WASHINGTON – It’s still early in the campaign cycle, but Democratic candidates for retiring Sen. Tina Smith’s seat have a decided political cashraising advantage over their GOP rivals.
Rep. Angie Craig, D-2nd District, has raised the most money to run for Smith’s seat, nearly $2.5 million, according to fundraising reports of the first six months of the year filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Some of Craig’s political cash was transferred from her House campaign account. But Craig also raised nearly $1.3 million from individuals and about $157,000 from political action committees, including the Xcel Energy Employees Committee PAC, the General Mills PAC and the Fox Corporation PAC.
Related: Campaign for Rep. Craig’s House seat heats up
Democratic rival Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan raised more than $1.3 million for her Senate bid. Unlike Craig, Flanagan has pledged not to accept any corporate PAC money.
But Flanagan, a member of the White Earth Nation, has raised some of her campaign cash in Indian country. Her campaign finance records show Flanagan received $3,500 donations from New York’s Oneida Indian Nation, Arizona’s Ak-Chin Indian Community, the Tulalip Tribes of Washington and the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana.
Flanagan also hosted a June fundraiser at Foxwood Resorts and Casino in Connecticut, which is owned by the Mashantucket Pequots, one of the nation’s wealthiest tribes.
“Lt. Governor Flanagan is proud of her grassroots support from over 20,000 donors, including tribal nations that are backing her because of her ability to deliver on economic issues that impact peoples’ daily lives and the historic nature of her campaign,” said campaign spokeswoman Alexandra Fetissoff.
In contrast, the two Republicans who have declared their candidacy for Smith’s seat have — at least so far — raised far less money.
Former NBA player Royce White, who made an unsuccessful bid for Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s seat last year, raised a little more than $500,000. And former Marine Adam Schwarze, who is also a Republican, reported raising about $218,000.
Fundraising for Smith’s seat is in the very early stages. Last year, the winner of a Senate seat spent an average of $28 million. And the prospect of winning an open seat is likely to cost even more.
‘Damaging’ cuts to MPR
The Senate and House this week passed a bill that cut money that had already been appropriated by Congress for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting – which helps fund National Public Radio and PBS – and a series of State Department programs, including international disaster assistance.
The $1.1 billion elimination of funding for CPB would hurt NPR, but would have an even greater impact on smaller, local public broadcasting stations.
For instance, the bill would cut about $5 million from Minnesota Public Radio (about 6% of the station’s budget), which has already suffered a $1 million reduction in funding from the state.
“We are concerned that this is damaging to Minnesota Public Radio,” aid Anissa Rogness, MPR’s director of public affairs, about the cut to CPB funding.
Rogness said the station “has hopes for new revenue streams” but may have to make changes in staffing and programming. “Minnesota Public Radio will still be here,” Rogness said. “But it will look different.”
All Democrats and two Republicans voted against the recissions package in the Senate, but the measure was approved on a 51-48 vote. Sen. Tina Smith missed the vote because she was hospitalized after feeling ill on Wednesday evening, but her vote against the bill would not have stopped its approval.
Smith’s office said the 67-year-old senator was hospitalized “out of an abundance of caution” after the senator experienced chest pains. But Smith said she was given a clean bill of health.
Before the House voted on the bill largely along party lines early Friday, Smith and 45 House Democrats, including Rep. Betty McCollum, D-4th District; Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-5th District; and Rep. Kelly Morrison, D-3rd District, wrote to President Donald Trump, asking him to abandon the attempt to claw back funds.
“The cuts to CPB in the recission package undermine the public media that Americans rely on for unfettered access to information, educational programming for kids, cultural programming, and nationwide emergency alerting,” the lawmakers’ letter said.
Trump not sweet to corn growers
The nation’s corn growers are pushing back against President Trump’s attempt to change Coca-Cola’s formula, which for years has used high-fructose corn syrup to sweeten the popular drink.
“I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so. I’d like to thank all of those in authority at Coca-Cola. This will be a very good move by them — You’ll see. It’s just better!” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Coca-Cola, however, has not said it will make the change from corn syrup, which the company began using in 1980, to cane sugar.
Nevertheless, the president’s social media post has alarmed the nation’s corn growers.
The Minnesota Corn Growers declined comment, preferring instead to point to a statement issued on Thursday by Corn Refiners Association President and CEO John Bode.
“Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar doesn’t make sense,” Bode said. “President Trump stands for American manufacturing jobs, American farmers, and reducing the trade deficit. Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar would cost thousands of American food manufacturing jobs, depress farm income, and boost imports of foreign sugar, all with no nutritional benefit.”
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, about 410 million bushels of U.S. corn was used to make high fructose corn syrup in 2024.
In case you missed it:
– State government reporter Matthew Blake took a close look at the administrative burdens in Minnesota that will likely stem from Medicaid changes in the “big beautiful” bill passed by Congress.
– We shared a piece from The New Lede on proposed Republican cuts to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in an appropriations bill working its way through the U.S. House.
–We also ran a piece by The Grist on how consumers can make use of green energy tax credits, which were eliminated in the “big beautiful” bill, before they disappear.
–And data reporter Shadi Bushra wrote about the potential impact of federal immigration policy on Minnesota’s population.
This and that
A reader was angered that a Minnesota Republican failed to vote to advance legislation that would force the U.S. Justice Department to make public information related to its investigation of Jeffrey Epstein, a financier and convicted sex offender who died while awaiting trial in 2019.
“Will you be asking Rep. (Michelle) Fischbach (MN CD7) why she voted to block release of the Epstein files?” the reader asked.
As a member of the Rules Committee, Fischbach voted this week with most Republicans on the panel to block a vote on the legislation sponsored by Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., that would force the release of information sought by a segment of the MAGA world.
President Donald Trump had long accused the Biden administration of hiding a list of Epstein clients and promised during his campaign for the White House to release that list. But now Attorney General Pam Bondi says no such list exists.
Fischbach, who is notoriously media shy, could not be reached for comment. But other GOP lawmakers said the legislation would force the release of sensitive material that could harm Epstein’s victims.
The uproar over the release of the so-called “Epstein files” among Trump’s supporters, a rebellion that has been fanned by Democrats, shows no signs of abating, even after an increasingly frustrated Trump asked the MAGA crowd to drop the issue.
For instance, Trump on Truth Social called those fixated on the case “PAST supporters” and declared “I don’t want their support anymore!”
Trump seemed to soften his position on the release of information about athe investigation into accusations Epstein trafficked girls who were as young as 14, after the Wall Street Journal reported that a “bawdy” letter bearing Trump’s signature was included in an album of letters Epstein received for his 50th birthday. Trump called the letter a “fake.”
On Thursday night, Trump instructed Bondi to release all “pertinent” grand jury testimony related to Epstein’s case “subject to court approval.”
Please keep your comments, and any questions, coming. I’ll try my best to respond. Please contact me at aradelat@minnpost.com.
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