Liberty & Prosperity Blog

Graduation Standards—Bane or Blessing? by Ramblin’ Rose Some in Minnesota are celebrating for a second straight year the rise in number of high school graduates. Others contrast that news with the revelation that Minnesota, once the 'Education State,' has fallen again in the national rankings. Josiah Padley, Policy Fellow at Center of the American Experiment, cited the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s 2026 findings. Our North Star State is no longer in the top 10; it fell from 7th to 21st from 2021 to 2026, specifically '#7 in 2021, #9 in 2022, #18 in 2023, #19 in 2024 and #17 in 2025.'" How can so many more students 'earn' a high school diploma when their proficiency rates are plummeting. Let hiSTORY tell the 'story.' In the early 1990s, "experts" eliminated the Carnegie Units (course credits) with the claim that they only reflected seat time. The graduation rates were lower, but the proficiency levels were higher. The experts (politicians and...

Predictably, Sheriff Fletcher is getting criticized Too often, I've listened to DFL politicians tell us that we've got a gun violence problem. Apparently, that's the DFL's approach to ignoring Somali gang violence. Last week, a legitimate leader emerged . "Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher" spoke truth to these politicians. The Alpha News article reports "In a 'Live on Patrol' video posted Monday, Sheriff Fletcher and deputies from his office said it was time to publicly address the violence following several shootings and a murder over the July 4 weekend, which the sheriff said were connected to ongoing Somali gang violence." This is infuriating. Minneapolis ignored the gang violence while blaming inanimate objects for the city's violence crisis. Who do they think they're kidding? The DFL has a soft-on-crime reputation crisis. Sheriff Fletcher highlighted that crisis by speaking plainly. Minnesota's sanctuary city policies offer...

The Truth in Funding Minnesota Schools/Learners, plus a Proposal for $7K for Parents to Invest...at NO Cost to Taxpayers, Part I by Ramblin’ Rose This article is about Minnesota’s ESA (Education Savings Account), not the federal program of ECCA (Educational Choice for Children Act). While both advocate for education and fund special ways for parents and children to make better choices for learning, they are very different. This post focuses on an approximate $7000 savings account for students who are NOT enrolled in traditionally funded public schools. ESAs are NOT vouchers, even if some politicians intentionally misuse the term. Educated citizens were vital for our fledgling nation. Consequently, education was a priority as the USA began. The first public school opened in 1635 in Boston. Support for education and an educated citizenry continues. For decades, Minnesota was championed as a leader in education, but now half of our students cannot read nor do math at grade level, dropping...

Without a significant shake-up in Minneapolis's political leadership (Mayor Frey, the City Council) and police leadership, it looks like Minneapolis will remain a lost cause in terms of public safety. Joe Gamaldi, the national vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police, had some harsh criticisms for Mayor Frey. For instance, Gamaldi told Liz Collin that "I think Mayor [Jacob] Frey likes to talk tough with everyone, but I think we all know he is completely spineless . Because these gangs know that even if they are arrested, they’re just gonna be let right back out over and over and over again." Ms. Collin reported in her podcast that "This past weekend marked yet another violent Fourth of July in Minneapolis. Dozens of car windows were smashed, there was a homicide, and several people were injured by gunfire—with some of it caught on camera. Despite the danger to the public, many local leaders seem unwilling to publicly acknowledge that there is a Somali gang ...

Friday morning, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered Criminal Illegal Alien Tou Lue Vang to be deported back to his native Laos. The Trump administration issued this statement om the deportation. The administration said "A convicted child sex offender is no longer in our country thanks to President Donald J. Trump and his Administration — defeating a sick attempt by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison to lend him safe harbor in the so-called 'sanctuary' state." When Vang was initially arrested for assaulting the then-10-year-old girl, they removed Vang's green card. That made it easier for DHS and the State Department to deport Vang. Thank God for big favors. The DFL has focused too much on sanctuary city status. They didn't focus on putting together a coherent, popular governing agenda. That's difficult work. It's easier to flood the country with criminal illegal aliens, give them drivers licenses, then have them vote i...

Anyone that's paid attention to Minnesota politics knows that AG Keith Ellison is multiple layers beneath a dirtbag. After reading this Alpha News article , it's obvious that Keith Ellison isn't into enforcing laws. He's just a political hack with the nastiest anti-Trump bias I've ever seen. The DFL is the ultimate soft-on-crime political party in history. The proof is in the article. It says "Perhaps most shocking, despite pleading guilty to first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a child under 13, Vang never served a day in prison . Instead, the court imposed a stayed 144-month prison sentence and placed him on probation for 30 years. He was discharged from probation in 2019." This happened before Keith Ellison was elected to Congress, which is 12 years before getting elected AG. Still, Ellison should've taken that into consideration before voting to grant Vang's pardon. The good news is that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked Va...