’s right, the town that usually celebrates every fourth year with a bellowing kerfuffle on the city ballot will instead crown the youngish, internetty Ness the Hipster King of the Zenith City.…
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Northern Minnesota air service may die by federal blade
Here’s a story that shows how things have changed in northern Minnesota politics. A federal budget debate in D.C. could end rural transportation subsidies which would cause the suspension commercial air service to the Iron Range, International Falls and Thief River Falls. The program to ensure air travel to rural areas was strongly advocated by…
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The sound and the fury over Range taconite revenue
This morning Gov. Mark Dayton signed the last of the budget bills ending the Minnesota state government shutdown and funding the next biennium. Though the deal was messy and unpopular, arguably unwise, it will be nice to have a semblance of normalcy return to what was once regarded as a good governance state. I’m also…
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The internet freedom fight for the future
Last week I had a conversation with a local business owner in northern Minnesota who provides WiFi internet to her customers. Or, at least, she did. Her internet provider shut down her service because someone, presumably a customer, had illegally downloaded music using the connection. Efforts to implement security to prevent such downloads did not…