Capitol View for April 16

Good morning. Hold on to your hat today — it's gusty!

Party vetting problems for local candidates are on display yet again. The Minnesota DFL is disavowing a local party chapter's endorsement of a Minnesota House candidate convicted of second-degree felony assault. MPR’s Ellie Roth writes that the Senate District 12 in northwestern Minnesota endorsed Judd Hoff last weekend. In August 2020, Hoff assaulted a person with a machete after a confrontation. According to court documents, Hoff argued that he was using self-defense. He was given a 13-month prison sentence. On several other occasions, Hoff has been convicted of misdemeanors. Hoff is challenging incumbent Republican Rep. Mary Franson. The two appear to be neighbors in Alexandria. Republicans, including the state party chair, issued statements condemning the DFL endorsement. In a statement, the Minnesota DFL party said it wants the party backing withdrawn. Chair Ken Martin said Hoff's violent and threatening behavior doesn't belong in the party.

Jury selection has begun in Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York, and it’s going to be a challenge. Trump is on trial in a hush-money case stemming from the 2016 campaign, allegations of an affair with an adult film actress and the efforts to keep it from getting attention during his White House run. Many prospective jurors have already been excused. This phase of the case could take days or weeks. The trial is expected to stretch into May or possibly June.

Federal campaign reports have started coming in for the first three months of the year. We’re still waiting on some but here’s a scorecard:

U.S. Senate race: Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar enjoys a wide cash advantage with $5.77 million in her account to start April after raising another $2.17 million in three months. Republican challenger Joe Fraser had about $44,000 in reserve after raising about that much since entering the race in mid-January.

1st District: Republican Rep. Brad Finstad had about $487,300 on hand after taking in roughly $273,300 between January and March. DFLer Rachel Bohman has $95,753 on hand after raising money and a personal loan of $27,000.

2nd District: DFL Rep. Angie Craig has $2.82 million in the bank after raising $971,000 from January through March. One of her Republican rivals, Joe Tierab, had amassed $662,000 in available money after raising about $538,600 last quarter. That put him ahead of fellow Republican Tayler Rahm, who had about $59,500 banked after raising slightly more than that over the fundraising period.

3rd District: Democratic candidate Kelly Morrison finished March with $419,300 in reserve after raising about $323,000. Republican Tad Jude had about $29,500 available on April 1 after raising some money and loaning his campaign $25,000. Another Republican, Quinten Wittrock, had just shy of $6,900.

4th District: DFL Rep. Betty McCollum was sitting on just shy of $767,000 after raising $317,000 in the period. Republican challenger May Lor Xiong had about $3,600 left after raising slightly more than that.

5th District: Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar is sitting on about $2.1 million after scooping up nearly $1.7 million. Democratic challenger Don Samuels had $232,500 in the bank following a $400,000 fundraising quarter. Republican Dalia Al-Aqidi had $60,450 on hand after raising $385,600.

6th District: Republican Rep. Tom Emmer, the third ranking member of the House majority, had $2.57 million at his disposal following a $731,000 fundraising blitz early in 2024.

7th District: Republican Rep. Michele Fischbach had $385,700 available. GOP primary challenger Stephen Boyd had about $23,200 stocked up after raising about $66,500. Another Republican opponent, Annette Watson, said she had just $1,500.

8th District: Republican Rep. Pete Stauber has about $915,000 ready to spend after pulling in $265,000 over the three months covered. Democratic challenger Jen Schultz entered April with $292,000 after raising nearly $200,000.

Candidates who aren’t on this year’s ballot — or might never be on one in Minnesota again — still have to file if they had active accounts. It’s notable that former Sen. Al Franken has a solid $2.06 million in the bank and his allied Midwest Values PAC has $512,500 at the ready. Democratic Sen. Tina Smith, who replaced Franken upon his resignation and whose seat is up again in 2026, has a fraction of that with about $784,500.

Legislative leaders are urging lawmakers and advocacy groups to keep their hopes in check as they near a deadline this week. Bills with spending components need to clear committees in either chamber by Friday to remain viable. “We are in a season of disappointments, and there are those bills that just won’t make it,” said House Speaker Melissa Hortman, who’s telling lawmakers to prepare for the funnel effect. Lawmakers are set to adjourn May 20th.

One of those items that won’t come to pass is a $500 million spending deal to limit child care costs to no more than 7 percent of family income. Backers of the effort have conceded that won’t happen this session. Instead, they’re focusing now on securing $36 million for kids and families in a supplemental budget following last year’s banner $300 million child care spending package. MPR’s Kyra Miles has the story.

The pricey task of removing forever chemicals from Minnesota waters is leading some local leaders to the Capitol to ask for help.MPR’s Clay Masters reports on the push among local governments to seek state assistance to rid their supplies of high levels of PFAS to meet new federal drinking water standards. A Minnesota Pollution Control Agency official estimated the remediation cost at somewhere between $2.7 million and $18 million per pound to remove and destroy PFAS for municipal wastewater. That puts the overall Minnesota cost well into the billions.

Six more Capitol complex buildings are getting a security upgrade. A recently posted bid package notes the $5.5 million of combined work will start this summer and stretch over the year at the Administration Building, the Ag/Health Laboratory Building, the Capitol itself, the Judicial Center, a power facility beside the Judicial Center and the Veterans Services Building. The possible security features include: “bollards, parking arms, window blast protection, infrastructure security screen walls, door access controls, emergency all stations, video surveillance and security turnstiles.” Capitol-area building visitors have noticed a steady ramp-up in hard security features in recent years and this is a continuation of that fortification effort.