Minnesota's 5th Congressional District race is shaping up to be the most expensive race in the state this fall. David Montgomery reports : "First-term U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s national profile has helped inspire a flood of donations to both her challenger in August’s DFL primary, Antone Melton-Meaux, as well as the most prominent Republican running for the seat, Lacy Johnson. Melton-Meaux raised an eye-popping $3.2 million from April to June, several times more than Omar’s $471,000. He has twice as much money in the bank as Omar for the final month before the August primary.His support includes $487,000 bundled by two pro-Israel political organizations, NORPAC and the Pro-Israel America PAC. Omar has come under fire for comments critical of Israel that critics said were anti-Semitic."
A state COVID-19 command center has hit a pivot point. Brian Bakst reports : "A Minnesota command center that has hummed with activity during the coronavirus pandemic and widespread civil unrest is on the cusp of being replaced with an all new disaster response hub that’s been on the drawing board for years. Lawmakers are prepared to spend about $30 million on a new one, assuming a much-larger construction borrowing plan gets the go-ahead during a summer special session. The current State Emergency Operations Center — not far from a downtown St. Paul food court and hardly the kind of decked-out control room seen in television dramas — is experiencing an unusually long run of activation to manage a full spectrum of crises. That’s on top of the usual activation for natural disasters, including tornadoes and spring flooding."
A lawsuit challenging the governor's emergency powers has hit the courts. Tim Pugmire reports : "Gov. Tim Walz has overstepped his authority in using emergency powers to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, a lawyer argued before a Ramsey County judge Thursday, while a lawyer for the governor countered that the idea the coronavirus emergency is over defies common sense. A dozen Republican state lawmakers and a group called the Free Minnesota Small Business Coalition filed a lawsuit claiming that Walz, a Democrat, abused his powers by issuing numerous executive orders under the peacetime emergency he declared to address COVID-19."
President Donald Trump's plans for a second term aren't too clear yet. Via the AP : "The Republican president repeatedly assailed Democratic rival Joe Biden during a rambling, hourlong Rose Garden news conference Tuesday that doubled as a reelection rally. But he offered few clues about what he would do if he remains in the White House. He similarly stammered through an interview last month when pressed by a friendly TV host to talk about what a second term would look like. With the election less than four months away, Trump's focus is more on winning than on how he would govern. He's offered no substantive policy proposal, opting instead for heated rhetoric on race, crime and socialism aimed at his most loyal supporters. Biden, meanwhile, is releasing a growing number of proposals touching on topics including trade and climate change."
