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9-11, 20 years later

It has been 20 years since a double handful of terrorists, 19 in all, carried out the most vicious and cruel attack on America that we have ever seen. They hijacked four jetliners and turned them into weapons, caring nothing for the lives of those on board. Two planes crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York. One crashed into the Pentagon. The fourth, heading back to Washington, was crashed into a Pennsylvania farm field when the passengers on board heroically rose up to take back the plane. That prevented it from destroying its intended target. Whether it was ...

Biden taking gloves off in COVID battle

President Joe Biden is taking a much more aggressive stance in the battle against COVID-19. Thursday, he announced a sweeping new plan to require more people to get vaccinated. Using the government’s power to dictate safety and health measures in the workplace, the new rules mandate that all employers with 100 or more workers require them to be vaccinated. Workers at health care facilities that receive federal Medicare or Medicaid payments will also have to be fully vaccinated. Biden is also mandating that all federal employees of the executive branch must be vaccinated, along ...

How will Minneapolis pull off police change?

Minneapolis voters have a big question on their ballot this fall. Do they want to keep the Minneapolis Police Department which is deeply unpopular with the people it is supposed to be protecting and serving, or do they want to start over with the new Department of Public Safety that could include police officers, but will emphasize other approaches to keeping people safe? Let’s assume voters approve the new Minneapolis DPS. Who is going to come up with the organization and plan? According to the ballot question, the Minneapolis City Council will have more direct control of the ...

Suing for a mask mandate

Has Minnesota’s health policy become politicized? Apparently, yes. Last year Gov. Tim Walz asked for and received approval for emergency powers that allowed him to issue rules to slow the spread of COVID-19 infections in the state. They were widespread and very impactful. Restaurants, bars and health clubs were ordered to close. People were told to work from home where possible. People were ordered to wear masks in public places, including schools. The state had all kinds of directives for spacing and sanitizing in schools, and for when schools had to go to distance ...

Capitol security may never be the same

Nobody likes the idea of our nation’s Capitol or our state capitols surrounded by chain link fences and barricades. These are the “people’s houses,” where the representative they elect go to enact laws. People should have access to do what the first amendment says they have the right to do — “peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for redress of grievances.” But in recent years, as the George Floyd demonstrations and ultimately the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol have shown, a lot of demonstrators are not looking to peaceably assemble. Those who do are ...

Capitol security may never be the same

Nobody likes the idea of our nation’s Capitol or our state capitols surrounded by chain link fences and barricades. These are the “people’s houses,” where the representative they elect go to enact laws. People should have access to do what the first amendment says they have the right to do — “peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for redress of grievances.” But in recent years, as the George Floyd demonstrations and ultimately the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol have shown, a lot of demonstrators are not looking to peaceably assemble. Those who do are ...