Politics Friday: The 2025 Legislature is off to a bumpy start
The tied Minnesota Senate got under way in amicable fashion with senators notching a power-sharing deal to avoid problems.The House is another story. Democrats boycotted and republicans went full steam ahead — despite legal questions about their ability to do so. It’s a bit messy.MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst and his guests talk about the first week of the 2025 legislative session from a panel discussion he recorded with a pair of lawmakers at the Minnesota’s Chamber of Commerce annual session issues forum earlier in the week.Plus, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who just put out his budget plan, joined the conversation.Guests:Minnesota Gov. Tim WalzSen. Judy Seeberger, DFL-AftonRep. Andrew Myers, R-Tonka Bay Subscribe to the Politics Friday podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcast. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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As Legislature prepares for new session, rifts between parties show a partisan divide
The Minnesota Legislature will gavel-in a new session on Jan. 14 at noon, and MPR’s politics team is at the Capitol to cover it all. MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst and his guests talk about the 2025 legislative session.
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Gov. Tim Walz reflects on Democrats’ shortcomings, return to Minnesota as political ground shifts
MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst speaks with senior politics reporter Dana Ferguson about her interview with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for a special episode of Politics Friday. After a whirlwind bid for vice president, Walz returns to Minnesota and reflects on what went wrong for Democrats in November.Walz also talks about his approach to working across the political aisle and passing a two-year state budget amid a changed political dynamic in St. Paul. Republicans were able to break up the DFL trifecta at the Capitol, tying Democrats for control of the House of Representatives. The Senate maintains a one-vote DFL advantage. And finally, the governor introduces a plan to curb fraud and abuse in state government programs and speaks to the delay in the state’s roll out of the nascent cannabis industry.
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Politics Friday: Trump’s path to the White House began at the Iowa Caucuses
MPR News senior politics reporter Clay Masters looks back on the 2024 election campaign for the Iowa Caucus to election events leading up to this week when President-elect Trump stepped back into the White House.
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Politics Friday: The voters have spoken, but sent a muddled message for Minnesota’s Legislature
MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst and his guests talk about the Minnesota Legislature and how the state will govern in 2025 with both chambers split virtually down the middle.
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