Capitol View for October 13

Hello, and happy Thursday.

On Friday, Republican Jim Schultz and DFL Attorney General Keith Ellison are set to debate for the first time in a conversation hosted by MPR News.MPR’s Dana Ferguson has a look at the race: Schultz has staked his bid on a message of boosting public safety in Minnesota, arguing that Ellison hasn’t done enough to keep people safe. In a series of television ads, news conferences and visits with law enforcement groups, Schultz has tried to hammer his message home. “What I call these past few years is a man-made disaster, because it didn't have to be this way, we could have embraced sensible policies that address the extraordinary crime that is crippling communities, taking lives, damaging lives,” Schultz said. So far, the efforts to campaign as tough on crime have helped Schultz attract endorsements from county sheriffs and public safety organizations, as well as labor unions. Ellison said he has a strong track record in criminal cases, while Schultz has never argued a case in court. “He's literally promising to stop crime in Minnesota when he does not, as the Attorney General, have the legal authority to do so. It is a total bait and switch,” Ellison told a crowd last week at Northrop Auditorium. “But I'll tell you one thing, counties do call on us to prosecute violent crime. And we do, (we’ve) never lost a case.”

The candidates in Minnesota’s 2nd District are scheduled to debate this morning. As the campaign heads into the final month. DFL incumbent Angie Craig is talking a lot about abortion while her Republican opponent Tyler Kistner is stressing the economy. MPR’s Mark Zdechlik has a look: “Congressional Republicans -- believe it when they tell you who they are and what they will do if they take back the House majority,” Craig said to a group of supporters in Woodbury recently as they prepared to knock on voters' doors. “They are going to ban abortion in our nation, and that effects Minnesota,” Craig said. “They are going to do everything they can, everything in their power to make sure that women and families and the people who support women do not have access to reproductive rights in our country." Kistner insists Craig and other Democrats are trying to mislead voters about his stance on abortion. “My position has been clear. For the last 10 interviews and the last 10 times, I'm pro-life with the exceptions of rape, incest, life of the mother, but the decision should be left at the state level,” Kistner said. “I'd like to get Congresswoman Craig's stance because she's voted twice to allow abortion up to birth.”

Minnesota civic and political leaders ushered an international delegation around the Twin Cities this week, hoping to bolster Bloomington’s chance of landing a 2027 world expo after billing the region as battle-tested in major events.MPR’s Brian Bakst reports it would be centered on a site near the Mall of America, where renderings show swooping architecture amid trees, flower gardens and water features. Argentina, Thailand, Serbia and Spain are the other countries angling to hold the expo that could draw millions to the host city. Japan is hosting the 2025 World Expo. “We know that Minnesota can do big things. We did the Super Bowl, and that was in the middle of the winter. We have hosted major, major national championships and major conventions,” said Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who was among the tour guides and has been working toward the venture for years. If picked, planners expect the more than $2 billion cost to be borne largely through ticket sales, corporate sponsorships and other private investment. But they haven’t ruled out seeking some kind of public financial support.

A federal magistrate says a former Minneapolis Republican donor has not made the case that the government is unfairly prosecuting him on child sex trafficking charges. The Star Tribune reports: Anton Lazzaro, who has been held in the Sherburne County jail since August 2021, has argued for the dismissal of his indictment based on allegations that investigators illegally listened to calls between him and his attorneys. He also claimed that he was singled out for "selective and vindictive prosecution" because of his political views, wealth and intimate partner choices. In a 22-page report and recommendation filed Wednesday, U.S. Magistrate Judge David Schultz wrote that Lazzaro's requests should be denied because he did not adequately prove his claims. "The evidence Lazzaro has provided, even taken as a whole, is insufficient to prove selective or vindictive prosecution," Schultz wrote. "For his selective prosecution claim, Lazzaro has not provided adequate evidence of comparators or improper motive. If a vindictive prosecution claim can apply to these facts at all, Lazzaro's evidence is too thin to prove that claim." Schultz's report next goes to Chief U.S. District Judge Patrick Schiltz, who is overseeing the case and will make a final ruling on Lazzaro's motions.

A group representing more than 9,000 Minneapolis Realtors apologized Wednesday for its role in creating racial disparities in housing. The Pioneer Press reports: Along with reading the apology at a news conference, the Minneapolis Area Realtors association also announced policy changes to help prevent further discrimination. The 2022 president of the association, Denise Mazone, read the written apology drafted by a task force. She was introduced as the first black president in the organization’s 135-year history. “To be specific, we must acknowledge and apologize for the hand the Minneapolis Area Realtors Association had in creating one of the most significant racial disparities in housing gaps in the nation — particularly for Black Minnesotans,” Mazone said. The association set up a system “to effectively lock folks out of opportunity based on race, for generations. Decades later, that system works largely as intended, and we are ashamed of our part in it. We were on the wrong side of history,” she said.

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