Star Tribune, "Strib," drops a load on Tom Emmer saying, what Crabgrass has been seeing and publishing is correct. DC made the man worse than when he was saying crazy stuff while running unsuccessfully for Governor. A different man. DC got him, owns him. Finished as a human, even if he gets reelected.

 A short excerpt will do, from an unequivocal editorial - 

Olson: Emmer drops to new low ― even for him

The cruelty of his “assimilate or go home” comment, directed at Minnesota’s Somali community, defies understanding.

By Rochelle Olson

The Minnesota Star Tribune

June 30, 2026

Yes, the 65-year-old Republican remains the elected member of the Sixth Congressional District. He’s also the Majority Whip, the No. 3 spot, in the U.S. House hierarchy. He’s drawing a government check, and he’s got fabulous federal health insurance that likely covers the knee scooter he needs to get around the Capitol.

But Emmer’s no longer bothering to consider a portion of his district that includes up to 15% of the state’s Somali population, all but a tiny percentage of whom are here legally.

Emmer’s been in Congress since 2015 and he’s never flown higher than right now, thanks to his allegiance to every execrable utterance from President Donald Trump.

I’m obligated to remind you that Emmer has signed on with Trump after the president, with a single post on social media in 2023, spiked Emmer’s aspirations to ascend to the speakership of the U.S. House. At the time, Trump crowed, “He’s done. It’s over. I killed him.”

In response, Emmer transmogrified into the president’s permanent lapdog lest he be left off the list of bootlickers welcome at Mar-a-Lago on any given weekend.

No spine. No value. Showing a willingness to kiss Trump's ass. On cue, no questions asked. After Trump fucked him over on the speakership chance.

And the part of the headlining Strib added to the item, "[...] defies understanding." is untrue. We can understand precisely what we are seeing and called to deal with.

A willing racist demagogue barking dog, from a start years ago as a quaint local rural man.

He won Michele Bachmann's seat, and has found a way to outdo Bachmann in venomous publicly declared hate. 

With Bachmann her scapegoat was gay people.

With Emmer it is Somalis. Ilhen Omar, a well assimilated Somali woman and Democratic House colleague of Emmer responded aptly, with grace, calmly noting that Doug Chapin is seeking the MN CD6 seat Emmer currently occupies.

Chapin has proven himself a gentleman in all aspects, experienced and well able to join Omar in Congress, with their joint goal being bettering the nation after Trump, Emmer and all Trump's allied others are replaced.

One final reflection back to the editorial -

Speaking at a “conservative town hall” sponsored by the nonprofit Faith & Freedom Coalition in D.C. last Thursday, Emmer punched down hard.

“Minnesotans are so afraid that you’re gonna call us ‘a racist,’ you’re gonna call us ‘an Islamophobe,’ you’re going to call us some name, that we just don’t want to get into that fight,” Emmer said. “You know what? I would argue that I never did care, but I’m done being careful, even the least bit careful.”

“They don’t assimilate,” he continued. “And if they don’t assimilate, then they should go the hell back to where they came from.”

I asked to interview Emmer on the topic. In response, his spokeswoman Sally Fox said, “That would be a total waste of his time. There’s nothing to add, and while it may come as a complete shock to the Star Tribune, most Minnesotans agree with Congressman Emmer.”

[...]  History shows that assimilation takes time, at least a generation, and who does Emmer think he is to tell immigrants to give up their heritage?

Emmer’s led a good life. He grew up playing hockey in Edina and caddied at Interlachen Country Club. He’s married with children and grandchildren. He has a son with a high-profile job in Congress and a daughter who’s a broadcaster for the Minnesota Twins and the Wild.

At the peak of his professional life, with access to the nation’s highest office, Emmer’s focused on demeaning those with less rather then giving them a hand up.

Is this all just cynical performance politics to maintain his proximity to power? [...] In 2015, he and then-Democratic U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison created the Somalia Caucus, which sought to push for peace and defeat al-Shabab in that East African nation.

Ellison's kept the faith. Ellison remains who he's been.

It becomes undeniably clear Emmer set conscience aside to bare his worse racist teeth, in homage to Trump and Christian Nationalism in hope of being reelected as a racist fear-mongering regular Republican stiff. Seeking to keep a House seat by sacrifice of decency, for the Trump gutter. Emmer appears not to be as personally corrupt as Trump, but choosing to be a running dog nonetheless..

I believe in those of my neighbors who maintain the aggressive masked ICE melitiamen who invaded Minnesota for Trump and murdered Renee Good and Alex Pretti have to be prosecuted. With Emmer, not surprisingly, by his absolute silence absenting himself from holding that group belief that justice be served. The man is done, as a man, even if racism reelects him. He sold out cheap. Win or lose, cheap.

We're absolutely lucky Chapin is such an exceptionally fit alternative. 

Chapin, win or lose, is the better and more skilled human being.

UPDATE: The latest, Emmer reads a statement that perhaps Steven Miller wrote for him. Trashing Ilhen Omar. The unsaid part, she's got brown skin too.

FURTHER: PiPress covers the Emmer racism, no paywall and with a CSPAN video clip of it, with the item noting midway -

“Minnesotans are so afraid that you’re gonna call us ‘a racist,’ you’re gonna call us ‘an Islamophobe,’ you’re going to call us some name, that we just don’t want to get into that fight,” said Emmer, the majority whip in the U.S. House of Representatives. “You know what? I would argue that I never did care, but I’m done being careful, even the least bit careful.”

Emmer, who since 2015 has represented Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, went on to criticize what he described as a lack of assimilation among members of the state’s Somali community.

“And if they don’t assimilate, then they should go the hell back to where they came from,” he said.

Emmer has previously linked Minnesota’s recent public assistance fraud cases to members of the Somali community, drawing criticism from opponents who argue his comments unfairly characterize the broader community.

“I’m not afraid to stand up for what is right,” Emmer wrote in recent candidate questionnaire response to St. Cloud LIVE. “Whether it’s demanding answers from (Gov. Tim) Walz and (Minnesota Attorney General Keith) Ellison about their involvement in fraud or calling out Somali fraudsters who have ripped us off for too long, I’ll always fight for the men and women of our great state.”

Doug Chapin, a Democrat running to unseat Emmer, released a statement Thursday night criticizing Emmer’s remarks.

“If you’re more concerned about being called a racist than about saying racist things, you’ve lost sight of what public service is supposed to be,” Chapin said. “The problem isn’t that people might call you a racist. The problem is that using your position of authority to make statements dehumanizing an entire community makes you a racist.”

In context, Iran is presently in a patient but insistent posture, insistance based upon reality. For background, Iran fought and won Dick Cheney's 8-year-long Iraq-Iran war. The US ate the cost of Sadam's defeat and rancor. Costring trillions. WMD lies and all. That is precursor to what seems one of the most intelligent analyses of post-war geo-truth so let's get to it.

 https://www.techi.com/iran-economic-power-war-outcome/ - title - Could Iran Emerge as a New Economic Power? What the War's Outcome Means for Global Markets

 The executive summary points at the beginning are all that need quoting

Energy Brief

Key Takeaways

5 Points30s Read

1. Geography Wins-Iran's control of the Strait of Hormuz — the chokepoint for 20 million barrels of daily oil transit — has become its most valuable strategic asset.
2. Five Demands-Iran is negotiating sovereignty over Hormuz, war reparations, and security guarantees as the price of any ceasefire.
3. Economic Reality-Despite 40% inflation and a collapsing rial, Iran's foreign reserves, oil reserves, and BRICS relationships give it more staying power than Western analysts expected.
4. Three Scenarios-Post-war Iran can follow a sanctions-relief recovery path, a North Korea-style isolation path, or a Russia-style regional power path — each with distinct market implications.
5. Investor Watchlist-Brent crude spreads, Iranian oil export volumes, and BRICS settlement flows are the three signals that tell you which scenario is playing out.

 ==============================

War Risk Premiums-Marine war risk rates surged 5x after Hormuz closure, creating massive revenue opportunity for diversified insurers with government backstops.

Chubb (CB)-Lead underwriter on $20B government shipping insurance program. Combined ratio of 81-86% is best-in-class. Consensus target $338, Citi at $385.

Berkshire (BRK.B)-$373B cash and $176B float make it the most defensively positioned insurer. Greg Abel resumed buybacks March 4.

Investment Framework-Tier 1 Buy: Chubb, Berkshire. Tier 2 Hold: Travelers, AIG. Tier 3 Avoid: Specialty marine/energy insurers with concentrated Gulf exposure.

Hidden Risk-Private credit defaults at 5.8% threaten insurers with alternative asset exposure. Watch BDC filings June 30 for potential write-downs.

 

 You may only see the first set, but the second set is there too - showing up in a copy - paste first attempt. That is enough of an outline as each of the first set of headings gets fleshed out, sequentially, tightly, and logically.

There seems nothing there that is not evident when read, and presume the US and Iran understand this and Israel is either adrift entirely with nobody liking it; or the US continues a backstop function if the Israelis shut up the bitching and capitulate to what's going to be.

Yes, Israel has a nuke arsenal; yes, all of the Persian Gulf population and Israel relies upon desalination which is a constraining thought. And yes, Iran can hit Dimona and release some form of radiation horror that nobody wants to see.

The analysis cheats from "this will be," giving three alternative scenarios.

Perhaps a few other source links may update this post, but that's it for now.

 

 

CNN data analyst Harry Enten pointed to a poll from Marquette Law School that found the DSA now holds higher favorability than sitting congressional Democrats, from Democratic voters and leaners themselves. In his segment, Enten summarized it by saying: “Simply put, they’re more popular than the Democrats currently in charge.”

Amen. The headline is a run-together of two short paragraphs -

Guardian:  https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jun/29/centrist-democrats-democratic-socialists-backlash

MIght it touch upon trustworthiness? Mamdani more trustworthy than Schumer?

Or fundamental decency? Mamdani etc.

AOC etc. 

 

"There are enormous ethical and legal concerns," said Lawrence Gostin, a Georgetown University law professor who specializes in public health. "Patients across America should be very worried that their medical records are going to be used in ways that harm them and their families."

The headline is an early paragraph in -  https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/white-house-launching-health-tracking-system-with-big-techs-help

Federal help, tracking your very own med records nationwide, or as Reagan said, 

"I'm from the federal government and I'm here to help you." 

Or not? They say it will be opt-in, whatever they mean by that, and who gets to see what if you're opting in or opting out is fuzzed around. You might think it over.

Is this done in other nations? How has it worked there, if it's done anywhere? 

A federalized data bank of physician - patient interaction history sounds suspect. 

UPDATE: Is this or this relevant? Isn't this we-aggregate-your-data off point on questions of medicare for all? Setting priorities before setting funding and implementation seems to have been done; data aggregation over fixing cost and delivery bottlenecks we all have been facing. Seems wholly inadequate and ass-backward to me. I wonder why they choose to move as they are doing.

 

Mr. Emmer writes " ***refuse to condemn him because *** scared of *** radical base*** ." He knows such fear?

 

click image to enlarge and read

Looks fake. Either that is an AI Trump image, a cardboard prop left over from Trump U., or an inflatable party doll.

___________UPDATE__________

Mamdani is clearly more of an effective major nationwide political force than Emmer, and one of Emmer's major campaign paymasters in right in tune with Emmer against Mamdani as a threat to a status quo Emmer approves. The first of the two cited sources notes Schumer will be on the ballot in 2028. That Schumer might be vulnerable then could be major, Schumer being an entrenched conservative Dem, an enemy of progress, and an AIPAC-loving fool.

If the Mamdani effect can budge Schumer into retirement, it would be major. If AOC runs against Schumer, it looks much more likely that we might see reform. 

Of interest, Mamdani is reported as unaggressive about Dem conservative Hakim Jeffreys' seat being at issue, this cycle. Which shows Mamdani is a practical progressive, not anybody's bomb thrower as Emmer wishes to paint him. Mamdani is a breath of fresh air. On the rise. A lasting power behind him is the hope.

_________________FURTHER UPDATE______________

click the image to read

OR -- Read the full Guardian story, here. (The last time Emmer made it to mention in  Guardian was when GOP House leadership futzed around in Speakeship jealosies) 

 

Trump has a talent for causing memory of a word not used as much today as earlier: Schlock

Coverage here and here, renderings, here, from which this image was taken.

If it gets done, only one suggestion that Trump personalize it. Instead of golden lions at the four corners, make it gold-plated weasels.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facepalm#/media/File:Paris_Tuileries_Garden_Facepalm_statue.jpg 

 

It is appropriate to highlight something very promising and worthwhile happening in town, in Ramsey, MN, where I live and notice things going on.

 Solar.

On otherwise unusable level wasteland, soil that cannot hold a building, the periphery of a closed landfill. The terraced main capped landfill is not something to be disturbed. Time works on the fill content, protectively capped, but there is an answer to what might we do to improve the town without damage to the fill?

The site - google map

  

The terraced landfill mound is south of the park area, with the ball diamonds for scale. That is the capped area - the main fill zone. The solar is located now at the intersection of Sunwood drive and Sunfish Lake Blvd, the lower corner half along Sunwood northward. Capped land and wetlands are left unchanged.

Solar installation in landfill areas are not new, the EPA has published Best Pratices guidelines dating back to 2022, if not earlier.

For the State of Minnesota, this is a pilot project - proof of concept.

A local newspaper has published detail:

Ramsey council OKs solar panels on closed landfill

• Matt DeBow Managing Editor
• Apr 15, 2025 Updated May 23, 2026

The Ramsey City Council unanimously approved a site plan review for a Solar Energy System on its closed landfill.

The proposed site plan by Cedar Creek Energy is for a solar panel array on an approximately 24-acre portion of the landfill grounds, said Ramsey Planning Manager Todd Larson at the council’s meeting on April 8. The site is west of Sunfish Lake Boulevard, and north of Sunwood Drive.

“The site is basically all solar panels,” Larson said. “With a small area for some equipment.”

The site is zoned closed landfill, where solar energy systems are permitted; however, it is subject to a formal site plan review.

The site has some natural screening and will be secured by a 7-foot-tall galvanized woven-wire style fence.

[...] Alex Gast, Chief Operating Officer for Cedar Creek Energy in Blaine, spoke to the council about the project.

His office has been working with Conexus [the regional co-op energy supplier] to develop it and build the approximately 8,700 solar arrays, and they anticipate that they will work for more than 30 years.

“It’s frankly a really great use of the land,” Gast said. “With it being a closed landfill, the MCPA has ongoing monitoring requirements as part of this.”

Council Member Kirsten Bucher expressed support.

“I am really excited to see this, I think it’s incredibly important that we’re utilizing something like this to build our energy infrastructure on land that would not typically be able to be used,” Bucher said.

She then asked to hear about the company’s’ “community benefit plan for workforce development training.”

“As part of this project, Cedar Creek Energy intends to use our registered apprenticeship program,” Gast responded. “So we have a commitment for 15% on the job training to advance electricians in the field.”

Gast added the need for electricians in the state is “extremely high. We intend to use this project and others within our portfolio to advance these individuals.”

[...] “So what happens after the 30 years is a really good question, typically what we’re anticipating is repowering these systems,” Gast said.

Repowering entails recycling the module then installing new solar panels.

Council member Chris Riley asked staff what they are missing out on by allowing this.

“The land doesn’t have the soils that’s suitable to support a building, so we really can’t use it or get it turned back for building an industrial use on it,” Larson responded. “… Redeveloping into a parking lot and building just can’t happen.”

Council member Michael Olson asked if the panels would be secure enough given that the land isn’t stable enough for buildings.

“We have performed a substantial amount of geotechnical exploration on this site, …” Gast said. “What you’re going to see from a foundation type on this site is a driven I-beam or a pile system that’s going to go to a depth of around 10 feet.”

The site will have about 1,800 of those piles.

“Under high-wind events the tracking system itself goes into a wind stow mode to alleviate shear on the panels themselves, it goes flat, and essentially allows the wind to pass over it. Thus mitigating uplift and some of these other wind shear event type things that can happen.”

All that information has been confirmed by structural engineers, Gast said.

Mayor Ryan Heinemann asked if city residents will see any benefit from the project.

Brian Brant, CEO Connexus Energy, responded to the query.

“Ramsey’s growing, we have a greater electrical need,” Brant said. “Adding solar here negates the need to add additional substations and transmission lines for the city of Ramsey to meet their growing need. That’s the immediate benefit.”

 An undated linkedin entry from roughly 2 months ago adds:

Built on a state-controlled brownfield site through the MPCA Closed Landfill Program, this 4.125 MW AC solar array is the first of its kind in Minnesota. It transforms previously unusable land into a productive source of renewable energy. The impact is real: 

• Offsets 7,427 tons of CO2 annually 

• Powers the equivalent of 830 homes 

• Keeps the equivalent of 7.5 million tons of coal unburned each year 

[...]  Special recognition to Brian Burandt for his leadership and commitment in helping bring this project across the finish line.  

 

Historical Background

For a general review nationwide try search = national efforts to add solar to landfills

With regard to Minnesota legislative history - 

March 16, 2021 1:27 PM - Closed landfills could go solar if pilot project flies

Thanks to legislation passed in 2019, the state commissioned a feasibility study on the subject. It concluded that it was very possible, but there are some barriers. Among the biggest: Of the 110 parcels of land in the Pollution Control Agency’s Closed Landfill Program, half have use restrictions from general obligation bonds used to fund their cleanup.

In other words, the solar arrays can’t go up until the bonds are retired. And some of them have 30-plus years left on their repayment schedule.

Could the process be sped up?

Rep. Todd Lippert (DFL-Northfield) sponsors HF1879 to create a pilot project to see if money from the state’s Renewable Development Account could be used to retire general obligation bonds on a closed landfill. The test case would be the Anoka-Ramsey landfill in Ramsey, and $3 million would be appropriated for the purpose.

With the removal of bonding restrictions, the site could be converted into a planned five-megawatt solar electric generation facility. According to the bill, the project must be owned and operated by an electric cooperative association that has more than 130,000 Minnesota customers.

The appropriation would be strictly to deal with the bonds, not to finance the project, procure land rights or manage the solar array.

[...] To briefly explain the Renewable Development Account: It’s a pot of state money that Xcel Energy pays into annually, set up in 1994 when Xcel was given permission to store nuclear waste at its Prairie Island plant in southeastern Minnesota. Storage at its Monticello plant was added in 2007. For each waste cask used, Xcel gives the state between $350,000 and $500,000 annually. The fund is earmarked for grants for the development of renewable energy sources in Minnesota.

“This pilot would make it possible for us to see if it’s possible for [Minnesota Management and Budget] to do this, and if this kind of model can work in the future,” said David Shaffer, executive director for the Minnesota Solar Energy Industries Association. “It’s outside Xcel service territory, but it would benefit Xcel customers in reducing their rates. It makes too much sense for Minnesota not to do.”

The company that wishes to build the solar facility is Connexus, an electric cooperative that serves the northern part of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. And that doesn’t sit well with Rick Evans, director of regional government affairs for Xcel Energy.

“Having Xcel customers pay for this would be like requiring you to pay off the debt on someone else’s mortgage,” he said.

Lippert responded that the pilot project could benefit Xcel Energy.

“There are 17 closed landfill sites within Xcel territory,” Lippert said. “That seems a good argument for use of the Renewable Development Account.”

Also - earlier this year naming of the program was dedicated to the memory of a Dem MN House Speaker who'd been gunned down in her home by a deranged Christian nationalist gunman. 

Related legislative items, here and here. Familiarity with legislation archiving in Minnesota is needed on these links, which might only confuse those not so familiar.

BOTTOM LINE: This is, for Minnesota, a landmark first in what has proven nationwide to be sound repurposing of otherwise faulted land. Ramsey is first in proof of concept and implementation in State. City government and private sector firms making it work deserve recognition, which is the point of this post.

Crabgrass is unclear on this, but it appears the operation was completed and put onto the power grid in the last few days, but possibly that final step remains.

Without a link, Crabgrass has seen online that the local co-op has ceased a contract partial ownership of a North Dakota genco firm, now having customer status, so that the co-op doing community solar meets or assists meeting expanded electricity demand growth as more housing projects and business uses arise as the town grows.