Good Monday morning. Here’s your Digest.
1. Northeast Minneapolis legislator Loeffler dies. State Rep. Diane Loeffler of Minneapolis has died after a battle with cancer at age 66, House Speaker Melissa Hortman said Saturday. Loeffler, a DFLer first elected to the House in 2004, was a lifelong resident of Northeast Minneapolis. “She was just a powerhouse. It’s a huge loss for the Legislature,” Hortman said. The two entered the House the same year. Hortman said Loeffler chose to specialize in human services to watch out for those most in need. “She dedicated her House service to helping the most vulnerable,” Hortman said. According to Loeffler's website, she was inspired by her aunt Lil, who was born with Down syndrome. "Lil’s life taught Diane the power of government policies to open doors of opportunity and ignited her passion to use public policy as a way of improving people’s lives," the website states. MPR News
2. St. Paul lawmaker won’t seek re-election. Longtime Democratic state Sen. Dick Cohen of St. Paul announced Sunday that he won't seek reelection in 2020. Cohen, 69, has represented Highland Park, Macalester-Groveland and other western St. Paul neighborhoods in the Minnesota Senate since 1987. Prior to his tenure in the Senate, he served three terms in the state House. When Democrats held the Senate majority, Cohen served as chairman of the powerful Finance Committee. In a letter to constituents, Cohen said he's opting against running for another term because of family commitments and business opportunities that will require more travel. He said he'll serve until the end of the current term. "It has been the honor of my lifetime to represent the district in which I have lived all my life," he wrote. MPR News
3. Farmers may hold one key to election. It seems politics moves at a fast pace for nearly all facets of U.S. life nowadays — except for agriculture. U.S. trade and environmental policy in recent years have combined with lower commodity prices to stress many agricultural-related businesses, from family farms to large-scale co-ops. Ongoing trade disputes with a number of other countries have weakened the market for agricultural goods and services. Federal officials have ramped up biofuels-related waivers to oil refineries, hurting a key commo- dity for southern Minnesota farmers. And ongoing market concerns show little sign of easing up without some of the key trade deals President Donald Trump promised that either haven’t been solidified or have stalled through congressional dealmaking. The result for many southern Minnesota farmers is instability, the kind that could change many rural voters’ support at the ballot box during the next year. “One thing I’ve noticed over time is farmers, while they tend to lean more conservative, they don’t tend to be tied to one party,” said Kent Thiesse, ag loan specialist at MinnStar Bank. Mankato Free Press
4. Legislative auditor Nobles gets another term. A Minnesota government watchdog had his tenure extended Friday by the Legislature. Legislative Auditor Jim Nobles won another six-year term after a bipartisan voice vote from a House-Senate commission that oversees his office. There was at least one dissenting vote. Nobles’ office routinely examines whether state money is being properly spent and conducts reviews when things go wrong. “Yes, I become a passionate advocate for accountability,” Nobles said before the vote. “And when I see state government failing to deliver on MNsure, on MNLARS, on many of the things that we’ve put millions of dollars into and they don’t serve the public well, I say so.” MPR News
5. How will gun politics impact 2020 races? Erin Preese’s reason for running for office tells a story about our times. A Lakeville elementary school teacher and mother of two, Preese has seen her young daughters shove their stuffed animals into a corner while playing school to protect them from an imaginary “bad guy” roaming the halls with a gun. When she started teaching, Preese listened as a police officer fired an AR-15 inside the school to acclimate new teachers to gunfire. “I was really angry that my lawmakers were just sitting comfortably at their desk in the Capitol while teachers were having to be trained for what seemed like a combat zone,” Preese said. Preese, a Democrat involved with the group Moms Demand Action, is one of the first gun safety activists in Minnesota to seek office. She’s challenging state Rep. Jon Koznick, R-Lakeville, after having previously lobbied him to back universal background check and red-flag legislation. Nationally, there’s growing evidence that gun policy could loom large in state and federal races in 2020. Star Tribune | 