Daily Digest: A new cast in Washington
Good morning, and welcome to Friday in what has been a short but busy holiday week. Here's the Digest.
1. New Republican congressmen say their ties to Trump will help Minnesota. As the 116
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Congress convened Thursday, Minnesota’s two new Republican congressmen took their seats in the minority. In last year's election when Democrats flipped 41 seats across the country from Republican control, only three seats switched the other way--from Democats to Republicans. And two of those three seats were in Minnesota. Pete Stauber and Jim Hagedorn got a lot of help from President Trump as they flipped those Minnesota districts. The president's political action committee poured more than $5 million into their races and Trump headlined campaign rallies for each of the Republicans. And both Republicans think their ties to Trump will help their Minnesota constituents. Stauber, who won the open 8
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District seat, noted that a couple of months after Trump pledged at a Duluth rally to keep areas of the Superior National Forest open to mining exploration, he did just that. Stauber thinks his conversation with the president played a role. “So those things come out of our relationship with the president.” Hagedorn, who represents southern Minnesota’s 1
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District, predicts Trump will make deals with House Democrats and Senate Republicans. Hagedorn says he’ll push for more investment in rural America and for changes in government assistance programs. (MPR News)
2. Shutdown looms large as Minnesotans take office. Minnesota’s large crop of new federal lawmakers were sworn into office on Thursday, plunging right into the dysfunction gripping the U.S. Capitol as a new congressional term gets underway. The five new House members from Minnesota took their oaths of office shortly after noon along with new and returning colleagues from around the country. The day lacked much of the ceremonial pomp of a normal first day of Congress, with parts of the federal government closed nearly two weeks now thanks to a budget and border security impasse between President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats. Rep. Angie Craig, the new Democratic House member from Minnesota’s Second District southeast of the Twin Cities said she was recognized and approached at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport by several Transportation Safety Administration employees ahead of her flight to Washington. “They approached me as a group and said, we really want you to get this government back up and running,” she said. (Star Tribune)
3. Walz picks more agency heads. Some giant pieces of Gov.-elect Tim Walz's administration slid into place Thursday when the DFLer decided who would run the state's agriculture, natural resources, health and human services departments. Walz selected commissioners for those four high-profile slots, along with three others, just days ahead of his formal takeover. It leaves him with fewer than 10 major positions to fill, and he'll announce more appointments today. Walz pulled one agency executive from the Legislature, which will mean a special election to backfill that seat and for a time give the slim Republican Senate majority more breathing room. While the new commissioners of the Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency don't officially start work until next week, Sarah Strommen and Laura Bishop have a few things on their minds: climate change, water quality and keeping the outdoors relevant. (MPR News)
4. State gives private information to three companies. The Department of Public Safety said it “inadvertently” gave the addresses of roughly 1,500 people to companies that administer safety recalls for vehicles after the individuals requested that information be kept private. In a Dec. 28 letter to a resident whose data was shared, the department said the data was accessed by the companies Experian, RL Polk and SafetyFirst Recalls in a “bulk motor vehicle” database that contains all motor vehicles titles or registrations in the state. Under state and federal laws, the department is required to release motor vehicle data to these companies, which use them to help car manufacturers sent out safety recall notices. Names and addresses are included in the bulk data, but under the law residents can request that the information is kept private. The names and addresses were sent to the companies along with motor vehicle data, according to Department of Public Safety spokesman Bruce Gordon. State law allows individuals and families to request that their addresses and names be kept private and provide an alternate address if they have concerns for their safety. (MPR News)
5. Simon to push for felon voting rights. Minnesota’s top election official will push for the restoration of voting rights for convicted felons during the 2019 legislative session. Secretary of State Steve Simon highlighted several election-related proposals Thursday that he wants lawmakers to address in the coming months. The session begins Tuesday. An estimated 60,000 Minnesotans are currently ineligible to vote because they are on probation or supervised release from prison, Simon said at a Capitol news conference. “These are people who have served their time already and are working to establish or reestablish themselves in their communities,” Simon said. “Minnesotans, I think, believe in second chances.” Under the proposal backed by Simon, convicted felons would have their voting rights restored as soon as they are released from prison. Additionally, Simon’s agenda includes adjustments to the 2016 law establishing a presidential primary in 2020 and early authorization of the election security money lost last session when a wide-ranging budget bill was vetoed. (MPR News)