ST. PAUL, Minn. -New Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is using his inaugural address to stress the need for better education and health care for everyone. Walz spoke at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul after taking the oath as Minnesota’s 41st governor since statehood. Walz told the crowd of dignitaries and supporters that disparities in the state’s educational system are…
(AP Photo/Andy Manis)MADISON, Wis. – Newly sworn-in Gov. Tony Evers is calling for a rejection of “the tired politics of the past” in his first speech as Wisconsin governor, saying “we’ve become content with division.” Evers delivered his inauguration speech Monday at a packed Capitol rotunda ceremony attended by five former governors and other dignitaries. Evers says the people of…
MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota’s Department of Natural Resources is getting its first female commissioner. The Star Tribune reports that 46-year-old Sarah Strommen was appointed to the lead the agency Thursday. Strommen has held high-ranking positions at environmental advocacy groups Friends of the BWCA and Minnesota Land Trust. She was with the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources before joining the…
(AP Photo/Jim Mone)ST. PAUL, Minn. – Tim Walz is preparing to take the oath to become Minnesota’s 41st governor since statehood. The Democratic former congressman from Mankato says he’s ready to hit the ground running after Monday’s ceremonies at the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul. He’s already named all but one of his state agency heads. Minnesota’s other constitutional officers…
MINNEAPOLIS – Gov.-elect Tim Walz has named Metro Transit Police Chief John Harrington as the public safety chief in his incoming administration. Walz on Friday also said he’s keeping two more commissioners from Gov. Mark Dayton’s administration: Cynthia Bauerly at the Department of Revenue and Mark Phillips at the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board. The Democratic governor-elect tapped former…
MADISON, Wis. – Ousted Republican Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says he would be interested in running for office again, maybe even for governor in four years. Walker spoke to The Associated Press on Friday, just three days before he’s replaced by Democratic Gov.-elect Tony Evers. Walker’s immediate plans are to hit the speaking circuit. He says he will also be…
(photo: Twitter)ST. PAUL, Minn. – The son of a Minnesota state senator appointed to incoming Gov. Tim Walz’s administration says he’ll run for his father’s seat. Stu Lourey, who has worked as an aide to Sens. Al Franken and Tina Smith, declared his interest in the seat after his father Tony was named Human Services commissioner on Thursday. Both Loureys…
(AP Photo/Keith Srakocic, File)WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. employers dramatically stepped up their hiring in December, adding 312,000 jobs in an encouraging display of strength for an economy in the midst of a trade war, slowing global growth and a partial shutdown of the federal government. The Labor Department says the unemployment rate rose slightly to 3.9 percent, but that reflected…
(AP)WASHINGTON – A federal appeals court is siding with the Trump administration in a case about the Pentagon’s policy of restricting military service by transgender people. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled Friday that a lower-court judge was wrong to block the Pentagon from implementing its preferred policy. The unsigned ruling will…
(AP) – Ford is recalling more than 953,000 vehicles worldwide to replace Takata passenger air bag inflators that can explode and hurl shrapnel. The move includes 782,000 vehicles in the U.S. and is part of the largest series of recalls in U.S. history. Included are the 2010 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX, the 2010 and 2011 Ford Ranger, the 2010…
MADISON, Wis. – Two Republican legislators have introduced a bill that would make first-time drunken driving a crime in Wisconsin. Rep. Jim Ott and Sen. Alberta Darling began circulating the proposal for co-sponsors on Thursday. Wisconsin is the only state where first-offense drunken driving is a civil violation and not a crime. Ott and Darling’s bill would make a first-time…
HASTINGS, Minn. – Gov.-elect Tim Walz has named state Sen. Tony Lourey to take over Minnesota’s Department of Human Services, an agency responsible for nearly one-third of the state’s spending. Lourey was among seven commissioners named Thursday as Walz continues filling his administration before taking office next week. Walz, a Democrat, also promoted Department of Natural Resources Assistant Commissioner Sarah…
(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)WASHINGTON — The House has elected Nancy Pelosi as its speaker as Democrats take command of the chamber for the new Congress. The near party-line majority vote makes her the country’s most powerful Democrat as the party begins two more years of confronting President Donald Trump. Except now, Pelosi’s Democrats will be able to set the House’s legislative…
(courtesy: Wisconsin DOA)RAPID CITY, S.D. – Agriculture officials say an invasive insect found in evergreen decorations in Minnesota and Wisconsin has shown up in South Dakota. The state Department of Agriculture is encouraging residents who bought wreaths and other evergreens from chain stores to bag the items and dispose of them in a landfill in order to stop the spread…
MADISON, Wis. – Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel says jail staff don’t have to follow inmates’ do-not-resuscitate orders. Sauk County attorneys asked Schimel for a legal opinion on the question after an inmate arrived at the county jail in September 2017 wearing a do-not-resuscitate bracelet. Schimel issued the opinion Thursday. He said that under state law only emergency medical technicians,…
UPDATE: MADISON, Wis. – (11:15 a.m.) Gov.-elect Tony Evers has named two Democratic lawmakers to his Cabinet. Evers on Thursday named state Rep. Peter Barca, of Kenosha, as secretary of the Department of Revenue and state Sen. Caleb Frostman, of Sturgeon Bay, as secretary of the Department of Workforce Development. Frostman won a special election last year representing the Door…
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota Department of Public Safety says more people lost their lives on state roadways in 2018 compared to the year before. Initial reports show 380 people were victims of fatal crashes last year, up from 358 in 2017. Mike Hanson is director of the department’s Office of Traffic Safety. Hanson tells Minnesota Public Radio News there are…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Keith Ellison says prescription drug prices, student debt and housing costs will be among his top priorities when he’s sworn in next week as Minnesota’s attorney general. Ellison tells Minnesota Public Radio the community meetings he’s already held in Duluth and Albert Lea, and one planned for Thursday night in Minneapolis, are giving him insights into…
MADISON, Wis. – Democratic Wisconsin Gov.-elect Tony Evers says he isn’t ruling out vetoing the entire state budget if Republicans completely ignore his proposal and decide to write their two-year spending plan. Evers reiterated in a Wednesday interview with The Associated Press that he wants to work together with Republicans who control the Legislature. But when asked if he would…
WASHINGTON – A U.S. Marine has been shot and killed at the Marine Barracks in Washington, D.C. Police say the Marine was shot early Tuesday in an apparent accident. Marine Corps spokesman Chief Gunnery Sgt. John Jackson said the man did not shoot himself. The U.S. Marine Corps said in a statement that the shooting was under investigation and that…
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota State Patrol says there were 111 arrests for drunken driving overnight on New Year’s Eve. The arrests statewide by law enforcement agencies happened between 6 p.m. Monday and 6 a.m. Tuesday. That’s six fewer arrests than the same time last year. The State Patrol says its troopers made 28 of those drunken driving arrests. Categories: News,…
NEW YORK – One ticket matched all five numbers and the mega ball to win the Mega Millions $425 million dollar jackpot. The lucky ticket was sold at an Auto Service Center in Glen Head, in Nassau County, New York. Lottery officials say it’s the second time the jackpot has been won on New Year’s Day. The last time it…
WALKER, Minn. – A central Minnesota man is being held on $1 million bond in the death of an infant in his care. Twenty-year-old Presley Sleyster is charged in Cass County with second-degree murder without intent in the Dec. 5 death of the three-month-old boy. Sheriff’s deputies were called to Sleyster’s rural Staples home for an infant who suffered a…
WASHINGTON — More police officers have died in the line of duty this year in the United States than in 2017, according to data released Thursday. The most common cause of death was gunfire, and vehicular accidents claimed nearly as many officers’ lives. The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund said in a report that 144 federal, state and local…
NEW YORK – Wells Fargo will pay $575 million in a settlement with attorneys general from all 50 states and the District of Columbia that are investigating its banking practices, which have included phony accounts and manipulative sales practices. Under the agreement announced Friday, the bank will also be required to create teams to review and respond to customer complaints…
LITCHFIELD, Minn. – Authorities are looking for a man wanted for domestic assault and a lengthy law enforcement standoff in Meeker County. Sheriff’s officials say a caller who had fled from a home Harvey Township about noon Thursday said a man armed with a revolver remained in the residence. Tactical officers were called to the scene after the man refused…
MADISON, Wis. – Gov.-elect Tony Evers says he plans to appoint current Assistant State Superintendent Carolyn Stanford Taylor to replace him at the state Department of Public Instruction. Evers currently serves as schools superintendent, a position he’ll have to give up when he’s sworn in as governor Jan. 7. Evers announced Thursday he plans to appoint Stanford Taylor as superintendent…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The state has been given a $2 million federal grant to begin testing a backlog of sexual assault kits that have been sitting on shelves for years. WCCO-TV reports there are more than 3,000 untested kits. Each one represents a victim that has endured a sexual assault exam. The grant from the Office of Justice Programs…
Minnesota DNR LogoFARGO, N.D. — The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has granted a permit for an updated plan of a Red River diversion project meant to protect flood-prone Fargo and Moorhead, Minnesota. The DNR in October 2016 denied a permit for the original project, leading a federal judge to stop construction that had started southwest of Fargo. The new…
photo: Facebook/UW Med FlightPARDEEVILLE, Wis. – Authorities in southern Wisconsin say a medical helicopter flying in to pick up a UTV crash victim had to cancel its flight when someone shining a laser pointer injured the pilot. Columbia County Sheriff Dennis Richards says the UW Med Flight helicopter was trying to land in Pardeeville on Tuesday evening to pick up…
(DNR) ST. PAUL, Minn. – Hunters shot and killed about 420 deer in southeastern Minnesota in a special late-season hunt as part of the state’s fight against chronic wasting disease. Minnesota Public Radio News reports that the deer hunt last weekend in and around Fillmore County is part of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ plan to slow the spread…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Cable and internet provider Comcast is defending itself against a consumer fraud lawsuit filed by Minnesota’s attorney general. The lawsuit filed Friday alleges that the company has overcharged thousands of consumers for cable TV packages, charged them for unordered equipment and services, and failed to deliver on promised Visa gift cards. Comcast spokeswoman Jill Hornbacher says…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton’s administration has appealed a state regulatory panel’s approval of Enbridge Energy’s plan to replace its aging Line 3 oil pipeline across northern Minnesota. The Minnesota Department of Commerce said Friday that the Public Utilities Commission ignored experts who said the project isn’t needed. Dayton says in a statement that Enbridge failed to…
MADISON, Wis. – Gov.-elect Tony Evers has named four more members of his Cabinet, including an advocate for raising revenue to improve the condition of Wisconsin’s roads as head the state Department of Transportation. Evers announced the picks Friday. His choice to lead the Department of Transportation is Craig Thompson, the executive director of the Wisconsin Transportation Development Association. Evers…
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Investigators say a 61-year-old Wisconsin man was arrested for tearing down a neighbor’s Christmas decorations while drunk and naked. The Green Bay Gazette reports that Gregory Brannigan faces misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and resisting an officer. A criminal complaint shows Brannigan’s neighbor called police Wednesday after to report that he was naked, kicking her door…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Republican lawmakers are criticizing Gov. Mark Dayton’s administration for approving pay raises for 22 local government officials. Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Myron Frans recently notified lawmakers that his agency is allowing salary cap waivers for positions in Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey and Scott counties, as well as the Metropolitan Council and the city of Rochester. The…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is stepping down from his post, President Donald Trump announced Thursday, after the retired Marine general clashed with the president over a troop drawdown in Syria and Trump’s go-it-alone stance in world affairs. Mattis, perhaps the most respected foreign policy official in Trump’s administration, will leave by the end of February after two…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The federal Bureau of Land Management says it plans to formally renew the mineral rights leases for the proposed Twin Metals copper-nickel mine near Ely. The bureau said in a statement Thursday that its plans to impose updated stipulations on the leases from the U.S. Forest Service to mitigate risks to water resources and wilderness areas….
SUN PRAIRIE, Wis. – A police chief says there will be no criminal charges against anyone related to an explosion in southern Wisconsin that killed a firefighter and leveled several buildings. Sun Prairie Police Chief Patrick Anhalt said Thursday “There is not probable cause to believe a crime was committed.” Sun Prairie firefighter Cory Barr was killed in the July…
CARLTON, Minn.-Last night, the Carlton County Attorney’s office announced it had dismissed 18 pending cases involving a Cloquet police officer. In a statement released today, the city of Cloquet said the officer being separated from his employment is Scott Beckman, who has been with the force since October of 2000. City Administrator Aaron Reeves told Fox 21 that a separation…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has signed off on three important permits sought by the developers of the planned PolyMet copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota. The agency Thursday announced its approval of the air and water quality permits for the project and a certification of the company’s plan to mitigate the mine’s impact on wetlands. The…
(AP Photo/Jim Mone)ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Gov.-elect Tim Walz is preparing to announce three more cabinet appointments. Walz, a former teacher, will visit a school in St. Paul on Thursday to name his picks to run the Department of Education, Office of Higher Education, and Department of Corrections. Walz announced his first five commissioners on Tuesday. His transition team…
MINNEAPOLIS – Opponents of Enbridge Energy’s plan to replace its aging Line 3 crude oil pipeline across northern Minnesota have filed appeals to challenge the state Public Utilities Commission’s approval of the project. Environmental and tribal groups filed initial notices Wednesday with the Minnesota Court of Appeals against the commission’s decision to grant a certificate of need for the project….
CARLTON, Minn.-A prosecutor’s office in northern Minnesota has dismissed 18 pending cases involving a Cloquet police officer. Acting Carlton County Attorney Jeffrey Boucher said Wednesday that after assistant county attorneys learned of a misconduct finding involving the officer, all pending cases involving the officer were dismissed pending a review. In addition, Boucher says four cases submitted for review have not…
ST. STEPHEN, Minn. – Authorities are investigating the death of an 86-year-old man whose body was found in a burned field in central Minnesota. Stearns County Sheriff Don Gudmundson says Edwin Opatz of Rice was found dead in a burned area of the field northwest of St. Stephen. An investigation found that Opatz was burning grass pastureland earlier on Monday….
ST. PAUL, Minn. – New figures from the U.S. Census Bureau show Minnesota’s population continues to grow. But the state demographer warns Minnesota could lose a congressional seat after the 2020 census. According to the Census Bureau, Minnesota’s population grew by 43,000 people between 2017 and 2018. That puts the state’s population over 5.6 million. It’s the second consecutive year…
WASHINGTON – Outgoing House Speaker Paul Ryan is bemoaning America’s “broken politics.” He’s also using a farewell speech to say that Washington’s failure to overhaul costly federal benefit programs is “our greatest unfinished business.” The Wisconsin Republican is ending his two-decade House career. He says in prepared remarks that the country’s problems are solvable “if our politics will allow it.”…
MADISON, Wis. – Democratic Gov.-elect Tony Evers has chosen four prominent Milwaukee leaders to hold top-level Cabinet positions in his new administration. Evers’ transition team announced Wednesday that Joel Brennan, chief executive officer for Discovery World, will serve as his top aide heading the Department of Administration. Brennan previously served as campaign manager for Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. Preston Cole,…
MADISON, Wis. – A new study finds that Wisconsin’s tax burden has dropped to a nearly 50-year low. The Wisconsin Policy Forum report released Wednesday examines state and local taxes as a share of personal income. The report says that taxes accounted for 10.5 percent of income, down slightly from 10.6 percent last year. That marks the seventh straight year…
ST. PAUL, Minn. – A golden ball swiped from the top of the conservatory at St. Paul’s Como Park has been returned – gift wrapped in giant Christmas stocking. Officials say someone scaled the 64-foot-tall Marjorie McNeely Conservatory over the weekend and stole the finial from atop the building’s dome. A conservatory official put out a request for information Tuesday….
