Capitol View for October 5

Good morning and welcome to Tuesday.

Three men from Lindstrom were charged with crimes Monday related to the mob storming the United States Capitol on Jan. 6. The 10-count complaint includes alleged felonies and misdemeanors committed by Aaron James, Isaac Westbury and Robert Westbury. Among other charges, all three men are accused of disorderly conduct. Aaron James and Isaac Westbury have also been charged with entering a restricted building with a deadly or dangerous weapon, and acts of physical violence in the Capitol Grounds or buildings. Including the latest charges, a total of eight Minnesotans have been charged in connection with the storming of the Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump. Matt Sepic has the story.

DFL House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler says he will run for Hennepin County Attorney next year and will not seek reelection to the House. The 7-term legislator from Golden Valley says he can offer progressive change in the office which will be open for next year's election, after longtime incumbent Mike Freeman announced he won't seek another term. Winkler has championed legalizing marijuana and other changes to the criminal justice system at the Capitol. He said he thinks he can do more to help as the county's top prosecutor and attorney. “Right now what we need is leadership in Minneapolis and in the Hennepin County area on public safety,” Winkler said in an interview with MPR News. “We just have not had leaders able to bring people together, make progressive change and actually deliver on the ground.” Former chief Hennepin County public defender Mary Moriarty announced last week she would run for county attorney, and at least two other prominent local attorneys have said they are weighing the race. MPR’s Tim Nelson has the story.

From MPR’s Dan Kraker: The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is beginning a court-ordered process to determine whether its mining rules are adequate to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The DNR wants feedback on whether Minnesota's current rules for non-iron ore mines, such as the proposed Twin Metals copper-nickel mine near Ely, are adequate to protect the Boundary Waters from "pollution, impairment or destruction." Mining is banned within the BWCA, and in a narrow buffer around the wilderness. The DNR agreed to the review after it was sued by Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness. The group argues that copper-nickel mining should be banned within the entire watershed that drains into the Boundary Waters. The DNR will take public comments from Nov. 9 through Dec. 8, and issue an initial order by September of next year. Twin Metals, which submitted its formal mine proposal to state and federal regulators in 2019, says its underground design would protect the wilderness.

Minnesota is giving local governments a little more time to claim federal COVID-19 relief money to which they’re already entitled. The Associated Press reports: Minnesota Management and Budget says eligible cities and townships now have through Oct. 11 to apply for American Rescue Plan aid to help them respond to the pandemic. The deadline had been Monday. Minnesota cities, counties, and townships were eligible for an estimated $2.1 billion altogether. Most of it has been distributed, but a sizable pot remains on the table. MMB says 113 eligible cities and 568 eligible townships have not yet requested their shares of an available $18 million.

The AP reports a Texas agency has approved a request that George Floyd be granted a posthumous pardon for a 2004 drug arrest. The arrest was made by a now-indicted ex-Houston police officer whose case history is under scrutiny following a deadly drug raid. Monday's unanimous recommendation by the seven member Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to grant the pardon will now be forwarded to Gov. Greg Abbott, who will make the final decision. A spokeswoman for Abbott didn’t immediately comment. An attorney with the Harris County Public Defender’s Office who submitted the pardon request in April says she's pleased by the board’s decision.