minnesota senate

The Minnesota Republican operative fired by the state Senate after an affair with the majority leader says he believes they were both victims of a power grab by other Republican senators. Michael Brodkorb made his most extensive comments to date in an interview Sunday with The Associated Press about the events that led to his firing, and his lawsuit in response.

A state Senate committee has voted down the proposal to permit casino-style games at Minnesota horse-racing tracks. The vote by the Senate's State Government Committee was 8-5 against the "racino" proposal, with several Republicans and Democrats joining to reject it.

The Minnesota Senate Finance Committee has advanced a voter ID constitutional amendment after discussing the costs of taking such a vote.

The Minnesota Senate has passed a bill that would let schools lay off teachers based on performance. The bill passed in a 36-26 vote.

Republican senators will meet in St. Paul on Tuesday to select their new majority leader. The senate has been without a leader since Amy Koch (coke) stepped down last week amid allegations of inappropriate conduct with an employee.

The Minnesota Senate will hold two hearings on proposals for the state to help build a new Minnesota Vikings stadium, as Gov. Mark Dayton meets with backers of possible sites.

A cost-cutting bill that freezes government worker pay for two years, alters state employee health insurance and slices budgets for most agencies has cleared the Minnesota Senate.

A member of the Minnesota Senate says she wants to make sure that chaplains who pray in the Senate chamber avoid overt mentions of Jesus Christ and Christianity, or other faith-specific references.

The Minnesota Legislature has passed a bill that creates a new method of obtaining teacher licenses. The alternative licensing plan is aimed at meeting projected teacher shortages in the future. It's designed to give Minnesota schools an infusion of new, mostly young teachers who don't attend traditional teaching colleges, and help close an achievement gap between white and minority students that's one of the worst in the country.