GOP warns St. Cloud college chapter about Bradlee Dean appearance

Or at the very least, hold him to a brief prayer … The state GOP is admonishing/warning St. Cloud college Republicans not to let Bradlee Dean near one of their microphones. Says the Strib’s Rachel Stassen-Berger: “Top state Republicans sent St. Cloud State College Republicans a message: Allow firebrand preacher Bradlee Dean to speak and you may not get Republican jobs in the future. ‘Sometimes young people need to have better judgment in who they invite to things under the Republican banner,’ said Minnesota Republican Party chair Pat Shortridge. ‘If you are going to do dumb things, and not take the advice of the state college Republicans and the state chairman of the Republican party, it might have some consequences.’ Despite … being told they would no longer be a state chapter if they allowed Dean to speak,  St. Cloud State College Republicans College plan to go ahead with the event. The event, an evening concert and ‘open-mic,’ is planned for Tuesday night.” Officially, the party prefers the kids stick to traditional party issues — job creation, fiscal prudence and moral propriety.

Well, I guess we can’t call them The Do-Nothings any longer. Jim Ragsdale of the Strib reports: “The Minnesota House voted Monday to allow Minnesotans to buy and use more powerful aerial fireworks, but only during a five-week fireworks window in June and early July. The House voted 77-50 to approve the bill, which allows skyrockets, firecrackers and multiple-tube devices, but only from June 1 to July 5 every year. The House bill also allows some local regulations that could restrict but not prohibit fireworks use. Both changes were attempts by the House sponsor, Rep. John Kriesel, R-Cottage Grove, to meet concerns from local governments about the bill. It must now go back to the Senate, which passed a slightly different version. It then must go to Gov. Mark Dayton, who has not said whether he will sign the bill.”

The Strib puts on its cock-eyed optimist mask and editorializes: “The rough outline of a bipartisan bargain that would provide a positive finish to the 2012 legislative session has been obvious for weeks. It would give DFL Gov. Mark Dayton the substantial bonding bill he seeks in exchange for his signature on business tax relief measures the Republican-controlled Legislature wants. That deal, plus authorization for a new Minnesota Vikings stadium, would represent significant accomplishment. But at Minnesota’s chronically fractious state house in a highly uncertain election year, what’s obvious can also be frustratingly elusive. … Like it or not, Republican legislators face limited choices. They can either strike a deal with Dayton, or walk away and face the accusation this fall that they turned in a ‘do-nothing’ performance. Republican partisans may consider those choices equally distasteful.” But … they were elected to “do nothing.”

Sanford Medical has announced construction of the biggest hospital in North Dakota. Janet Moore at the Strib writes: “The new medical center [in Fargo] will be the biggest hospital in North Dakota, once completed in 2016. It will feature nine stories with 460 in-patient beds, 32 operating rooms, 12 IR/Cath labs and a 51-bay emergency department. A heliport, 200-000-square-foot clinic and support spaces are part of the project, as well.” Yet another reason to get sick in North Dakota.

At the Amy Senser trial, David Hanners of the PiPress reports: “Fearful she was becoming the prime suspect in a fatal hit-and-run, Amy Senser’s oldest stepdaughter — a budding music star — threatened to go to police if her mother didn’t come clean about who had been driving, a prosecutor told jurors. In her opening statement Monday … in the trial of Senser, Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Deborah Russell said stepdaughter Brittani Senser had seen reports that a witness saw a woman with flowing blond hair near the scene of the Aug. 23 crash. Brittani Senser, 28, called her mother’s defense lawyer, Eric Nelson, ‘and told him, “You tell the State Patrol who the driver is or I will,” ‘ Russell told jurors. … Russell told jurors that although Nelson had called the State Patrol nearly 24 hours after the crash to say the vehicle they were searching for was in the Sensers’ garage, Amy and Joe Senser wouldn’t say who was driving. That apparently sparked the concern of Brittani Senser …  who made it to the finals of MTV’s ‘Making the Band.’ … The music video of her song ‘After Love’ stars Levi Johnston, the father of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s grandchild.” Don’t let the jury find out about that.

Tax increase! Call Grover Norquist. The AP says: “The Minnesota Senate has voted to raise fees for hunting and fishing licenses. The Senate approved the hike 43-22 as an amendment to a larger policy bill Monday … Debate on the full bill is still under way. If it passes, it will go back to the House, which passed it earlier without the fee increases. Under the bill, a one-year fishing license for an adult resident would go from $17 to $22. A deer hunting license for residents would be bumped from $26 to $30. … The fees have not been raised since 2001.”

Oh, good lord … Elizabeth Baier at MPR covers the latest from the Catholic Church: “Centro Campesino, the southern Minnesota organization that helps migrant workers, is among a handful of nonprofits across the country that have lost funding from a branch of the U.S. Conference of Bishops because they are at odds with Catholic Church’s position on birth control. Centro Campesino started distributing free condoms at its Owatonna office in 2009, after the group received a three-year HIV Prevention grant from the Minnesota Department of Health. But the requirements of that grant conflicted with those of another grant from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, which requires recipients to follow church teachings against contraception. When campaign officials learned of the condom distribution program they stopped payment on $17,500 awarded to Centro Campesino, or half of its entire grant.”

Score one for the working stiffs. Martin Moylan’s MPR story says: “An administrative law judge said the owner of ten Twin Cities Jimmy John’s sandwich shops violated labor laws by firing six workers and disciplining three others. The judge recommends the fired workers should get their jobs back, along with back pay. He said disciplinary warnings should also be rescinded. The workers were engaged in a union effort last year to pressure the shops’ owner into granting paid sick days. Last week’s order came in response to a complaint from the National Labor Relations Board. The NLRB will automatically enforce the judge’s recommendation unless it hears objections from the sandwich shop owner or employees.”

Funny post by “Spot’ at the liberal Cucking Stool blog. It’s purportedly about GOP Rep. Keith Downey, but the best stuff is about GOP Rep. Kurt Bills and his aspirations for Amy Klobuchar’s job: “Bills is a freshman representative in the Minnesota House who after one — now nearly two! — terms thinks he ought to be a U.S. Senator. And boy, what spooky fun that would be. … Downey is on the list of deep thinkers in the Lege who are supporting Bills. … Bills has a shot at the nomination because of all of the Ron Paul/Tea Party types who have infiltrated the Republican party. Unseating Amy Klobuchar will be another matter. This is a post about Keith Downey, not Kurt Bills, at least directly. But you’re known by the company you keep. And here’s where it takes a real crackpot turn. Bills wants gold and silver coins as a medium of exchange — legal tender. But that isn’t even the best part. He wants the state to consider printing its own money. Seriously? Come on, you say; nobody wants to do that. But Kurt Bills does; just read HF 1654 if you don’t believe me.” I’ll pay to have my picture on the C-note.