Geopolitical whackiness: A new annexing scheme
Price tag? A grand-standing Iowa state senator is proposing that Iowa buy Minnesota’s southern tier of counties. How much to pay he hasn’t figured out yet. Although fuzzy on details, Mike Bousselot says he soon will have a bill in the hopper in the Iowa Legislature. The nine Minnesota counties, all largely Republican, together have 180,000 people — a quarter of Minnesota’s First Congressional District. MN-1 is bounded on the map in dark blue.
Iowa’s “Manifest Destiny”? Gobble northward
ANKENY, Iowa – An Iowa state senator wants Iowa to annex southern Minnesota. Mike Bousselot, a Republican from Ankeny, north of Des Moines, announced he will introduce legislation to purchase Minnesota’s nine southern-most counties. “Make Minnesota Iowa again,” Bousselot said – an historically wrong reference to the fact that some of southeast Minnesota was part of Iowa Territory before 1845. His facts, however, are jumbled. The 1845 boundaries don’t coincide with the present-day Minnesota counties he’s eyeing.
How Bousselot sees future
“Our new Iowans, former Minnesota residents, will have lower income, sales, business taxes. A more farm friendly state. And a better managed state,” Bousselot said. There is a get-even streak in his motivation. He quoted Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s jest as once calling Iowa “just rocks and cows.” Bousselot misread the self-deprecating Walz quip, seemingly forgetting that Walz grew up in Iowa. Whatever. Bousselot said: “We see opportunity.”
Historical dead-ends
> Western Minnesota. Bousselot’s scheme smacks of a similar proposal by a former Minnesota legislator, Jeremy Munson, also a Republican, for western Minnesota to secede and join South Dakota. People disagreed whether Munson, a publicity hound, was serious or tongue in cheek. He got a lot of mocking in the press. In any event, nothing came of the idea. Munson eventually left the Legislature to focus on growing vines of hops on a farm near Lake Crystal,
> Greenland. A sick joke making the rounds among Democrats is that Republicans somehow have become especially vulnerable a highly contagious disease — imperialistic bug. Indeed, the Bousselot plan has shades of Trumpism to return to the 1823 Monroe Doctrine of imperialism and bullying. In recent days Trump has proposed taking Greenland from Denmark, annexing Canada as a 51st state, and re-occupying the Panama Canal. The thinking of both Trump and Bousselot rings of Theodore Roosevelt’s “big stick” in 1907 although minus Teddy’s “speak softly” corollary.
> Congressional hurdle. Only Congress can redraw state boundaries. Secession and annexation schemes don’t go over well in Washington. Just think about the failed 1861 confederacy. Other dead-end ideas have been to fold the Idaho Panhandle into Washington state, to divide California into separate northern and southern states, to move Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to Wisconsin, and to make downstate Illinois a separate state. For Iowa to subsume even one square foot of Minnesota also would require approval from the Minnesota and Iowa legislatures.
Bousselot. In first term in Iowa Senate. Earlier in House. A Republican.
His New Iowa
Bousselot’s expansion would move these Minnesota counties to Iowa:
> Faribault (whose county seat is Blue Earth).
> Fillmore (Preston).
> Freeborn (Albert Lea).
> Jackson (Jackson).
> Martin (Fairmount).
> Mower (Austin).
> Nobles (Worthington).
> Houston (Caledonia).
> Rock (Luverne).
Not included are these major population centers: Mankato, Rochester and Winona
Transformative title. The best-selling 1958 novel by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer, “The Ugly American,” detailed how arrogance, incompetence and corruption inevitably accompany imperialism. The book marked a fall from grace for the Manifest Destiny of the mid-1800s. The book’s message is that that expansionism creates enmity and enemies and eventually backfires. Despite some hiccups, like Vietnam, diplomacy, has emerged as the consensus approach to U.S. international relations and helping to make the world a better place — not bullying.
R.I.P.: Rita Blum
BLUFF SIDING, Wis. — Rita Theresa Blum, 90, of Bluff Siding, died at Marinuka Manor in Galesville, the town where she was born. She was a stay-at-home mom who supported her husband in his butchering business. Although only with an eighth-grade education, she was a life-long learner with insatiable curiosity for history and language. Her family recalls her frequent trips to the encyclopedia and reminding everyone: “You learn something new every day.”
Detail: Watkowski-Mulyck Funeral Home
1934-2025
Droopy eyes cited as impairment indicator
WINONA, Minn. –A Winona man was charged with drunken driving after a police officer witnessed lane violations and jerky swerves to avoid parked cars. This was about 1:10 a.m. Alexander John Wieczorek, 18, displayed several signs of impairment, the officer said. A blood test showed 0.14% alcohol – approaching twice the legal max for driving. Wieczorek’s speech was slurred, his eyelids were droopy, and his body exuded alcohol, the officer said.
Cop: Driver to jail with impairment signs
WINONA, Minn. – The officer made a traffic stop for a dangling item obscuring the windshield, then, the officer said, he smelled alcohol. Kayla Minnie Hacker, 21, of Rochester, was charged with drunken driving. Her blood’s alcohol content was measured twice — once roadside at the 0.08% impairment threshold and then a tad higher at 0.084% at the jail house. The officer also noted awkward finger dexterity, slurred speech, and bloodshot and watery eyes. The stop was about 1:50 a.m. in the 450 block of Huff Street, near Winona State University.
College scores
Basketball (men): St. Cloud State 93, Winona State 87
Basketball (women): St. Cloud State 66, Winona State 41
Hockey (men): Northland 2, Saint Mary’s 1
Hockey (men): Gustavus Adolphus 6, Saint Mary’s 0
Minnesota prep
Wisconsin prep
Basketball (boys): Cochrane Fountain City Pirates 77, Alma-Pepin Eagles 57
Basketball (boys): Whitehall Norse 67, Eleva-Strum Cardinals 50
Basketball (boys): Galesville Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau Red Hawks 48, Eau Claire Regis Ramblers 45
Basketball (boys): Alma Center Lincoln Hornets 52, Independence Indees 37
Basketball (girls): Whitehall Norse 63, Galesville Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau Red Hawks 37
Train misses car stuck between double tacks
NELSON, Wis. – A driver took a wrong turn on the highway from Wabasha through Nelson and ended up stuck on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad‘s 79 mph route through town. A tanker train braked to a stop, screeching steel on steel past the stalled vehicle. Buffalo County deputies said such a bad turn, although inexcusable, was understandable after dark if a driver is drunk. The time was time about 8:50 p.m., and Samuel Horace III, 47, of Wabasha, was charged with drunken driving. Horace also was charged with driving without a valid license. Deputies said Horace was standing outside his car dumbfounded when they arrived. Other trans on the busy Chicago-to-West Coast mainline were halted both directions until the Horace sedan could be towed off the roadbed.
Less than a yard from total destruction. Driver missed crossbar track warning signs and turned onto tracks that parallel U.S. Highway 35. Image: Dunn County sheriff
Horace. Mistook tracks for a street.
Meth discovery complicates fugitive’s life
WINONA, Minn. – Things for Jeriah Timothy James Boardman already were bleak enough when a police officer recognized him as wanted on a fistful of arrest warrant. Then the officer discovered 0.1 gram of meth in the man’s right teans pocket. Even worse for Boardman, a child was present. This was about 12:40 p.m on the East Side in the 350 block of chestnut Street. Boardman, age 22, of Winona, was charged with possessing an illegal drug – plus numerous violations in the arrest warrants.
Boardman. Already wanted in court on a half dozen warrants.
Rochester man admits role in fentanyl trafficking
ROCHESTER, Minn. – A Rochester man arrested in 2023 with more than 30,000 fentanyl pills pleaded guilty in a plea deal in federal court. John Michael Ask, age 46, originally could have been sentenced to 40 years in prison and fined $5 million. The watered-down plea deal was only to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and cocaine. A pre-sentencing hearing was scheduled for early February.
Earlier: $1 million bail after massive drug haul
Fire crews monitor Black Horse ruins for flare-ups
All leveled. Front-loaders bulldozed the ruins during the morning as firefighters kept watch for flare-ups. Image: Steve Lunde
Nothing left at lively Winona bierkeller
WINONA, Minn. – Fire Chief Joel Corcoran said passersby may see flare-up all day from the fire that destroyed the Black Horse Bar and Grill. With a fire in so large a building of its design and contents, the flare-ups are inevitable, Corcoran said: “Very little can be done to prevent this.”
not tonight. Pickwick musician Bruce Greenwood had been booked.
Court puts monkey wrench in House election
ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that Governor Tim Walz jumped the gun in ordering a special election for the state House of Representatives from Rosedale and Shakopee. The Court said law precludes a governor from scheduling such an election until the Legislature is in session. Walz did so before the scheduled convening of the House, which was this week. The ruling was a victory for House Republicans. They had challenged the January 28 date that Walz set for the special election. The ruling means that Walz now must reschedule the special election later. Not immediately clear was if the ruling has an effect on whether Republicans have the necessary quorum to be proceeding with House business during a Democratic boycott.
Earlier: Walz to solons: Get your act together
District 40-B profile
The district is in Ramsey County east of St. Paul and includes the suburbs Shoreview and Rosedale. Most recently the district was represented by Jamie Becker-Finn, a Democrat. She retired in 2024 after four terms.
Fire destroys Black Horse bar along Highway 61
HOMER, Minn. – Fire ravaged through the Black Horse Bar and Grill on the east edge of Winona. A cook who lives in an apartment above the bar, Chris Rotering, reported the fire about 3:05 a.m. He escaped safely but only with the shirt on his back. No one else was believed in the hulking barn-like wood frame structure. Nothing much was left. It was an all-alarm fire. Crews responded from nine fire departments. They battled the fire with hoses from the ground and also from truck-mounted ladders. The cause was not determined immediately. The state fire marshal dispatched an inspector to sift through the remains once they cool. Address: The 34600 blockif Old Homer Road.
Aerial water attack. The building was wholly engulfed when Winona firefighters arrived. They asked for back-up units from Dakota, Goodview, Minnesota City, Nodine, Pickwick, Ridgeway, Rolligstone and Wilson to pump water. Image: Richard Drazkowski
On a sunny day. The Black Horse has marketed itself in recent years for team volleyball and as a sports bar for a young crowd. It had been a well-patronized supper club off and on over the years.
Walz to solons: Get your act together
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Governor Tim Wlz called on lawmakers to end their power struggle and get on with doing the people’s business. “Just work together on a power-sharing agreement,” Walz said. A 67-67 split between Democrats and Republicans in the House has left neither side with a quorum. Even so, Republicans have charged ahead despite Democrats responding with a boycott to block Republicans from wielding power. Walz acknowledged that a special election pending in one district could change the 67-67 balance — but probably won’t. The district he said, is heavily Democratic. Give up, the Democratic governor told Republicans: “Don’t go down this road. You’re not going to win in court. You’re not going to win in a court of public opinion. We got a split Legislature. That is acknowledged. Just go with that. You’re not going to overturn an election.”
Earlier: Walz proposes trimmer budget, tax cut
Earlier: House GOP defiant to Simon: Don’t bother us
Earlier: Day 2 of House boycott: Brief session
Minnesota prep
Basketball (boys): Winona Cotter Ramblers 56, Wabasha-Kellogg Falcons 50
Basketball (boys): Caledonia Warriors 97, Lewiston-Altura Cardinals 72
Basketball (boys): St. Charles Saints 78, LaCrescent-Hokah Lancers 64
Basketball (girls): Rochester Mayo Spartans 106, Winona Winhawks 30
Basketball (girls): Winona Cotter Ramblers 56, Wabasha-Kellogg Falcons 26
Basketball (girls): Caledonia Warriors 75, Lewiston-Altura Cardinals 45
Basketball (girls): LaCrescent-Hokah Lancers 51, St. Charles Saints 44
Hockey (boys): Winona Winhawks 6, Faribault Falcons 0
Hockey (girls): Winona Winhawks 2, Black River Falls Tigers 0
Wisconsin prep
Basketball (boys): Arcadia Raiders 66, Cochrane-Fountain City Pirates 54
Basketball (girls): Arcadia Raiders 54, Black River Falls Tigers 42
Basketball (girls): Eleva-Strum Cardinals 65, Whitehall Norse 46
Basketball (girls): Cochrane-Fountain City Pirates 53, Alma-Pepin Eagles 47
Hockey (girls): Winona Winhawks 2, Black River Falls Tigers 0
Who would do such a thing?
The pride of the town. Everybody loved the beautifully crafted and colorful roadside welcome to this Wabasha County hamlet, population 151. Then somebody, by the dark of night, sawed it down and carted it off.
Walz proposes trimmer budget, tax cut
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Governor. Tim Walz unveiled his budget proposal for the next two years with an acknowledgement that the state budget surplus of a year ago is pretty much gone. The plan is to curb state spending to balance the budget. Walz called it a “responsible budget.” The budget also includes a sales tax cut — “the first in Minnesota history,” he said. The cut would be by a modest 0.075% in the statewide sales tax – from from 6.875% to 6.800% on a $100 purchase. He said the budget, if accepted by the Legislature, would leave $2.1 billion on the bottom line in Fiscal 2036-27, and $355 million in Fiscal Year 2028-29.
Verbatim
“This budget is responsible, measured, and honest, and it starts with one goal: fiscal responsibility. Our plan sets Minnesota up for success in the future by addressing long-term budget challenges and protecting the investments we made to improve lives, including universal meals, paid family and medical leave, and tax cuts for seniors and middle-class families.”
Conviction for bomb threat, other crimes
convicted of threatening to blow up the Freeborn County Government Center in July — as well as several other charges resulting from his arrest. The trial of Adam Alan Penhollow, 48, lasted four days. He was convicted on every count:
> Transporting an explosive device.
> Possessing illegal dangerous weapons.
> Possessing firearms.
> Communicating as a drug user.
> Fleeing police in a motor vehicle.
> Possessing drugs.
> Refusing a test for chemical substances in his body.
> Driving after revocation.
Judge Ross Leuning scheduled sentencing for March. The bomb threat in July led to the evacuation of the county building. The arrest came after an unrelated report of a fight outside the Walmart pharmacy in Albert Lea. Penhollow, one of the combatants, drove home, apparently unaware that police were tailing hm. In the house, officers found firearms, ammunition, a sound suppressor attached to a sub-legal length barrel, a CO2 container used as an explosive device, cartridge reloading equipment, a second explosive device, and a partial home-built submachine gun.
Earlier: 911 bomb threat at Albert Lea a hoax
Penhollow. After arrest as being booked into jail.
U.S. attorney for Minnesota resigns
MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger, who handled federal prosecutions in Minnesota in the Obama and Biden presidencies, announced his resignation. Luger is 65. It will be up to President-elect Donald Trump to choose a successor. On his watch Luger prioritized prosecutions for gun violence, drug trafficking, child exploitation, and public corruption. Luger led 30 attorneys nationwide with innovative strategies to address violent crime.
Earlier Ex-U.S. attorney Luger nominated to return
Earlier: Trump-appointed U.S. attorney leaves post
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Testimonials to new WSU football coach
WINONA, Minn. – The appointment of Brian Curtin as Winona State University’s new head football followed heavy lobbying from former players. Among accolades that flowed in with the announcement of his selection:
> Scott Opfer, founder of the WSU Football Players Association, “With 30 years of dedication to the program, his leadership, respect and unwavering commitment make him the perfect choice to guide the team. Coaches and players alike admire his vision and expertise.”
> Colin Charlson, past president of Players Association: “Curtin is a true Warrior who has dedicated his life’s work to Winona State, its football program and its students. I know coach Curtin not only as a world class football coach but a guy who knows and loves Winona State and the Winona community deeply.”
Curtin. Bundled for a cold Saturday in November. He knows Winona weather well. He’s been doing football at Winona State since 1993.
> Tom Sawyer, retired Winona State head football coach: “I am excited for Coach Curtin to take over. I’ve watched him grow into this opportunity from his first day on campus.”
House GOP defiant to Simon: Don’t bother us
Gates shut. Republicans have declared Secretary of State Steve Simon neither wanted nor needed. The sergeant-of-arms was told not to let Simon enter the barred gates to the House chamber. This means Simon cannot do his job, as defined in the state constitiuton, to deteiune whether a quorum is present House proceedings cannot proceed legally without a quorum .
Constitutional crisis looms over quorum
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota’s secretary of state, Steve Simon, said he has been locked out of the House chambers by Republicans who have taken unilateral control of the House without a quorum. Simon’s constitutional duty is to convene the annual session of the Legislature after determining that enough members are present to conduct business – the conventional “quorum” in parliamentary rules. With every Democrat boycotting the session in a feud over House rules, Simon on Tuesday declared a quorum was absent and adjourned the session. Republicans, however, proceeded anyway. Simon said he had intended to return every day as part of his constitutional duties to check whether a quorum were present so he could declare the session official. Meanwhile, the boycotting Democrats have gone to the state Supreme Court with a claim the Republicans have gone rogue with an outlaw renegade charade. A GOP spokesperson declined to confirm whether Simon was being physically denied entry but issued this statement: “The House is duly organized, and Secretary Simon has no reason to be in the House Chamber. Secretary Simon concluded his duty as ceremonial presiding officer when he vacated the rostrum.”
Earlier: Day 2 of House boycott: Brief session
Simon. Secretary of state of state snce 2015. Earlier a four-term member House from St. Paul. A Democrat.
R.I.P.: Keith Nelton
WINONA, Minn. — Keith Nelton, 71, of Winona, a landscaper who loved outdoor work, died of cancer. He loved fishing on the Mississippi, spending time on the North Shore, boating, skiing, camping, and archery. He enjoyed wood carving, painting, and traveling,
Detail: Watkowski-Mulyck Funeral Home
1953-2025
Sportscaster Bob Eucker dies at 90
MENONOMEE FALLS, Wis. – The legendary and witty baseball announcer Bob Uecker, who did play-by-play for the Milwaukee Brewers for 50-plus years, died at age 90. He had been diagnosed with small-cell lung cancer in 2023. Eucker played with the Milwaukee Braves in 1962. He was with the St. Louis Cardinals, who won the World Series in 1964. He joined the Brewers as a sportscaster in 1971.
Eucker. At home in Milwaukee suburb.
News summary at mid-week: January 15, 2025
GOVERNANCE: GOP pretends to have quorum: Full speed ahead
GOVERNANCE: Democrats stage boycott in St. Paul power struggle
GOVERNANCE: Senators settle on political power-sharing
SCHOOLS: Gay view on Rochester school’s book ban
SCHOOLS: School chief yanks gay book from library
POLITICS: Judge: Contested House race goes to Democrat
INFERNO: Massive Brice Prairie fire at Strupp Trucking
HEALTH: Bird flu now in third southeast Minnesota county
RIVER: Police thwart suicide off Main Channel bridge
SPORTS: WSU’s head football coach mantle to Curtin
SPORTS: New award to retired SMU sports publicist
CRIME: Appeal of Fravel murder conviction begins
CRIME: Least of her problems: Bad turn at Taco Bell
CRIME: Combative Walmart woman finally repressed, jailed
CRIME: Prison ends for cop in George Floyd death
EMERGENCY: Kitty couldn’t find litter box in time
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