Bluestem Prairie

Protect Reproductive Options (PRO) Act hearing is a go in MN House Health Committee Thursday

In At stake in 2023 at the Capitol: Abortion, climate, marijuana, tax relief — and lots of cash to spend, a New Year's Eve story in the Star Tribune, Jessie Van Berkel, Ryan Faircloth, Rochelle Olson and Chloe Johnson reported:

Both DFL-controlled chambers of the Legislature say they now have majorities that support abortion rights and would back bills to codify protections for the procedure in state law. Walz also supports protecting access to abortion, an issue that galvanized many voters after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in June. New protections could be one of the first bills passed in January.

Minnesota doesn't have any laws ensuring abortion access, but the state Supreme Court ruled in its 1995 Doe v. Gomez decision that the procedure is constitutionally protected. In July, a Ramsey County judge ruled that many of the state's longstanding abortion regulations were unconstitutional, including a 24-hour waiting period, informed consent and parental notification requirements. The incoming DFL majorities are interested in a new law that would clearly delineate abortion protections and not leave them open to court interpretation.

A helpful email from the Minnesota House of Representatives DFL Majority communications staff let us know about the PRO Act:

The Minnesota House of Representatives announced today the first public hearing about legislation codifying abortion rights into state law. The House Health Finance and Policy Committee meets Thursday, Jan. 5 at 10:30 a.m. to hear the Protect Reproductive Options (PRO) Act, authored by Rep. Carlie Kotyza-Witthuhn (DFL-Eden Prairie).

First elected in 2004, Rochester Democrat Tina Liebling chairs the House Health Finance and Policy Committee. In June, the chair made her position about reproductive rights clear in a statement, Rep. Liebling statement on Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade:

Rep. Tina Liebling (DFL – Rochester), chair of the Minnesota House Health Committee, issued the following statement regarding today’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling which struck down constitutional protection of abortion rights under Roe v. Wade:

“I am appalled the Republican-appointed Supreme Court majority has overturned almost 50 years of precedent to strip Americans of our right to decide if and when to have children. This turning back of the clock tells women that the right-wing majority on the Court does not view us as full humans who can best decide how to manage our bodies and our lives. Instead, it leaves those decisions to state legislatures.  This decision also signals that the right to contraception and the right to marry could be on the chopping block next. With the U.S. Supreme Court no longer protecting personal privacy, the Legislature is even more critical to protecting those rights for Minnesotans. I’m committed to protecting the right to reproductive freedom and privacy, and it’s critically important for Minnesotans who share this value to make their voices heard.”

As for the Republicans serving on the Health Finance and Policy committee? Luverne's Joe Schomacker, now in his 7th term, serves as minority lead for such conservative stalwarts as Browns Valley's Jeff Backer and North Branch's Anne Neu Brindley. 

Schomacker doesn't have a press release up on Kotyza-Witthuhn's PRO Act yet, but in late September, he made his position on reproductive rights clear in an article in the Worthington Globe when it asked for his "Thoughts on the recent SCOTUS overturn of Roe v. Wade, and abortion access in Minnesota?":

Schomacker: I am happy to see the Supreme Court overturn Roe because states can decide their own abortion policy. Since that court decision, Minnesota courts have thrown out laws that provided mothers with more information before making this life-altering decision. I am proud to be endorsed by Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, and if re-elected I will commit my first vote of the new session to voting for a pro-life Speaker of the House to lead us.

Joe can certainly cast that vote, but since the Republicans failed to produce a red wave in Minnesota, it's just an empty symbolic gesture.

Carlie Kotyza-Witthuhn is a powerful person to lead on the PRO Act. Minnesota Public Radio's Sam Stroozas reported in May 2022's Archaic rules make motherhood a challenge for women in Minnesota politics:

. . . After adopting three children, Kotyza-Witthuhn, who had trouble conceiving, became pregnant during her second campaign. She says she had an extended labor of almost 30 hours and many healing challenges post-pregnancy. . . .

We found the photo at the top of this post in the Eden Prairie Local News. The photo was supplied by her campaign, via Frank Farrell's article Knock, knock, who’s there? That’s the question this election will answer. Farrell reported:

I asked each candidate what they thought were the “hot-button” issues to voters this election.  

Kotyza-Witthuhn listed “education, healthcare, reproductive rights and climate/environmental concerns.”

She's following through on those conversations with voters. We look forward to watching the hearing.

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. 

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SD Searchlight commentary: Don’t let party loyalty trump voting for competent candidates

A retired journalist living in Brookings offers solid commentary in the South Dakota Searchlight. 

Having puzzled over South Dakota constitutional officers Monae Johnson and Jason Ravnsborg, Bluestem is a welcome audience for Dana Hess's latest commentary in the South Dakota Searchlight.

Don’t let party loyalty trump voting for competent candidates
By Dana Hess 

There will be some new faces in Pierre this month as legislative and executive oaths are administered. One face, however, will be familiar. Marty Jackley will return to serve as attorney general.

Jackley’s previous time in the office was highlighted by competence and integrity, two qualities missing during the tenure of his successor, Jason Ravnsborg. Even without the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, voters in this state must wonder what in the world they were thinking, electing a man to the top law enforcement office in the state who had little to no prosecutorial experience.

The only thing Ravnsborg had in his favor was his status as a Republican. He handily defeated the Democrat running against him, even though Randy Seiler had a wealth of experience as a federal prosecutor.

Ravnsborg ended his tenure in the attorney general’s office as the first statewide elected official ever impeached and removed from office. Prosecutors at the impeachment proceedings went to some lengths to question Ravnsborg’s integrity and honesty. Even their most offhand examples show that this was a man who should never have been put in a position of responsibility, no matter what his political party affiliation.

Prosecutors maintained that after the accident that killed Joseph Boever of Highmore, Ravnsborg lied to law enforcement about the accident and improperly used the resources of his office to impede the investigation.

They built their case by questioning Ravnsborg’s integrity with small examples. Ravnsborg was noted for speeding even before the Highmore accident. To highlight his tendency to misuse his office, they showed body camera footage from officers who had stopped Ravnsborg for speeding. In each case, he established early on, “I’m the attorney general.” At one stop, as Ravnsborg was heading to National Guard training, he switched it up saying, “I’m the commanding officer.”

Prosecutors questioned Ravnsborg’s honesty with an example from the night of the accident. As Ravnsborg got ready to leave a political event in Redfield and head back to Pierre, he had two phones: his personal phone and a government phone for conducting state business. Prior to starting his trip home, Ravnsborg took his personal phone and set the On My Way app. This is an app that provides prizes and points to drivers who don’t use their phones while driving.

Ravnsborg set the On My Way app on his personal phone and then proceeded to give his government phone a workout. While he was driving to Pierre he had a conversation with his father. When that call ended, the attorney general scrolled through news headlines and checked his email. All the while, he was racking up prizes with the On My Way app for not using a phone while driving.

People who voted for Ravnsborg, and there were about 179,000 of them, might ask how they were supposed to know they were getting a small-time scammer when they voted him in as attorney general. There’s probably no way to know that, but they could look at the credentials of the other candidates at the GOP nominating convention and ask how a lawyer with little to no prosecutorial experience was nominated to run for attorney general instead of either of two other candidates who had experience as state’s attorneys. Maybe On My Way wasn’t the only one getting scammed.

The way to elect the best people is to loosen up a little on party loyalty in favor of experience. It’s likely South Dakotans will be faced with another less than qualified elected official in the years to come in the person of new Secretary of State Monae Johnson.

Johnson unseated incumbent Secretary of State Steve Barnett at the Republican convention by using election denier buzz words like “election integrity” and “voter fraud.” To those who pay attention to elections in South Dakota, it seems like the state has plenty of the former and little to none of the latter, but that doesn’t matter to Johnson and it didn’t matter to 61% of the voters at the GOP convention who kicked Barnett to the curb.

Johnson, who campaigned on bringing more transparency to the Secretary of State’s office, roundly refused to say whether she believes that Joe Biden beat Donald Trump in 2020. Now South Dakotans find themselves in the position of having an election denier running the office that oversees elections. That’s like having a member of the Flat Earth Society run your globe company.

When Barnett cut out for the private sector, Johnson was sworn in early as secretary of state. Her short time in office has been notable for the veteran staff members she’s let go for no good reason.

Recent history shows that we may be putting too much faith in political parties to field serious candidates for office. It’s up to voters to look at the qualifications of candidates and, sometimes, put aside their party loyalties in favor of electing the most qualified people. If we had done that, perhaps the state could have avoided the dumpster fire that resulted from Ravnsborg’s tenure as attorney general and maybe we wouldn’t be catching the first whiffs of the smoldering mess that Johnson is making in the Secretary of State’s Office.

Good points.

 This article is republished online under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Donate to South Dakota Searchlight here.

Related posts

• Is election denier Logan Manhart working in South Dakota Secretary of State elections office?
• SD Republican Secretary of State candidate: The trouble with Monae Johnson and Jell-O
• Funhouse mirrors? The peculiar GOP endorsed secretary of state candidates in MN & SD
• Slow grind: SD Attorney General Ravnsborg impeached, removed & barred from public office 
• Heat wave Ravnsborg impeachment news digest
• SD Attorney general intrigue: Future roles uncertain for Jackley, Natvig — and Ravnsborg
• Joseph Boever's killer Ravnsborg confirms he's not seeking re-election as Attorney General
• Breaking Ravnsborg? Joseph Boever's killer won't seek re-election as SD Attorney General
• Associated Press: Top aide's entry to AG race suggests Ravnsborg won’t seek 2nd term
• South Dakota News Watch: Political intrigue swirls around upcoming AG election
• Post-impeachment digest: Jason Ravnsborg sees redemption in the South Dakota Senate
• SD Attorney General Ravnsborg impeached by South Dakota House. Next stop: the state senate

Photo:Jason Ravnsborg, left, is interrogated after the car he was driving struck and killed a pedestrian in rural South Dakota. Ravnsborg, who was the state’s attorney general at the time, was ultimately impeached and removed from office. (Image from House Select Committee on Investigation files).

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. 

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

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

New MN House committee that perturbed Franson to hear from NCSL experts Wednesday

When Alexandria Republican state representative Mary Franson was appointed in early December to be the minority lead for the Minnesota House Sustainable Infrastructure committee, the veteran lawmaker didn't take the news calmly.

In a statement to the Alexandria Echo Press, Franson shared her fears:

The creation of this new committee makes me wonder if this was an organic decision by the Democrats, or if this is a part of a global movement that is being pushed by Klaus Schwab and the World Economic Forum,” Franson said

Read the whole fearfest at the Echo Press. Don't look up.

The committee meets for the first time on Wednesday. Here's the agenda:

Agenda:

1. Member and Staff Introductions
2. Presentation by the National Conference of State Legislators on the IIJA and IRA

We don't see Schwab on the agenda, but maybe he'll drop in. 

What's the committee about?  On December 20, Carol Cummings reported for WCCO News in New House committee to focus on climate resilient, sustainable infrastructure:

As extreme weather takes its toll on critical parts of Minnesota communities, state lawmakers in the newly DFL-controlled legislature next year cite curbing climate change as a top priority and see an opportunity to make investments in innovative infrastructure projects.

Among the tasks at the capitol when lawmakers return to St. Paul next month is passing matching funds to leverage the $7.4 billion Minnesota will get from the federal infrastructure law over several years. Most of the money—more than $6 billion—requires a state share, according to the Minnesota Department of Management and Budget.

Lawmakers adjourned last year without approving those funds. Shaping the two-year budget discussion next year will also include a historic budget surplus, much of it one-time money.

"We're not just looking at a two-year budget cycle, but we're really looking at reshaping the way our state works," said Rep. Koegel, DFL-Spring Lake Park.

She will chair a new sustainable infrastructure committee—formed, she said, to meet the moment and get "the best bang for our buck" with the influx of resources to invest in infrastructure. It will work alongside the climate and energy, transportation and capital investment committees.

We want to make sure we're building things that last and that we're doing very thoughtful planning," Koegel said. "Making sure that we're looking at more than one benefit when it comes to a project. If we have a road ripped up already that we're replacing a water main in—is there an opportunity for us to harden our electrical grid at the same time?"

Only Massachusetts has a similar legislative committee, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, but 25 have some sort of state-led office or working group focused on climate resiliency.

State data show trends that Minnesota's winters are warming and the state is getting wetter, experiencing more intense and frequent rainfalls. "Mega-rain" events have been two-and-a-half times more likely to occur in the last two decades than in the 20th century, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

This can wreck roads, bridges and stormwater systems and run up big bills for local governments. For the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities, state investments to improve local infrastructure is a top priority for the 100 members outside the seven-county Twin Cities metro. . . . 

We hope the WCCO news report allows Franson to sleep at night, and she is able to work with the chairs of the climate and energy and transportation committees, who serve on the new committee.

Photo: Alexandria Republican state representative Mary Franson. From the Daily Kos article, Fanatical Republican Extremist of the Day: Mary Franson- 2022 Update.

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. 

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

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