Good morning. Your Tuesday Digest starts with a look way back. 1. How one old, discarded policy still shapes lives. In the summer of 1964, Charlotte and Clyde Day and six of their children boarded a train in northern Minnesota bound for Cleveland. Except for Clyde, none of them had been on a train before. They'd never been to a big city, either. The idea to move had come from a Bureau of Indian Affairs officer, who told Clyde that a better life awaited him and his family in Cleveland. There were good jobs, good schools, and even many people from his own tribe, the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe, living there. Clyde took the offer home to his family. "And so when it was posed to all of us that way, of course we all said yes, that we wanted to go," Sharon said. The Days were among around 100,000 Native Americans to experience one of the most recent and little-known traumas inflicted on Native peoples by the U.S. government, what the BIA called the Voluntary Relocation Program. Between 1952 and 1972, it provided one-way transportation and a couple hundred dollars to Native Americans willing to move to a city. One BIA commissioner would later call the program "an underfunded, ill-conceived program ... essentially a one-way ticket from rural to urban poverty." MPR News 2. Another option for GOP primary voters. Minnesota Republican voters who want a 2020 nominee other than President Trump will be able to cast a write-in vote on the March primary ballot. State Party Chair Jennifer Carnahan said Monday that paperwork will be filed with the Secretary of State allowing for write-ins. A party filing last month made clear that Trump would be the only named candidate on the primary ballot. The decision to exclude other candidates drew rebukes, including from some elected Republicans. Carnahan said authorization to allow write-ins will come by a Dec. 31 deadline. MPR News 3. Republicans hope to use urban crime issue to their advantage. Republicans do not hold any of the legislative seats in either Minneapolis or St. Paul and haven’t for a long time, but that hasn’t stopped them from weighing in on crime in the cities. Some urban Democrats contend their concern is more about 2020 politics than crime fighting. Republican House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt of Zimmerman said he’s concerned because his constituents are. “People want to be able to visit a Twins game or a Vikings game,” said Daudt, “and they want to feel safe while they’re there, not worrying about being attacked or mugged in broad daylight right in front of the Twin stadium. These are things that scare people.” Republican Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka of Nisswa said he, too, is troubled by a rash of recent shootings and violent assaults. It’s time to get tough on urban crime because it’s a problem for the entire state, he said. “I think Minneapolis and St. Paul should really think about the number of police that they have available. A big part of that is at their decision level, but I’m asking our folks to explore what are our options,” Gazelka said. “I just don’t think it’s OK, the trend where it’s going. One of the clear ways to stop that is to have adequate police.” MPR News 4. Waiting for the Line 3 boom. Boom times, brought on by construction of a new oil pipeline, are potentially right around the corner in Thief River Falls. But exactly when isn’t yet clear. Construction on Enbridge Energy’s Line 3 pipeline, which will cut through northern Minnesota near the city, has been tangled in controversy and regulatory processes for years — pitting concerns about Native American sovereignty and the environment against developers and local communities hopeful for economic stimulus. This past summer, a court battle left unresolved questions regarding potential oil spills in Lake Superior, and Minnesota regulators asked the state Commerce Department to take a closer look and report back before the end of November. It’s a step closer to a resolution. “I think everybody’s just waiting to see what they’re going to do and OK the permits,” said Thief River Falls City Council member Curtis Howe. “I think it’s just a matter of time and it’s going to happen. I think it’s going to be a great impact for us.” Forum News Service
5. Haulers’ beef complicates carcass removal. Officials at the Department of Natural Resources are scrambling to find a way to move thousands of deer carcasses, after a trash hauler suddenly refused to handle them just days before the opening of rifle season. The disposal plan is part of a state effort to curtail the spread of chronic wasting disease that has been challenging from the start. Last week, Waste Management, the largest trash disposal company in the U.S., made the problem worse when it said because of concerns about liability it would not collect dumpsters placed around the state for deer hunters to dispose of carcasses. The DNR is getting little sympathy from local trash haulers, who say the newest setback is the state’s own fault. “This is what they deserve,” said David MacArthur, manager of Garrison Disposal in Crow Wing County. You need to understand a little bit of trash hauling history to understand why haulers like MacArthur are upset. MPR News
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