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Hibbing grad warns of economic crisis below ground
During the oil boom ten years ago I knew a number of guys who would pack a bag and drive from Northern Minnesota to western North Dakota to work weeks at a time in the Bakken oil fields. Classmates. Friends of friends. Parents from my kids’ school. During the Great Recession of 2008 this was…
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Will Minnesota’s 8th District swing or rust shut?
With Labor Day behind us, a nine-week political sprint awaits the next Congressperson from Minnesota’s Eighth Congressional District. This North Central Minnesota seat promises to be among the nation’s most expensive and closely-watched swing races for control of Congress. Several factors will influence whether our next Member of Congress is Republican Pete Stauber, Democrat Joe…
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Greater Minnesota Governor’s Forum cancelled
The Greater Minnesota Governor’s Forum scheduled for tomorrow night at the Reif Center in Grand Rapids has been cancelled. The campaigns of Republican nominee Jeff Johnson and Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party nominee Tim Walz both withdrew unexpectedly over the weekend. Organized by Northern Community Radio and Lakeland Public Television, the forum aimed to focus exclusively on Greater…
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Post-primary analysis shows how Radinovich won MN-8
This week DFL voters nominated Joe Radinovich to face Republican Pete Stauber and independent Skip Sandman in the Nov. 6 general election. Though I covered the basics in my Tuesday night live blog, I’ve got a few more thoughts on the Aug. 14 primary election before we swing into general election mode (and perhaps take…
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LIVE BLOG: Following #MN08 and more on primary night 2018
This live blog is by Aaron Brown of MinnesotaBrown.com, an author, columnist, radio producer and college instructor from Northern Minnesota’s Iron Range. We’ll be following returns from the 2018 Minnesota Primary with special attention on the 8th Congressional District. Got tips? Contact Aaron here or leave a comment. Refresh often for the newest material. More news…
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What to watch in today’s MN-8 primary
The polls just opened in Minnesota’s 2018 primary election. If you haven’t yet, get out and vote. Plenty of federal, state and local races are on the ballot no matter your party preference. The DFL and GOP races for governor will be closely watched. Insiders tell me Tim Walz, Erin Murphy, and Lori Swanson seem…
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Last look at Minnesota’s 8th District DFL primary
Next Tuesday, Minnesota voters head to the polls for the state’s primary election. Here in Northern Minnesota, both Republicans and DFlers face a choice for the 8th District Congressional District. The winners will face each other and independent Skip Sandman in the Nov. 6 general election. Today I’ll re-introduce those candidates and share notes from…
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Iron Range DFL legislative primary pits Lislegard against Hainey
With so many races in the 2018 Minnesota primary, I’ve not spent much time analyzing the only legislative primary on the Mesabi Iron Range. It’s an interesting contest that will test some of my earlier theories about Iron Range politics in a new more volatile electoral environment. DFLers in House District 6B head to the…
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Talking Trump, tariffs and the Iron Range on MPR
Earlier today I was a guest on MPR News with Kerri Miller along with University of Minnesota professor political science Kathryn Pearson. The topic was President Trump, specifically his appeal in Midwestern states like Minnesota. How will the presidents policies and style play in several close congressional races in the region? I wheeled out a…
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Digging deeper into immigration debate
Immigration policy burns at the heart of the political and cultural battle presently tearing this nation asunder. So, it made for a great topic for our most recent podcast of “Dig Deep.” This radio/podcast hybrid features conservative commentator Chuck Marohn and myself, the liberal commentator. My friend Heidi Holtan produces the program for Northern Community…
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DFL candidates debate issues in Minnesota’s 8th District
In just three weeks voters decide which of five DFL candidates for Minnesota’s Eighth Congressional District advances to a tough general election. Some candidates have more money than others, but relatively few ads have run on local television. I’ve analyzed the race. But I must also stress that this is a very fluid contest that…
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Harassment scandal roils governor, MN-8 races
Yesterday, MinnPost published a bombshell story by Sam Brodey about a top Rick Nolan staffer accused of harassing women who worked in Nolan’s office. Several women told Brodey that Nolan’s D.C. office legislative director Jim Swidirski harassed and groped them. Swidirski was allowed to resign quietly in 2015. Nolan then retained Swidirski as a campaign…
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Calculating Minnesota’s 8th District DFL primary
As a hot, wet Northern Minnesota summer slogs into its dog days, so too does the DFL primary in the Eighth Congressional District. Less than a month away, the Aug. 14 primary election will send a new DFL nominee to face a well-financed Republican challenger backed vociferously by President Trump. That challenger, Pete Stauber of…
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The mellow melee of Minnesota’s race for governor
So, consider this list: a senior member and prominent leader in the State House the attorney general of a prosperous state A successful congressman from a swing district Two of them are going to get sucked up some mystery tube. No one knows where the tube goes. The other one gets to fight a dragon…
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Boundless primary choices await Northern MN voters
Over the Fourth of July holiday political candidates marched in parades across Northern Minnesota. Each hoped to make valuable connections with voters during a tumultuous election cycle. But here on the Iron Range, this mushroomed into an ungainly number of candidates. This was particularly evident on the DFL side. With stacked primaries in Minnesota’s Eighth…