Star Tribune
Winona legislator retires after 38 years
Gene Pelowski spent the first part of his career encouraging students to get involved in government. Decades later, he’s set to retire after taking his own advice.
Pelowksi, one of the few Greater Minnesota Democrats serving in the Minnesota Legislature, announced earlier this month he wouldn’t seek re-election after serving 38 years in the House.
“There was always something … a project that needed to go through the legislative process,” said Pelowski, who admitted he never thought he would serve nearly four decades in state government.
Pelowski leaves behind a legacy of streamlining government and educational reform. First elected in 1986, 71-year-old Pelowski is currently the longest serving member in the House.
“He’s been a giant in the Legislature,” House Speaker Melissa Hortman said.
Hortman praised Pelowski for his dedication to education, as well as his ability to bridge divides between political parties and rural and urban interests. She also highlighted his softer side — the practical jokes he likes to make on the House floor and the impish smile that gives him away.
“That’s probably one of the things we’ll miss the most,” Hortman said.
Pelowski taught American history over the years and oversaw mock government programs for students in the Winona area. He decided to run for office once he realized he kept encouraging students to get involved in public service but wasn’t taking his own advice.
He decided to retire after this year to spend more time with his grandchildren and introduce them to golf. Several members of his family (including himself) were golf professionals.
Pelowksi is among several retiring lawmakers poised to leave in 2025 as Minnesota grapples with what will likely be a historic budget process. Lawmakers used nearly $17 billion in surplus funding while creating the current budget; the state has a $2.4 billion surplus as of December but that could be offset by a project deficit about the same size.
Pelowski made his name in the House as a conservative-leaning Democrat who wasn’t afraid to break party ranks — he’s the only pro-life DFLer in the House, and he’s argued in the past the state DFL isn’t doing enough to appeal to Greater Minnesotans.
“He’s got an impeccable reputation,” Republican Rep. Paul Torkelson, R-Hanska said. “He was his own man and he represented his district well.”
The Winona representative said he always saw his role as serving his district first, above politics.
“I think we’ve gotten to a point now with both (political) parties that they put party first,” Pelowski said. “It’s always in reference to the party. My last consideration is the party.”
His achievements include spearheading changes to the way Minnesota addresses disasters after a 2007 flood rocked southeast Minnesota. Pelowski helped create a state disaster contingency fund in response and pushed to change state rules to no longer require a special session to disburse aid.
He also became heavily involved in education policy as chair of the House higher education committee. Pelowksi has criticized the University of Minnesota in recent years over its increasing costs at a time when student enrollment in colleges and universities is declining across the nation.
He’s also been heavily involved in infrastructure policy, pushing for more public buildings to abandon flat roofs in favor of slated roofing to avoid damage from snow and rain.
“If you want a building that you’re going to use for decades, then build it for that,” he said.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation closed part of a state highway Wednesday evening near Austin because of a “major hazardous materials release” in the area.
Hwy. 56 from Hayfield to Waltham, a stretch covering about five miles, was closed in both directions and drivers were directed to follow a detour to Blooming Prairie on U.S. Hwy. 218.
No information on the hazardous materials released was immediately available.
A federal judge dismissed a civil lawsuit against Minnesota state trooper Ryan Londregan in the shooting death of Ricky Cobb II during a 2023 traffic stop.
The decision is the latest development in a case that has drawn heated debate over excessive use of force by law enforcement. Criminal charges against Londregan were dismissed by Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty in June, saying the prosecution didn’t have the evidence to proceed with a case.
On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Nancy E. Brasel granted Londregan’s motion to dismiss the civil suit, arguing he acted reasonably when he opened fire as Cobb’s vehicle lurched forward with another state trooper partly inside.
Londregan’s attorney Chris Madelsaid Wednesday that it’s been a “long, grueling journey to justice. Ryan Londregan has finally arrived.”
On July 31, 2023, the two troopers pulled over Cobb, 33, on Interstate 94 in north Minneapolis for driving without taillights and later learned he was wanted for violating a felony domestic no-contact order. Cobb refused commands to exit the car.
With Seide partly inside the car while trying to unbuckle Cobb’s seatbelt, the car moved forward. Londregan then opened fire, hitting Cobb twice.
In her decision, Brasel said the troopers were mandated by state law to make an arrest given Cobb’s domestic no-contact order violation. She said it was objectively reasonable for Londregan to believe Seide was in immediate danger as the car moved forward on a busy highway, which would make his use of force reasonable.
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Donald Trump walked down the steps of the Boeing 757 that bears his name, walked across a rain-soaked tarmac and, after twice missing the handle, climbed into the passenger seat of a white garbage truck that also carried his name.
The former president, once a reality TV star known for his showmanship, wanted to draw attention to a remark made a day earlier by his successor, Democratic President Joe Biden, that suggested Trump’s supporters were garbage. Trump has used the remark as a cudgel against his Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris.
”How do you like my garbage truck?” Trump said, wearing an orange and yellow safety vest over his white dress shirt and red tie. ”This is in honor of Kamala and Joe Biden.”
Trump and other Republicans were facing pushback of their own for comments by a comedian at a weekend Trump rally who disparaged Puerto Rico as a ”floating island of garbage.” Trump then seized on a comment Biden made on a late Wednesday call that “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters.”
The president tried to clarify the comment afterward, saying he had intended to say Trump’s demonization of Latinos was unconscionable. But it was too late.
On Thursday, after arriving in Green Bay, Wisconsin, for an evening rally, Trump climbed into the garbage truck, carrying on a brief discussion with reporters while looking out the window — similar to what he did earlier this month during a photo opportunity he staged at a Pennsylvania McDonalds.
He again tried to distance himself from comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, whose joke had set off the firestorm, but Trump did not denounce it. He also said he did not need to apologize to Puerto Ricans.
”I don’t know anything about the comedian,” Trump said. ”I don’t know who he is. I’ve never seen him. I heard he made a statement, but it was a statement that he made. He’s a comedian, what can I tell you. I know nothing about him.”
