Good morning. It’s Friday. Finally.
Nominated one day, out of the running the next. U.S. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise withdrew from House speaker consideration after it became clear he lacked enough Republican support to secure the job in a floor vote. Republicans are having a difficult time coalescing around a chamber leader and much of the business of Congress is at a standstill until they do.
Because Scalise will remain majority leader, it closes out an avenue for advancement for Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer. But given the topsy-turvy nature of the last week of internal House GOP divisions, can we say for sure? The Emmer for speaker chatter had quieted in the last week, but that’s picking up again, too. Emmer had little to say.
Republicans are talking about other options to get past the deadlock. One is empowering temporary House Speaker Patrick McHenry, who is in a caretaker role for now. A story on that from The Hill.
Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips predicted the Scalise collapse. Phillips spoke yesterday with MPR’s Cathy Wurzer about the speaker race, the tragedy in Israel and his possible presidential bid. He didn’t rule out voting for a Republican for speaker — he mentioned Emmer by name — if a candidate pledges cooperation with Democrats on major matters. “I think we have to set aside politics, put forward principle and get to work, and it could be an historic opportunity if and only if there is a Republican willing to work with Democrats. I think that’s a responsibility, not an option.”
As for the 3rd Congressional District that Phillips now represents, there is a newly announced DFL candidate. It’s Ron Harris, who has been a Democratic National Committee member and who is the former chief resilience officer for the city of Minneapolis. Expect other entrants if Phillips doesn’t go for a new term in the western suburban district.
The Legislature directed the Metropolitan Council to get tougher on fare evaders and that’s now in motion . MPR’s Samuel King reports that the council is moving to implement a new program , shifting some duties away from Metro Transit police. The Transit Rider Investment Program or TRIP adds a group of uniformed, non-sworn personnel that would be responsible for fare enforcement as well as assisting riders. “There is urgency clearly, and it's not just about stopping fare evasion. It is about connecting to education, and the alternatives meeting the needs of people who cannot afford the fare and connecting them to positive resources,” said Council Member Toni Carter. A first violation would carry a $35 fine, with non-monetary alternatives aimed at getting to compliance. For the fourth and subsequent violations, users would face a $100 fine and be prohibited from accessing transit for 120 days.
About 60 high school students had some powerful officials show them around St. Paul's U.S. District Court building to familiarize them with the judicial system. Estelle Timar-Wilcox writes that Gov. Tim Walz and federal Judge Jerry Blackwell helped put on the inaugural event for the Justice and Democracy Center at the courthouse.
A massive Meta data center is a step closer to being built in Rosemount. The Star Tribune reports that the $700 million project won Public Utilities Commission approval for key contracts needed to make it happen. The data center would be home to servers to help power Meta's internet sites, which include Facebook and Instagram. The company bought land from the University of Minnesota. The newspaper said public subsidies don’t appear to be in play. Time to make those playoff plans for the Minnesota Wild. Undefeated to start the season! OK, the team is just one game in — a 2-0 win. But it was a strong opening performance against a Florida Panthers squad that was in the Stanley Cup Finals last season. | 
