Minnesota Democrats’ legislative victories read like a 'progressive priority manifesto': report

Minnesota has been a frequent disappointment for Republicans. Former President Donald Trump lost the midwestern state in both 2016 and 2020, and in the 2022 midterms, Democratic Gov. Tim Walz was reelected by 8 percent — while Democrats flipped the Minnesota State Senate. Both of Minnesota's U.S. senators are Democrats: Amy Klobuchar and former Lt. Gov. Tina Smith.

The New Republic's Grace Segers, in a report published on July 3, emphasizes that Democrats have been using Minnesota as a model for a liberal/progressive agenda.

"While Republican-led states have recently approved a bevy of laws advancing conservative priorities," Segers observes, "Democratic-controlled states have mirrored that pattern with progressive policies. Perhaps no state has taken more dramatic action in that direction recently than Minnesota, which saw its Democratic governor and legislative majorities work in lockstep, passing several laws to transform the state's social and economic landscape…. Narrow Democratic majorities in the (Minnesota) House and Senate — including a one-vote margin in the upper chamber — made that gallop possible."

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Democrats' legislative agenda in Minnesota, according to Segers, has included "abortion protections" and "paid family and medical leave" as well as "a new child tax credit for low-income parents."

"The list of other new policies reads like a progressive priority manifesto: restoring voting rights for the formerly incarcerated, automatic voter registration and pre-registration for teenagers, driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants, background checks for private gun transfers and implementation of a red-flag law, a $1 billion investment in affordable housing, legalizing recreational marijuana, universal school meals, banning so-called 'conversion therapy' — the practice of trying to change a person's sexuality or gender identity — and expanding protections for transgender citizens," Segers reports. "The legislature also passed a bill mandating a carbon-free electric grid by 2040."

Some state legislatures have been going hard-right in 2023, especially in Florida and Texas. But Minnesota has been moving in the other direction.

During a speech in April, Walz slammed GOP governors for misusing the word "freedom."

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The Minnesota governor declared, "I've seen some of my fellow governors on TV — they find a lot of time to be on TV — and I hear them talking about 'freedom.' But it turns out what they really mean is that government should be free to invade your bedroom, your children's locker room, and your doctor's office."

Ken Martin, who heads the Minnesota Democratic Party (known as the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party), told The New Republic that Democrats in his state have felt an urgency about getting bills passed while they have a Democratic governor along with control of the legislature.

Segers argued, "You never know when you're going to have power again. So you should use it when you have it to make the biggest difference that you can, and that is the approach that our elected officials brought into this session."

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Find The New Republic's entire article at this link.