PINE CITY, Minn. — Governor Tim Walz took to the field, rifle in hand, for the opening day of the Minnesota firearm deer season. Walz hunted with Brady Crocker and Kevin Hinze on their private land 60 miles north of St. Paul. No, the governor didn’t come back with a deer. Afterward the governor traveled to a nearby state testing station where samples were being taken from carcasses to test for the chronic wasting disease that is decimating the deer herd in parts of the state. “As a lifelong hunter,” Walz said, “I understand the seriousness of this disease and my administration is committed to doing everything we can to reduce the continued risk.”
Checking in. The governor at a Natural Resources Department checkpoint for diseased deer outside the National Guard armory in Pine City.