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Looking ahead to lifting restrictions

The Republicans in the Minnesota Legislature have been very strident and demanding about lifting the restrictions Gov. Tim Walz has imposed on the state’s businesses to curb the spread of COVID-19. They have tried, month after month since last June, to strip the governor of his emergency powers and force him to bring them in on the decision. Due to the DFL majority in the House, they have failed each time. This week House Republicans have taken a little different approach. They are looking at the falling number of new cases and the rising vaccination numbers and want to plan ahead ...

St. Louis Post-Dispatch on compensating mothers in next pandemic rescue package:

Around 50 national personalities signed on to a recent ad campaign urging President Joe Biden to reconsider the design of his $1.9 trillion pandemic rescue package. They justifiably want him and Congress to take into account the fact that 2 million mothers have been removed from the workforce through no fault of their own during the pandemic. The simple fact is, someone had to stay home with the kids when they couldn’t go to school, and women appear to have drawn the short straw in far greater proportions than men. Many of the job-displaced women had promising careers. Their upward ...

State can’t afford not to be ready for Chauvin trial

Minnesota is facing a potential powder keg next month when the trial of ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin starts. Chauvin is charged in the death of George Floyd, the incident that sparked nationwide rage over perceived police brutality against Blacks. Chauvin knelt on the neck of a handcuffed Floyd for nearly eight minutes, after which Floyd died. Minneapolis was racked by demonstrations that quickly turned to riots. Minneapolis police were overwhelmed, until the Minnesota National Guard was belatedly called out. The trial of Chauvin will draw the same kind of attention, ...

Debating legalized marijuana won’t hurt

The question of legalizing recreational marijuana in Minnesota was reintroduced in the Legislature this week. House Democrats are pushing the legislation to legalize marijuana, to expunge minor marijuana convictions. It would, they say, create a fair, regulated marketplace for marijuana and “address the deep inequities in our criminal justice system,” according to House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler of Golden Valley. There is little chance of this measure making it through the Republican-controlled Senate, however. That’s fine with us. Marijuana may not pose the same dangers as ...

Vaccination numbers rise as COVID cases decline

We are beginning to see progress in the battle against COVID-19. We don’t know if this statistic, reported Tuesday, is meaningful, but it is heartening — Minnesota now has nearly as many people who have at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine than it has recorded cases of the virus. That’s 447,610 vaccinations to 463,132 cases of COVID-19. And it shouldn’t be long before vaccinations surpass cases. The state has been recording fewer than 1,000 new cases per day for the past couple of weeks. In November the state was seeing 6,000, 7,000 and over 8,000 on Nov. 16. The number of ...

Biden should talk to GOP senators about COVID-19 aid bill

President Joe Biden is pressing to get a COVID-19 relief bill passed, and he indicated he is willing to push it through with the slim Democratic majority he has in Congress. This weekend a group of 10 Republican senators proposed he meet with them to hear about a bill, a $600 billion bill that is about a third the size of Biden’s $1.9 trillion package, but one they say will accomplish the goals Biden has for vaccines, testing, treatment and protective equipment, but which targets stimulus aid to those most in need, rather that sending nearly everyone a $1,400 check. The 10 ...