January 12, 1998 - It's been twenty years since that man from Minnesota, Hubert H. Humphrey the Second, died at the age of 66 on a bitterly cold January 13th. The former Senator and Vice President was an unabashed liberal, proud of his work on legislation establishing civil rights, Medicare, and the Peace Corps - programs and policies still in place today. As Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports, historians say the anniversary of Humphrey's death is a chance to look back on his legacy.
January 13, 1998 - More than a hundred angry residents packed Richfield City Hall last night, taking city officials to task for clear-cutting two-hundred trees for a planned maintenance garage. The city council reversed its decision to build the garage at Veterans Park, but not before residents expressed outrage over the loss of trees, and the process.
January 14, 1998 - MPR’s Leif Enger reports on cold weather tourism on the Gun Flint Trail, and the debates of what exactly that should be. Report includes various interviews and commentary.
January 16, 1998 - Music, English, Drama and Religion scholars will gather at Stanford University to deconstruct the work of one of Minnesota's most famous sons, Bob Dylan. The conference is billed as "The First U.S. Bob Dylan Conference" and will focus on Dylan's art and cultural legacy. MPR’s Lorna Benson interviews Tino Markworth, organizer of conference.
January 17, 1998 - In sports news: It was a nail-bitter last night as the Minnesota Timberwolves edged Houston 116-to-115 last night in overtime. The Wolves have won four straight. The Wolves take on the Mavericks tonight in Dallas. Gametime is 7:30 p.m. Minnesota Vikings board chairman John Skoglund says there's an outside chance the team will not be sold -- because of the NFL's lucrative new television deals. And if the Vikings ownership group doesn't sell the team, Skoglund says Dennis Green probably would stay as head coach. Major league baseball and the Minnesota Twins are trying to block Attorney General Humphrey's antitrust investigation into the possible move of the Minnesota Twins to North Carolina. The actions were filed yesterday in state and federal courts.
January 19, 1998 - State Attorney General Skip Humphrey's lawsuit against big tobacco interests is going to trial. But critics of his contract with an outside lawfirm, arguing the case, say private lawyers could get rich at the expense of state taxpayers.
January 19, 1998 - The death last month of 3-term republican Barb Vickerman created the open seat. The district borders the Minnesota River and includes the town's of Redwood Falls, New Ulm and Springfield. Because of the compressed timetable of the special election.... the candidates have little more than three weeks to meet voters and plug their ISS.
January 20, 1998 - State lawmakers meet at noon today to start the 1998 legislative session. Bonding-bill sessions are usually quiet affairs, but this year's 1-point-3 Billion dollar surplus may stir things up.
January 21, 1998 - A bill that would pressure banks to offer a low-fee checking account got its first hearing at the state capital today. The bill is one of several proposals to limit bank fees that will come up in this legislative session. Supporters said fees have gotten excessive. Opponents did not have a chance to testify.
January 22, 1998 - Saint Paul Former Republican Governor C. Elmer Anderson is dead. The 85 year old died today in a Brainerd Hospital.