Good morning. Much of the state’s attention this morning will be focused on the memorial for MPD Officer Jamal Mitchell, who was killed in the line of duty earlier this month. Law enforcement and political leaders are expected to attend. We'll have live coverage on the radio and online here.
Minnesota Poll results released this morning show most Minnesotans think a felony conviction should disqualify anyone running for president. About 55 percent surveyed in the poll commissioned by MPR News, KARE 11 and the Star Tribune said a person convicted of a felony should not be eligible to run for the nation’s highest office. A little more than 54 percent believe former President Donald Trump received a fair trial in New York earlier this month. This is both a liability and a potential asset for Trump — about 44 percent of those surveyed believe Trump did not receive a fair trial, a belief that has fired up his base in recent weeks. Both Trump and President Joe Biden see Minnesota as key to their path to the White House. Read more about the findings here.
Jurors in Hunter Biden’s federal gun trial began deliberating yesterday. They will decide whether the president’s son is guilty of federal firearms charges related to a revolver he bought in 2018 when prosecutors say he was addicted to crack cocaine. A deal with prosecutors backfired after the judge, who was nominated by Trump, raised concerns about it. Hunter Biden has accused the Justice Department of bending to political pressure from Trump and other Republicans.
Indigenous activist Leonard Peltier, who has spent most of his life in prison since his conviction in the 1975 killings of two FBI agents, had a parole hearing yesterday. It was his first parole hearing in more than a decade. Peltier is a member of the Turtle Mountain Chippewa Tribe and was active in the American Indian Movement, which began in the 1960s in Minneapolis. The organization gained attention across the country when it took over the village of Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. It led to a 71-day standoff with federal agents. During a period of heightened tensions, two FBI agents were shot in the head at point-blank range when delivering arrest warrants at Pine Ridge in 1975. Peltier, who has maintained his innocence for almost 50 years, was convicted in these crimes. The 79-year-old’s parole hearing yesterday at a federal prison in Florida could be his last chance at parole, as it may be a decade or more before he is considered again. The FBI says they still oppose Peltier’s latest application for parole.
We’ll get a closer look at how the rollout of frontline worker pay checks from the state went when a legislative audit report gets presented this morning. The Minnesota Legislative Auditor’s Office probed the process for sending out the $487.45 checks to more than a million workers who continued in-person services during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report will be made public at 8 a.m. and the Legislative Audit Commission will take it up at 9 a.m.
The filing deadline for the Senate special election closes at 5 p.m. today. The election will fill the Lake Minnetonka area seat left vacant following Sen. Kelly Morrison’s resignation to pursue federal office in Minnesota’s third congressional district. Gov. Tim Walz announced the special election on Friday — the quick turnaround allows the special election to be placed on the same ballot as the general election on Nov. 5.
A revenue update from Minnesota Management and Budget found that net general fund revenues in May totaled 16.7% more than forecast. Net general fund revenues totaled $2.1 billion in May, $304 million more than previously expected. Net receipts from all major tax types were above what state economic officials predicted. A more complete report covering April, May and June receipts will be issued in July.
A coalition of environmental groups say the state failed to stop polluters and should hold statehouse hearings on enforcement. The group claims the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Department of Health and Minnesota Department of Agriculture have not provided adequate oversight or enforcement to polluters and industries they should be regulating. In a new website, the group highlights instances where they believe the agencies fell short. In order to hold any type of hearing, Walz would have to call a special session, something he has repeatedly said he would not do, despite the legislature’s failure to pass a bonding bill this year. Read the Star Tribune article here. | 