Daily Digest: Democrats debate part one

Good morning, and happy Thursday. Here's the Digest.

1. 10 Democrats debate in Miami. If the overarching question heading into the first debate of the 2020 presidential primary for Democratic voters was "Who can you see as president up there?" it's not certain they got a clear answer. Rather than fireworks — toward each other or President Trump — the candidates took a cautious approach. The moderators tried with the first two questions to stir up a fight between the progressive and pragmatic wings of the Democratic Party, calling on Warren and then shifting to Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar on whether the field was going too far. But Klobuchar didn't take the bait. "I had to sit back and say, 'This is the first debate,' " Klobuchar said afterward on MSNBC, pointing out that she would have liked to have talked more about Russia and farm policy. That meant the shape of the race did not change. It's a reminder that it's early, and until the lines become more sharply defined, the candidates may hold back, although the dynamics for Thursday night's debate may be different. (NPR)

2. Students convince lawmakers to create prescription drug repository. Rowan Mahon's life is chaotic, like any college student. She lives in a tiny apartment near the University of Minnesota campus with her two cats -- Mulaney and Burnham -- named after comedians. She’s a fourth-year student in the College of Pharmacy, meaning she works full-time and commutes during the week from St. Cloud. Mahon graduates in a year, and she’s still figuring out what she wants to do next. But in her limited free time, she has an unusual hobby: she's trying to get the state's first real drug repository program off the ground. It didn't get much attention, but Minnesota lawmakers passed a plan this spring to set up a program starting next year to take unused medication destined for a flush or the landfill and instead distribute it to people who are struggling to afford their medicine. "It's crazy to me that we have so much waste and at the same time people are struggling to pay for their medications,” Mahon said. “I've seen individuals come into the ER just because they didn’t have their medications, so their blood pressure was so high.” (MPR News)

3. Mission: cut spending on health and human services. Waste, fraud and abuse, at least the search for it, has become a legislative cliché — and often a political cudgel — for Republicans to beat up on “big-government” Democrats. But now that cliché will no longer be only the stuff of campaign brochures. As part of the deal struck to resolve the 2019-21 Minnesota state budget, Gov. Tim Walz and legislative leaders agreed to create a “Blue Ribbon Commission on Health and Human Services.” Its charge? To find $100 million in savings from those two spending categories. Between the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health, the state administers dozens of programs for low-income residents, including nursing care for the elderly as well as medical assistance and child abuse prevention and intervention. About 1.1 million residents receive medical coverage via state Medicaid and another 89,000 through MinnesotaCare. On an average day, more than 10,000 children and young adults are in foster care, 31,000 families receive monthly assistance from the Minnesota Family Investment Program, and 25,000 seniors over age 85 are in state-subsidized nursing homes. The 17-member commission has until October of 2020 to find the savings. If they fail, an equal amount will be taken from state reserves in the 2021-23 state budget, unless a future Legislature does something different. (MinnPost)

4. Lawmaker faces fine, community service. State Rep. Matt Grossell faces a fee and 16 hours of community service stemming from trespassing and disorderly conduct charges, his attorney said. Grossell, R-Clearbrook, was charged with two misdemeanors after he was arrested in May. The case was essentially “put on hold” at a hearing Wednesday, Grossell’s attorney, Ryan Garry, said. He said after negotiations between the defense and prosecutor, they reached an agreement to have Grossell perform community service. He will also pay a $150 program fee, Garry said. The case will remain pending for five months, Garry said, and during those months the charges are “hanging out there” but are not formally part of his record. At the end of the time period the charges will both be dismissed, Garry said. (Star Tribune)

5. St. Louis Park City Council drops pledge before meetings. Citing a desire to accommodate the city's increasingly diverse population, the St. Louis Park City Council has decided to drop recital of the Pledge of Allegiance at its meetings. "I hope it's not too controversial," said Council Member Tim Brausen. "Our community tends to be a very welcoming and increasingly diverse community, and we believe our citizens will understand. I don't think we're going to be any less welcoming by not starting our meeting out with the standard ritual." The change, which will take effect July 15, was sponsored by Council Member Anne Mavity, who said that about half the cities in Minnesota do not require the Pledge of Allegiance to be said at council meetings. The vote was 5-0, with Mayor Jake Spano and Council Member Thom Miller absent. "We all love our country dearly, and we demonstrate that by our service as elected officials all the time," Mavity said. "I want to make sure that we are welcoming to everyone in our community, and so I just felt that was an unnecessary component to include every single week in our work." Brausen said there was concern that saying the Pledge intimidates some people, owing to increasing political polarization and the national controversy over federal immigration policies. (Star Tribune)

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