Capitol View for April 30

Good morning. It’s the last day of April in a year that’s flying by.

Sen. Nicole Mitchell appeared at the Capitol yesterday and cast votes despite efforts to bar her from doing so. The DFL senator charged with first-degree burglary checked in as present as the Senate convened for the week and voted on several motions, including two connected to efforts to prohibit her from voting while an ethics complaint is pending. Mitchell is barred from participating in caucus meetings and committee hearings for now. Mitchell’s desk was moved to a far corner of the Senate chamber; a spokesperson for the Senate DFL said she was moved because her former desk neighbor is on a Senate ethics panel that is set to weigh an ethics complaint against Mitchell next week. Mitchell faces pressure to clear up the circumstances around a reported break-in at a relative's home.

Another batch of gun bills is headed toward votes in the Minnesota House. One passed with most Democrats in favor and Republicans opposed. Two others could come up today — or slide until later this week — after the House adjourned without taking them up yesterday. The proposals include one that would require gun owners to safely store their firearms and promptly report any that are stolen or go missing. Failure to report a missing gun within 48 hours could lead to petty misdemeanor charges. Backers say that bill, which passed 68 to 63, is a step toward keeping better track of illicit firearms. “This bill will save lives,” predicted DFL Rep. Kelly Moller, who said it works in tandem with other gun measures approved over the past year. But Republican Rep. Matt Grossell said it’s an affront to Second Amendment rights. “Why is it only guns that you want reported, those aren't the only things that are used in violent crimes? Heck I've seen hatchets used. I've seen baseball bats used. I've seen machetes used,” he said. Other Republicans argued that it penalizes people who were victims of crime when their property is taken. It’s unclear which gun bills can pass in the closely divided Senate this year.

Minnesota’s newest cabinet-level agency has its first leader. Gov. Tim Walz named Tikki Brown to lead the Department of Children, Youth and Families, which is set to officially open in July. Brown has been a member of the agency planning team and has experience at the Department of Human Services. “I have a deep commitment to working with communities working with folks with lived experience, working across different agencies and divisions,” Brown told MPR News reporter Kyra Miles . “I have a firm belief we can’t do this work alone. We have to work in partnership. And I think that will carry me well into this new role.” The new department will oversee programs for caregivers and young children that are currently part of four state agencies: Human Services, Education, Public Safety and Health.

Gov. Tim Walz spent his weekend in Washington, where he attended the White House Correspondents Dinner and some of the hobnobbing events around that. He was a guest of Politico. The dinner is known for its mix of celebrity, political shakers and Washington journalists. An aide to Walz said while at the event and its constellation of related parties, Walz chatted with Keri Russell and Rufus Sewell of the Netflix thriller, “The Diplomat.” There were real-life diplomats from Ireland and Ukraine on his punch card, too. And he caught up with Dr. Anthony Fauci, who is synonymous with the U.S. response to COVID-19.

Minnesota Republicans will likely have to wait until August to settle on nominees in two congressional races. Mark Zdechlik reports the outcomes in the 7th Congressional District — where U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach is seeking a third term — and the 2nd Congressional District underscores lingering fractions within the party over its future direction. Republican attorney Tayler Rahm was endorsed by the GOP convention over the weekend, following Joe Teirab backed off a pledge to exit if he got beat at the convention. The race will head to an August primary. Over in the 7th District, delegates deadlocked instead of backing incumbent U.S. Rep. Michelle Fischbach. She led the convention balloting but didn’t clear the threshold to secure the endorsement. Her challenger, business owner Steve Boyd, considers the lack of endorsement a win for his effort to defeat Fischbach in the August primary.