am.mn logoU.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar promised “I’m not going to be rationing health care” but she rationed out 14 question-asking opportunities among more than 10,000 callers during her tele-town hall on health care reform Sunday. Her staff wouldn’t let the St. Paul Pioneer Press see exactly how the tele-death panels that chose the lucky questioners operated, but you can hear the results for yourself via The UpTake. Lefties felt she didn’t say the right things about the public option, while righties just felt left out.

Elsewhere in Minnesota news this morning …

RAMSEY COUNTY: “Buy American” sells well. St. Paul City Council members and and Ramsey County commissioners fall all over themselves to favor the products of United States labor with stimulus spending. [Workday Minnesota]

DULUTH: City councilors thinking about buying a laptop each. Like everyone else who doesn’t have one, except with city money. [Duluth News Tribune]

MINNEAPOLIS: First turf to be laid at Target Field today. The Minnesota Twins paid for the grass from a Colorado farm with change from under Hennepin County sofa cushions. [Minnesota Public Radio]

ST. PAUL: Pawlenty’s stand-up act fails to make adequate progress. Though credited with minting a new gag in Kissimmee, Fla., over the weekend in which he calls public school funding “Cash for Flunkers,” the Minnesota governor in fact has used the funny phrase before, as has Bill Maher even earlier and probably lots of others too. [Political Animal; NJ.com; jimgetten.com]

ALBERT LEA: What’s ailing the Elks? The fraternal organization’s largest Minnesota outpost is selling its building, having kicked out the Kiwanis and Lions, who also used it. [Albert Lea Tribune]

HIBBING: Dylan speaks! But why like that? The question “Is it true that people in Hibbing talk like Bob Dylan?” is correctly pronounced, ‘Is it true that Bob Dylan talks like people in Hibbing?‘” [Minnesota Brown; The Atlantic]