Public safety officers and legislators held a noontime rally at the Capitol today to reinforce their opposition to Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s proposed 14 percent cut to Local Government Aid, which many cities and towns rely on to fund core services like police, fire and libraries.
Minneapolis mayor R.T. Rybak set a green example yesterday by recycling much of his annual State of the City address from last year’s speech. He used “depression” instead of “recession” — that’s how you knew it was 2009 and not 2008.
In a clever distraction from dire predictions about its fate, the Pioneer Press has launched a late-winter companion to its popular Winter Carnival medallion hunt. The PiPress blog City Hall Scoop notes the appearance of a new…
Gov. Tim Pawlenty says his budget proposal wouldn’t cut public safety. But the $243 million he plans to shave from Local Government Aid would have a ripple effect on police and fire departments across the state.
Flouting President Obama’s pledge of openness in government, St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman wants the state Legislature to exempt budget memos by city staff from the state law that makes such documents public. The end-run around the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, dreamt up by Coleman, is decried by the Pioneer Press today.
St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman says his focus is simply on winning a second term. But many observers — including one of his predecessors — say his recent staffing changes suggest he’s eying the governor’s mansion.
John Stiles will serve as campaign manager for St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman’s re-election campaign. The DFL communications director is stepping down from that post at the end of this month.
His plan offers tax breaks for corporations, but steep spending cuts for higher education, local governments and health and human services. Plus, it relies on more than $3 billion in one-time fixes, dubbed “gimmicks” by Democrats.
Nearly 800 people were arrested. Pepper spray, flash-bang grenades and tear gas were repeatedly used to disperse crowds. Store-front windows were smashed and vehicle tires slashed. If nothing else, the four days of the Republican National Convention certainly succeeded in bringing some excitement to normally sleepy streets of downtown St. Paul. Today, before a sometimes rambunctious crowd, a seven-member panel led by former U.S. Attorney Tom Heffelfinger and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Luger presented an 82-page report on policing during the Republican National Convention to the St. Paul City Council.
Thanks for the memories. Now please go away. Yes, we’re talking about you, Rudy Giuliani. And you, Wolf Blitzer. We no longer wish to be a swing state. Henceforth the residents of the state of Minnesota promise to vote reliably Democratic. Or Republican. It doesn’t much matter which — just as long as you people promise to stop showing up in our little slice of the frozen tundra seeking to feel our pain. But to memorialize the horrors visited upon us during the (still ongoing) campaign season, we offer — in honor of our favorite member of the Statewide General Election Canvassing Board — the G. Barry Anderson Awards.
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