Good morning and welcome to Wednesday.
Lots of reaction to that leaked draft Supreme Court opinion that shows the court poised to overturn Roe v Wade. MPR’s Tim Nelson and Matt Sepic gathered some of it : "I think it's wonderful, really exciting. Very hopeful that things will, you know, turn around now and life will be respected," said Kathleen Worlickey of Hinckley, leading the recitation of the rosary Tuesday morning in front of the We Health Clinic in downtown Duluth. It's one of a handful of abortion providers in Minnesota, and the usual Tuesday gathering of a few abortion rights opponents there had a new buoyancy. Meanwhile, Planned Parenthood North Central States President and CEO Sarah Stoesz said her organization has "been preparing for what has seemed like this eventuality for some time…” “We have been fortifying our delivery system so that we are ready, we have been expanding access every place that we are able,” Stoesz said. “We're going to see you until we absolutely cannot because abortion is safe. It's still legal everywhere. And Planned Parenthood is here for you and we are here to stay," said Dr. Sarah Traxler, the group's chief medical officer. Hundreds of abortion rights supporters gathered outside the federal courthouse in downtown Minneapolis on Tuesday evening.
MPR’s Brian Bakst reports on the political implications of the likely decision. Right now, a political divide at the Minnesota Capitol – with a DFL governor and House and a Republican Senate – has stopped any new abortion restrictions. Gov. Tim Walz said Tuesday he won’t budge on that, and that it would be up to voters to decide if that’s the stance they want their governor to take. “I am very clear about this: That the decisions in November will have huge repercussions for generations to come on women's health, safety and personal health care choices,” Walz said. “So we're focused on it.” Walz is on the ballot in November. So are all 201 seats that will determine legislative control come January. Walz’s potential Republican opponents are on record saying they’ll go a different direction. “I would try to ban abortion. I think that we’re basically in a situation where we should be governed by pro-life. There is no reason for us to be having abortions going on,” said Scott Jensen, a doctor and former state senator, in an interview with MPR News in March. A state Supreme Court ruling that picks away at the Doe v Gomez decision doesn’t appear imminent, given that five of seven Minnesota Supreme Court justices were appointed by Democratic governors. Sen. Michelle Benson, R-Ham Lake, who has sponsored many bills to restrict abortion but who isn’t running for a new term, said the makeup of the state's high court inherently would slow down any dramatic abortion shift in Minnesota. “But I think Minnesotans across the board want us to reach consensus, support mothers and protect unborn babies,” Benson said.
And as an aside, Michelle Benson said Tuesday she will not be a candidate for lieutenant governor. Benson, who ended her own GOP campaign for governor last week, said she still isn’t backing another candidate. She did not say whether she would be interested in being human services commissioner under a Republican governor.
The new U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger is reorganizing his office to focus on violent crime. Matt Sepic reports Luger said Tuesday that in cooperation with multiple law enforcement agencies, all suspected carjackers in Minnesota 18 and older will now face federal charges that carry long prison sentences. "We're hoping that this warning and this activity causes people to stop. Because up until now, the federal government hasn't weighed in fully," Luger said. Carjacking has risen sharply in recent years in major metropolitan areas, including the Twin Cities. Luger said that all 42 assistant U.S. attorneys in the criminal division of his office will spend at least some of their time prosecuting crimes of violence. Attorneys are usually assigned to either violent crime, economic crime, public corruption or organized crime and narcotics. Luger added that he hopes to hire an additional five to eight new prosecutors.
MPR’s Dan Kraker reportsthe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommended against reissuing a key permit for the proposed PolyMet copper-nickel mine , saying the project risked increasing levels of mercury and other pollutants in the St. Louis River downstream from the proposed mine. While only a recommendation, the move could deal a potentially severe blow to the controversial $1 billion mine proposed near the northeastern Minnesota towns of Babbitt and Hoyt Lakes, if the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers follows the advice of the EPA and decides not to reinstate the “Section 404” wetlands permit, one of several key approvals PolyMet needs to begin construction. The EPA announced its position early in a three-day hearing taking place in Carlton, Minn., this week where the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is hearing testimony to determine whether the proposed PolyMet copper-nickel mine would violate the water quality standards of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, whose reservation lies downstream of the proposed project.
The Associated Press reportsDemocratic lawmakers in more than a dozen states are following California’s lead in seeking to offer legal refuge to displaced transgender youth and their families. The coordinated effort being announced Tuesday by the LGBTQ Victory Institute and other advocates comes in response to recent actions taken in conservative states. To combat such moves, lawmakers in both Minnesota and New York recently filed refuge state legislation modeled after the bill proposed in March by state Sen. Scott Wiener in California. Democrats in 16 other states plan to follow suit, though about half of their legislatures are out of session or not currently accepting new bills. “We’re sick of just playing defense against what these red states are doing,” Wiener said in an interview Monday. “We’re going on offense, we’re going to protect LGBQT kids and their families and we’re going to build a rainbow wall to protect our community.” | 