Politics Friday

The Minnesota Republican Party convention gets underway at the St. Paul RiverCentre, with the selection of national delegates and endorsement of a U.S. Senate candidate on the to-do list. Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to speak at the party’s annual Lincoln-Reagan fundraising dinner which will be held in association with the convention. Coming up Friday at noon, a spe

Minnesota lawmakers have only one more full week to finish up the legislative session’s work. MPR News host Brian Bakst spoke with two leaders of the Minnesota House about the authorization of construction projects, a touch-up of the state budget, updates to Minnesota’s new cannabis law and a possible plan to set minimum pay and protections for rideshare drivers — all still u

The two weeks that remain in the Minnesota Legislature’s 2024 session will result in a flurry of votes, negotiations and certainly twists.One key piece of unfinished business is the bonding bill — the slate of publicly financed construction projects that need state signoff to move ahead. MPR News host Brian Bakst talks with the chair of the House Capital Investment Committee ab

After nearly 20 years on Minnesota’s Supreme Court, Justice G. Barry Anderson is retiring.Anderson is the longest-tenured current justice and the last to have gained his seat through the appointment of a Republican governor.MPR News host Brian Bakst talks with Anderson about his time in the Minnesota Supreme Court, his career in the courtroom and his view on political pressures o

By this time next year, Minnesota might have quite a few new stores where people can buy marijuana in various forms. The goal is for an early 2025 rollout of licensed retail locations. But will there be enough supply to meet demand — and keep prices from rising too high? And what’s going on with the effort to clear records of people who had past marijuana convictions? MPR News

State lawmakers have budgeted to provide more than $23 billion to schools in the current budget — a 10 percent bump over the prior budget. But many districts say they’re still feeling a strain. How come? What is being done to improve literacy, student nutrition, school safety and cultural competency?MPR News host Brian Bakst talked with two leading senators on education issues:

U.S. Representative Angie Craig won Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District seat in 2018, but she’s won two reelection races by single-digit percentage margins. She’s in for another costly and competitive race.MPR News host Brian Bakst talks with Rep. Craig about her work in Congress and her upcoming campaign.Later, rural EMS providers are banking on state lawmakers to help ke

Updated: 2:40 p.m.Anti-trust cases, consumer protection actions, defense of newly passed state laws and ramped-up criminal prosecutions — it’s all on the plate of Minnesota’s attorney general.MPR News host Brian Bakst talks with Attorney General Keith Ellison about proposed changes to Minnesota’s gun laws, an upcoming hearing on voting rights, online scams and more.Later, w

A space shuttle could be touching down — metaphorically — in St. Cloud. Gov. Tim Walz last week said a donor had inquired about placing a space shuttle in central Minnesota. Walz told MPR News’ Politics Friday about the offer but gave few details about the project.“Someone wants to give us a space shuttle — the space shuttle, a real space shuttle — to move to Minnesota,

There are two months to go in the Minnesota Legislature’s 2024 session, meaning high-level negotiations aren’t that far off.Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz released a package of budget revisions this week and continues to make the case for other items on his agenda.MPR News host Brian Bakst sits down with Walz to talk about how he’s juggling priorities for the legislative session wit