Bluestem Prairie

Memorial Day 2021: In Flanders Fields & Fort Snelling National Cemetery now they lie

 

I've written before about my maternal uncle John D. Osborne, an Army staff sergeant who was killed by German  S.S. Panzer troops as a prisoner of war at Malmedy during the Battle of the Bulge. He was born and raised in Watonwan County, but he's buried in the national cemetery at Ft. Snelling.

While many Americans thank all of those who have served this country on  Memorial Day, I'm pretty old school and on this day commemorate those men and women who gave their lives in military service.

Here's the late Canadian singer and songwriter Leonard Cohen reciting the beloved poem WWI, In Flanders Fields:

Photo: From a tweet by Sarah Hayden, a stranger who left a flower at my uncle's grave.

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If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.

NEW: I'm now on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6

What's the beef? In separate letters Tina Smith & Kristi Noem join colleagues spanking processors

Upper Midwesterners are used to seeing Democratic Senator Tina Smith and uber-Republican Governor Kristi Noem go after the same targets, but that's the state of America's beef processing industry in 2021.

From the Minnesota Reformer's Ricardo Lopez, Sen. Tina Smith signs on to letter requesting DOJ antitrust investigation into beef processing industry:

U.S. Sen. Tina Smith has signed on to a letter asking the Justice Department to investigate whether four large beef processors have a monopoly on meat processing that some members of Congress say is leading to high retail beef prices.

Led by South Dakota Republican Sen. Michael Rounds, the bipartisan effort includes two dozen U.S. senators and representatives, who want Attorney General Merrick Garland to review whether anticompetitive practices in the industry are hurting consumers and ranchers who say they are being paid low prices for their cattle.

“From our perspective, the anticompetitive practices occurring in the industry today are unambiguous and either our antitrust laws are not being enforced or they are not capable of addressing the apparent oligopoly that so plainly exists,” reads the letter, dated May 27. “This is where we need to work together.”

Minnesota ranks tenth in its production of beef, making $2 billion in annual sales, according to Minnesota Department of Agriculture figures. 

The letter is expected to be sent to the Justice Department next week. 

Bloomberg News last June reported that the Justice Department had already issued subpoenas to the four meatpacking companies: Tyson Foods Inc., JBS SA, Minnesota-based Cargill Inc. and National Beef Inc. Altogether, the four companies control more than 80% of the U.S. beef processing market. 

Messages seeking requests for comments from the four companies were not immediately returned Friday.

In February, executives at Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. pleaded guilty and were sentenced to pay $107 million in fines after being charged with price fixing. The plea agreement says that from 2012 to 2017, the company had conspired to suppress and eliminate competition for sales of broiler chicken products in the U.S.

Here in South Dakota, Pierre's Dakota Radio Group (DRG) News' Jody Heemstra reports in Governors ask US DOJ to continue investigation into anti-competitive practices in the meatpacking industry:

Six governors from cattle states have written a letter to the United States Department of Justice, asking them to continue their investigation into anti-competitive practices in the meatpacking industry.

The DOJ had originally sent investigative demands to the nation’s four largest meatpackers in May 2020.

“Perhaps no person embodies the independent and untamable spirit of the United States better than the cattle producer,” wrote the governors. “But this way of life is under threat. Decades of consolidation in meatpacking has significantly limited the options that producers have to market their cattle and has created a situation where one segment of the beef industry has near total control over the entire market.”

The governors highlighted the threat to consumers as prices of meat at the grocery store continue to rise, all while beef producers are struggling to make ends meet.

“The consistently high prices realized on the boxed beef side are not being reflected on the producer side, forcing consumers to pay a premium for beef while threatening many of our producers with the loss of their business,” wrote the governors.

Signing the letter were Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem.

You can read the governors’ letter here.

Let's hope the Department of Justice turns up the heat. Pressure doesn't get more bipartisan than this.

Photo: Creative Commons photo via Pxhere.com, via the Minnesota Reformer's Sen. Tina Smith signs on to letter requesting DOJ antitrust investigation into beef processing industry.

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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Environmental news digest: Becker-Finn's leadership; MN Pineland Sands; and, more

We're still running behind in getting our gardens in (and covering some plants in advance of last night's freeze), as well as looking at some leads requiring more in-depth research. Here's a brief digest of Minnesota and South Dakota environmental and natural resource news we think our readers will find interesting.

Roseville DFLer Jamie Becker-Finn leadership

At the Star Tribune, C.B. Bylander reports in Outdoors grant recipients try to empower Minnesotans of different experience levels, colors and ages:

Money matters.

And these days you can see its impact throughout Minnesota thanks to two grant programs that get children, teens and adults outdoors.

Since 2016, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has awarded 67 grants totaling $990,000 to recruit, retain and reactivate hunters and anglers. Similarly, the agency has awarded 93 No Child Left Inside (NCLI) grants amounting to $872,996 to connect Minnesotans with nature. Some of these grants involve hunting and fishing, too.

"Our Recruitment, Retention and Reactivation grant program is specifically designed to address long-term declines in hunting and angling participation by listening to the good ideas of Minnesotans, ranking them and the funding the best," said Jeff Ledermann of the DNR's Fish and Wildlife Division outreach section. "The NCLI grants take a broader approach by creating nature-based experiences where opportunities are limited."

New voices in the outdoors due to grant funding include tiny tots utilizing an urban forest at a nature-based Minneapolis preschool, teens participating in school-based fishing clubs, and men and women learning to hunt deer and wild turkey at an education center in southern Minnesota. Some new voices speak Spanish, an outcome of a marketing effort to increase Latino participation in the outdoors.

Rep. Jamie Becker-Finn, DFL-Roseville, played a key role in the 2019 legislation that provided $1.2 million in NCLI grant funds.

"We saw the value of the DNR's hunting and angling grants program but realized it was not reaching certain groups," said Becker-Finn. "That's why I and others looked at what other states were doing and developed a grants program tailored to Minnesota."

Becker-Finn said the scope of NCLI grants has been inspiring. "In many instances, organizations wanted to get people outdoors but did not have the resources to do so. Today, those groups have snowshoes, outdoor gear and the other things they need. We took a communities-know-best approach, and it's working." . . .

Becker-Finn, a suburban mother, Leech Lake Band of Objiwe descendant, and owner of a fine chocolate lab pup, has also been a leader in trying to set chronic wasting disease (CWD) policy to protect Minnesota's wild deer herd and hunting heritage.

With headlines like Wildlife officials quarantine new herds in fight against CWD in the Star Tribune, we went looking for examples of her early efforts to get hearings on CWD-related legislation in the Minnesota House Environment committee while the House was still under Republican control. We posted audio today above a March 13, 2018 photo shared by then minority lead Rick Hansen, DFL-S. St. Paul:

No video, but you can hear the audio archive here #mnhouse #CWD https://t.co/oTSbuP8Fz6 https://t.co/sP7bU2AAC1

— Sally Jo Sorensen (@sallyjos) May 28, 2021

This was but one of multiple attempts by Becker-Finn during the 2018 session. While the chair wouldn't hear CWD legislation, the committee did hear a bill about allowing hunting feral swine, although there were-and are--no feral swine in Minnesota. You know, spending time on real problems.

Appeals court and Minnesota Pinelands

Back on Tuesday, Jennifer Bjorhus reported in Minnesota appeals court: OK to skip full environmental review of Pineland Sands irrigation project for the Star Tribune:

The thirsty potato fields carved from the forest in the state's Pineland Sands region continue to sow controversy, and a new Minnesota Court of Appeals decision isn't likely to change that.

The appeals court on Monday backed up the Department of Natural Resources' decision to skip a full environmental review of an irrigation project in north-central Minnesota, affirming a lower court's decision.

The DNR adequately evaluated the Nolte family's irrigation project in Wadena County and the agency's decision that the farm project "does not have the potential for significant environmental effects" stands, said appeals court Judge Tracy Smith, writing for the panel.

DNR officials were not available for comment Tuesday. . .. 

Read more at the Strib.

The EWG noted in Minnesota appeals court ignores threat to Pineland Sands communities’ water and health:

The Minnesota Court of Appeals will not reverse the state’s decision to allow more irrigation permits in the Pineland Sands region, despite the lack of full environmental review – a ruling that clears the way for the further expansion of industrial-scale potato farming that has razed forests, poisoned drinking water wells and exposed communities to aerial spraying of toxic pesticides.

“We are profoundly disappointed in the court’s ruling,” said Environmental Working Group senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources Craig Cox.

“There is overwhelming evidence that irrigated row crop agriculture – especially industrial potato cultivation – cannot be done in the Pineland Sands without polluting water,” Cox said. “This ruling puts the water and health of tribal communities and the people who live in the area at continued risk. The people of the Pineland Sands region should not be forced to drink contaminated water so the world’s biggest potato producer can sell more of its product to McDonald’s.”

For 50 years, R.D. Offutt Farms, or RDO, the largest potato grower in the world, has been the driving force behind clear-cutting pine forests in the Pineland Sands to expand industrial-scale irrigated potato-growing operations.

Independent scientific analysis found that the latest proposed irrigated potato site would increase nitrate contamination of the area’s groundwater and drinking water to more than double the legal limit under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. A Minnesota Pollution Control Agency study found that nitrate levels in the Straight River, which cuts through the Pinelands Sands and is surrounded by irrigation wells, are now 100 times higher than in areas not harmed by industrial potato farming.

Yet the court sided with the state Department of Natural Resources’ decision that the proposed expansion would not harm the water and the people who rely on it, denying appeals from residents and advocates that the project should not proceed without a comprehensive environmental review. . . .

Read the rest on the EWG website.

Friday in MinnPost, Gregg Aamot reported in After appeals court ruling, what’s next in the Pineland Sands farming dispute?:

Earlier this week, in a ruling watched closely by environmental groups, the Minnesota  Court of Appeals declined to overturn a state agency’s decision to grant water permits for an irrigation project in the Pineland Sands region of central Minnesota.

The plaintiffs in the case had argued that the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) should have ordered an environmental review before signing off on three wells for Tim Nolte, a Sebeka farmer who bought land a few years ago from Fargo-based R.D. Offutt Co., which grows potatoes in the region and had once planned to expand its operations there.

The plaintiffs claimed that Nolte was planning to grow potatoes on about 300 acres of land on behalf of R.D. Offutt, a scheme Nolte has denied. Raising potatoes and other row crops in the region is harmful because the soil is delicate and the heavy irrigation that is required washes chemicals into the groundwater, they argue. . . . 

Not a new controversy

The controversy began about a decade ago when the lumber supplier Potlatch Corp. began selling its timberlands in the Pineland Sands region, which includes Wadena, Cass, Becker and Hubbard counties. Growing potatoes in the so-called “sandy soils” that are left behind after pine trees are chopped down requires a lot of irrigation, which can wash fertilizer and other chemicals into the groundwater. . . .

Read the entire article at MinnPost.

Southern Minnesota and public lands

It's nearly a week old, but Tom Cherveny's article in the West Central Tribune, Carrying a message from the grasslands to board rooms, isn't dated. Cherveny reports:

Passionate about the value of public lands, the Minnesota DNR's Southern Region Director Scott Roemhildt is as determined about getting to county board meeting rooms as he is about getting outdoors to hunt pheasants. He works to build relationships and straighten out misconceptions about how counties are compensated for public lands. . . .

His goal, he said, is to “get around the myths and misinformation” about PILT. Membership on county boards changes, and many newly elected board members arrive to their roles with a limited understanding of how it all works.

The first myth he works to bust is the biggest. “Hear it all the time. Counties don’t get anything back on the land the state purchases,” said Roemhildt.

Dating back to the 1930s, the state has compensated counties for the public lands it administers. The current version of PILT began in 1979. In most cases, counties receive an annual payment on public lands that exceeds what the property tax would be on that land, said the regional director.

Last year the state paid out $36 million in PILT to counties. It’s dispersed to counties as part of a lump sum payment of state funds to counties, so many may not always realize how much PILT represents of the total, he explained.

PILT revenues are consistent, and have never been reduced since the current program began. They are based on the county's assessed value of the land; the lands are reassessed every six years , he explained.

One of the misconceptions out there is that the state owns much more land than is the reality, according to Roemhildt. When he asks county commissioners, most say they believe the DNR owns about five to 10 percent of their land base. 

Actually, 97 percent of the land in southern Minnesota is privately owned. The DNR administers about two percent of the land as public lands, mainly as Wildlife Management Areas, Aquatic Management Areas, and state parks. The amount of public lands in the 32 counties of the southern region ranges from just under one percent in some counties to just over four percent in a few. Most are around that two percent level, he said.

As for the notion that the state is gobbling up large amounts of land, the reality is this: It turns down 87 percent of the lands offered for sale to it.

Roemhildt said lands considered for purchase by the state must meet a minimum four of six goals set for acquisitions. One of the top goals is to provide close-to-home outdoor recreation opportunities. Goals also include protecting significant or rare natural resources and water resources; helping us mitigate and adapt to climate change; and expanding access to existing public lands along with creating larger, contiguous blocks of public lands for their benefits to wildlife.

There are simpler but equally important goals as well. When he was a youth, Roemhildt said he could put his BB gun across the handlebars of his bike and pedal to a place to hunt. Providing places for young people to discover the outdoors remains an important purpose of public lands.

These lands require little in the way of county services, but do benefit the county economically, he added. State parks can show the numbers of visitors coming through the gates, and that makes it easy to explain the economic spin-offs.

There is no way to track the number of visitors to Wildlife Management Areas, but the pandemic has made it clear to more than hunters just how popular these lands are. Along with traditional hunting activities, WMAs are seeing an increasing number of visitors who enjoy everything from hiking and bird-watching to snowshoeing and foraging for natural plants. Roemhildt can attest to that: He lamented that he is getting beat to some of his favorite spots for finding morels. . . .

Given the number of times we've heard rural state representatives like Jeff Backer, R-Browns Valley, kvetch about purchases of land for conservation, this piece is a relief. Part of Backer's district is in the district under Roemhildt's oversight.

Photo: Wild whitetail deer in a woods.

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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Known for racist tweet, Elysian mayor Tom McBroom charged with DWI, reckless driving

In the pastoral placebaiting practiced by some folks in rural Minnesota, rural leaders have a clearer view of how people in the Evil Metro should live. 

An object lesson about the flaw in this story appeared late Tuesday in the Mankato Free Press online.

In 2017, the late lamented City Pages reported about a tweet then Rice County Sheriff's Sergeant Thomas McBroom posted about Diamond Reynolds, Philando Castile's girlfriend.

While the original reporting by Susan Du is offline, readers can learn more about the story in Michael Harriot's column at The Root, City Councilman and Sheriff’s Deputy Tweets Racist Response to Philando Castile Settlement and Chao Xiong's Star Tribune's article, Girlfriend of Philando Castile sues Minnesota mayor for defamation after 'crack cocaine' tweet.

McBroom tweeted that Reynolds would spend an $800,000 settlement she received following Castile's shooting death on drugs:

“She needs to come off County and State Aid Now that she has some cash. It’ll be gone in 6 months on crack cocaine.”

There's also the Faribault Daily News article, Sheriff's deputy sued over 'racist' tweets, in which editor Suzanne Rook notes:

The apparent suit comes just weeks after a Third District Court judge affirmed an arbitrator's finding that Rice County was justified in demoting McBroom for the tweets which were made while he was off duty. . . .

At the time, McBroom was a member of the Elysian City Council. He has since been elected mayor.

Now he's facing some substance abuse trouble of his own. In the Mankato Free Press, Kristine Goodrich reports in Elysian mayor charged with DWI, reckless driving:

The mayor of Elysian is accused of driving while intoxicated, traveling nearly 100 mph last month.

A special prosecutor filed charges against Thomas Edward McBroom Sr., 62, on Monday in Le Sueur County District Court. The former Rice County sheriff deputy is charged with gross misdemeanor DWI, misdemeanor reckless driving and petty misdemeanor speeding.

A Le Sueur County sheriff’s deputy stopped McBroom for going 97 mph in a 60 mph zone on Highway 60 the night of April 16, according to a court complaint.

McBroom told the deputy he had had one beer at a retirement party in Faribault and was speeding because he needed to go to the bathroom.

McBroom smelled of alcohol and was slurring his speech, the charges say. After reportedly failing multiple field sobriety tests, McBroom told the deputy he was the mayor of Elysian and a retired deputy.

After failing another test, McBroom admitted he had had five or six beers and “had too much,” the charges say.

A preliminary breathalyzer allegedly showed he had an alcohol concentration of 0.18 and a later test allegedly gave a reading of 0.17. . . .

McBroom last made headlines as the defendant in a civil defamation lawsuit filed by the girlfriend who livestreamed the fatal police shooting of Philando Castile. After Diamond Reynolds was paid an $800,000 settlement in 2017, McBroom tweeted the money would be “gone within six months on crack cocaine,” according to The Associated Press.

McBroom settled the lawsuit with Reynolds for an undisclosed amount last summer and issued a public apology.

We will let readers create their own reflections about the contrast between the fate of Castile and McBroom in traffic stops. We hope Mayor McBroom gets the help he needs with his alcohol problem.

Elysian is a city  of 650 or so people in Le Sueur and Waseca Counties.

Photo: Thomas McBroom while still a member of the Rice County Sheriff's Department. Facebook photo, via Faribault County News.

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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5 more MN deer farm herds exposed to CWD; Beltrami carcass dump site inquiry continues

 

Back in April, we posted  BAH: Southern Minnesota CWD investigation identifies new infection in Beltrami County .

That location turned up again in May 18's  News release: U of M testing finds presence of CWD prions at Beltrami Co. carcass dump site, from the University of Minnesota.

Just in from the Minnesota Animal Board of Health, which has oversight of farmed cervidae in the North Star state, "Additional CWD positives and illegal carcass disposal spur expanded investigation and response in Beltrami County." And the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has issued its own news release, "DNR stresses urgency in addressing chronic wasting disease in Minnesota."

The duo of press releases underscores the debate in the Minnesota legislature over which agency should monitor CWD in farmed cervidae in the state.

Here's the OAH release:

Twelve additional white-tailed deer tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in the infected Beltrami County farmed deer herd, five adult does and seven fawns. The Board of Animal Health (Board) first reported this CWD positive herd in April when a 3-year-old doe tested positive for the disease. Earlier this month, the remaining 54 animals in the herd were depopulated by the USDA and samples from each animal were collected and then tested at the National Veterinary Services Laboratories.

The Beltrami County farmed deer herd was initially quarantined in October 2020 due to receiving animals from a Winona County source herd. Among the deer received by the Beltrami County herd was the doe which tested positive for CWD in early April, about 1 – 1.5 years after moving out of the source herd.

During an inspection of the Beltrami County premises following the quarantine of the herd, a Board agent discovered several adult deer and fawn carcasses had been moved by the owner to nearby county-managed tax-forfeit land. This spurred an investigation by the Board, which has been working with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Pollution Control Agency, and tribal and local officials to mitigate any potential spread of CWD from these carcasses. Due to test results that indicate CWD-causing prions are on this site, agencies are currently working with the county to build a fence that would prevent wild deer access to the site and reduce the risk of prion exposure. The DNR is following its CWD response plan and is planning to test hunter harvested deer this fall to understand whether CWD is in wild deer in this area. The Board’s ongoing investigation will address possible violations of Minnesota animal health laws.

Of the 12 additional CWD positive animals most recently identified, nine were born on the Beltrami County farm and three were moved to the farm from other Minnesota herds. These herds are considered to be CWD exposed since there is a possibility the animals could have been infected with the disease prior to being moved to Beltrami County. One of the CWD exposed herds (Winona County) was officially quarantined during the Houston County positive herd investigation. The other two CWD exposed herds in Hennepin and Kanabec Counties were quarantined Thursday, May 20. Three additional CWD exposed herds located in Mille Lacs, Morrison and Mower Counties received animals from the Kanabec County herd and were quarantined on Friday, May 21. The Board is working to identify and test animals in all of these CWD exposed herds that resided in a herd at the same time as a CWD positive animal.

Please review the attached diagram for a visual representation of the exposed herds and their connection to one another.

Bluestem has posted a screengrab at the top of this post. Click here to view an accessible version of this diagram, which links to PDFs about each location's details. The press release continues:

CWD is a neurological disease of the deer and elk family caused by prions, and is always fatal. The disease can be spread by both direct (animal-to-animal) and indirect (environmental) contact with infected Cervidae. Prions are shed through saliva, urine, blood, feces, and antler velvet and are known to persist in the environment for years. Additionally, carcass remains from a dead infected deer can serve as a source of further infection to other Cervidae. Consuming meat from CWD infected animals is not advised.

Outdoor News published Additional CWD-positives, illegal carcass disposal spur expanded investigation, response in Beltrami County, billed as a Minnesota DNR Reports item.

We've received the followed release, "DNR stresses urgency in addressing chronic wasting disease in Minnesota," as well:

Today, the Minnesota Board of Animal Health (BAH) announced that 12 additional white-tailed deer tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD) as part of its ongoing investigation of a farm in Beltrami County. The DNR believes the situation at the Beltrami County deer farm significantly changes the risk assessment and concern about CWD in Minnesota.

Following the discovery of the initial positive case in the Beltrami County herd, deer remains from that farm were discovered on adjacent county-managed land, elevating the risk to wild deer. The DNR and University of Minnesota researchers immediately surveyed the land for additional remains and confirmed the presence of CWD-causing prions in at least one bone.

Based on the findings in Beltrami County, last week BAH quarantined five additional farmed deer herds because of possible CWD exposure. These additional herds are located in the following Minnesota counties: Hennepin, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, Morrison, and Mower.

The DNR is fully committed to limiting the spread of CWD in wild deer and to the health of Minnesota’s wild deer herd.

We firmly believe this situation is urgent and that it requires a comprehensive approach in order to protect the health of Minnesota’s wild deer. Minnesota must take a strong, proactive stance to achieve three goals:

• address the site of the deer remains in Beltrami County;
• reduce additional risk from Beltrami County through herd quarantine and thorough trace-outs to other herds;
• move to a more proactive and preventative approach to addressing systemic gaps in the farmed deer system.

Recognizing the significance of this development, DNR is coordinating with partners at the federal, state, and local level to ensure an assertive and nimble response. This includes working with:

• Beltrami County to coordinate containment of the contaminated site on county-managed land where the deer remains were discovered;
• Center for Prion Research and Outreach at the University of Minnesota to test the deer remains at the site and nearby soil samples for presence of CWD prions;
• BAH on its management of the nearby CWD contaminated deer farm and trace-outs to other farms;
• U. S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service on prion-contaminated site remediation; and
• Leech Lake, Red Lake and White Earth bands of Ojibwe on information exchange and plans for sampling hunter-harvested deer and data collection this fall. 

For more information and updates on CWD management at the DNR, please visit our website.

We're pleased to see the DNR working with tribal governments on the issue, as well as state and federal agencies and the U of M. Leech Lake descendant, deer hunter, and Roseville Democrat Jamie Becker-Finn has been a champion in the state's fight against CWD.

Screengrab: The OAH's flow chart of CWD spread to MN deer farms.

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.

NEW: I'm now on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.

NEW: I'm now on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6

Another one from our back pages: Republican operative Kip Christianson in the news

Earlier today, we wrote a nostalgia post, MNGOP House candidates & county's COVID-19-Holocaust analogies prefigured Greene's views.

A report about Minnesota's Seventh District by Tom Lyden at Fox9 News, Grassroots or Astroturf? Congressional candidate says he was tricked into running by RNC strategist, prompts another review of our back pages. (It is, after all, Bob Dylan's 80th birthday).

Blind and permanently disabled, Kevin Ne Se Shores is accustomed to navigating life’s obstacles, but it has never stopped him from pursuing his third-party political ambitions.

Still, he was surprised by the unsolicited call he got in June of 2020 from a man who encouraged him to run against Congressman Collin Peterson (D-MN) as a candidate for the Grassroots Legalize Cannabis Party.

Unknown to Shores, the man who called encouraging him to run was a Republican strategist, Kip Christianson, who at the time was on the payroll of the Republican National Committee, according to the Federal Election Commission.

On the day of the filing deadline, June 2, 2020, Shores said Christianson made a seven-hour roundtrip to pick up his notarized ‘Affidavit of Candidacy’ in Moorhead and delivered it to the Secretary of State’s Office in St. Paul, 45 minutes before the filing deadline.

Shores said Christianson also paid the $300 filing fee with a money order.

"I said, ‘How much is the filing fee?’ and he said, ‘Don’t worry about it.’ And again, I’m assuming this is the Grassroots Cannabis Party," Shores said.

Shores said he only learned Christianson was working for the Republican Party after the election.

Christianson, a Harvard graduate from Monticello, has a resume that includes being a Trump delegate to the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland, a treasurer for the Minnesota Young Republicans, and a candidate tracker for the MN Jobs Coalition.  He also ran unsuccessfully for Minnesota Party Co-Chair.

Christianson told the FOX 9 Investigators he never misrepresented himself as a member of the Grassroots Legalize Cannabis Party.  But when asked specifically if he ever told Shores he was a paid Republican strategist, Christianson said, "No comment." . . .

The name Kip Christianson may be familiar to readers. Back in 2016, we reported in MN Jobs Coalition tracker Kip Charles Christianson jostled parade volunteers at Raymond Harvest Fest Parade:

On August 22, Zach Kayser reported in the Brainerd Dispatch that Cruel words - and rocks - thrown at local legislative candidates. While the pelting of a DFL candidate with pebbles by onlookers and a threat made to a GOP candidate were not acceptable, the rudeness seemed random and freelance.

Not so an episode during the Raymond Harvest Fest parade last weekend, when a paid tracker aggressively inserted himself into a DFL parade unit for two House candidates, Andrew Falk, 17A and Mary Sawatzky, 17B. Both candidates served in the Minnesota House, but lost their seats in 2014 in races that were heavily targeted by independent political committees. 

For the larger picture, we recommend Catharine Richert's 2015 report at Minnesota Public Radio, 2014 Minnesota campaign cost at least $28 million.

Shortly after the Raymond parade--we were packing for our move and therefore missed it--we started hearing about a rude tracker from friends who had walked with the candidates.  Willmar labor activist Steve Pirsch's Facebook post is a mild reaction:

Walked with Andrew Falk and Mary Sawatzky in the Raymond Harvest Day parade we were joined by a photographer from the Jobs coalition he was taping and taking pictures I am sure they will be used as a negative towards our candidates. Pretty sad that the republicans waste their money on such dirty tactics.

Andrew Falk shared a letter to the editor about the incident on Facebook.  . . .

. . . During the parade, he rudely walked with our unit while filming, ran into and pushed our volunteers, stuck his camera in the window of our truck, walked right in front of our truck while it was moving causing a safety concern, and would not leave after being asked to repeatedly. . . .

This behavior is unacceptable--and doesn't seem isolated, since we've heard from a DFL activist in the Second Congressional District that "Kip Charles" has been very aggressive to suburban candidates. He was "in her face" to Lindsey Port (56B) in a parade and shadowed Erin Maye Quade (57A) on a doorknock.

In all cases, the tracker--who is indeed the treasurer of the Minnesota Young Republicans--should respect local traditions like parades where people gather to have a good time. One of the best parades this year in MN17A was held in Prinsburg, Rep. Tim Miller's hometown; parade watchers cheered and waved to both candidates. At their best, small-town parades are about pride and appreciation--not partisan antics and Independent Political Fund fodder.

For more information about the 2014 funding for the MN Jobs Coalition's independent expenditures, check out our earlier posts. Bluestem looked at the Open Secrets database and the IRS filings to put together a November 14, 2014 post, MN Jobs Coalition received [$325,000] from the RSLC; where'd that money trickle down from? and a Feb 2015 update: MJC received $325,000 from the RSLC; where'd that money trickle down from?, as well as some additional analysis in our Merchants of Daudt series.

Other than conning disabled veterans into running for office and pushing campaign volunteers around in a Greater Minnesota parade, he seems nice. 

But what's particularly peculiar here is the effort to encourage cannabis party candidates in a heavily-Trump district where the Republican challenger won hardily. Was there just too much money floating around for the Republicans to handle sensibly?

Photo: Kip in 2016. Via Bluestem Prairie.

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MNGOP House candidates & county's COVID-19-Holocaust analogies prefigured Greene's views

We're seeing a lot of justified condemnation of Georgia United States Representative Marion Taylor Greene's comparison of pandemic restrictions to the Holocaust.

The Washington Post--and others--report:

• Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is being widely lambasted for comparing the continuing coronavirus restrictions in the U.S. Capitol to what Jewish people suffered during the Holocaust, when millions were killed by Nazis.

Many readers may recognize that these sentiments are not unique or original to Greene; indeed, they cropped on the city council and county party level. Via the Mesabi Tribune, Evan Frost reported for Minnesota Public Radio in Jewish groups seek Minnesota GOP response to use of Holocaust imagery:

 Jewish community groups are calling for the Minnesota Republican Party to publicly stand with them in denouncing comparisons of the state’s coronavirus strategy to the Holocaust after social media posts in recent weeks by two endorsed candidates and the Wabasha County GOP.

They said the comparisons were inaccurate, offensive and diminish the horrors of a genocide of Nazis killing 6 million Jewish people. Such sentiments were renewed Monday when two GOP-endorsed state House candidates — Julie Buria in House 6B of Mountain Iron and Paul Brandmire in House 14B of St. Cloud, both sitting city councilors in their respective communities — back peddled on previous apologies over their Holocuast-themed posts.

Meanwhile, leaders in the Minnesota GOP have remained silent on their candidates’ sudden reversals, despite saying last week that Buria was “sincere” in her apology.

Carin Mrotz, executive director of St. Paul-based Jewish Community Action, said candidates invoking the Holocaust is a “far-right phenonomen” within the party and urged the state’s establishment Republican leadership to condemn their endorsed candidates.

“I would call on the party to be strong,” she said in a phone interview Wednesday morning. “I’m sure there’s Jewish Republicans that would like to see their party take action. It’s a really unnecessary and really offensive comparison.”

The Minnesota GOP did not return multiple emails and phone calls requesting comment on Tuesday and Wednesday regarding Buria’s retracted apology. A phone call Wednesday to Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan was not returned as of press time Thursday. Requests for comment were also sent to GOP leaders in the Legislature, St. Louis County Republicans and Eighth District Republicans.

When reached by email Wednesday, Andrew Wagner, director of public affairs for the Minnesota House GOP asked the Mesabi Tribune, “Are there new developments that warrant a third story on this topic?” He did not respond to a follow-up email for this story.

Carnahan previously described posts by Buria and the Wabasha County GOP as “vitriolic” and called for the resignation of a board member from the county group, who later stepped down. She did not comment on Brandmire.

Ethan Roberts, director of government affairs for the nonpartisan Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas (JCRC) in Minneapolis, said GOP leadership has privately told the organization that these comparisons are wrong and believes the party has told candidates the same behind closed doors.

He said the JCRC understands an organization can’t control what its individual members say, but the collective relationship and influence of the Minnesota GOP can move the conversation beyond the Jewish community condemning the statements, and would allow the public to have better information on where the party stands on the issue.

“That’s what we’re looking for — an unequivocal statement supporting our Jewish community — an expression of their values,” he said over the phone Thursday. “We don’t have a choice. This is what has to be done.”

Dr. Marilyn Chiat, Ph.D., a Minnesota-based historian who is Jewish and gives lectures on the Jewish communities of the Iron Range, said she hopes the party is “flummoxed” by their candidates and said she wasn’t surprised by the recent lack of response.

“It’s so profoundly stupid,” she said over the phone about Holocaust comparisons. “How do you respond to utter stupidity?” . . .

Today, 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz - the largest concentration camp during the Holocaust - imagery of the systematic genocide of Jewish people is being symbolized in the politics of a global pandemic sweeping Minnesota and across the United States.

Buria shared a post that suggested essential worker papers handed out after the state’s stay-at-home orders were an example of government overreach, similar to how Nazis routinely checked for Jewish people on the streets. In saying her apology was “forced” on Monday, she doubled down on her apparent belief that a “parallel” exists between the freedoms lost during the pandemic and the freedoms lost during the Holocaust.

Brandmire contrasted the mask mandate to yellow stars used in Nazi Germany to forcibly mark Jewish people in the early years of the Holocaust, saying it was a cautionary example of unchecked executive powers.

A party chairman in Anderson County, Kan. published a political cartoon showing Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly in a Star of David mask while people were loaded onto a cattle car. The chairman, who owned the local newspaper, later removed the cartoon after first declining to apologize.

Elsewhere, state officials in Idaho and Colorado were compared to Nazis over their coronavirus responses. Protestors outside the Minnesota Governor’s Mansion in April carried signs likening Gov. Tim Walz to Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler.

In late July, two customers at a Walmart in Marshall, Minn. were removed from the store for wearing facemasks emblazoned with swastikas and quoted as saying, “If you vote for [Democratic presidential nominee Joe] Biden, you’re going to be living in Nazi Germany.”

Mrotz, of Jewish Community Action, said the fundamental issue is that people feel these political statements justify them as victims of perceived government overreach without taking into account the offensive nature or divisiveness.

“The root of the problem is they are comparing measures taken for public safety and measures taken to exterminate and genocide my people,” she said. “You’re saying the Jews are the disease … co-opting trauma for your own perceived victimization is divisive and hurtful.”

Mrotz considered the statements and posts are a form of anti-Semitism because they’re using Holocaust imagery and history to “score a political point.”

Buria later retracted her apology, Jimmie Lovriem reported for the Duluth Tribune in Sorry, not sorry: Iron Range GOP candidate says she 'was forced to' apologize for comparing pandemic response to Holocaust:

The Republican candidate for a Minnesota House seat is facing backlash after she shared a Facebook post last week making a false claim about the state's COVID-19 response and comparing it to the Holocaust. Though she apologized and deleted the post, she later retracted the apology and said she "was forced to" apologize.

Julie Buria, a Mountain Iron city councilor and GOP-endorsed candidate for Minnesota House 6B, shared a post that said: "Any government with enough power to demand that you carry papers in order to move around freely is far more dangerous than COVID-19." Under the text was a photo of Nazi soldiers checking a man's papers and another photo of a mass grave filled with victims of the Holocaust.

News of the post, and the apology retraction, was first reported by the Mesabi Tribune.

Not only was the post incorrect — Minnesotans never had to carry papers proving they were essential workers during the stay-at-home order, which was repeatedly explained by state officials — the imagery of dead Jews and the comparison of the state's COVID-19 response to Nazis murdering 6 million Jews and 5 million others was "triggering and harmful to a number of people in our community who have first-hand experience of the Holocaust," said Carin Mrotz, executive director of Jewish Community Action, a statewide social justice organization that shared on Twitter a screenshot of Buria's post.

While Mrotz understands the comparisons of the COVID-19 response to the Nazis and Holocaust are supposed to show government overreach, she said it remains "a faulty, uneducated comparison."

"The problem is that the measures that the Nazis were taking were designed to eradicate Jews. And the measures that our government is taking are designed to eradicate a disease. And so by making this comparison of the way that you eliminate Jews and the way that you eliminate a potential-deadly virus, you're actually making Jews analogous to the virus," Mrotz told the News Tribune on Thursday.

The Tikkun Olam Committee of Temple Israel Duluth said it was "appalled and dismayed" in a letter it sent to the Mountain Iron City Council on Sunday.

"This distortion and lack of thoughtfulness is misleading and hurtful to readers both Jewish and non-Jewish," the committee wrote in the letter later shared with the News Tribune. "This type of incongruous comparison of the governor’s actions to the atrocities committed during the Holocaust dehumanizes the facts of 6 million Jews murdered and 5 million others whose lives were lost due to the travesties leading to and resulting in World War II."

An apology, then a reversal

Facing widespread outrage over the post, Buria apologized last week.

"Everyone who knows me knows that I have always been a fervent supporter of Israel and the Jewish people. I regret sharing the post and apologize for its graphic nature," Buria wrote in an email to the Mesabi Tribune.

Minnesota GOP Chair Jennifer Carnahan also told the Mesabi Tribune that Buria had apologized to them and that the party was "saddened by these vitriolic posts" comparing the COVID-19 response to the Holocaust. The Wabasha GOP Facebook page last week had also shared a similar post.

"We spoke with (Buria) following her post, and as she said in her apology, she immediately regretted the post and was sincere in her apology to not let it happen again," Carnahan said.

But at the Mountain Iron City Council meeting Monday, Buria retracted that apology and called the situation "asinine and trumped up."

"I was forced to (apologize) ... I stand for my statement," Buria told the council and members of the public in the meeting. She did not say who forced her to apologize.

Buria and the Minnesota GOP did not return calls or emails from the News Tribune seeking comment this week, and the Minnesota GOP has not commented on the matter since Buria retracted her apology .  . .

Mountain Iron Mayor Gary Skalko, who said his grandmother was a Russian Jew who sought refuge in the U.S. in 1907, but had relatives die in the Holocaust, said the post "crossed the line."

"When you compare a pandemic, the handling of it, in this case our governor, to the Jewish community where you have a picture with a bunch of dead people in open graves there, how do you think the Jewish community is going to react?" Skalko said in the meeting.

Discussion of the post went on for more than 30 minutes.

As of Friday afternoon, Buria is still listed as the GOP-endorsed candidate for House District 6B on the Minnesota GOP's website, despite calls for the party to retract their endorsement.

Minnesota House 6B incumbent Rep. David Lislegard, DFL-Aurora, who will face Buria in November's general election, tweeted an apology "on behalf of our region" on Twitter.

"This whole situation is unfortunate and not who we want to be. To the Jewish community please accept an apology on behalf of our region," Lislegard tweeted. "Words really do matter, I ask that we all be more thoughtful in our remarks and our actions."  . . .

Both Brandmire and  Buria lost their House bids.

The screengrab at the top of this page is from TC Jewfolks article, Wabasha County GOP Links Nazis, Mask Ordinance; Board Member Resigns"

After claiming Monday night that the Wabasha County Republican Party Facebook page had been hacked, Minnesota Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan tweeted that an anti-Semitic post that compared the Holocaust to Gov. Tim Walz’s mask mandate was made by a board member.

On Monday afternoon, the organization shared a photo of a Nazi officer speaking to a man wearing a Star of David pinned to his jacket. The text above the photo said “Just put on the star and quit complaining, it’s really not that hard,” and below the photo: “Just put on the mask and quit complaining.” The original poster had the photo with the comment: “History is repeating!”

The post — and the group’s Facebook page — were deleted later Monday night.

“This post is appalling. As we stated over the weekend, to compare public health measures to Nazi orders for Jews to wear yellow badges is reprehensible and wholly inaccurate,” said Steve Hunegs, the executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas. “We demand the Republican Party of Wabasha County remove the post and apologize. We are requesting a meeting with GOP Chair Jennifer Carnahan to express our dismay and demand a plan to halt these absurd and offensive comparisons.”

Carnahan did apologize for the post on behalf of the county and state GOP.

Carnahan was made aware of the post by a tweet from Jewish Community Action.

Wabasha County is southeast of Red Wing and north of Rochester along the Mississippi River. The post has drawn more than 50 comments condemning the group for the post.

The Facebook post came two days after a Marshall, Minn. couple was asked to leave that city’s Walmart after wearing masks with swastikas on them. They has been banned from all Walmart stores for a year. (Video is here, but here’s your language warning).

“What happened today at our store in Marshall, MN is unacceptable. We strive to provide a safe and comfortable shopping environment for all our customers and will not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment in any aspect of our business,” a Walmart statement said. “We are asking everyone to wear face coverings when they enter our stores for their safety and the safety of others and it’s unfortunate that some individuals have taken this pandemic as an opportunity to create a distressing situation for customers and associates in our store.”

The swastika mask drew a rebuke from Jaylani Hussein, the executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

“We denounce this hate symbol and all hate speech targeting the Jewish community and stand in solidarity with those impacted by the bigotry these individuals displayed,” he told KARE 11 “All Americans must work to dismantle the systemic racism that continues to target minority communities.”

The first incident comparing the Holocaust to the mask ordinance came last week when St. Cloud City Councilman Paul Brandmire said that COVID-positive individuals should be marked with a yellow star on their lapel. Jewish Community Action, in its tweet calling for the post to removed, noted that this came after a recent call by the Minnesota Rabbinical Association for Walz to enact a statewide mask ordinance.

Given this persistance of this offensive analogy, Bluestem hopes folks across the political spectrum listen to leaders in Jewish communities and own up to the hurtfulness of these statements.

Screengrab: The deleted Wabasha County GOP post, via TC Jewfolk.

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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Bluestem is taking a blogging staycation to plant our gardens. Back on Monday, May 24

A very late planting season here in the Sisseton Hills, with low soil temperatures, has pushed our garden planting and spring lawn care into crunch time. With the sudden rain and high temperatures, we're hoping to find some wild mushrooms, too.

I'm taking a break on posting for a few days, but will be back on Monday, May 24.

Enjoy the outdoors and warm weather!

Photo: Tater plant in straw mulch.

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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[VIDEO] Chilling with Redbeard interview with Mortensen; Mort slams Scott Jensen & local reps

After listening to Jake Duesenberg's Mort's Caucus of One: Action 4 Liberty interview interview with Erik Mortensen, R-Shakopee,we turned our attention to Mortensen's appearance on Chilling with Redbeard, aka Chad Rafdal.

Who is Redbeard?

Who's Mortensen's host? Rafdal runs Minnesotans4Freedom, a patriots group which is organizing " We The People" meetings across rural Minnesota; we've watched videos from  "We The People" gatherings in Waldolf, Owatonna, Rochester and Blooming Prairie with Minnesota House members Jeremy Munson, R-Lake Crystal; John Petersburg, R-Owatonna; Peggy Bennett, R-Albert Lea; and Patty Mueller, R-Austin. 

One recently added Minnesotan4Freedom goal is to build campaigns to grab party endorsement from, or primary, sitting Republicans. Rafdal discussed replacing his state representative in a May 12 Chilling livestream, though her doesn't name Peggy Bennett or get her district number correct. 

The Blooming Prairie activist also participating in the January 6 pro-Trump rally in Washington DC, though it doesn't appear that he entered the U.S. Capitol building. Niko Georgiades reported for Unicorn Riot in D.C. Riots: A Look at the Minnesota Contingent:

A majority of those listed have been present at most of the weekly Hold the Line protests in Saint Paul, and many were seen at Back the Blue protests throughout the summer of 2020 and re-open protests in April 2020.

Chad Rafdal, a tall red-bearded Trump supporter from southern Minnesota, went to D.C. and posted his experiences on social media. Rafdal was interviewed by WCCO (CBS) about his trip and after the interview aired, he posted a video to Twitter expressing his frustration with “the haters” that have questioned the interview. He called antifascists the “scum of the Earth” and ended his January 8 video message by saying, “stand up Patriots, it’s time – ‘murica.”

Rafdal streamed to his Facebook blog titled ‘Patriot Adventures with Redbeard and his crazy Wife’ while traveling to D.C. and while at the Capitol building. He continues to post on multiple Twitter accounts with his latest video stating he’s starting a podcast and website.

In the weeks before going to D.C., Rafdal was a consistent attendee of the Stop the Steal and Hold the Line protests. After violence from the right-wing crowd towards a counter-protester in late November, hundreds of anti-fascists started showing up to oppose Hold the Line.

Rafdal was on the front lines of some of the scuffles that happened during the subsequent Saturdays. He also started to post sensitive personal information online of people who showed up to counter-protest, including pictures and names of minors.

While at the Capitol in D.C. on January 6, he said he didn’t enter the building, and that he left after being pepper sprayed by police near an entrance. On January 12, the company that Rafdal worked at announced that he is no longer an employee.

The Rochester Post Bulletin and WCCO also reported about his visit in Red Wing, Blooming Prairie residents took part in Capitol rally that turned violent and Minnesota Trump Supporter Drove To U.S. Capitol To Attend Rally That Turned Violent.

Some highlights

In the interview, Mortensen scolds Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen for not signing pledges. He singles out local Republican state representatives Duane Quam, Bryan, and Patty Mueller, Austin, for not forcing votes on his agenda. Much of the interview is spent blasting the "Incumbent Protection Racket." Daudt wants "Lapdog Legislators" and predicts he himself will be primaried (as he was in 2018 and 2020). 

Here's the interview:

We'll continue to follow the Last Mortensen Standing story.

Screengrab: From the Chilling with Redbeard interview.

Related posts:

• Mort's Caucus of One: Action 4 Liberty interview
• Could letters against Minnesota House GOP members have something to do with Mortensen's exclusion from old Republican caucus?
• Tabke: New House Republican Caucus and newer member state rep Erik Mortensen part company
• Mortensen warned Shakopee about busloads of paid protesters with riot gear coming to MN 
• Mort gave followers colleague's personal phone number, but no bill number to call about
• [VIDEO] MN Reformer: Newbie Erik Mortensen jokes about getting HR complaint on first day 
•  Letter: MN Attorney General Keith Ellison declines invitation to Erik Mortensen's party
• Newest New House Republican to hold back yard party in Shakopee, invites Walz and Ellison
• Facebook fundraising: Jeremy Munson cashes in on "Give to the Max Day" for political campaign
• MAGASOTA's surprising speakers list for Northfield Trump Rally Minnesota 2020 Saturday
• MN55A: Mortensen deletes fake news about Tabke's views after area hunter calls him out

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.

NEW: I'm now on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6

Mort's Caucus of One: Action 4 Liberty interview

Yesterday we reported on the parting of the New House Republican Caucus--Cal Bahr, Steve Drazkowski, Tim Miller and Jeremy Miller--in two posts, Tabke: New House Republican Caucus and newer member state rep Erik Mortensen part company and Could letters against Minnesota House GOP members have something to do with Mortensen's exclusion from old Republican caucus?

We missed the Facebook interview below, with first-term Shakopee Republican Erik Mortensen and Jake Duesenberg of Action 4 Liberty. In Wednesday morning's Daily Reformer newsletter, Minnesota Reformer editor J. Patrick Coolican writes:

Do you have an hour to spend listening to state Rep. Erik Mortensen talking about getting booted out of the far-right New House Republican Caucus? I do not, but here it is. [below in this post]

Whenever I encounter these internecine ideological Lenin v. Trotsky style squabbles I’m reminded of Monty Python’s “Life of Brian”: 

“Are you the Judean People’s Front?”

“(Expletive) off! We’re the People’s Front of Judea! The only people we hate more than the Roman’s are the (expletive) Judean People’s Front!”

The scuttlebutt is that caucus leadership wanted to recruit new Republican members, but Mortensen didn’t get the memo and he was attacking those very same members for being too soft. Or something. 

What should Mort’s new breakaway caucus be called? The Neo New House Republican Caucus? Mort and The Huns? Please tell me: [email protected] 

Please send names to Coolican at the Minnesota Reformer.  Coolican's capitol reporter Ricardo Lopez watched and tweeted the highlights of the interview.  A handy shortcut:

I watched so that you didn't have to. Here's my write-up of the Mort's explanation of why he's now been banished to the political wilderness. https://t.co/IxmY257np5 https://t.co/GfIn2MKuef

— Ricardo Lopez (@rljourno) May 19, 2021

Here's the video, in which Mortensen doubles down on the namecalling. Mortensen calls Wright County Republican a "fraud" and Cal Bahr "a little child." Mortensen also talks about flashbacks to the beginning of the session.

We'll continue watching this story.

Related:

• Could letters against Minnesota House GOP members have something to do with Mortensen's exclusion from old Republican caucus?
• Tabke: New House Republican Caucus and newer member state rep Erik Mortensen part company
• Mortensen warned Shakopee about busloads of paid protesters with riot gear coming to MN 
• Mort gave followers colleague's personal phone number, but no bill number to call about
• [VIDEO] MN Reformer: Newbie Erik Mortensen jokes about getting HR complaint on first day 
•  Letter: MN Attorney General Keith Ellison declines invitation to Erik Mortensen's party
• Newest New House Republican to hold back yard party in Shakopee, invites Walz and Ellison
• Facebook fundraising: Jeremy Munson cashes in on "Give to the Max Day" for political campaign
• MAGASOTA's surprising speakers list for Northfield Trump Rally Minnesota 2020 Saturday
• MN55A: Mortensen deletes fake news about Tabke's views after area hunter calls him out

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.

NEW: I'm now on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6

News release: U of M testing finds presence of CWD prions at Beltrami Co. carcass dump site

We're taking some time away from the unfolding story of the mysterious ailment afflicting a significant part of the body of the Minnesota House to post a press release from the University of Minnesota Center for Prion Research and Outreach.

This research center is one reason it's important for the Minnesota legislature to pass a budget-- as noted in the news release:

. . . Further testing of the carcass samples in-hand, as well as future collection and testing of additional samples from the carcass site, is dependent on MNPRO receiving additional funding. . . .

MNPRO’s research is supported by the MN Agricultural Experiment Station Rapid Ag Response Fund and the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources. Additionally, various entities at the University of Minnesota have provided support, including the University’s Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, the Office for the Vice President of Research, and the College of Veterinary Medicine.

In U of M testing finds presence of CWD prions at Beltrami County carcass dump site, we read:

Using forensic science techniques, a team led by University of Minnesota scientists recovered samples from a remote Beltrami County site used by a nearby deer farm to discard white-tailed deer carcasses. Testing for the presence of chronic wasting disease (CWD)-causing prions has found one bone marrow sample to be positive.

The rapid testing was completed using RT-QuIC technology, a highly-sensitive assay that can be used to identify CWD prions in carcasses and the environment. Faster, accurate testing that can be used on a wide variety of sample types is critical to improving efforts to limit the spread of CWD, a transmissible neurological disease that is always fatal to white-tailed deer.

“This is a rapidly evolving situation. We are glad that we were able to assist our collaborators at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture with RT-QuIC testing of the carcasses,” said Peter Larsen, Ph.D., who led the team and co-directs the Minnesota Center for Prion Research and Outreach (MNPRO) at the University. “Our work helps everyone respond more quickly with actions to safeguard our collective white-tailed deer resources. Identification of a positive carcass within an area that is frequented by wild white-tailed deer is highly concerning. Our MNPRO team is ready to assist with securing the dump-site to try and prevent CWD from spreading to the surrounding wild herds.”

Sweeping across the site on May 2, the team collected bones, hides, soil and plant samples. Their expertise in cervid anatomy and mortality investigations of wildlife allowed the discovery of portions of ten or more deer. Additionally, the team’s knowledge of the conditions that promote the survival of CWD-causing prions allowed them to focus on collecting and processing samples obtained from highly deteriorated and desiccated materials with a high likelihood of retaining the prions months or years after their deposition.

The nearby deer farm herd was depopulated last week, and samples from those deer have been collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for official CWD testing. MNPRO obtained additional research samples from the depopulated animals. Further testing of the carcass samples in-hand, as well as future collection and testing of additional samples from the carcass site, is dependent on MNPRO receiving additional funding.

The forensic recovery team included Larsen, Tiffany Wolf, DVM, Ph.D.; Roxanne Larsen, Ph.D.; Marc Schwabenlander, MPH; and Gage Rowden, M.S., all from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine. Joining the team was Jason Bartz, Ph.D., from Creighton University’s School of Medicine. Bartz will independently verify the results of the RT-QuIC testing performed by the MNPRO laboratory.

The MNPRO team also recently developed a new assay that generates a color change of red for a positive CWD result and blue for negative. They have named the test “MN-QuIC” to honor the state of Minnesota, where the test was developed. The new test is cheaper than those using traditional equipment and uses field-deployable equipment to garner preliminary results in just 24 hours. The team is striving for a test that could be used at individual stations, cutting down on testing bottlenecks during deer hunting season. MN-QuIC is another tool that holds promise for rapid sample screening in forensic investigations such as this. 

CWD originated roughly 50 years ago and affects white-tailed deer, mule deer, red deer, sika deer, caribou, reindeer, elk, and moose — all animals known as “cervids.” The disease produces small lesions in an animal’s brain and ultimately results in abnormal behavior, weight loss, loss of bodily functions, and death. While it is yet unknown whether the disease can spread to humans, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends against eating meat from CWD-infected animals. In 2020, both the Food and Drug Administration and the USDA declared CWD-positive venison unfit for human or animal consumption.

CWD is spread by misfolded prion proteins, the same process that causes scrapie in sheep, bovine spongiform encephalopathy in cattle (sometimes called “mad cow disease”), and sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. CWD-causing prions are not alive and can only be destroyed with specialized equipment or strong chemicals, which is what makes CWD so difficult to mitigate. They can also persist in the environment for years. Advances made on CWD could inform other prion-related diseases in humans and animals alike.

MNPRO’s research is supported by the MN Agricultural Experiment Station Rapid Ag Response Fund and the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources. Additionally, various entities at the University of Minnesota have provided support, including the University’s Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, the Office for the Vice President of Research, and the College of Veterinary Medicine.

The notion that the prions are found at " a remote Beltrami County site used by a nearby deer farm to discard white-tailed deer carcasses" is chilling. Does the Board of Animal Health know about remote dumping sites?

Photo: A whitetail buck.

Related posts

•  Concerned about CWD in MN deer? Learn about new research from MNPRO's Peter Larsen 
• Some of the science at the center of Update on Chronic Wasting Disease Efforts hearing
• VIDEO: MNHouse passes bill for process to extend funding for ENRTF projects for one year 
• Session Daily: Experts want to study how CWD flows in state's waterways 
• Sen. Andrew Lang seems behind the curve on current funding & progress of CWD test research
• VIDEO: University of Minnesota scientists share CWD research, search for test with lawmakers
• Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund plan from U of M for CWD diagnostic test 
•  Peter Larsen slideshow: Development of Advanced Diagnostic Tests for CWD by U of M 

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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Could letters against Minnesota House GOP members have something to do with Mortensen's exclusion from old Republican caucus?

We're not close enough to know what ticked off the Minnesota New House Republican Caucus to part ways with Representative Erik Mortensen, R- Shakopee, as we reported in Tabke: New House Republican Caucus and newer member state rep Erik Mortensen part company.

We'll wait for caucus leader Steve Drazkowski to explain.

And while we're not close enough to know exactly why the New Republicans are so mad, we can understand Daudt's reluctance to take Mortensen back into the regular old Republican  fold.

Consider the fruits of a letter-to-the editor writing campaign in Republican House districts across the state; in each letter, Mortensen's name is evoked. A few headlines and links: Rep. Igo must support impeachment in Grand Rapids. In Marshall, Representative Swedzinski must hold Walz accountable. An anti-Pfarr letter in the Belle Plaine Herald, Rep. Pfarr Is Not Fighting For Us. Onthe western prairie, in the Fergus Falls paper, Rep. Backer must back impeachment. In Chaska, there's Sign petition to impeach, attacking Chaska Republican Greg Boe.

Since the impeachment petition is a North Star Liberty Alliance joint, we think the letters were suggested or possibly even drafted as part of this campaign. Bring Me The News' Melissa Turtinen reported on Mortensen's involvement with the group in DFL files campaign finance complaint against Shakopee state rep, political nonprofit:

The Minnesota DFL party has filed a campaign finance complaint against Rep. Erik Mortensen, R-Shakopee, and a nonprofit political organization. 

The 13-page complaint, filed March 29, accuses the North Star Liberty Alliance (NSLA) of failing to register as a political committee with the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board, hiding from the public the contributions it has received and its expenditures. Political groups are required by law to register and report activities to the campaign finance board.

It also alleges Mortensen of coordinating the group's activities. Candidates are prohibited from having direct or indirect control of any political committee other than their own campaign committee.

The NSLA website says it is a nonprofit organization created "for the purpose of advancing the cause of liberty" in Minnesota, adding that it's "focused on educating Minnesotans on liberty issues," it conducts candidate surveys and "does not endorse any candidates for office."

The complaint alleges a different story, saying the NSLA's actions show it is a "hyper-partisan organization focused on opposing 'the radical left' and exposing 'RINOs' (Republicans in name only)" noting it focuses on attacking political opponents and is supported by Mortensen, who signed a fundraising letter on behalf of the organization.

One of the group's top priorities, according to its website, is to impeach Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, over his use of emergency powers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The group has also called House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, a "poser" and Rep. Eric Lucero, R-Dayton, a "lapdog," while showing support for Mortensen and his work at the state Capitol. . . .

After the complaint was filed, Mortensen took to Facebook to call the complaint "false and meritless." He also accuses Rep. Daudt of gathering the information for the complaint and giving it to the DFL to file against him, without offering any specific evidence. 

We don't think it mysterious for Daudt to defend his caucus from Mortensen and his allies. And frankly, calling  Lucero a "lapdog" suggests they''ve never watched The Right View (latest episode here), the Facebook video show Lucero hosts with Alexandria Republican state representative Mary Franson.

We can't make this stuff up.

Screenshot: Representative Erik Mortensen's Facebook post about Daudt and the DFL scheming against him. 

Related Posts:

• Mortensen warned Shakopee about busloads of paid protesters with riot gear coming to MN 
• Mort gave followers colleague's personal phone number, but no bill number to call about
• [VIDEO] MN Reformer: Newbie Erik Mortensen jokes about getting HR complaint on first day 
•  Letter: MN Attorney General Keith Ellison declines invitation to Erik Mortensen's party
• Newest New House Republican to hold back yard party in Shakopee, invites Walz and Ellison
• Facebook fundraising: Jeremy Munson cashes in on "Give to the Max Day" for political campaign
• MAGASOTA's surprising speakers list for Northfield Trump Rally Minnesota 2020 Saturday
• MN55A: Mortensen deletes fake news about Tabke's views after area hunter calls him out

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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NEW: I'm now on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6

Tabke: New House Republican Caucus and newer member state rep Erik Mortensen part company

We're never sure about material from an opponent in a political campaign, but a change in the New House Republican Caucus Facebook page banner suggests that information tweeted by former state representative Brad Tabke is accurate.  Apparently, Erik Mortensen is no longer a member of the New House Republican Caucus.

Mortensen defeated Tabke last November in a three candidate race graced by a cannabis party member.

Above, we've posted a screenshot of the image at the top of that page. Immediately below, what we saw this morning on that page:

[UPDATE 5/18, 1:43 p.m.] We just received this screenshot of the letter to Speaker Melissa Hortman from the NHRC announcing Mortensen's departure:

[end update]

[Update: Mary LaHammer at TPT tweeted that Representative Mortensen isn't welcome in the old Minnesota Republican Caucus either:

Minority Leader Daudt confirms that Rep. Mortensen is not welcome in the Republican House Caucus. https://t.co/Cc7jfjRCF5

— Mary Lahammer (@mlahammer) May 18, 2021

[end update]

[Another update] On Twitter, a Mort watchdog shared Action4Liberty's take on the explusion:

i was kicked out and all republicans are staying as far away from me as possible.
the reason why has nothing to do with me calling some of them 'rhinos'

worst cover up ever
cc: @jpkolb @sallyjos @Lindsey_Port @RepMortensen @Jamiemlong @jbeckerfinn https://t.co/PVjyPbZwzt

— Sideshow Mort (@SideshowMort) May 18, 2021

Last night Tabke tweeted:

The Tabke for Minnesota campaign has learned today that House District 55A Representative Erik Mortensen has been ousted from the New House Republican Caucus.

This is extremely unfortunate and concerning news for the residents and businesses of Shakopee.

— Brad Tabke (@BradTabke) May 18, 2021

Rep Mortensen will be unable to hire staff to support his constituents; he will have no researchers to help build solid legislation for Shakopee; and most importantly, he will be further relegated to the back bench unable to collaborate and get any work done for our Community.

— Brad Tabke (@BradTabke) May 18, 2021

I know from first-hand experience that we need strong leadership working together for Shakopee to meet our community’s needs now and into the future. Our community deserves a voice at the capital that works for all of us. #mnleg

— Brad Tabke (@BradTabke) May 18, 2021

But then there ws also the Dorr Brothers' Minnesota Gun Rights video named St Paul Swamp Turning on the ONLY Fighter for the Grassroots?!?

Essentially, they talk about a rumor that Erik Mortensen is getting kicked out the New House Republican Caucus.

[Update] We had contacted Representative Mortensen last night about the Dorr brothers' video but received no response back. Should he reply, we'll post it here--and any response we see in traditional or social media. [end update]

Things have not always been so tense. Back in early January, the New House Republican Caucus posted a press release about their new member (link missing):

– Yesterday, the 92nd legislative session of the Minnesota House of Representatives began. Representatives were sworn in at noon. Among them was Rep. Erik Mortensen, who is the newest member of the New House Republican Caucus.

“I am very excited to join the Minnesota House of Representatives and fight for the people of my district,” said Rep. Erik Mortensen (Republican-Shakopee). “Above all, I want to bring transparency to government, and liberty to the people. These are ideals that define the New House Republican Caucus. As such, I am thrilled to be a member of this caucus.”

Rep. Mortensen represents District 55A in the Minnesota House of Representatives. The district includes Shakopee, Jackson Township, and Louisville Township.

“Rep. Mortensen will be a terrific addition to our caucus,” said Rep. Steve Drazkowski (Republican-Mazeppa). “Legislators that are quick to listen, eager to serve, and unafraid to face challenges are exactly what this government needs. Rep. Mortensen embodies all of these qualities, and I am looking forward to serving alongside him in the Minnesota House of Representatives.”

That worked out well.

Related posts:

• Mortensen warned Shakopee about busloads of paid protesters with riot gear coming to MN 
• Mort gave followers colleague's personal phone number, but no bill number to call about
• [VIDEO] MN Reformer: Newbie Erik Mortensen jokes about getting HR complaint on first day 
•  Letter: MN Attorney General Keith Ellison declines invitation to Erik Mortensen's party
• Newest New House Republican to hold back yard party in Shakopee, invites Walz and Ellison
• Facebook fundraising: Jeremy Munson cashes in on "Give to the Max Day" for political campaign
• MAGASOTA's surprising speakers list for Northfield Trump Rally Minnesota 2020 Saturday
• MN55A: Mortensen deletes fake news about Tabke's views after area hunter calls him out

Photo: Representative Erik Mortensen, Shakopee-R.

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Changes to Board of Animal Health, cottage food law included in ag bill that passes House, Senate

From Session Daily's Nate Gotlieb in Changes to Board of Animal Health, cottage food law included in ag bill that passes House, Senate:

A policy-only, compromise omnibus agriculture bill that includes changes to the state's cottage food law has received legislative approval, despite a disagreement over changes to the Board of Animal Health.

By a 79-55 vote, the conference committee report on HF1524/SF958* was passed by the House Monday and sent to the governor, after unanimously passing the Senate earlier in the day.

Rep. Mike Sundin (DFL-Esko), who co-chaired the conference committee with Sen. Torrey Westrom (R-Elbow Lake), said the bill "makes some good progress" on agriculture.

Rep. Nathan Nelson (R-Hinckley) said the bill includes some good policy provisions.

Monday's debate centered around the provision that would give the Board of Animal Health, which regulates livestock and domestic animals in Minnesota, six members instead of five, including four livestock producers instead of three.

The bill would require at least one of the producers be a member of a federally recognized Native American tribe located in Minnesota.

DFLers say the board has been too lax in regulating deer and elk farms, a major source of chronic wasting disease in the state. They also say it is important that Native American tribes have a voice on the board, which is appointed by the governor and approved by the Senate.

Republicans say the governor could appoint a tribal member if he wanted to and that the board is already doing a good job.

Another provision would allow Minnesotans who sell homemade, shelf-stable foods and beverages to more than quadruple their annual sales without a license, as proposed by Rep. Samantha Vang (DFL-Brooklyn Center).

The bill would also exempt Minnesotans who sell baked or dehydrated pet treats from state licensure requirements.

Other provisions would:

• allow the Department of Agriculture to hire a publicity representative;
• exempt people that apply general-use sanitizers or disinfectants for hire in response to COVID-19 from commercial applicator license requirements;
• exempt small meat processors who butcher fowl and game for hunters from state regulation, provided their annual sales are less than $20,000 or they process fewer than 200 deer annually;
• allow farmed deer and elk located in chronic wasting disease management or endemic zones to be transported, if they have tested negative for CWD; and
• require biofuel producers who receive payments under the Bioincentive Program to certify they will not use the funds on lobbyists.

Some representative tweets from the floor debate:

Rep. @jbeckerfinn, emphasizing the importance of including tribal representation in discussions of how to address chronic wasting disease in Minnesota's deer population. pic.twitter.com/s9KhVk52lM

— Sandra Feist (@SandraFeistMN) May 17, 2021

House GOP on the #mnleg floor right now: Board of Animal Health is doing a great job!

Deer hunters: Please see this #CWD map.... 🦌☠️ pic.twitter.com/FjAUGX41D9

— Jamie Becker-Finn (@jbeckerfinn) May 17, 2021

This agriculture policy bill addresses many MFU priorities. We'd like to highlight that it reauthorizes Farmer-Lender Mediation, which so many farmers rely on during hard times. Huge thanks to @RepToddLippert for consistently pushing for this program. #mnleg https://t.co/mM5GMs29Xk

— Minnesota Farmers Union (@MNFarmersUnion) May 17, 2021

Photo: Some hand spade work went into this bill.

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Session Daily: Electricity from waste wood at District Energy to continue under bill sent to Walz

At Session Daily, Rob Hubbard reports in Electricity from waste wood would continue under bill sent to governor:

For a small bug, the emerald ash borer is certainly making big changes to the state’s landscape. Many neighborhoods that were tree-lined and verdant just weeks ago now have empty boulevards and full views of the sky.

So what happens to all those trees cut down to contain the infestation of insects? In the Twin Cities area, the primary destination is the District Energy plant in Downtown St. Paul. There, that waste wood is burned to create energy. Some of it is used to heat and cool a section of the city that includes the State Capitol complex.

But it’s also converted to electricity that’s purchased by Xcel Energy, which provides electrical service to much of Minnesota. And that relationship would continue through 2024 under a bill passed 87-46 by the House Saturday. HF1255/SF1047*, sponsored by Rep. Rick Hansen (DFL-South St. Paul) and Sen. David Senjem (R-Rochester), was passed 66-0 by the Senate May 6, so it’s on its way to the governor’s desk.

The bill would require the plant to continue using waste wood as its primary fuel source and require Xcel Energy to pay less for the electricity than under the existing agreement.

“It’s estimated that 265,000 tons of wood waste will go through District Energy this year,” Hansen said. “The bill that’s in front of us provides a temporary solution to an increasing problem.”

Amendments were unsuccessfully introduced that would have required no for-profit entity benefit from the agreement, reduced the maximum price at which the electricity could be purchased, and commissioned a study on ash waste.

The final bill moves the deadline out a year — to Aug. 1, 2022 — for a new agreement between Xcel and District Energy to be submitted to the Public Utilities Commission, and doesn’t contain House language that would require Xcel to submit a proposal to power the district heating system from renewable energy sources.

Xcel Energy's contract with District Energy St. Paul, set to expire after 2022, arose from a 1994 law that required the utility to purchase 125 megawatts of electricity from biomass plants by 2003. The mandate was in exchange for legislation that allowed Xcel Energy to store nuclear waste on land at its Prairie Island plant.

“This is very important to many counties as they attempt to deal with emerald ash borer,” said Rep. Greg Boe (R-Chanhassen). “This facility offers one of the few options to deal with this material.”

“This issue of emerald ash borer is a big one, but who bears the cost?” asked Rep. Chris Swedzinski (R-Ghent). “It’s not fair to folks who live in your district who are customers of Xcel Energy.”

“We’re in an emergency right now,” Hansen said. “This two-year extension buys us some time. … Heaven help us when it gets into the black ash of Northern Minnesota and spreads there. … Twelve years we’ve been dealing with this, and, yes, the ratepayers are going to be paying, but less than what they’re paying right now. Prevention is better than cleanup. We’ve missed much of the prevention opportunities. We’re now on cleanup.”

We watched the debate and concur with state representative Kelly Morrison's tweet:

Appreciate @reprickhansen patiently explaining the magnitude of the Emerald Ash Borer infestation in Minnesota and the urgency of proper disposal of infected trees. MN has ONE BILLION ash trees. We must act.#EAB #mnleg #ForAHealthyThrivingMinnesota pic.twitter.com/H1R0e3mfQt

— Kelly Morrison (@Morrison4MN) May 16, 2021

Photo: An emerald ash borer.

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Minnesota House passes HF600, adult cannabis bill. Good floor debate, no immediate future

We watched most of the debate on HF600, the bill to legalize cannabis for adult use--though the satellite Internet kept choking up and we didn't catch all of the speeches. 

While we don't use the good weed in any form--industrial hemp, medical, or recreational--because of an allegy, we support legalization and regulation of all three cannabis uses. With a majority of South Dakotans, we voted for legal medical cannabis and adult cannabis, though the implementation of the latter is tied up in a lawsuit.

Back in Minnesota, most of the House debate was civil and thoughtful, though it had its moments in its over 5-hour duration. Here's the Roll Call of the vote: four DFLers voted against the bill, while four Republicans and two New Republicans voted for it. Bipartisan in both directions.

The Minnesota House Information Services YouTube:

A news digest

Our favorite piece about this news? Jennifer Brooks' column for the Star Tribune, Historic vote at Minnesota Legislature shifts the debate on marijuana:

The Minnesota House was about to make history Thursday night and Twitter was concerned.

"Help is available," the site advised anyone searching for any combination of the words "Minnesota" and "marijuana" on Thursday, as state lawmakers prepared to vote to legalize cannabis.

"If you or someone you know is struggling with substance use, you are not alone," Twitter continued its warning in English and Spanish, with a link to the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, before scrolling on to all the day's news articles and social media chatter about the bill. "Our partner SAMHSA 1-800-662-4357 can help."

Marijuana is legal for adult use in 16 states and the District of Columbia. Minnesotans have been buying medical cannabis at state-sanctioned clinics for almost six years.

Polls show that the majority of Minnesotans support full legalization. Bipartisan majorities in 12 different House committees signed off on the bill before it reached the floor Thursday night. . . .

Maybe marijuana will be legal in Minnesota one of these days.

Maybe one day the Legislature will even legalize wine in grocery stores.

But Twitter does not send you a warning message if you search for "Minnesota wine in grocery stores."

Read the entire column at the Star Tribune. In the news section at the Strib, Briana Bierschbach reports in Minnesota House casts historic vote to legalize marijuana:

The Minnesota House voted on Thursday to legalize marijuana for adults, the furthest the proposal has ever traveled in the Legislature and a watershed moment on an issue that has long languished in St. Paul.

After more than five hours of debate, the House voted 72-61 in favor of legalization, with support from nearly all Democrats and six Republicans. DFL Gov. Tim Walz supports the measure, but it still faces long odds to become law this year, with just days left in the regular 2021 session and opposition from Republicans in control of the state Senate.

But supporters lauded the package as one that would bring in millions of dollars in new tax revenue to regulate the industry while beginning to address the toll marijuana policing has taken on communities of color.

"This bill is a long time coming," said DFL Majority Leader Ryan Wink­ler of Golden Valley, who shepherded the legislation through the House. "Minnesotans have decided it's time to legalize cannabis and right the wrongs of the criminal prohibition of marijuana that has failed Minnesotans and has failed Minnesota."

Under the bill, Minnesotans 21 and older can have up to 10 pounds of cannabis in their homes and up to 2 ounces in a public place. It sets up a legal marketplace to sell marijuana, establishes labeling and safety requirements and dedicates revenue generated to regulation, youth access prevention and substance abuse treatment programs.

At the center of the bill are racial equity provisions that supporters say will begin to address the disproportionate toll marijuana policing has taken on communities of color.

Read the rest at the Strib. At Minnesota Public Radio News, Tim Pugmire reports in MN House passes legal cannabis bill; no future in Senate:

The Minnesota House voted 72-61 Thursday night to legalize cannabis for adult use — a significant step for the legislation. But Minnesota is unlikely to join more than 15 other states in making marijuana legal because majority Republicans in the state Senate will likely prevent it from becoming law this year. 

Under the bill, Minnesotans 21 and older would be allowed to possess up to 2 ounces of cannabis in public and up to 10 pounds in their personal residence.

The bill creates a regulatory and tax framework for cannabis. A new Cannabis Management Board would oversee the regulation and also take charge of the state’s existing medical cannabis program. A recent change in the bill would direct excess tax revenue from adult-use cannabis into a tax relief account.

The DFL-controlled House held 12 hearings on the legalization bill; the Republican Senate held none and has no plans to take it up before the session ends Monday. . . . 

Republican Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, of East Gull Lake, repeated Thursday that he is not interested in legalization and it is not going to happen. Gazelka believes legalization for recreational purposes would bring unintended negative consequences. 

The top Senate Republican, however, added that he remains open to looking at additional medical uses and lowering criminal penalties.

Again, read the entire piece--and listen to the radio clip--at MPR. 

At the Minnesota Reformer, Ricardo Lopez reports in Minnesota House approves legalizing recreational marijuana; Senate unlikely to follow:

The Minnesota House passed a wide-ranging proposal to legalize recreational marijuana Thursday by a vote of 72-61, drawing a handful of Republican votes that were enough for passage. 

The measure would expunge most cannabis convictions and create a regulatory framework for retail sales. It is the first time a chamber of the Minnesota Legislature has moved to legalize the drug. 

The DFL-led proposal steadily gained steam in the House, even picking up some Republican votes along the dozen committee stops it made. 

If the bill were to pass the Senate and is signed by Gov. Tim Walz, Minnesota would join 17 states that have legalized cannabis, including other midwestern states like Illinois, Michigan and South Dakota. Passage in the Republican-controlled Senate is unlikely, however. 

The issue has become a top priority for House Democratic-Farmer-Labor leaders, who say it could help address the disproportionate impact of drug laws on communities of color. Supporters of the measure point to a recent ACLU report that found that Black Minnesotans are 5.4 times more likely than white Minnesotans to be arrested for cannabis violations.

Sponsored by House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler, DFL-Golden Valley, the campaign to legalize recreational pot has included more than a dozen town halls across the state.

“We have this bill before us today because Minnesotans have decided it is time to legalize cannabis and right the wrongs of the criminal prohibition of cannabis that has failed Minnesota,” Winkler said shortly before debate was set to begin.

In just a few years, the issue of legalizing recreational pot in Minnesota has emerged as a mainstream priority after languishing at the State Capitol. Public opinion has shifted in favor of legalizing recreational marijuana: a 2020 Star Tribune/MPR News poll found that 51% of Minnesotans supported recreational marijuana compared with just 30% in 2014.

Readers should get a sense of the story above, although there are many more news stories online.

With the South Dakota Supreme Court's decision on the anti-Amendment lawsuit pending, we can't say if for certain if our Minnesota neighbors will be crossing the Minnesota River to Big Stone City. But that's another story.

Photo: A growing facility.

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Remember Joseph Boever: digest of Attorney General Ravnsborg case news in SD media

On Wednesday, a status hearing was held for  South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg on several misdemeanor charges in the September crash in which Ravensborg killed Joseph Boever near Highmore. Boever was walking with a flashlight on the shoulder of the road; his body was not found until the following morning.

A news digest about the hearing

Nick Nemec waited outside courtroom for start of Ravnsborg status hearing Wednesday. He is a cousin of victim Joe Boever. ⁦No one other than a KELOLAND News reporter is present. @keloland⁩ pic.twitter.com/E39jfbZv0B

— KELO Bob Mercer (@pierremercer) May 12, 2021

Bob Mercer reports in Judge wants Ravnsborg trial this summer for KELOLAND:

The defense attorney for South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg said in court Wednesday he needs more time to prepare for a criminal trial.

His client is accused of three misdemeanor traffic violations in the September 12, 2020, death of pedestrian Joe Boever along U.S. 14 at the west edge of Highmore.

Retired Circuit Judge John Brown told lawyers a second status hearing will be held in the early part of July. He wants the trial in August or early September.

“I don’t see any reason we should go out beyond that,” the judge said.

The hearing was by telephone. It lasted about six minutes. Ravnsborg wasn’t on the call.

Boever’s widow, Jenny, was in the courtroom with her mother and two other men, as was one of Boever’s cousins, Nick Nemec of rural Holabird. . . . 

Read the rest at KELOLAND. 

The Rapid City Journal and the Argus Leader carried Associated Press copy in Jason Ravnsborg's trial in fatal crash could begin this summer:

 South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg’s trial on charges he’s facing in a fatal crash could begin as early as August.

At a status hearing Wednesday, Judge John Brow says he's aiming for the trial to begin in August or early September. Ravnsborg’s attorney Tim Rensch of Rapid City requested 60 more days, citing the need to review key pieces of evidence, including interviews. . . 

Ravnsborg is facing several misdemeanor charges in the September crash that killed Joseph Boever who was walking along a highway near Highmore.

They include careless driving, operating a motor vehicle while on a mobile device, and driving outside his lane. Each count is punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $500 fine. Ravnsborg earlier pleaded not guilty to all three charges.

Ravnsborg claims he did not see Boever that night and maintains he thought he hit a deer. Boever’s body was found in a ditch the day after he was struck. An investigation video released by the state revealed Boever’s glasses were found inside the car.

Gov. Kristi Noem and several law enforcement organizations have called for Ravnsborg to resign, though he has signaled he intends to remain in office. . . .

Christopher Vondracek reports for the Forum News Service in South Dakota attorney general's trial in deadly car crash could begin in August:

The South Dakota attorney general's trial in his deadly car-pedestrian collision last fall may start as early as August.

But the defense attorney for Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg told Judge John Brown at a status hearing Wednesday, May 12, that he needs more time — 60 days — to review what he called a “mass of evidence” from the Sept. 12 car crash west of Highmore, S.D., and said he has yet to even access files and some interviews. Ravnsborg faces several criminal misdemeanor charges in the case.

“We can then obtain the balance of what it is that we believe is missing,” attorney Timothy Rensch said, calling his request an attempt to provide a “complete picture” at trial.

One complication, added Rensch, was securing a “consulting expert” to reconstruct the crash scene west of Highmore. Many potential investigators, he said, had been “conflicted out” due to contact with the state or past employment with the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

Prosecutor Emily Sovell, the assistant state’s attorney for Hyde County, told Brown the state “did not want the case to linger any longer than necessary,” but she did not object to Rensch’s request for another status hearing in early July.

Ultimately, Brown told both sides he hoped for a late summer or early fall trial, “with an eye to probably having trial in this matter in August or early September.”

“I don’t see any reason why we should go out beyond that,” said Brown, who is a retired judge but stepped back into service for this matter to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest in the high-profile case.

The participants did not appear in-person in the Hughes County courtroom for the rougly six-minute hearing. The judge, Ravnsborg, his attorney, and Sovell participated telephonically.

Members of the family of Joe Boever, the man Ravnsborg hit and killed last fall along U.S. Highway 14 while returning from a Republican fundraiser, sat in the courtroom. Boever’s cousin, Nick Nemec, spoke to reporters after the short hearing.

“It seems to me that if the defense attorney was having issues finding files on a hard drive that he should’ve been talking to the state’s attorney and have her assist him,” Nemec said. “It seems like they’re just dragging it out unnecessarily.”

Earlier this year, the family announced they’d retained an attorney for a possible wrongful death lawsuit against Ravnsborg. On Wednesday, Nemec said that proceeding would not go forward until the completion of the criminal case.

Ravnsborg, who is facing three misdemeanor charges related to using a cellphone while driving and distracted driving, has continued working uninterrupted at his job as attorney general since the crash, though he has faced calls to resign from Gov. Kristi Noem to various law enforcement officials across the state.

Just last week, Accountable.US, a Washington, D.C.-based government watchdog group, repeated calls for the Republican Attorneys General Association to demand Ravnsborg to resign.

Former South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley has also announced his intention to run for his old office.

We'll keep on our eyes open for any new developments.

Related posts:

• Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Army Reserve blocks Ravnsborg promotion due to Boever death
• Boever death: Ravnsborg didn't see face coming through glass, flashlight like beacon in grass
• Ravnsborg's lawyer enters not guilty plea; South Dakota Attorney General not present in court
• Joe Boever was killed, but Ravnsborg's attorney claims client suffering is the worst thing ever
• Justice for Joe Boever: Governor Noem calls for AG Ravnsborg's resignation; articles of impeachment filed in South Dakota House
•  Attorney General Ravnsborg charged with 3 misdemeanors in crash that killed Joe Boever
• Twitter memorials: 5 months ago, South Dakota Attorney General Ravnsborg killed Joe Boever
• Daily Beast: Ravnsborg killed a man. Family members fear Joe Boever has been forgotten
• Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Noem supports using grand jury to speed up Ravnsborg killing probe
• States attorneys looking into killing of Joseph Boever by AG Ravnsborg not talking to Noem
• Rapid City Journal: After 4 months, still no decision on whether AG Ravnsborg will be charged for killing Joseph Boever
• AP: Prosecutors waiting on debris testing in SD Attorney General killing of Joseph Boever 
• Governor Kristi Noem takes off her positive pants, given pace of Ravnsborg investigation
• Well, that's illuminating: South Dakota Highway Patrol’s accident report on Boever killing 
• South Dakota News Watch: Crash experts question Ravnsborg’s car-deer explanation
• SD News Watch: State's criminal & civil traffic laws favor drivers over pedestrians in collisions
• UPDATED: Joe Boever's tragic death on Hwy 14: news digest about Ravnsborg's fatal accident

Photo: Ravnsborg's Taurus, via Rapid City Journal. From the New York Times' transcription:"“We know that his face came through your windshield,” one investigator said. The vehicle also had an imprint from at least part of the man’s body on the hood, an investigator said, adding that “at some point he rolls off and slides into the ditch.”

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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House makes fourth offer in Environment & Natural Resources omnibus negotiations

We need to catch up with the negotiations, or lack there of, in the Environment & Natural Resources Conference Committee. The committee didn'r meet today, though it was hypothethically Alexandria Republican Senator Bill Ingebrigtsen's turn at the gavel.

The conference committee is scheduled to meet at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow, and the livestream can be viewed here on HTV 3.

According to the legislative calendar, there's a fourth House offer. Here's a screengrab:

The final point: House does not accept two-year moratorium on adopting vehicle emisson standards.

The two-year moratorium is Ingebrigtsen's offer the House can't refuse. How's that playing in Minnesota?  

In the Timberjay Wednesday night, David Colburn reports in GOP turns to hardball over Clean Car rules:

A Republican state senator issued an ultimatum to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) last week: halt proposed new “clean car” emissions standards now or watch state parks close and millions of dollars for environmental initiatives disappear come July 1.

Speaking on May 4 to a virtual conference committee meeting of Senate and House legislators working on the omnibus environment budget, Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen, R-Alexandria, took the hardline stance against new rules that would boost the number of zero-emissions electric vehicles in the state and improve air quality standards. The budget will not move forward, Ingebrigtsen said, unless the proposed rules come off the table and the Senate’s version of the budget is agreed to.

Rep. Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul, delineated the scope of Ingebrigtsen’s demand.

“So, if there’s not a repeal of the authority for the Clean Car rulemaking coming out of this conference committee, then the budgets for BWSR (the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources), the Minnesota Zoo, the LCCR (Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources), the Conservation Corps, the Science Museum, the Board of Water and Soil Resources the MPCA and the DNR (Department of Natural Resources) will not happen, unless we accede to the Senate position, is that correct, Sen. Ingebrigtsen?”

“Rep. Hansen, that is exactly correct,” Ingebrigtsen said.

Without an environment budget agreement there would be no new funding for those entities as of July 1. The biggest loser would be the DNR, which could lose $9.8 million in general fund dollars.

“If we do not have a budget for the fiscal year we don’t operate,” DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen told the committee, noting that all state parks would have to close.

But the cuts in the Senate version of the budget would have far reaching impacts, slashing funds for programs as diverse as combating chronic wasting disease in deer to cleaning up chemicals in water supplies.

Two days later, Ingebrigtsen and Republicans backed away from demanding a total repeal of MPCA’s authority to issue clean car emissions rules, offering instead a proposal for a two-year delay that would push adoption of the rules to 2024, along with a lengthy list of items from the House version of the bill that they would agree to. However, Ingebrigtsen made it clear on Monday that if House conferees did not agree to the two-year moratorium the budget would not move ahead.

“There were three different offers that were made to the MPCA last year, all of which were turned down, and here we are again,” Ingebrigtsen said. “The whole thing is contingent on the California emission standards that the MCPA has put forward. We’ve already compromised on the California emission standards. We’ve already compromised from a full repeal to a two-year moratorium.”

Given that the federal government requires a two-year waiting period between the time new rules are approved and when they go into effect, the moratorium would push the effective date of the rules out to 2026.

Hansen flatly rejected the moratorium proposal. The House conference committee members offered a counterproposal on Tuesday, its third, that reinforced their opposition to a moratorium on implementing the rules. . . .

Read the rest at the Timberjay, but that's essentially where it's at.

In an editorial at the paper, there's this in Closing state parks?:

With the COVID-19 pandemic increasingly on the wane and with Minnesotans anxious to do some exploring out-of-doors this summer, Republican leaders in the state Senate have decided they want to shut down all the state parks beginning July 1.

It’s the kind of gun-to-the-head political brinksmanship that we’ve come to expect from the party that would rather blow up government than see it work on behalf of average people. It’s a mentality that gives the GOP an edge in so many political battles. Democrats want to see government play a role in making life better, which prevents them from issuing the kind of reckless political threats that have become such a go-to in the GOP’s political toolbox.

As background, Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen, an Alexandria Republican, told a House-Senate conference committee on the state’s environmental funding omnibus bill last week that he won’t consider any funding for the Department of Natural Resources (which operates the state parks), the Minnesota Zoo, the Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), the Science Museum, or the Legislative-Citizens Commission on Minnesota Resources unless Gov. Tim Walz rescinds or delays a plan by the MPCA to adopt a Clean Car rule modeled on one first adopted by California. Fourteen other states have since adopted the rule, which requires auto manufacturers to gradually increase the number and variety of zero emission vehicles, such as all-electric cars, that they ship to Minnesota.

The new rule doesn’t require any Minnesotan to buy an electric vehicle, but it would give those who want one a greater choice. As it stands, most electric vehicles are only sold in those states that have already adopted the same rule. Gov. Walz supports the policy and, apparently, so do Minnesotans. When the MPCA sought public comment, they received more than 10,000 responses, almost all of which supported the plan. An administrative law judge ruled last week that the new rules are reasonable, necessary, and that the Walz administration has the authority to implement the plan, which is designed to achieve compliance with existing state law that requires the state to lower its carbon emissions.

While the state has made considerable strides in reducing carbon emissions from power plants, we’ve fallen well behind the emissions benchmarks in the transportation sector.

It’s worth remembering that it was Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty who signed the bill that enacted the state’s carbon reduction goals back in 2007. That was a lifetime ago in political terms, at a time when Republicans still believed in things like science. Pawlenty was no liberal, but at least he didn’t want to see the world experience the chaos of climate change.

You might think that the Republicans who control the state Senate would support a plan that provides greater consumer choice for Minnesotans. Yet, in today’s GOP, action on climate change is considered a bad thing, over which padlocking the state parks at the peak of summer is a worthwhile sacrifice.

That matters right here in the North Country, where some of the agencies that would be impacted by the GOP’s proposed shutdown employ hundreds of area residents. And the economic losses from the closure of the state parks would only add to the impact.
Such threats aren’t the actions of responsible or reasonable people. This isn’t how you reach sensible compromise. This is “my way or the highway,” the kind of approach used by radicals, who simply dismiss collateral damage as part of the cost of their revolution.

In this case, of course, it’s a revolution without a manifesto. “Owning the libs” is the only recognizable governing philosophy of the GOP these days. If that means forcing Minnesotans to breathe dirtier air, to face greater risk from climate change, and to make do without their state parks this summer, it’s all a win, as long as someone (including liberals) is upset or inconvenienced by it.

Republicans like to complain that government never does anything to help average people. And, once again, they’re doing everything they can to prove it.

But it's not just Northern St. Louis County that's being critical. In Senator Ingebrigtsen's home town newspaper, there's this letter. In Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen defunds Minnesota natural resources, Mike Anders writes:

Sen. Ingebrigtsen, R-Alexandria, is at it again, using his Environment and Natural Resources Finance Committee role to do anything except act as a steward of Minnesota’s natural resources. Now it seems, he’s ready to close down our state parks. Brilliant! I’m not sure how he squares this with his recent claim to avoid “…putting too much of a burden on Minnesotan families.” Looks like the gloves are off and he doesn’t care about us, as long as he gets his way.

It’s not surprising that Sen. Ingebrigtsen is resorting to such threats. He obviously hates the fact that Minnesota voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment establishing the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund to support Minnesota’s natural resources. After all, it’s intended to keep these funds out of the hands of arrogant legislators! He’s gone full-bore after this constitutionally-approved channel to increase his influence over not just our desired intent for these funds, but also to register his dissent against other matters.

Now, he’s threatened to defund the DNR, the Board of Water and Soil Resources, the Minnesota Zoo, the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Natural Resources (that administers the Natural Resources Trust Fund), the Science Museum of Minnesota, and the MPCA – all because of his aversion to addressing the challenges of climate change.

If he continues to hold our natural resources hostage to his preferences rather than considering the good of our state, what next might he decide he’s against?

Those who wish for a return to legislative maturity and reasoned compromise see Sen. Ingebrigtsen’s actions for what they are – bold-faced bullying, a refusal to respect our constitution, and disregard for Minnesota voters in his quest for influence

We can't top that--even with clever tweets of opposition to the Senate's stance from environmental and clean energy advocates.

Related posts:

• Did Tomassoni really see 60 electric vehicles at a Hibbing auto dealership "the other day"?
• Session Daily: House OKs bill offering conditional release to inmates who give birth
• It's Bill Ingebrigtsen's agenda & he's sticking to it
• Free LCCMR: Hansen letter clarifies how constitutionally dedicated fund appropriations aren't tied to budget targets
• Lutefisk booya: new offer, new editorial, new morning of environment committee meeting
• OAH judge rules in favor of MN Clean Car Rules; @sen_inge quickly adjourns conference committee
• Enviro Conference Committee: in no-drama move, House releases offer hours before meeting
• In the spirit of compromise, Sen. Ingebrigtsen denies shutdown strategy, makes offer, takes Senate members, logs out and goes home

Photo: Will Big Stone Lake State Park, the Minnesota state park closest to Bluestem Prairie's World Headquarters in Summit, SD --and all the rest of Minnesota's state parks--close because of the Senate's hard ball?

If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

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Updated: Torry Deron Slater, conservative Black patriot, faces 2 criminal cases in WI & MN

December 27, 2021 Update

According to court records accessible in MCRO,  February's criminal case in Ramsey County, 62SU-CR-21-510, is closed. Under a plea agreement, Slater was convicted of DWI - Fourth-Degree Driving While Impaired; Described (169A.27.1), while the other charge, DWI - Third-Degree Driving While Impaired; Refuse to submit to chemical test (169A.26.1(b)), was dismissed.

Here's a screenshot of part of the Sentencing order (we're not posting the PDF of the entire document in MCRO, as it contains his home address):

[UPDATE 2/11/2022] The petition for implied consent (case 62-CV-21-704) was dismissed by the court on February 2, 2022. A related civil case (implied consent) 62-CV-21-704 remains open. [End update]

As we reported in  Update: Torry Deron Slater, conservative patriot arrested for Sept. 17 encounter with light pole:

According to records in the Minnesota Judicial Branch/Minnesota Court Records Online, Torry Deron Slater was convicted on December 9, 2021 of a Gross Misdemeanor for DWI - Refuse to submit to chemical test; Breath or test refusal or failure (Traffic - DWI - Third-Degree Driving While Impaired; Criminal Penalty (169A.26.2)).

But the second charge, DWI - Operate Motor Vehicle Under Influence of Alcohol/Traffic - DWI - Fourth-Degree Driving While Impaired; Criminal Penalty (169A.27.2), was dismissed.

The sentencing order, available through MCRO, notes that Slater was sentenced to four days (time served) and "Defendant is placed on Supervised probation for 4 years, monitored by Hennepin County Community Corrections - Adult Field Services." The four-page sentencing order is available through the MCRO system for readers who want the details. . . .

It is to be hoped that Mr. Slater follows the conditions of probation laid out in both state's courts--and this leads him to avoid driving after consuming alcohol. [end update]

June 4 Update:

According to St. Croix County Court records for St Croix County Case Number 2021CF000340 State of Wisconsin vs. Torry Deron Slater, Mr. Slater pled "Guilty to the amended charge of obstructing and [sic]officer Wis Statute: 946.41." This is a Class A misdemeanor, but under the terms of the plea agreement, Slater has received one year probation, a stayed 45 days condition time, and other conditions, including "Absolute sobriety".

Slater stated that the felony charges were dropped. They were in fact amended to a Class A misdemeanor, which can carry a maximum fine of $10,000 and nine months inprisonment. We hope Mr. Slater fulfills the conditions of his year on probation.

As of 3:28 p.m. June 4, the case status was "Open - Electronic filing," so it's possible something might be added to the file.

From the online court record:

Plea/sentencing hearing Vlack, Edward Gross, Gina A
Additional text:
02:36 PM CO: Vlack, DAR: Gross, Clerk: K Kittel. ADA: Bela Alexander Ballo DF ATTY: Shirlene Renee Perrin DF: Torry Deron Slater appeared. Court recalls this matter. State moves to Amend charge to Obstructing an Officer - Wis Statute: 946.41. Atty Ballo recites plea and sentencing recommendations. Atty Perrin files plea questionnaire. Court informs Defendant of charges, possible penalties and rights. Defendant understands and pleads Guilty to the amended charge of obstructing and [sic] officer Wis Statute: 946.41. Court questions Defendant. Court finds that Defendant has freely and voluntarily entered plea and waived rights. Court accepts plea and finds sufficient facts. Court finds Defendant guilty to the amended charge of Obstructiing. Sentencing arguments. DE makes statements. Court orders:

S/W - 1 year porbation [sic] with conditions;
-45 days condition time; stayed
- Court Costs: $243.00 Apply Bond, balance to be pd through probation
- DNA Sample and Surcharge: $ 200.00 Apply Bond, balance to be pd through probation
- AODA within 30 Days
- Cooperate with any other evaluation, assessment and/or program as requested by Agent
- Absolute sobriety: Zero alcohol, zero controlled substances, zero prescribed medications (except as taken and prescribed for you by a physician) in your system, on your person, or in your possession at all times. This prohibition includes drug paraphernalia.
- Not to enter any business or establishment where the primary purpose is sale of alcohol.
- No contact with Officer Max Berger unless it is due to his official capacity as a law enforcement officer.
- Subject to random UA's and PBT's
- Follow rules and regulations of Agent
- Pay supervision fees

DE to sign up for probation by 6/4/2021 by 3:30 pm - if not open, sign up on 6/7/21
20 days to appeal
Adjourned at 2:48 pm.

MAY 20 NOTE: Please read the May 20 correction and apology, as well as the updated material below. We are still waiting for confirmation from the St. Croix County Court records (here) about whether felony charges remain in the Hudson Wisconsin case. Mr. Slater has stated on social media that the charges have been dropped. Should that claim appear in the court records, we will update this post to reflect that information. Yesterday, his Bond/Bail Agreement was modified by an order St. Croix County Circuit Court Judge Scott Needham, suspending the Daily Report Center weekly requirement for testing or calling in, that was part of the terms of his April 8, 2022 bond. 

On his Facebook page, Deron Slater posted a prayer request on May 7.  A screenshot graces the top of this page. 

Slater may live a bit of a double life, if the charges he's facing in Hudson, Wisconsin--and an earlier infraction in New Brighton, Minnesota--are examined.

The Black conservative, who served as "director of the Minnesota chapter of BLEXIT" in 2020, is a frequent defender of law enforcement officers--and critic of men who were killed by police, such as George Floyd and Daunte Wright. He attended the January 6 pro-Trump rally in Washington D.C., but it's unclear whether he entered the capitol, Unicorn Riot reported in D.C. Riots: A Look at the Minnesota Contingent.

Slater has also appeared at public "We The People" gatherings in Waldolf, Owatonna, Rochester and Blooming Prairie with Minnesota House members Jeremy Munson, R-Lake Crystal; John Petersburg, R-Owatonna; Peggy Bennett, R-Albert Lea; and Patty Mueller, R-Austin.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen also appeared at the Blooming Prairie event, as this tweet (or screenshot if it is deleted) demonstrates:

It was a real privilege to address an invigorated Blooming Prairie crowd tonight and meet passionate “we the people for freedom” champions. pic.twitter.com/0ClZfVYTBQ

— Scott Jensen (@drscottjensen) April 24, 2021

He's posted dozens of videos on his Facebook page, where he is followed by 34,877 people.

Yet in two encounters with law enforcement officers in 2021, the conservative activist has been less than respectful.

A street fight outside a Hudson bar

Slater, whose full name is Torry Deron Slater, is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, May 12, according to information listed in St Croix County [WI] Court Case Number 2021CF000340.

UPDATE 5/12/2021, 3:05 p.m-- Here are the notes from Wednesday's "Preliminary hearing and Arraignment" from online case listing for St Croix County Case Number 2021CF000340 State of Wisconsin vs. Torry Deron Slater:

Additional text: 02:41 PM Court Commissioner: Tim Heckmann, Reporter: Tape, Clerk: K Kittel ADA: Bela Alexander Ballo DF ATTY: Shirlene Renee Perrin DF: Torry Deron Slater appeared. Set for PH. Atty Ballo notes the State has offered an agreement. Atty Perrin notes this will be a waiver and that they offer will be accepted. Court advises of rights and possible penalties regarding a preliminary hearing. Court finds DF has freely, voluntarily, and knowingly waived the right to a preliminary hearing, finds probable cause that a felony was committed and the DF probably committed that felony and binds over for trial. [emphasis added]. Atty Ballo notes that the Information will match the complaint. Parties would like to proceed with ARGN* today. Court informs def of charges, possible penalties and rights. Def understands. Waives reading. NG. Waives speedy trial. Court confirms address of DE. Atty Perrin asks if DE's address can be marked confidential or sealed. Court advises to file the request in writing. Bond continues in form and amount. Adjourned at 2:47 pm. Pre-trial conference scheduled for June 4, 2021 at 02:15 pm.

*ARGN: according to a Florida state attorney's site's glossary, this abbreviation stands for:

A formal proceeding in open court at which a defendant stands before a judge with his or her lawyer, to be advised of the charges made against them. This is usually done by the Judge or prosecutor reading to the defendant the Indictment or Information. If the defendant has no lawyer the Court (Judge) will make inquiry and advise the defendant of his right to a public defender and his duty to otherwise procure a lawyer. Matters concerning bail and probable time for the trial are discussed, and the defendant may ask questions of the judge about procedures. At arraignment the defendant is required to enter his or her “plea”, that is, to advise the Judge whether he or she is guilty of the charge, or not guilty of the charge.

Thus, Mr. Slater was arraigned today.

We can appreciate Mr. Slater wanting to keep his current residential address confidential; we had a friend redact the street address from his current residence listed in the documents embedded below.

We'll keep tabs. According to the record, there's a "Pre-trial conference on June 4, 2021 at 02:15 pm." [end update]

UPDATE 5/12/2021, 7:46 p.m.: We recieved a email from Mr. Slater in which he wrote:

Maybe you should mind your damn business and please learn your facts before you make claims. There are tons of mafia in America who aren't Italian, idiot.Fake reporter! You don't need to know a damn thing now my felony is gone. I'm a free man. The particulars of my life are none of your business. Find someone else to clout chase off of bum! I won my case today. Report on that!

We asked if he could document is claim that the case had been dismissed, as the case record cited above does not suggest that charges have been dropped. Mr. Slater replied in a series of emails:

My next court date will confirm  I'm not charged with a felony anymore. It's done! Stop going by papers! They don't include what we talk about today because that is what I asked of them! You shouldn't even be involved in my business in the first place! I don't think this is a road you want to go down with me.

Followed by:

You mess with me I will give it right back and my base is bigger than yours. You want a fight on your hands. I'm known for that!

And:

Stay the fuck out of my business.

We thanked him for his reply. He responded in two emails:

Fuck off!

And:

I'm going to post your information to my base!

On Facebook, Mr. Slater also claims in a streaming video that he is free of the felony charges.

We'll be contacting the clerk of the court in the morning to see if his claim is correct. [end update]

Update 5/12, 8:58  Mr. Slater has sent three additional emails:

I'm going to legally destroy you and on social media. I'm telling you now tomorrow I'm filing for a restraining order and if possible an order of protection against you.

600 maple street summit SD 57266 it's public information so I hope you don't mind me sharing it.

I'm going to be watching you like a hawk and if I view any material produced by you thats wrong in the slightest I will sue your ass! MAKE SURE you report accurately because you know I make more Money than you! [end update]

Here's the criminal complaint:

Criminal Complaint: State of Wisconsin vs. Torry Deron Slater uploaded by Sally Jo Sorensen on Scribd

According to the criminal complaint, on the early morning of April 8, Hudson Police Officer Max Berger was called to assist fellow officers Rue and Woodward who were involved in an active fight in the street  outside Dick's Bar. The time was approximately 2:36 a.m. 

That would put three officers on the street with four folks engaged in an attempt at a fist fight in the street. 

As the criminal complaint states, Officer Berger approached Slater and asked him what was going on. Slater "took a fighting stance, clenched his fists and stared..." Slater called the officer a "pussy" "fag" and stated he would beat him up and that Berger didn't know who he was. 

As Officer Woodward had thought he had seen a firearm on Slater, Berger handcuffed Slater until the officers located who had a firearm. Slater--who was not carrying a firearm--told Berger that he would "shoot the shit out you" and wouldn't answer whether he was carrying firearm. Slater also told Berger he "was done."

Read the complaint in the embedded document.

In public speaking engagements--most recently in Blooming Prairie--Slater has claimed that he didn't know the police officer was a cop and that a liberal with a gun threatened him. The short skinny version on Facebook on May 7:

.  . . fighting a libtard with a firearm and I threatened a cop not knowing he was a cop but another combatant.

We were a bit skeptical about the notion that none of the three officers at the scene  in Hudson wore uniforms or identified themselves as officers, especially the fellow placing Slater in handcuffs. In an email response to a query, Hudson Police Chief Geoff Willems wrote: "Yes, all officers on scene were wearing a uniform."

Perhaps if Mr. Slater wants to respect law enforcement, he needs to start seeing officers.

As for the "libtard," here's the complaint against Mr. Paul Vang, who apparently holds a permit to carry but not the sense to stay sober while doing so. There's nothing in the complaint about Vang's politics. He has a status conference on May 12, but the charge is less serious:

Case: 2021CM000222 State of Wisconsin v. Paul Vang uploaded by Sally Jo Sorensen on Scribd

The document includes the detail about Slater threatening Berger, which Officer Woodward also heard. 

We contacted Mr. Slater's lawyer for comment on the case but received no answer from the attorney or Mr. Slater. Should we receive a reply, we'll update this post.

We recommend to readers that they avoid engaging in street fights outside bars in Hudson, Wisconsin, whether or not they're carrying or arguing about politics. We also commend the Hudson police officers for doing their jobs without harming Mr. Slater and Mr. Vang.

Unfortunately for Mr. Slater, this episode isn't the first run-in with law enforcement that he's enjoyed in 2021. 

The New Brighton episode: an open case of 3rd degree DWI

We first discovered Mr. Slater's February 5 arrest in a synopsis of some of the incidents that occurred in the City of New Brighton during the week of Jan 31 through Feb 6, 2021.

Since the case is an open one, it's not searchable by the defendant's name in the online Minnesota remote court case records access, but we were able to obtain a case number by calling the Ramsey County Court. Here's the criminal complaint, in which Mr. Slater is once again saying disrespectful things to law enforcement officers:

62SU-CR-21-510: State of Minnesota v. Torry Deron Slater by Sally Jo Sorensen on Scribd

Here's a screenshot of the probable cause from the above document, which we believe to be self-explainatory about the disrespect to the officers:

Given the issues with the breath test, we're not surprised that Slater's Minnesota attorney filed a civil case, an implied consent request, case number 62-CV-21-704. Here's the facts from the implied consent petition against the arrest (while we have the document itself, we're not posting the pdf, as it contains personal information that isn't relevant to Slater's conduct toward the New Brighton police officers with whom he dealt):

GROUNDS AND FACTS
1. The peace officer did not lawfully stop the Petitioner or, if alreadystopped, did not lawfully detain the Petitioner under the Minnesota and Federal Constitutions.

2. The peace officer did not have reasonable and probable grounds to believe the Petitioner was driving, operating or in physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, or a controlled substance.

3. Petitioner was not, in fact, driving, operating or in physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance.

4. The Petitioner was not lawfully arrested for a violation of Minn. Stat. §169A.20.

5. The Petitioner was not involved in a motor vehicle accident or collision resulting in property damage, personal injury or death.

6. The Petitioner did not refuse to take a screening test as provided for by Minn. Stat. §169A.41.

7. The Petitioner did not record an alcohol concentration of .10 or more on a screening test.

8. The peace officer did not, at the time the test was offered, properly inform the Petitioner of his/her rights, obligations and the consequence of taking or refusing the test as required by Minn. Stat. §169A.51, Subd. 2 and the Minnesota and Federal Constitutions.

9. The peace officer did not properly inform the Petitioner of his/her right to consult with an attorney prior to deciding whether to take the test and/or did not allow Petitioner a reasonable, adequate or appropriate opportunity to consult with an attorney.

10. The results of the test administered to Petitioner are not valid and reliable.

11. The results of the test administered to Petitioner were not accurately evaluated.

12. The instrument used to measure Petitioner’s alcohol concentration was not approved by the Commissioner of Public Safety.

13. That Petitioner did not refuse testing or that the Petitioner had a reasonable basis, under the circumstances, for refusing.

14. Petitioner was prevented or denied the opportunity to obtain an independent test.

15. That Petitioner’s alcohol concentration at the time of testing was the result of post-driving consumption.

16. That the Commissioner has no lawful basis for the cancellation of Petitioner’s driving privileges.

17. That the Commissioner failed to give adequate and/or appropriate notice of the revocation, cancellation and/or disqualification and/or failed to provide the required temporary or hardship license.

18. That the peace officer did not properly certify the information required under Minn. Stat. §169A.52, Subds. 3 & 4 to the Commissioner of Public Safety . . .

Slater's driving privileges have been returned, though the criminal charges are still pending.

About that Chicago Mafia schtick

This is not the first time Slater has claimed he was "Chicago Mafia," although we have found no evidence that he was a member of The Outfit. In some public events and on social media, Slater has claimed that he was a member of a violent street gang and that  a sympathic woman judge gave him a second chance.

UPDATE 5/20: Mr. Slater emailed us this morning (5/20) several times about this passage, taking exception to the Chicago Mafia material:

You have 48 hours to pull down your false report of me claiming that I belong to the Chicago mafia or my lawyers are going to pour down a shit storm of legal action on you! I hope you are ready because I had warned you to mind your business. You have 48 hours!

This is a heads up either we solve out of court or we can do it the hard way. Consider this a kind gesture.

Everything that you own will be mine in due time. 48 hours or I am letting my Dogs off the lease.

We offer a transcript of Mr Slater's remarks at a  September 12rally at the Minnesota state capitol below, as well as his video of the event below. At the Star Tribune the next day,  Katy Read noted Mr Slater's presence in Rally speakers at State Capitol denounce face masks, Black Lives Matter.

Mr. Slater is introduced as a speaker at the 15:43 mark in the video below. Around the 24:03 mark, he says:

Let me tell you something about me. The most powerful about me is my testimony. I come from a Chicago mafia family upbringing. They tried to pound the victimization into me. At a young age. I'm a ex-gang banger, used to sell cocaine, do whatever. I was once of those malcontents.

But let me tell you something. Do you know that it was a white judge who changed my life? She looked into my soul and told me, I can lock you up for 80-plus years right now if I really wanted to. But she said, I believe you are a man of your word. if you give me your word that you will change, I'll grant you a stay of imposition. You do all of the stipulations. You stick with all of the stipulations, I'll work with you. . . .

You know, that woman didn't break her promise.  I did everything I was supposed to do. I changed. Because this white woman had grace on me. She taught me more about myself and gave me greater value about my myself than my entire family. Crazy. . . .

The Facebook video:

[end update]

Judging by the disposition of his last serious court case in Minnesota-- 2005's case number 27-CR-05-033443 for terroristic threats--the later statement is true. We've obtained the relevant court documents which involve a death serious threat to a neighbor and an ex-girlfriend (there was an open domestic assault charge at the time of the threats).

A plea was entered, and accepted. The judge asked that he attend domestic abuse counseling, among other conditions. 

Slater found God and seems to have been a law-abiding citizen until this year, if his LinkedIn profile is accurate; there's even a stint working for Adult Teen Challenge. 

But the claims to being a reformed street gang member and drug dealer--or current Chicago Mafia made man--are not supported by his court case file in Minnesota or Iowa.  We thought perhaps that there might be an African-American street gang that used the name out of homage, but email inquiries to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety and to the Chicago Police Department about the possibility were not returned.

What has Slater said about this time, other than being a gang member and such?

Elsewhere on Patreon, circa 2018, Slater described his struggle:

Hi. I am living a life starting over from scratch. I was a hardcore alcoholic  who was defeated and weak minded. I tortured my self for years until one day I said enough is enough. I am living life in recovery going on five years sober and I want to deliver that message of hope and change to those who are struggling with addiction to let them see a living testament of being redeemed. I left everything I owned to start my life over. I have graduated Bible school and I love making videos about my life offering encouragement and sound advice to people who are stuck in the vicious cycle of addiction...I also expound on my faith, religion, politics and social issues. 

We hope that Mr. Slater can return to sobriety. 

Update: Anti-capital police statement in January

See correction and apology below.

In D.C. Riots: A Look at the Minnesota Contingent, Niko Georgiades reported:

Slater posted a video online on January 11 saying “Democrats are a terrorist organization” and that the Capitol Police deserved to get injured and killed because they were hurling grenades and macing “patriots."

Perhaps respect for law enforcement means something else for Mr. Slater. [end update]

Update: The final email message:

You lying Bitch! My lawyer just sent this to me and reviewed my video. You blantanly lied on me.

This final message was accompanied by a screenshot of the post with text circled. We have cropped it to the relevant material:

 Upon review of the Rumble video embedded below, we quote his exact statement, in which Mr Slater says beginning at the 4:44 minute mark:

I do not not agree with fighting the officers, but the officers are not innocent. They also antagonized the patriots who were standing there peacefully as well too, by hurling frag grenades and also macing patriots. 

We apologize for not more deeply scrutinizing Georgiades' paraphrase for Unicorn Riot. While Mr. Slater's statement blames Capitol Police for provoking the violence, he clearly does not say that the officers "deserved to be injured and killed" because of their actions, only that the officers "are not innocent" and by " hurling frag grenades and also macing patriots," they "antagonized the patriots."

Our apologies to Mr. Slater. We retain the original material, a screenshot of which he himself has posted publicly on his Facebook page.

Here's the rumble video:

Conclusion

We hope that Mr. Slater is able to reconcile his private behavior with law enforcement officers who engage him, with his public show of support of them. It's nice to be nice.

Screengrab: Mr. Slater asked for prayers on May 7 for May 12 hearing. How can anyone argue with that?

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Did Tomassoni really see 60 electric vehicles at a Hibbing auto dealership "the other day"?

UPDATE May 13: On Thursday, Senator Tomassoni clarified what he said. Apparently, he learned that the cars he saw weren't being offered to consumers shopping at the lot in Hibbing, but were instead a fleet purchase for a Twin Cities' concern. And that there were 100 of them.

We don't believe his new information means what he thought it meant. Are Minnesota consumers able to obtain EVs? We'll insert the YouTube of the explanation when the archive is available [End Update]

We're catching up from Monday afternoon's conference committee on SF959 (Hansen/Ingebrigtsen) Omnibus environment, natural 
resources, and tourism policy and finance bill. We'll publish that shortly.

But there's an side story afoot about one moment in the hearing, when the President Pro Tem of the Minnesota Senate made during the meeting. It's found at the 8:38-8:50 moment in the video except below.

We suspect that Senator David Tomassoni, I-Chisholm, was exaggerating a bit in Monday's hearing when he claimed that he saw 60 EVs when he drove through an auto dealership in Hibbing "the other day," we looked at a couple of auto dealers' online inventories.

We're tracking down a lead about which particular dealership Tomassoni visited. In the meantime, we visited Hibbing dealers websites to check on their inventory.

The claim does seem far-fetched. When we visited the website of North Country Chevrolet Buick GMC this morning, for example, we found that 55 new vehicles are available. There's one 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV Premier that's pretty spiffy.

Assuming 55 vehicles are the typical inventory numbers, all but one of the 60 EV on hand during the state senator's visit have sold. If this was the dealership where Tomassoni saw EV things, the cars are certainly not sitting on the lot, unwanted by consumers, as the Minnesota Automobile Dealers Association worries.

At another Hibbing dealership, Ford of Hibbing, we learned there are 49 new vehicles in inventory. No EVs. If this were the dealership Tomassoni visited "the other day," those 60 EVs flew off the lot.

Similarly, the Hibbing Chrysler Center now has 46 new vehicles in inventory, none of which appears to be an EV. Did the sales people completely turn over the stock of 61 EVs since "the other day."

Indeed, it's absurd to image that any dealership in Hibbing, population 16,361 at the 2010 Census, would have 60 EVs in inventory, given their numbers now. 

The source of the senator's words

The Minnesota Senate Media released this YouTube. As we said above, the comment about the drive through a dealership's

Screengrab: The one EV we found in our review of Hibbing auto dealership inventories.

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If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the  paypal subscription button.

Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.

NEW: I'm now on Venmo for those who prefer to use this service: @Sally-Sorensen-6