In the Know

Minnesota DFL
Feb. 23, 2016
213 days before people can begin to vote by no excuse absentee ballot, Sept. 23
258 days until Election Day, Nov. 8
7 days until DFL SD48 Caucus, Mar. 1
 
Events today

• 8 a.m. – The Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council meets. Room 5, State Office Building.
• 9 a.m. – A joint meeting of the Committee on Transportation and Public Safety and House Committee on Transportation Policy and Finance will take place at the University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies.
• 10 a.m. – Gov. Dayton will chair a meeting of the Capitol Preservation Commission. Fifth Floor Conference Room, Veterans Service Building, 20 W 12th St., St. Paul.
• 10 a.m. – A joint meeting of the Committee on Education, Committee on Health, Human Services and Housing and Health and Human Services Budget Division will take place in Room 1100 of the Minnesota Senate Building.
• 1 p.m. – Lt. Gov. Smith will chair a meeting of the Capitol Security Advisory Committee. Fifth Floor Conference Room, Veterans Service Building, 20 W 12th St., St. Paul.
• 1 p.m. – The House State Government Finance Committee meets, Willmar Legion, 220 19th Ave SW Willmar.
• 1 p.m. – The House Subcommittee on Licensing meets, Room 5, State Office Building.
• 2 p.m. – The Office on the Economic Status of Women meets to review its work in 2015 and preview its work in 2016. Room 500N, State Office Building.
• 3:15 p.m. – Marco Rubio holds an event at the Hyatt in Minneapolis.
• 4:30 p.m. – Rep. Erin Murphy and the Minnesota State University Student Association will hold a listening session on student debt at Metropolitan State Ecolab Community Room (LIB302), 700 E 7th St., St. Paul.
• 6 p.m. – The Select Committee on Affordable Child Care meets, Buckham Memorial Library, 2nd Floor Great Hall, 11 Division St. E., Faribault.
• 6 p.m. – Sen. Ron Latz, Rep. Cheryl Youakim and Rep. Peggy Flanagan will be host a Town Hall Meeting at St. Louis Park City Hall, 5005 Minnetonka Blvd, St. Louis Park.
• 7 p.m. – Rep. Ron Erhardt, Rep. Paul Rosenthal and Sen. Melissa Franzen will host a Town Hall Meeting at Edina City Hall, 4801 W 50th St, Edina.
• 8 p.m. – Rep. Erin Murphy, Rep. Clark Johnson and Rep. Jack Considine
• will hold a meeting from 8 p.m. at Gustavus Adolphus College to talk with students about student debt. Rep. Murphy is currently working on legislation in legislature on student debt and is seeking opinions on the legislation. Everyone is invited to attend this event hosted by the Gustavus Democrats.
• Republican caucuses in Nevada.

Precinct caucuses March 1

• 7 p.m. – Help spread the word that people can find their precinct caucus locations here.

Mark your calendars

• Feb. 25 – Secretary of State Steve Simon will host the “Secretary’s State on the State of Elections” at noonat the Wellstone Neighborhood House, St. Paul. After the speech, participants can attend one of two workshops, “What happens at a precinct caucus,” or “Building the next generation of poll workers.” For more information,click here.
• Feb. 25 – Forum News Service will host a unique preview of the Minnesota legislative session. Gov. Mark Dayton, Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk, House Speaker Kurt Daudt, Senate Minority Leader David Hann and House Minority Leader Paul Thissen will sit at the same table to answer questions from Minnesota reporters.
• Feb. 25 – Join the Senate District 61 DFL for a discussion about current issues in transportation policy, featuring:Sen. Scott Dibble; Rep. Frank Hornstein; Jessica Treat, executive director, Transit for Livable Communities; and Ethan Fawley, executive director, Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition. 7 – 8:30 p.m., Lynnhurst Park, 1345 E Minnehaha Pkwy, Minneapolis.
• Feb. 26 – Republicans debate in Houston on NBC. The co-sponsors are Telemundo and National Review.
• Feb. 27 – Some 800 people will gather at the RiverCentre for Gov. Mark Dayton’s “Water Summit: Our Water. Our Challenge. Our Future,” called to bring attention to the challenges facing ground and surface waters in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
• Feb. 27 – The Democratic primary in South Carolina.
• Feb. 27 – The DFL African American Caucus will meet, 10 a.m., 3240 Library Ln, Minneapolis.
• Feb. 27 – Precinct caucus training will take place in Rochester from 2 to 4 p.m. in the new DFL Headquarters. It is located in the ground floor of the 1500 building on 1st Ave NE, behind Silver Lake shopping center. There is a DFL sign in the window and a separate entrance. Everyone is welcome to attend.
• March 5 – 2016 DFL Elected Officials Convocation, 10 a.m., DFL Headquarters, 255 Plato Blvd E., St. Paul. The convocation will elect representatives to various roles in the party: five persons from each Congressional District to serve as delegates to the State DFL Convention; 10 persons to serve as delegates to the State DFL Central Committee for a two-year term; three persons to serve as directors on the State DFL Executive Committee for a two-year term; and six persons who are DFL endorsed, elected members of the Minnesota House of Representatives or State Senate, State Constitutional Officers, or members of the U.S. Congress to serve as members of the State Platform, Issues, and Legislative Affairs Committee for a two-year term.
• March 6 – Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders will debate in Flint, Michigan.
• April 30 – CD 2 DFL Convention, 10:30 a.m., Shakopee West Junior High School, 200 10th Ave. E, Shakopee.
• April 30 – CD 7 DFL Convention, 1 p.m., Courtyard Marriott Hotel, 1080 28th Ave. S, Moorhead.
• May 7 – CD 5 DFL Convention, 10:30 a.m., South High School, 3131 S 19th Ave., Minneapolis.
• May 7 – CD 8 DFL Convention, 10 a.m., Duluth Holiday Inn, 200 W 1st St., Duluth.
• May 14 – CD 1 DFL Convention, 1 p.m., Worthington Event Center, 1447 Prairie Dr., Worthington.
• May 14 – CD 3 DFL Convention, 10:30 a.m., Osseo Senior High School, 317 2nd Ave. NW, Osseo.
• May 21 – CD 6 DFL Convention, noon, St. Cloud Apollo High School, 1000 44th Ave. N, St. Cloud.
• May 22 – CD 4 DFL Convention, noon, Carpenters Union Hall, 700 Olive St., St. Paul.

Fundraisers

• Feb. 27 – SD36 DFL Fundraiser and Elections Pre-Caucus Rally. North Hennepin Community College, College of Business & Technology, Grand Hall, 7411 85th Ave N, Brooklyn Park. Participants will discuss the importance of Elections in Minnesota and your local Senate District. Keynote speakers are Minnesota Secretary of State,
  Steve Simon and Minnesota Human Rights Commissioner Kevin Lindsey. Suggested donation $20. All donations appreciated. Please RSVP with Reva Chamblis at  or call Reva at .
• March 12 – Senate District 63 DFL hosts its annual Spaghetti Dinner. 5 p.m., Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church, 4120 17th Ave. S, Minneapolis.
• March 12 – The Senate District 16 DFL fundraiser will be held at Jackpot Junction, Morton. It kicks off at 5 p.m. and will feather a buffet meal, silent and live auctions and speakers.

2016 election
U.S. House
Status of GOP 2nd District Congressional candidates, mnpACT!

U.S. Senate
Nightmare builds for Senate GOP, The Hill

President
Rubio gets new wave of establishment endorsements, CNN
Why is Ben Carson still running for president? Washington Post
Bernie’s spring break blues, Politics
Tim Pawlenty, Norm Coleman and Rep. Erik Paulsen back Marco Rubio, Pioneer Press
Establishment turns to Rubio to stop Trump, The Hill
Jeb donors shattered by failed campaign, The Hill
Sanders sharpening message, attacks on Clinton after Nevada loss, Washington Post
Trump slams Cruz as ‘sick’ and ‘a liar’ on eve of Nevada caucuses, Washington Post
Rubio inherits establishment support but is on a narrow path to stop Trump, Washington Post

Ted Cruz asked his communications director, Rick Tyler, to resign Monday after Tyler distributed a video that falsely depicted Marco Rubio dismissing the Bible. Cruz says he spent the morning investigating what happened before making his decision. “I have made clear in this campaign we will conduct this campaign with the very highest standards and integrity,” Cruz told reporters Monday, adding that Tyler is a “good man” but saying: “This was a grave error of judgment. It turned out the news story he sent around was false but I’ll tell you, even if it was true, we are not a campaign that is going to question the faith of another candidate.” CNN

John Kasich told a Virginia crowd Monday that women “left their kitchens” for him in an early Ohio statehouse race — prompting an almost-immediate retort from a woman in the audience. Here’s what he said about how he won in 1978: “We just got an army of people who, um, and many women, who left their kitchens to go out and go door-to-door and to put yard signs up for me.” CNN
 
Attorney General
Minnesota AG sues company over auto service contracts, Pioneer Press
 
Department of Employment and Economic Development
How DEED’s new opportunity office plans to make the state’s economy inclusive of all Minnesotans, MinnPost
 
Education (E-12)
MN graduation rates show small, uneven increase, MPR
St. Paul’s graduation rate falls for first time since 2010, Pioneer Press
Minnesota graduation rates flat but more minority students finishing school, Star Tribune
Daudt: Early ed is a payoff to Education MN, mnpACT!
 
Education (higher)
Two DFL House members announce proposals to help families pay for college, Star Tribune
 
Environment
Minnesota’s lead ammo ban plan ignites fiery debates among hunters, Pioneer Press
 
Florida
Obama to visit Florida on Friday, The Hill
 
Guns
The Kalamazoo rampage was the 42nd mass shooting this year, Washington Post
 
Health care
Fix Medicaid or MNsure? Board struggles over IT money, Pioneer Press
 
Labor
Minnesotans lose millions through wage theft, Workday Minnesota
Worker centers on front lines in combating wage theft, Workday Minnesota
Wage theft may be widespread on Minnesota farms, Workday Minnesota
Home health care workers cheated out of hard-earned pay, Workday Minnesota
Residential construction industry built on ‘payroll fraud’ model, Workday Minnesota
Business-labor partnership tackles wage theft on public projects, Workday Minnesota
Wage theft: Warning signs and steps you can take, Workday Minnesota
Solutions to wage theft include education, organizing and enforcement, Workday Minnesota
 
Legislature
Watch the Minnesota Legislature get back to full strength, Pioneer Press
 
Mining
Obama promises more aggressive enforcement of steel rules, Star Tribune
 
Minnesota
Democrats’ battle for black voters hits Minnesota, Star Tribune
Reality Check: Minnesota matters in 2016 caucuses, WCCO
 
Nevada
In Nevada, GOP candidates make appeals to changing conservatives, MPR
5 things to watch for in Nevada’s GOP caucuses, The Hill
 
Polls
The 2016 campaign is entering a critical stretch — with very little polling to guide us, Washington Post
 
Public safety
Legislators move to block landmark drug overhaul, Star Tribune
 
Republican National Convention
Of the 103 delegates allotted so far in the race (out of the 1,237 needed to win the nomination), Trump has won 65 percent. He’s still got a long way to go, but the path to 1,237 looks easier for Trump than it does for any of his opponents. Washington Post

Trump
Here are four ways Trump is changing the presidential campaign in ways subtle and not-so-subtle:
He’s humbling political pundits and the GOP establishment. Many people in politics are still trying to grasp what the past few months have so clearly borne out: That Trump is in this race for good. There’s a very low likelihood that Trump is going to somehow implode or reveal a side of himself that will scare away voters — no matter how many “He said what?” statements he makes.

He’s turning the rules of politics upside down. On NBC’s “Meet The Press.” Host Chuck Todd asked Trump to square his insistence he was the only GOP candidate running for president who opposed the Iraq War from the start, with a 2002 quote from Trump suggesting he’s in favor of the invasion. Trump’s response: “I really don’t even know what I meant, because that was a long time ago, and who knows what was in my head?”

His campaign has birthed a more sinister view of the media. Tweeted by a NBC reporter: Trump trashes press. Crowd jeers. Guy by press ‘pen’ looks at us and screams, “you’re a bitch.” Other guy gives the double finger.

He’s calling into question the power of the dollar bill. Now more than ever, money is supposed to be playing a big role in which politicians were up and which were down. The more money you and your super PAC have to spend on ads and billboards and mailers and voter targeting, the better. Trump has seemingly blown that out of the water, so much so that “the number of Twitter followers you have may wind up being more important in this campaign (and future ones?) than the number of ad points you have on the air at any given time,” Cillizza writes.
TBD …

U.S. Supreme Court
Obama carefully timing Supreme Court decision, The Hill

Voting
Simon says: ‘Our vote is our voice,’ St. Peter Herald

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