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Hot Dish 6.14.24

Trump trashes Milwaukee ahead of GOP Convention?

By Rochelle Olson

The Minnesota Star Tribune

June 14, 2024 at 1:40PM

Feeding Fraud, Flagellation and IVF

By Rochelle Olson

In journalism school, you’re told that you get three question ledes in your career and so before you use one, you need to ask yourself: Do you want to burn one of them? I’ve never used one myself so I have all three in reserve. Now that I’ve deftly avoided the question lede for Friday’s Hot Dish, I must ask: Am I the last person to know what stochastic terrorism is? I’ve read those words multiple times in recent months and they were new to me.

The whopping news Thursday came via Kelly Smith’s reporting on the Legislative Auditor’s report faulting the Minnesota Department of Education’s oversight of the Feeding our Future fraud. The report found inadequate monitoring “created opportunities for fraud.” The state agency “failed to act on warning signs” in the programs before the COVID-19 pandemic and was ill-prepared to hold the St. Anthony nonprofit accountable to federal requirements.

Rep. Duane Quam, R-Byron, asked Education Commissioner Willie Jett how many “incompetent” employees were disciplined. Jett, who has led the agency since 2023, said he wasn’t going to place blame on anyone. Rep. Steven Jacob, R-Altura, asked if there would be restitution to federal taxpayers. Jett said that decision rests with the U.S. Department of Justice.

The audit found that from 2018 when Feeding Our Future started receiving federal reimbursements until 2021, the state agency received at least 30 complaints about the nonprofit and its food sites. But, the report said, the agency had conducted limited to no investigations — including allegations of kickbacks.

Legislative Auditor Judy Randall said her office didn’t see evidence that the state agency intentionally looked the other way, but she said they were ill-prepared to handle the programs and don’t have a regulatory mindset.

Sen. Mark Koran, R-North Branch, said the state agency ignored “significant red flags,” including the fact that Feeding Our Future had six times the number of average food sites of other sponsors — organizations that administer paperwork for food sites.

“The taxpayers and hungry children were robbed of $250 million and maybe more,” Koran said.

Smith, the reporter, covered the recent federal trial in which five fraudsters were convicted. More charges are expected.

THIRD PARTY: Ms. Briana Bierschbach reports conditions are ripe for a third party candidate to do well in the 2024 presidential race in Minnesota. “People have shown they’re willing to vote outside of the two-party choice, and you have two very unpopular candidates,” said political scientist and emeritus Carleton College professor Steven Schier. “Mix well and you’ve got a lot of uncertainty here with the real possibility that some of these other candidates ... could siphon off enough votes to make it a perilous contest for Biden.” True story: Schier was known at Carleton as “Steven B. Schier” because of his parsimony with handing out As. I continue to use the nickname whenever I have the chance to chat with him. (No. I didn’t get into Carleton. I went to Hamline.)

REPRODUCTIVE MATTERS: U.S. Senate Republicans stopped an effort to provide nationwide protections for IVF treatments, our woman in D.C. Sydney Kashiwagi reports. The bill needed 60 votes to advance but failed 48-47, with Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska joining the Democrats. “Republicans are out of step with where Americans are on this issue and women are not going to get over this. They’re not going to just forget about it because it’s their bodies and it’s their lives,” Sen. Tina Smith said. The Democrats are hoping for an electoral boost akin to what they saw in November 2022, months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Republicans called it a “stunt vote,” and had introduced a different IVF bill that was also shot down. In other IVF news, Southern Baptists expressed alarm about it this week.

HI, DON: All four of Minnesota’s Republican members of Congress attended a confab with former President Donald Trump Thursday just weeks after he was found guilty of 34 charges of falsifying business records. This was 45′s first visit to the U.S. Capitol since Jan. 6, 2021. After the meeting, GOP Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York said they were “100% unified” behind Trump. Minnesota’s GOP Rep. Tom Emmer said that the recent trial in New York has emboldened Trump.” Anybody who thought that this president was going to be down after the sham trial, after that crooked trial that we saw in New York, think again. It’s only given him even more energy,” Emmer said.

EMMER WATCH: Emmer took to Twitter to share that the verdict against Hunter Biden verdict was “all smoke and mirrors.” He called the Justice Department “corrupt” and said it “won’t investigate the Biden crime family’s shady, overseas business dealings. So they had to come up with a minor crime to charge Hunter with” and can “now they can falsely claim justice was served.”

Emmer also defended Trump’s position on Milwaukee. The AP’s Scott Bauer, who has covered Wisco politics closer than anyone for decades now, wrote about Trump’s comments in a closed-door session with the GOP. Suffice to say reports varied about what Trump said, but Bauer’s always worth a read.

Emmer shared his thoughts on Twitter saying, “Another day, another lie spun up by the fake news media” and that Trump looks forward to the GOP convention in Milwaukee. “When elected in November, he will restore law and order and election integrity in Milwaukee and across the country.”

SUPREME DOINGS: The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously protected access to mifepristone, the abortion pill — for now. This is unlikely to be the final word given that the court merely determined that the abortion opponents who filed the suit lacked standing to file the claim. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion and he was part of the majority that dumped Roe in 2022. On an unrelated issue, the court also made it harder for the National Labor Relations Board to intervene on behalf of workers in labor disputes.

In other court news, billionaire political donor Harlan Crow provided at least three previously undisclosed private jet trips to Justice Clarence Thomas in recent years, an investigation by Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats has found. The flights were detailed by Crow’s lawyer in response to inquiries from the committee. Thomas flew to the region near Glacier National Park in Montana and Thomas’ hometown in Georgia. Thomas took at least six previously undisclosed flights in 2017, 2019 and 2021. I wonder if his RV had a flat tire? Or he was simply using an otherwise empty seat.

BIDEN TIME: First Lady Jill Biden’s had a high-flying few days. From Normandy to Hunter Biden’s trial in Delaware to Duluth on Thursday. She made an appeal to older voters at the Lincoln Park Senior Center, according to reporter Christa Lawler. “Aging,” she said, “is a gift.” Biden’s seeking support among seniors for her husband’s re-election. She spoke of the benefits of living a long life: grit, wisdom, fortitude, perspective, perseverance, dedication and determination. Or as I like to say: Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.

WHERE’S WALZ:

That was a Minnesota Interesting week for the governor to be OOO. He’s back in the U.S. Back in the U.S. now after convening with our French and Canadian friends.

10:15 a.m.: Joining agency leaders at a Health Cabinet strategy meeting that is not open to the media. (Question: Will a “regulatory mindset” be on the agenda?)

11 a.m.: Speaking at the Vietnam War 50th Anniversary Commemoration.

READING LIST

Deadline: End of September for the U of M and Fairview Health Services to work out a deal to transfer the teaching hospital back to the U. And yet reporter Christopher Snowbeck reports that few details were available at the Board of Regents meeting Thursday.
In other action, the Regents raised tuition at the U for next fall.
Colleagues Christopher Vondracek and Liz Flores have another report from Mexico about the shattered dreams of migrant workers when the pork plant closed. As if losing his dream of stability wasn’t enough, the featured gentleman, Adrian Luna, appears to have become a Vikings fan during his Minnesota residency as evidenced by his jersey AND cap.
As I told a colleague, try to imagine your favorite Minnesota politician — whomsoever that may be —doing what NYC Mayor Eric Adams does. Gift link.
You’ve now reached the part of Friday Hot Dish where I go rogue. Please read this fabulous story about swimmer Regan Smith from my dear colleague Rachel Blount. There’s an Eiffel Tower replica in Indianapolis right now for swimming’s Olympic trials, which start Saturday. Smith, who hails from Lakeville and learned her strokes at Foss Swim School, is a phenomenal talent. The Minnesota Sports and Events crew will be in Indy, trying to bring the next swim trials to U.S. Bank Stadium. (They’re in Lucas Oil Stadium this year.) Having failed in my bid to attend trials this year, I will be glued to my TV for the next few days.
Couple people asked me this week if it was nerve-wracking to write about our publisher/boss. Of course, O.G. readers of this newsletter know that I had no qualms about doing so. Twenty years ago, I would have been mortified, but now? Nothing you can do that hasn’t been done, my friends. What’s worse is when a reader/former colleague sends you a salty email and you hit reply all with a similarly sassy response only to realize you cc’d another Big Boss with your response. Yes, I did that this week. So if I’m not here on Monday, now you know.
A long goodbye today as I flagellate myself for failing to recognize Prince’s birthday last Friday. He would have been 66. It’s always a good time to celebrate his life. If this video of him singing “Motherless Child” in Spain doesn’t blow your head off, then try Tyler Childers recently joining the Rolling Stones last week for “Dead Flowers.”
Keep us posted at hotdish@startribune.com.