Good morning. May the fourth be with you.

The Minnesota Senate is due to vote today on a bill containing a set of gun proposals. The Senate is 34-33 in favor of Democrats, so all of the party’s members would need to hang together for it to clear the chamber. Republicans have not indicated support. The measures would restrict high-powered, fast-firing guns and limit ammunition clips. They gained traction after the Annunciation Catholic Church and School shooting that left two dead and injured many more last August. DFLers in the Senate have already taken votes on gun laws — background checks, revocation orders and trigger devices — since their last election so some in competitive districts will face campaign pushback regardless of how they vote on these. This vote won’t be the final word for the measures because the House, which is tied, has not advanced companion bills. 

A few months into her run for Minnesota governor, Democratic candidate Amy Klobuchar is out with her first concrete plans for what she would do if elected. The U.S. senator entered the race after DFL Gov. Tim Walz exited, but had so far said little about what might happen on her watch. Yesterday, she outlined 40-plus proposals from fighting fraud to changing public and business interactions with state government. The full roster is here in a six-page fact sheet . One Achilles' heel for Democrats this year is fraud given the cases that mounted in recent years. Klobuchar, appearing yesterday with former U.S. Attorney Andy Luger, said she won’t tolerate it. She said she would create a "do not pay" database and establish a permanent ban on anyone convicted of fraud from receiving grants and contracts. “To those convicted of fraud who rebrand under a new name or try to sneak in the side door, that door will be locked,” she said. Klobuchar’s plans met with criticism from Republicans, including one candidate she might face in the campaign. “Minnesotans know Klobuchar's record and see this for what it is — a Walz Third Term,” Lisa Demuth, the House speaker and one of the lead GOP candidates said.  

“A new paradigm” is what Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders called for over the weekend when he was in Minnesota campaigning for Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. Sanders is an independent who caucuses with Democrats; Flanagan is leaning hard into progressive stances as she campaigns for the Democratic nomination for Minnesota’s open Senate seat. This fall’s election won’t only determine party control of Congress; Democrats are also deciding how to define their party, with the more-moderate Maine governor retreating in the face of a progressive upstart Democrat in that state’s pivotal Senate race and the party’s nomination contest in Michigan also a philosophical battle. In his remarks to more than 1,300 people in Rochester, Sanders put it plainly: “What I am saying here being anti-Trump is important, but it is not enough. Trump's approval rates are plummeting. Democratic party approval is extremely low. People are looking for an alternative. People want a vision as to where we go as a nation. Status quo politics is not good enough.” Sanders lauded Minnesota residents for pushing back against ICE this year, saying that kind of fight is what is needed. “Minnesota showed the country that we can effectively fight back against Trump's authoritarianism,” he said. He also harped on consolidation of media company ownership and the way artificial intelligence is being integrated into all facets of life. “Nobody knows exactly what happens, what the timeline is,” Sanders told the Saturday evening rally. “But there are very serious economists who worry that in the next decade, we're talking about the loss of tens of millions of jobs.”

Like Sanders, Flanagan worked to frame her campaign as about defining the future of the Democratic Party. Also in attendance were Attorney General Keith Ellison and departing Sen. Tina Smith, both of whom have endorsed Flanagan in her nomination race with U.S. Rep. Angie Craig. The DFL convention will take place in Rochester later this month. Flanagan struck a similar note to Sanders in demanding that Democrats in office be firm in their convictions. “We have Democrats who think that just sending a mean tweet is how you stand up to Donald Trump. P.S. that is not it. We can't just be the lesser of two evils, and we will never, ever win by being a pale shadow of our opponents,” she said. Flanagan also highlighted her pledge to refuse corporate political action committee donations and other special interest contributions. “They're here to buy this Senate seat – Big Oil, Big Pharma, crypto, AIPAC. They're all coming into Minnesota in support of my primary opponent, which raises the question, who exactly is Angie Craig fighting for?” Craig, who entered this phase of the campaign with a significant cash advantage, has said it’s important to have ample money on hand for a tough political fight with Republicans for the Senate seat this fall. 

Data centers have emerged as an issue that crosses party lines and could animate some local elections. From the Capitol to rural Minnesota, Catharine Richert reports that concern over data centers is uniting liberals and conservatives . In Farmington, a group of residents is opposing a data center project that has been under consideration for years. But until recently, city staff were unable to share many details about the project with the public because they signed non-disclosure agreements. The mayor supports the project, arguing it will widen the city’s tax base and bring jobs. Residents are concerned about the project’s energy, water and land use and worry about light and noise pollution. They’re backing a lawsuit they hope will stop the project. "I don't normally sit down and have conversations and coffee with a bunch of Democrats,” said Farmington resident and lifelong Republican Ann Mikiska. But this fall she’s looking for candidates who will resist data centers. “It might get me to cross party lines for the first time,” Mikiska said. Legislation to curb non-disclosure agreements around development projects has bipartisan support at the Capitol and was passed in the Senate last month, but its prospects in the divided House aren’t clear.

The House Ethics Committee dropped a trio of ethics complaints after an at times contentious hearing on Friday . On a unanimous vote, the panel found that there was not probable cause to investigate cases brought against three representatives — two Republicans and a Democrat. DFL leaders filed complaints against Republican Reps. Elliott Engen and Walter Hudson, alleging they violated the public trust and dignity of the Legislature when they left a committee hearing early and were seen drinking alcohol at a St. Paul restaurant in March. “We cannot send a message to the public or to our colleagues that this is acceptable behavior,” Long said. “We need to make absolutely clear that this can't happen again without accountability.” Both lawmakers said it’s not a violation to have an alcoholic beverage with lunch and they rejected the suggestion they did anything wrong. “There are rules that are expected to be followed, and of which I don't believe I broke any that day,” Engen said. “We ate. I think Rep. Hudson had soup; I had a burger, and then I had a beer. And I'm having to litigate this as if it's some sort of a high crime or misdemeanor. I ate lunch.” The hearing got spicy at times and Hudson and Engen criticized Democrats for boycotting weeks of session last year and said their actions wouldn’t change people’s already low opinions of the Legislature. “Politicians are as trustworthy as gas station sushi,” Engen said. Republicans had filed a complaint against DFL Rep. Alex Falconer, alleging he lobbied for a pro-Boundary Waters group while also pushing legislation to protect the wilderness area. Falconer said he’s no longer a lobbyist and has carried the legislation because he’s passionate about it, not because he benefitted financially in some way. "One thing is clear. I'm not a lobbyist. Did I used to be? Sure, but as has been outlined, that registration was terminated,” Falconer said. “I am no longer a lobbyist."

State Rep. Kristin Robbins ended her campaign for Minnesota governor last week. Robbins is a Republican who built her campaign around the focus she's put on Minnesota fraud problems. She chairs the House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Committee. In a statement announcing her withdrawal, Robbins said she now feels the best way to serve the state is in a role outside of government. She didn't spell out what that means but it suggests she’s not considering a run for state Senate or lieutenant governor. Her term in the state House runs through early 2027. She faced headwinds in the race for the GOP governor endorsement. While exiting, Robbins cast blame on the "establishment political class, media, and donors (that) have anointed Amy Klobuchar." Robbins said she is grateful to those who supported her campaign and those she met during the 10-month run. Republicans meet at the end of the month to endorse a candidate.