Red Zone
By Mitch Berg
85 years ago this month, Winston Churchill unpacked the result of the Dunkirk evactuation and reminded the UK that evacuations don’t win wars.
And fighting the DFL to stalemates doesn’t save Minnesota – not all by itself.
But let’s make sure we’re clear on what happened:
The GOP – facing a DFL executive branch and a DFL controlled Senate with a one (possibly illegitimate, but whatever) vote minority – with only a tie in the House, managed to win a smaller budget.
Not smaller than the one we had before the DFL’s spending spree in ’23-’24 – but that was never on the table with only a tie in one chamber. The GOP could not pass anything remotely partisan (even HOA reform had its hiccups) – tie votes lose, and anything the House MIGHT have passed would died in a DFL-controlled Senate committee.
But it was still a huge cut in absolute dollars, and – this is important – the first cut of any kind in recent memory. Enough for the “burn it all down” crowd? No, but nothing is.
Doing better will require winning more elections.
Can the MNGOP do it?
I’m not sanguine about the state party – but they really only influence statewide elections (Governor, Senator, the Constitutional offices). The Legislative caucuses don’t depend on the state party, and the House and Senate Caucus Committees do a good job worthy of some hope.
So suck it up. It ain’t over.
June 10th, 2025 at 8:08 am
You know the GOP scored some points when a key DemoCommie complains and laments that “Republicans denied a source of new revenue” (read: raise taxes!)
June 10th, 2025 at 8:38 am
Our local new channel aired a clip of progressive DFL reps, throwing themselves on the floor, kicking and screaming like two-year olds in a WalMart toy aisle.
I suppose that is a victory of sorts.
June 10th, 2025 at 8:53 am
I think the GOP House got about the best possible outcome they could considering they only had 67 votes, which isn’t actually a Majority, and were standing against a Senate DFL Majority and DFL Governor, both of which, along with the DFL’s own 67 House Members, had the thumb on the legal scales support of the MN Supreme Court.
A smaller than previously planned budget, no new taxes, and the removal of rifle restrictions for deer hunting in 2026 are actual wins. My hat is off to Speaker Demuth and her Leadership Team for keeping their Caucus together. All it would have taken is one squish moderate scared of 2026 to jump ship to give ‘Speaker Emeritus’ (the most annoying made up title in MN politics) Hortman control of the House and that all disappears. So pay no attention to the grifters at Action for Duesenberg’s Bank Account and Iowa Gun Scammers. If they don’t manufacture complaints, then angry and gullible don’t donate.
And while I agree that this is as good as can be gotten with the small electoral wins the GOP got last November, and that if the conservative Minnesotans what better results they’re going to need a GOP Trifecta and some extra Statewide wins, I am not optimistic about 2026. I’ve been predicting an electoral bloodbath for awhile now. Those “independent” Minnesotans have been pretty stupid over the last few years (my own family included) and they just can’t bring themselves to vote a republican because of Trump. And that’s before you take into account that the current MN GOP Delegates have a bad habit of Endorsing really bad candidates.
The only bright spot I can see is the politically pyrrhic victory of Trump’s Department of Homeland Security arresting admitted illegal alien MN Rep. Kaohly Vang Her after she admitted to being an illegal alien in her own Floor Speech during this years Extra Session.
June 10th, 2025 at 10:24 am
Apparently, 3 DemoCommie senators voted with the GOP, one of whom tried to run cover by saying “it was the hardest vote I ever made”. Funny! All 3 are up for election in 2026.
June 10th, 2025 at 11:18 am
Greg:
“Our local new channel aired a clip of progressive DFL reps, throwing themselves on the floor, kicking and screaming like two-year olds in a WalMart toy aisle.”
Seriously? Is that by chance online anywhere? I’d love to see that and spread it around.
June 10th, 2025 at 11:35 am
Burn It All Downer here. I concede the result is the best the Republicans could get while playing by the Democrats’ rules.
June 11th, 2025 at 1:13 am
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June 11th, 2025 at 6:37 am
The GOP has some talent now – Demuth did a very good job given the resources she had available. They have to figure out how to win a statewide office for anything to change, though, and there are no obvious choices to be the standard bearer in the next cycle. The Donks are vulnerable, but the machine is still in place.
June 11th, 2025 at 6:46 am
Bill, check around the 1 minute mark.
https://www.kttc.com/2025/06/10/this-one-hurt-dfl-leadership-grapples-with-vote-revoke-healthcare-undocumented-immigrants/
June 11th, 2025 at 8:03 am
I’m disappointed that no member of the GOP contingent, unless I missed it, didn’t call out the free healthcare for illegal invaders and families and why our own homeless population, especially veterans, are not a concern?
June 11th, 2025 at 9:16 am
Greg: I think those are just your run of the mill protestors/activists, not actual legislators. So yeah, those kind of high school drama club shenanigans are completely expected from people like that.
June 11th, 2025 at 11:02 am
SmithSt.Croix:
Those “independent” Minnesotans have been pretty stupid over the last few years (my own family included) and they just can’t bring themselves to vote a republican because of Trump.
The Republicans were in the position to hold the DFL to a standstill this session because of Trump in the last election.
June 11th, 2025 at 12:39 pm
Night,
I’m working from a phone, not a computer, so I’ll be brief in my numbers.
The House GOP Candidates collectively got more votes last November than Donald Trump by about 26K.
OTOH, Harris/Walz over performed the DFL House Candidates by about 126K votes.
The GOP House edged out the DFL House by 14K.
It was a Presidential year, so all of the numbers are higher than a Gubernatorial year, but the POTUS vs House numbers don’t support your conclusion.
Trump doesn’t have electoral coat tails, and 2026 will be worse because low propensity Trump voters will stay home because he’s not on the Ballot, while low propensity anti-Trump voters will be more likely to show up to vote against the Bad Orange Man by voting DFL straight ticket. Unless the GOP nominates great candidates that run on issues the independent swing voters actually care about, and they get lucky too, 2026 is going to suck electorally. I’m predicting a Trifecta for the DFL again.
June 12th, 2025 at 8:16 am
I suppose that is a victory of sorts.
With one tied chamber?
Cutting spending and holding on taxes is a win.
Take the W, FFS.