The Morning Report 8/8/08 - Daily Minnesota Political Stories

Top Story: Obama surprises supporters with visit in St. Paul.

Agriculture:

• Minnesota farmers need rain, Minnesota News Network

Best of the Blogs and Think Tank Thoughts:

• Ground Control to Major Walz…, True North
• Follow the bouncing ball: MN AG’s gone wild redux, Wright County Republican
• H.R. 6709 gains 119 co-sponsors; three from Minnesota, Bluestem Prairie
• At 47, tall and runner-thin, Mr. Pawlenty is the same age as Senator Barack Obama, Shot in the Dark
• Watching out for welfare cheats, volume eleventy thousand, mnpACT!
• Franken gets a boost from Klobuchar, The Political Animal
• St. Paul’s RNC security budget contains “black budget” redactions, Minnesota Independent
• The Early Word: Clintons at the Convention, The Caucus - NYTimes

Business/Economy:

• Retail reports: A mixed bag, Star Tribune
• Verizon completes buyout of Rural Cellular, Star Tribune
• Minnesotans have 12th highest tax burden, Pioneer Press
• Northwest writes off investment in Midwest Airlines, MPR
  
• Twin Cities wound care company raises $30 million, Pioneer Press
• Twin Cities sees uptick in income growth in 2007, Pioneer Press
• MN-based Target, Wisc.-based Kohl’s sales decline as school shopping weakens, Dolan Media Newswires
• ATK Q1 rises 10%; outlook also grows, MSP Business Journal
  
• Ammunition sales spur Alliant profit, Star Tribune
• Dolan Media revenues up, Finance and Commerce
  
• For apartments, it’s a landlord’s market in Twin Cities, Pioneer Press
  

Campaigns-Senate:

• Coleman and Franken on Iraq: Everything you need to know, MinnPost
• Franken speaks in Rochester about guaranteeing lifetime health care for vets, Rochester Post-Bulletin
• Franken visits Northside homeowners facing foreclosure, MN Spokesman-Recorder
  

Campaigns:

• Obama in St. Paul: Silk stockings, buttermilk pancakes, Star Tribune
• Obama greets breakfast crowd at St. Paul restaurant, MPR
• Inside the Obama fundraiser (well, part of it, anyway), MinnPost
• After shake-up, McCain ground game revs up, Politico. MN one of 19 targeted states.

Congress-House:

• The Freshman Class, Minnesota Law and Politics

Crime/Police:

• Minneapolis charter school head is suspect in money theft, Star Tribune

Education:

• Willmar to enforce ‘no shots, no school law’ in the fall, West Central Tribune

Environment:

• Rep. Peterson pleased with EPA’s ethanol decision, Minnesota News Network
• EPA to announce decision on ethanol mandate, MPR

Government-Local:

• New Brighton: Space for rent, close to municipal services, Star Tribune

Legislature:

• Too much welfare spent out of state?, Pioneer Press
• Lawmaker questions use of welfare outside Minnesota, MPR
• Tight budget brings new focus on state trust land, AP
  

Opinion-Commentary:

• Barb Sykora: A new kind of politics? Not from Obama, Star Tribune

Opinion-Editorial:

• Editorial: Economic downturn takes a toll on teens, Star Tribune
• Editorial: On RNC-GPS, a veep among us, Rep. Joe’s latest and more, Pioneer Press
• Editorial: Light-rail proposal is on the right track, Rochester Post-Bulletin
• Editorial: NCLB will soon fail all schools, Bemidji Pioneer
  

Other States:

• ACLU won’t appeal ruling on security restrictions for Democratic convention in Denver, AP

Pawlenty:

• Minnesota governor looks to national stage, New York Times
• Pawlenty says he likes Paris Hilton’s way of thinking, Star Tribune

Public Health/Safety:

• 35W bridge workers fired after beating, Star Tribune
• Franco found guilty in Cottonwood bus crash that killed four, injured 17, Pioneer Press
• Verdict in bus crash won’t fade deep scar, Star Tribune
• Jurors talk about Franco del Cid case, KSTP
  

Republican National Convention:

• Ross Raihala: Take your pick of the hot concerts during RNC week, Pioneer Press
• Residents of Rochester area plan to protest at Republican National Convention, Rochester Post-Bulletin
  
• Showing GOP visitors cities’ best face is Stirtz’s goal, Star Tribune
• St. Paul installs security cameras in time for the RNC, KSTP
  
• The Charlie Daniels Band to headline RNC bash, Pioneer Press
• The view outside the Xcel, News Cut - MPR
• RNC organizers boast locally supported event, MPR
  

St. Paul/Minneapolis:

• Democratic Convention slows down Minneapolis City Hall, Star Tribune
• Do Minneapolis neighborhoods feel a drop in crime?, MPR

Transportation:

• Minnesota gets serious about alternative pavements, Rochester Post-Bulletin

Z-File: Irresistible Stories Beyond the Purview of PIM

• Frank Lloyd Wright gas station still draws a crowd, AP
• Minnesota police follow trail of Cheetos to nab teens suspected of burglarizing vending machine, AP
• Wikipedians leave cyberspace, meet in Egypt, Wall Street Journal