Daily Digest: TGIF edition
Good morning, and welcome to the second Friday of February. I'm in a bit of a hurry because I'm doing a program on the radio at 11 from the state Capitol to talk about some of the issues that came up this week. Then we'll have a press conference from President Trump at noon. I hope you'll tune in. In the meantime, here's the Digest.
1. Gov. Mark Dayton says he's willing to sign the Senate version of a bill passed by the Minnesota House last night that would allow Xcel Energy to build a new natural gas fired power plant to replace a massive coal-burning plant in Becker. The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission wanted more time to study the project, but Dayton said in this case the critical importance of the plant makes an exception allowable. The Xcel natural gas bill is just one piece of Republican-sponsored legislation that would bypass the PUC or trim its authority. Dayton defended the PUC, saying it serves a critical regulatory role. (MPR News)
2. The governor and Legislature are moving to fix a problem with tax law that could apply the sales tax to rented caskets. People in the funeral business prefer to call them display caskets. They're used for services before people's remains are cremated. The problem is that such a casket — where the shell is reused but the interior is not — is technically taxable. A casket or urn that is purchased is exempt from sales taxes. The tax on the temporary item can be a lot, given that viewing caskets can cost between $600 and $1,500. Gov. Dayton's tax-cut proposal would change the law so that all caskets are tax free. (MPR News)
3. Several Minnesota legislators are among hundreds of state lawmakers who have been taken on trips to Turkey by organizations tied to a controversial cleric. The Center For Public Integrity identified at least 151 current and former lawmakers nationwide who have taken trips funded by the organization of Fethullah Gulen, an Islamic cleric currently living in exile in Pennsylvania. The Minnesotans include House Speaker Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, and former Senate President Sandy Pappas, DFL-St. Paul. They have described their trips as insightful cultural exchanges and denied any particular knowledge about Gulen — who runs service organizations and espouses a more tolerant view of Islam but who is currently branded as seditious and a terrorist by the Turkish government. (Pioneer Press)
4. A federal appeals court refused Thursday to reinstate President Trump's ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations, unanimously rejecting the administration's claim of presidential authority and questioning its motives. The three judges of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the argument that the ban targets Muslims raised "serious allegations" and presented "significant constitutional questions," and they agreed that courts could consider statements by Trump and his advisers about wishing to enact such a ban. (AP)
5. Kellyanne Conway, a top adviser to President Trump, may have violated federal ethics rules Thursday when she urged shoppers to buy Ivanka Trump's retail brand, in the wake of the decision by several retail companies to drop the line because of poor sales. "Go buy Ivanka's stuff, is what I was [saying] — I hate shopping and I'm going to go get some myself today," Conway said in an interview on Fox & Friends. "I'm going to give a free commercial here. Go buy it today, everybody. You can find it online." White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Thursday that Conway had been "counseled" over her remarks. Federal ethics rules bar executive branch employees from profiting off their positions, but the statute exempts the president. (NPR)
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