Star Tribune
Hikers, ATVers, cycling groups, snowmobilers find common ground in northern MN
Minnesota outdoors lovers haven’t always played well together: motor sports devotees and quiet sports enthusiasts maintain and use separate trails, with some debating which groups are better stewards of natural resources.
But now, in northern Minnesota, several competing trail groups are setting down a new path.
A collection of mountain biking enthusiasts, ATV riders, hikers, snowmobilers, skiers and community leaders are meeting to find common ground across the Mesabi Range. Their new group, the Arrowhead Coalition of Trails, has a mission built on a shared ideal: Working together to draw more outdoor recreation tourists to the region. They’re talking about sharing volunteers and trail maintenance gear, creating a new marketing plan to represent all of them, and even sharing a vault toilet.
The groups are learning how much each type of sport can benefit their communities:
At its first meeting last month in Virginia, the coalition saw data about the volume of out-of-towners, for example, who rumble on ATVs and side-by-sides on places like the Prospectors Trail system that connects Ely, Tower and nearby towns. And the metro cyclists who sweep into facilities like Redhead Mountain Bike Park in Chisholm.
A University of Minnesota analysis of ATV use in Koochiching, Lake and St. Louis counties found that more than 219,000 riders visited the region in 2023, injecting an estimated $36 million into the economy, with $12 million in labor income. On average, an individual rider spent a little more than $144 per day at local businesses.
The Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota found in 2023 that tourists made up 67% of riders at Redhead and 85% at Giants Ridge, which has won raves for its downhill trails outside of ski season. Most visitors have come from the metro area.
The upshot: Designated trails draw varied visitors to the Arrowhead, and development will drive more tourism.
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers in both parties on Thursday called on a congressional panel to release the results of an investigation into alleged misconduct by former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., demanding to see its report about sexual misconduct and other charges against President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to be the attorney general.
Gaetz abruptly resigned Wednesday after Trump announced he was the pick to lead the Justice Department, shocking many members of Congress who see him as unqualified and unfit for the post. His rapid exit effectively ended the ethics panel’s investigation into him two days before members had planned to vote on whether to release their long-awaited findings.
Since the spring of 2021, the House Ethics Committee has been investigating claims that Gaetz engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use and accepted impermissible gifts under House rules, among other charges.
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who chairs the Judiciary Committee, which would have jurisdiction over confirming an attorney general, on Thursday called on the House panel to preserve and share its conclusions.
“The sequence and timing of Mr. Gaetz’s resignation from the House raises serious questions about the contents of the House Ethics Committee report,” Durbin said in a statement. “We cannot allow this valuable information from a bipartisan investigation to be hidden from the American people.”
Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., the chair of the Ethics Committee, suggested in comments to reporters that he was not inclined to release the investigative findings now that Gaetz has resigned.
“Once we lose jurisdiction, there would not be a report that would be issued,” Guest said.
That raised the possibility of a constitutional clash between the Senate, which is charged with vetting and confirming presidential nominees, and the House at the start of Trump’s second term. Trump has already threatened to circumvent the Senate and unilaterally appoint people to his administration during a recess, short-circuiting the normal process.
The dominance Becker High’s football team showed all season was evident in the Class 4A state semifinals Thursday at U.S. Bank Stadium as the No. 1-ranked Bulldogs controlled the game from the outset in a 28-7 victory over Marshall.
Beck will face the winner of the Orono-Totino Grace semifinal in the championship game Nov. 22 at 1 p.m.
Becker finished the game with 322 total yards compared to Marshall’s 202. Becker never let Marshall gain momentum.
Sawyer Brown both threw a touchdown pass and caught a touchdown pass for Becker, which remains undefeated at 12-0.
Marshall ends the season with a record of 10-2.
Star Tribune
Trump expected to choose vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary, AP sources say
NEW YORK — President-elect Donald Trump is expected to nominate anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr to serve as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, according to two people familiar with the discussions who spoke on condition of anonymity.
HHS is a massive Cabinet agency that oversees everything from drug, vaccine and food safety to medical research and the social safety net programs Medicare and Medicaid.
Kennedy, a former Democrat who ran as an independent in this year’s presidential race, abandoned his bid after striking a deal to give Trump his endorsement with a promise to have a role in health policy in the administration.
He and Trump have since become good friends, with Kennedy frequently receiving loud applause at Trump’s rallies.
The expected appointment was first reported by Politico Thursday.
