Good morning! Summer break is up for pretty much all Minnesota students and campaigns are hoping to get their parents’ attention now.

This week the national Republican Party will hold a rare midterm election convention. But as President Donald Trump’s standing with voters has fallen with rising oil prices and an unpopular war, not every GOP candidate is jumping at the opportunity to be seen on stage with or near him. That’s especially true for those who are in elections in swing states and congressional districts. In Minnesota, two candidates in statewide elections — gubernatorial hopeful Lisa Demuth and U.S. Senate candidate Michelle Tafoya — are both skipping the Dallas convention. So is state Sen. Eric Pratt, who is running for Congress in the 2nd Congressional District. Among other GOP congressional candidates running for reelection, only U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber’s office confirmed he plans to attend. A few other top Minnesota Republicans didn’t respond to questions. The Minnesota Republican Party is sending 45 people as part of its delegation to Dallas, but those names haven’t been made public despite requests.

National reporters are paying attention to both of Minnesota’s marquee races this fall. The New York Times gave a high-level view of the governor’s race, focusing on Amy Klobuchar’s Democratic bid to succeed Gov. Tim Walz. The story gets at the unease in some corners of the DFL Party about Klobuchar’s style and her willingness to collaborate with the other side (the same thing attributes that have served her well over the years in Minnesota politics). She didn’t rule out naming Republicans to her cabinet. Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal checked in on Michele Tafoya’s run for Senate. The story notes how Tafoya is using fraud as a key issue in her campaign against DFL Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. Tafoya says she favors punishing states where fraud is pervasive. “Federal funding should not be given to any state that cannot prove they have guardrails ready, that they have clawbacks in place, and that they’re prepared to act on this fraud,” she said. Tying her public recognition to her career in sports broadcasting, the story naturally concludes with her, well, downcast appraisal of the Vikings as the season begins. 

GOP gubernatorial candidate Lisa Demuth is walking a Trump tightrope. Walker Orenstein at the Star Tribune goes back to the beginning of Demuth’s campaign last year and tracks how she has solicited support from MAGA voters and President Donald Trump himself, while recently distancing herself from the unpopular president . Demuth wasn’t Trump’s pick for Minnesota governor (that was Mike Lindell) and she’s split with the president on his plan to import beef to make up for higher costs caused by his tariffs. However she has largely supported his import taxes. At the state GOP convention this spring, Demuth distributed flyers saying she “fights and wins for the MAGA agenda” and pledged to “ban men from girls’ sports,” “secure our elections with voter ID” and punish fraudsters. But being seen as too close to Trump could turn off some independent voters. According to her ads, DFL candidate Amy Klobuchar certainly sees painting Demuth with the Trump brush as a winning strategy. Demuth was on WCCO-TV on Sunday . During that interview, she said she disagrees with Trump on trade issues. She said her change message is getting through to voters and would compensate for the financial advantage that Klobuchar has in this campaign. Demuth pushed back on the idea an outside group funded by a Wisconsin billionaire makes her beholden to a special interest, noting how Klobuchar raised money from billionaires during her presidential bid.

Last week we asked where the Senate ads were, and now we have an answer. Republican Senate candidate Michele Tafoya has booked a flight of ads that start this week. It’s the first advertising ramp-up since she secured her party nomination in August. Expect Democratic nominee Peggy Flanagan to follow suit. We don’t yet know how active GOP groups will get in the race with so many higher-tier races on the map. But President Donald Trump’s political action committee is sitting on a boatload of money that he’s promising to dispatch before the midterms. That $400 million to $500 million could go a long way and might find its way into Minnesota somehow.

A federal judge has ruled Minnesota can fine companies who break an anti-nudification law while the xAI lawsuit plays out. A federal judge has declined a request by xAI, which now goes by SpaceXAI, to halt Minnesota’s law against nudification apps. Those  allow users to make sexual images and videos of people without their consent. The company sought to freeze the law while its lawsuit moves forward. The company is suing on free speech grounds. Such an injunction could be granted for reasons including: SpaceXAI proves the law causes the company irreparable harm, an injunction is in the public interest or the tech giant shows they are highly likely to win. U.S. District Judge Donovan W. Frank said in his ruling that if the plaintiffs really believed the law causes "irreparable harm,” the company would have filed its lawsuit earlier. The judge also went out of his way to say nudification technology clearly harms the public. The decision permits state regulators to impose fines of $500,000 per violation while the case plays out. SpaceXAI has said it would suspend features for Minnesota users out of concern it would be fined. An appeal has already been lodged. 

The first ICE officer to face charges from the Trump administration turned himself in to federal authorities last week. The twists and turns of the Christian Castro cases continue. In January, Christian Castro and another immigration officer were pursuing Alfredo Aljorna in Minneapolis. Castro shot through Aljorna’s front door, shooting Aljorna’s roommate, Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, in the thigh. The Minnesota U.S. attorney’s office initially charged Sosa-Celis and Aljorna with assault but dropped the case after Minneapolis released surveillance video of the incident. Later the Minnesota U.S. attorney’s office decided not to charge Castro with assault. Minnesota prosecutors have brought state charges of assault and falsely reporting a crime against Castro, which the Department of Homeland Security has called a “political stunt.” However, a judge declined to release Castro to Minnesota custody after he was held in a Texas jail. Now Castro is facing federal prosecution, not for the shooting itself, but for allegedly lying about being attacked by Sosa-Celis. As the AP reports, Castro was taken into federal custody Thursday.