Minnesota
How Will Pawlenty’s Unallotment Impact State’s Higher Ed Ranking?
When Governor Tim Pawlenty proposed a collective unallotment of $100 million to the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MNSCU) system on Tuesday, higher education officials breathed a short sigh of relief. After the end of…
Read MoreWhy Michele Bachmann’s Political Ideology Is the Boldest Among U.S. House Republicans
Continuing to serve as a lightning rod for the political left in the Gopher State, the month of June has seen Representative Michele Bachmann maintain her remarkably high profile among not only the Minnesota Congressional delegation, but also nationally…
Read MoreMinneapolis Index Crime Rate Falls 18 Percent from April 2008
The Minneapolis Police Department’s official Uniform Crime Report data for April 2009 finds crime in Minnesota’s largest city down 18 percent from one year ago. The 18 percent 12-month drop is the largest in the city dating back more than…
Read MoreMinnesota, Western States Lead Nation in Male Population; Vote for GOP Governors
In one of the quirkier statistical findings reported by this blog, a new Smart Politics analysis of Census Bureau data finds that all twelve states in the country in which the male population is equal to or greater than that…
Read MoreHow Do We Judge Governor Pawlenty’s Political Legacy?
As Tim Pawlenty completes the remaining 18+ months of his second term, before venturing into (politically or financially) greener pastures, he has vowed to “Continue to spend every day doing what’s right for them. Minnesota will get my very best…
Read MoreDoes Marty Seifert Represent a ‘Swing District?’
GOPer Marty Seifert (21A-Marshall) announced yesterday that he would be stepping down as Minority Leader of the House of Representatives on June 24th, explaining he did not think it was appropriate to represent his caucus while contemplating a new position…
Read MoreFrom T-Paw to J-Ram: Is Jim Ramstad the GOP’s Answer in 2010?
Tim Pawlenty’s decision Tuesday not to seek an unprecedented third 4-year term as Governor of the Gopher State not only emboldened the candidacies of the long list of DFLers already on the campaign trail, but also raised the issue as…
Read MoreMinnesota and Upper Midwest Being Spared the Worst of US Job Loss Crisis
While Minnesota and the rest of the Upper Midwestern states are still in the midst of enduring some of the largest unemployment rates each has endured for many years, most of the region is historically doing quite well on the…
Read MoreIs Conservatism on the Rise in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest?
While the last two election cycles have seen Upper Midwestern Republicans lose seats in state legislatures, lose seats to the U.S. House, and lose statewide elections for the U.S. Senate and the presidency, the conservative brand seems to be catching…
Read MorePro-Life Stance on the Rise in Minnesota, Upper Midwest
A Gallup Poll released last Friday made headlines for its finding that a majority of Americans now identify themselves as “pro-life” as opposed to “pro-choice” on the issue of abortion, marking the first time that “pro-life” has been in…
Read More