I guess it’s a strategy … At Politico, Dylan Beyers writes: “Minnesota Sen. Al Franken [Tuesday] reiterated that he only talks to local Minnesota press. Onboard Air Force One with President Obama … Sen. Franken was asked if he supports Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s assault weapons ban. According to White House pool reporter Phil Rucker, of the Washington Post, the Senator responded by saying that he did not talk to national reporters. ‘You can talk to my press secretary. I do Minnesota press on virtually — only,’ Franken said. ‘But I think if you’ll check, you can see that I’m a co-sponsor.’ The Senator's press secretary did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the policy, and his Washington office was closed. Slate's Dave Weigel cited Franken's media strategy in a post last month, noting that ‘non-Minnesota reporters politely let him walk by as he leaves Senate meetings.'" Now where would Michele Bachmann be if she only talked to Minnesota press?
The AP says:“A Minnesota police officer killed in the line of duty could soon be remembered with a stretch of highway named in his honor. A state House committee planned today to consider a bill to designate portions of Highway 23 in central Minnesota the ‘Officer Tom Decker Memorial Highway.’ Signs would be put along the part of the highway leading from Wakefield township to the city of Richmond.”
A few days ago, it was a guy from Florida. Now … Wisconsin?Baird Helgeson of the Strib writes: “A Wisconsin legislator is trying to lure Minnesota businesses across the border as state legislators debate Gov. Mark Dayton’s budget proposal that would raise taxes for many companies. ‘I believe it is important to outline the options for businesses in Minnesota by letting them know that here in Wisconsin we value job creators,’ said Wisconsin Rep. Erik Severson, R-Osceola. ‘Governor Dayton’s budget proposal, especially his tax on business-to-business transactions, will put a stress on businesses and reveal that Wisconsin is a better place to do business.’”
Speaking of our neighbors … Mike Creger of the Duluth News Tribune reports: “Sen. Roger Reinert of Duluth introduced a bill Monday that would allow licensed retailers to sell wine, beer and liquor on Sundays, Thanksgiving and Christmas. But he said the bill doesn’t have much chance of passage, or even a hearing, unless Minnesotans get engaged in the Sunday liquor sales issue.” … After all, it is an issue on which our good Cheesehead friends are fully engaged.
Squishing the missus with a totem pole gets you … 15 years.The AP says:“A northern Minnesota man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison in the death of his wife who was crushed by a totem pole. Carl Muggli faced a possible life sentence if he had been convicted of first-degree murder. But, he pleaded guilty to unintentional second-degree murder of his wife, Linda, in an agreement with prosecutors. The 51-year-old Muggli admitted he was arguing with his wife about his Internet romance just before she was pinned under the totem pole the two were carving at their home in Ray.”
I’m sure Tiger will help speed her recovery.Andrew Dampf of the AP says: “Lindsey Vonn will miss the rest of the ski season after tearing ligaments in her right knee and breaking a bone in her leg in a high-speed crash Tuesday at the world championships. Vonn lost balance on her right leg while landing a jump in the super-G, flipped over in the air and landed on her back as she smashed through a gate before coming to a halt. Although she will miss the rest of this season, the U.S. ski team said the 28-year-old Vonn is expected to return in time for the 2014 Sochi Olympics. … ‘Vonn suffered a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) and MCL (medial collateral ligament) in her right knee and a lateral tibial plateau fracture,’ U.S. Ski Team medical director Kyle Wilkens said in a statement.” And that is why I stick to XC skiing.
This is why you don’t do creative by committee …Thomas Lee of the Strib writes:“Best Buy Co. Inc.’s Super Bowl ad featured a whole lot of Amy Poehler. Problem was, there was not nearly enough of Best Buy. ... And while Poehler made the most of her appearance, advertising experts say the ‘Saturday Night Live’ and ‘Parks and Recreation’ comedian failed to show what Best Buy does best: Woo shoppers with its product expertise.‘If you are going to spend $4 million on a Super Bowl ad, you need to get customers excited about your products and services,’ said Bill Day, executive director of Frank N. Magid Associates.” Yeah, what the Super Bowl audience wants to know is the number of HDMI ports in that Insigna flat-screen.
The guy cross-dressing in Somali female garb? A St. Paul cop. Mara Gottfried follows her PiPress story from Monday, saying: “The photo is of a man wearing a red head and body covering that some Muslim women wear, with a Target nametag on the chest. It was posted 10 weeks ago by the Instagram user michaelhart1997. The account, which says it is owned by Michael Hart of Minneapolis, was private as of Monday. Another screen grab Taddese posted included a caption from michaelhart1997, ‘Officer Rob Buth sporting his #halloween costume for #throwbackthursday’ A St. Paul officer named Robert Buth is assigned to the K-9 unit, but police spokesman Howie Padilla said he could not say whether he is the man in the photo.”