Minnesota Independent

After viral video fame, Rep. Simon slammed by religious right for pro-gay comments

By Andy Birkey | 05.10.11 | 8:17 am

Rep. Steve Simon, DFL-St. Louis Park, briefly flirted with folk hero status in the LGBT community and beyond last week after comments he made in opposition to an anti–gay marriage amendment went viral. He asked, “How many gays must God create before we accept that he wants them around?” And with that increased attention, Simon has drawn the ire of religious right figures who have called him “evil” and a “blasphemer” who should be immediately removed from office.

House committee passes anti–gay marriage amendment

By Andy Birkey | 05.02.11 | 3:40 pm

Along party lines, the House Civil Law Committee passed a bill Monday to put a constitutional amendment that would restrict marriage in Minnesota to one man and one woman before voters. In a hearing in which religious leaders far outnumbered legal testifiers, emotions ran high as the father of a gay soldier killed in Afghanistan appealed to veterans to oppose the amendment.

Minnesota Capitol. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

GOP pushes tenther amendment to ban ‘Obamacare,’ DFLers call it the Southern Strategy

By Andy Birkey | 04.08.11 | 8:35 am

Republicans in the Minnesota House have included an amendment to the health and human services omnibus bill that would ban the implementation of the Affordable Care Act in the state of Minnesota because legislators believe it to be in violation of the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. On Wednesday night, Republicans argued that “Obamacare” would “eviscerate” state sovereignty, while DFLers made comparisons to the Confederacy and the arguments used by secessionists during the Civil War. One legislator even proposed changing the state song to “Dixie.”

GOP offers major overhaul to Minnesota’s voting system

By Andy Birkey | 01.26.11 | 1:00 pm

Rep. Mary Kiffmeyer of Big Lake and Sen. Warren Limmer of Maple Grove unveiled the Republican plan to overhaul the state’s voting system at a press conference on Wednesday. Among the proposed changes are the elimination of vouching, implementation of a photo identification system, a ban on health care workers assisting voters in the booth, and massive changes to the recount process. Most of the changes reflect complaints by the conservative group Minnesota Majority, which Kiffmeyer ran several years ago.

‘Death rights’ bills for same-sex couples pass House committee

By Andy Birkey | 03.12.10 | 8:56 am

Three bills that would assist same-sex couples in the event of one partner’s death were passed by the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. Legislators recalled stories of couples who underwent hardships because of inequality in the law, while Tom Prichard of the Minnesota Family Council called the bills “discriminatory” and said they are “unfair to married couples.”

Bonoff still weighing challenge to Rep. Paulsen

By Paul Demko | 08.19.09 | 4:58 pm

Terri Bonoff is not running for Congress — yet. But the Democratic state senator, who lost a tough endorsement battle to Ashwin Madia in 2008, is seriously considering a challenge to freshman Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen. “I’m certainly not being lighthearted about it,” Bonoff says. “I love public service and I have a lot of work to do, whether it be for this state or at the national level.”

Paulsen vulnerable in 2010, but no Dems challenging yet

By Paul Demko | 05.29.09 | 12:05 pm

Minnesota’s 3rd Congressional District is one of two 2010 House races that analysts view as competitive in the state. But whether the district attracts significant attention — and money — from Democrats will probably hinge on how strong a challenger emerges.

Bill would let bike-bound barhoppers sip between stops

By Dan Haugen | 03.25.08 | 10:49 am

Last summer some friends of mine came up with a brilliant idea for my bachelor party. On a drizzly August afternoon, we boarded a bizarre, rectangular bicycle-built-for-16 called the Pedal Pub and set out for a long…

Campaign Notebook: Candidate Clusters, Cloture and (Habeas) Corpus

By Joe Bodell | 09.20.07 | 8:05 am

Wednesday night’s 3rd Congressional District DFL meeting did not disappoint. Several potential candidates for the DFL nod had a chance to speak, includingstate Sen. Terri Bonoff, Rep. Melissa Hortmann, Rep. Steve Simon (who would have to move out of his…