am.mn logoLawsuit Day often comes before Halloween and Election Day (ask Norm Coleman). Sure enough, Thursday saw a federal judge give President Obama a treat, confirming his U.S. citizenship in throwing out a “birther” suit. In Minnesota, six citizens filed suit (pdf) against Gov. Pawlenty and a trio of commissioners over unallotment cuts. And in Minneapolis, a development firm defied its name (Bluff Street), filing suit against three council members and a planning commissioner.

Elsewhere in Minnesota news this morning …

ST. PAUL: T-Paw references Goethe on Fox. Pawlenty called health care reform a shiny fishing lure and a Faustian bargain (hmm, is he familiar with those?). [Fox News via YouTube]

METRO AREA: Jets scrambled too late, says general. Military planes should have been in the air to protect the Twin Cities when an errant jet with preoccupied pilots passed by this month. [MPR News Cut]

MINNEAPOLIS: Fake folk? A local donor gave the Weisman Art Museum five paintings by folk artist Clementine Hunter that the FBI suspects are forgeries. [Associated Press]

WOODBURY: Dog bites man, hard. A retired cop lost an ear and much of his face. [Associated Press]

ST. CLOUD: Bridge open. The Granite City Crossing replaces the old DeSoto bridge found unsafe in post-I-35W collapse inspections. [St. Cloud Times]

STATEWIDE: Schools go begging. The 57 districts asking voters to approve new tax levies next week are among the 90 percent in Minnesota now levy-dependent to cover operating costs. [ECM Publishers]