Star Tribune
Minnesota Senate approves $110,000 settlement with former DFL chief of staff
A Minnesota Senate committee approved a $110,000 settlement Tuesday with the former chief of staff of the Senate DFL caucus, who alleged she faced discrimination under the Minnesota Human Rights Act when she was terminated late last year.
Under the terms of the settlement, Carly Melin, a former state legislator, has to drop any potential legal action against the Senate. DFL Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy denied any wrongdoing by the Senate in Melin’s termination, but said they chose to settle to avoid a protracted legal battle.
“I believe the Senate has done nothing wrong, and it doesn’t necessarily sit well to make a payment like this, but in the end I think this is the right thing to do,” Murphy said. “If we do not settle this matter now and proceed to litigation, the costs to the state of Minnesota, win or lose, will be significantly more than the settlement amount.”
Murphy said a settlement also “protects the institution” and limits exposure. The Senate Rules Committee approved the settlement agreement on a 6-3 party-line vote.
Judith Bevis Langevin, an attorney with Nilan Johnson Lewis representing the Senate, said Melin alleged she was unlawfully fired from the Senate based on actions and views held by her spouse, former state legislator Joe Radinovich, which constituted “marital status” discrimination under the Minnesota Human Rights Act.
Radinovich has been an adviser to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and works as campaign manager for Don Samuels, who is challenging DFL U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar in the Fifth District.
Melin, who did not appear in the Rules Committee meeting, said “both my husband and I are lifelong DFLers committed to the party’s success, so I did not make the decision to take legal action lightly.”
“But, I was told more than once I could no longer continue in my role at the Senate due to my husband’s political actions and beliefs,” she said in a statement. “I’m happy to have reached a resolution so my family and I can close this chapter and the harm it’s caused me.”
Republican Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson questioned the decision to settle rather than take the case to court.
“The argument of distraction and the argument of dollars, when weighed against principle, doesn’t sit quite right,” he said.
Senate counsel Alexis Stangl said the chamber has already spent roughly $93,000 in legal fees negotiating the terms of the settlement. The $110,000 figure represents about six months of Melin’s previous salary with benefits.
After serving three terms as a DFLer in the state House, Melin worked for the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council and as the government affairs director for Attorney General Keith Ellison. Melin, who left the Senate late last year, was initially hired under former Minority Leader Melisa López Franzen in 2021 and continued in the job under former Senate Majority Leader Kari Dziedzic last year.
A Senate spokesman confirmed in December that Melin was leaving Senate employment, without commenting on the reason for her departure.
In February, Murphy announced the Senate had hired Bri Sharkey-Smith as the Senate DFL’s new chief of staff.
Staff writer Ryan Faircloth contributed to this report.
Mohamed Omar is the new board chair of Hennepin Healthcare System, the organization that runs HCMC, making him Minnesota’s first Somali American hospital board leader.
The health care system board permanently appointed Omar to the position Wednesday at their regular meeting. He had served as interim chair since Babette Apland stepped down in September.
Omar has been on the volunteer board for three years, working on the finance, investment, audit and compliance committees. He is the chief administrative officer at the Washburn Center for Children and previously was chief financial officer at the Greater Minnesota Housing Fund.
In a statement, Omar said he was excited to lead a hospital board in the state with the largest Somali American population in the U.S. He said he shared the health system’s dedication to providing “equitable, high-quality care.”
“My commitment is to deepen our community engagement, build more authentic connections between patients and team members, and build a confident future together,” Omar’s statement said.
CEO Jennifer DeCubellis and Nneka Sederstrom, chief health equity officer, praised Omar’s selection to lead the board. They said more inclusive leadership with a commitment to ending health disparities are key to HCMC’s success.
Hennepin County Board Chair Irene Fernando, who is also on health system board, said she was excited to work with Omar. She said county leaders are dedicated to good stewardship of the “state’s last public safety-net hospital.”
“As the first Hennepin County Board Chair of color, I know how impactful it is for our communities to see themselves represented in public leadership,” Fernando said.
DULUTH – The Superior National Forest has lifted its forestwide campfire ban, including the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, effective Friday.
Recent rain and humidity have improved conditions across the national forest’s 3 million acres, forest officials said in a news release.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has also lifted fire restrictions in Cook, Koochiching, Lake and northern St. Louis counties.
Fire danger is still a concern this time of year, said Karen Harrison, DNR wildfire prevention specialist.
“As leaves fall and vegetation continues to dry out, it’s important for people to be cautious with anything that can cause a spark,” she said.
The national forest imposed its broad campfire ban nearly two weeks ago, after a third wildfire, named for Bogus Lake, was discovered on forest land. No significant fire activity has been reported in recent days for any of those three fires. A fourth fire inside the forest, the 8.5-acre Pfeiffer Lake Fire, started Oct. 17. It was contained within 24 hours, the Forest Service said.
Much of northeast Minnesota is still classified in the “severe drought” stage by the U.S. Drought Monitor.
WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris was asked this week if she thought Donald Trump was a fascist, and she replied ‘’Yes, I do.’’ She subsequently called him the same thing herself, saying voters don’t want ‘’a president of the United States who admires dictators and is a fascist.’’
But what exactly is a fascist? And does the meaning of the word shift when viewed through a historical or political prism — especially so close to the end of a fraught presidential race?
An authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is often associated with the far right and characterized by a dictatorial leader who uses military forces to help suppress political and civil opposition.
History’s two most famous fascists were Nazi chief Adolf Hitler in Germany and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. Known as Il Duce, or ”the duke,” Mussolini headed the National Fascist Party, which was symbolized by an eagle clutching a fasces — a bundle of rods with an axe among them.
At Mussolini’s urging, in October 1922, thousands of ”Blackshirts,” or ”squadristi,” made up an armed fascist militia that marched on Rome, vowing to seize power. Hitler’s Nazis similarly relied on a militia, known as the ”Brownshirts.” Both men eventually imposed single-party rule and encouraged violence in the streets. They used soldiers, but also fomented civilian unrest that pit loyalists against political opponents and larger swaths of everyday society.
Hitler and Mussolini censored the press and issued sophisticated propaganda. They played up racist fears and manipulated not just their active supporters but everyday citizens.
