Don Shelby: ‘I would be a terrible congressman’

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Kevin Diaz of the Strib got some quotes out of Don Shelby about that 3rd District congressional race. “In a belated email to the Star Tribune after a visit to the dentist, Shelby said he is ‘flattered’ to be approached, but added he is ‘still a reporter.’ He also expressed some reluctance at being defined as a Democrat, which could be a prerequisite of challenging GOP Rep. Erik Paulsen in the Third District in the western suburbs of Minneapolis. In his own words: ‘I’m flattered I would be approached, but truth is, I’m not much of a partisan and my politics, for what they are, are a little goofy. I would be a terrible congressman. I would rat out every special interest hack and poser. Still a reporter. Therefore, I would be relegated to some form of quarantine.’” But please … ask me some more.

Today, Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson offers her explanations for the state’s error-rate in the SNAP program. Julie Siple of MPR writes: “Unless Minnesota improves its performance, it could face financial penalties from the federal government. In the last fiscal year, Minnesota had a payment error rate of 5 percent, compared to the national average of 3.4 percent. The errors led to an estimated $30 million in overpayments to recipients, and $8 million in underpayments. … Jesson can’t explain why Minnesota’s error rate is higher than the national average, but she can say what the state is doing about it. ‘We’re working with the counties, and we started earlier this year when we saw these error rates, to implement what we call second-party reviews. And that basically is just having a second set of eyes on every SNAP application to make sure that it’s right,’ she said. ‘While the number of families on SNAP has increased, the number of county workers processing these applications hasn’t’. The state’s error rate has already fallen this fiscal year to 4.4 percent as of February because of those second-party reviews, Jesson said.”

Despite the crushing level of taxation that has driven all the job creators to South Dakota … . The AP tells us: “State officials assured legislative leaders on Thursday that Minnesota’s economy is on the upswing judging by promising jobs figures and tax collections, which will help buy off debt owed to schools and could enable the state to win a credit-rating upgrade. The officials from the Department of Minnesota Management and Budget testified that tax collections have far surpassed expectations and Minnesota is close to regaining the jobs it lost during the recession. … State Economist Tom Stinson said Minnesota could yield $500 million or more in unanticipated revenue once final calculations are made on a fiscal year that ended June 30.”

A nasty stomach bug has arrived in Minnesota. Meredith Rutland of The Wall Street Journal reports: “An outbreak of a rare stomach bug has sickened at least 285 people in 11 states, including 10 people who have been hospitalized, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday, adding it isn’t clear what sort of food is spreading it. The outbreak of cyclosporiasis, an intestinal illness caused by a parasite that is commonly linked to fresh produce, has been widening its path since two Iowa residents were flagged with the disease in June … .This time, at least 138 people have been infected in Iowa, 70 in Nebraska, 66 in Texas, three in Wisconsin, two in Georgia, and one each in Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, New Jersey and Ohio.”

Prepare yourself for pot politics … . At MPR, Tim Pugmire says: “A bipartisan group of state lawmakers aims to pass a law next year that would allow doctors to prescribe marijuana to patients with debilitating ailments. Law enforcement groups oppose making marijuana legal. But state Rep. Carly Melin, the bill’s chief sponsor in the House, said it would bring much-needed relief to some patients. There is also a Senate version of the bill. … After voters in Colorado and Washington passed ballot initiatives last year to legalize marijuana, Independence Party of Minnesota delegates decided earlier this year to add a new plank to their party platform. It calls for the legalization, taxation and regulation of marijuana.”

Talk about your neighbors from hell … . Paul Walsh of the Strib writes: “A Rochester woman admitted to a judge that for years she bilked her elderly next-door neighbors out of more than $800,000 with bogus stories of a dead daughter in Washington, D.C., an ex-husband being accused overseas of killing her sister and other fanciful tales of woe. With counsel supplied by the public defender’s office, an indigent Carolyn J. Cassar pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court in Minneapolis to wire fraud in a scheme that spanned more than six years and funded a European vacation and other travels and financed her vision of a multimillion-dollar Italian-style villa. In all, Cassar collected $840,000 in 375 transactions with the couple, who are in their 90s and who ‘despite modest education and jobs … accumulated a life savings of nearly $1 million through their diligence and frugality.’” We’re guessing the old folks were entirely on their own, with no children watching out for them?

Crisis possibly averted … . Richard Meryhew of the Strib says: “Tailgaters, take heart: The Minnesota Vikings have your back. With concerns growing over a rapidly dwindling supply of prime tailgating spots around their new downtown Minneapolis stadium for the 10,000 or so gameday tailgaters, the team has asked city officials to consider expanding the area for pre- and postgame festivities. The request, made at a meeting Thursday of the city’s Stadium Implementation Committee, comes in response to feedback from some disgruntled season-ticket holders over a $400 million office, retail and housing development near the stadium that will gobble up more than 800 premium tailgating spaces. ‘It’s a hot-button issue with our fans,’ said Lester Bagley … .” But then so are the prices for plastic, horned helmets and Helga braids.

Here’s something else no one worried about 15 years ago. Mila Kuompilova of the PiPress writes: “For years now, educators and others have tried to discourage the practice of videotaping and sharing student fights online. They say the footage fuels school conflicts, spurs bullying and fosters a flip attitude toward inflicting hurt and humiliation. Students who’ve captured the fights on camera have faced suspension, disorderly conduct citations — and lectures about the importance of digital etiquette. Still, school leaders say they might never stamp out the practice, especially at a time when many districts are rethinking strict bans on cell phones and other digital devices. … School districts across Minnesota reported 8,620 school fights last year, but officials say they come across videos of fights only infrequently.”

We didn’t know he cared …  Slate’s Matt Yglesias says the Minneapolis City Council got that no-to-Dinkytown development wrong: “[T]he last time I was in Minneapolis I had a good time hanging out at a couple of bars in Dinkytown. Dinkytown not only has a hilarious name but it’s located adjacent to the University of Minnesota and across the river from downtown Minneapolis. That’s a great location for an urban revival. Most people in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area are going to want to live in the suburbs, which is where most people live in every American metropolitan area. But a thriving urban core is a great amenity for any metro area, and a centrally-located neighborhood like Dinkytown should be at the thriving core of your thriving core. So it’s no surprise that there’s interest in doing things like building a new six-story mixed-use apartment and retail structure in Dinkytown. Sadly, though, the proposed building has been blocked by local NIMBY types.”