January 22, 2001 - Morning Edition’s Cathy Wurzer talks with Laura McCallum, MPR’s capitol bureau chief. McCallum previews Governor Ventura’s budget address and probable abortion topic in legislature.
January 31, 2001 - Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz joins Midday’s Gary Eichten in the MPR studios to talk about the state of the judicial system in Minnesota. Focus of conversation is on how state court system is overwhelmed handling two million cases a year and the need for more funding. Justice Blatz also answers listener call-in questions.
February 15, 2001 - Morning Edition’s Cathy Wurzer talks with DFL State Representative Betty Folliard, a supporter of Displaced Homemaker Program, which a Senate committee has unanimously approved a bill that would continue funding. The 23-year-old program is designed to help stay-at-home moms who are widowed, divorced, or abandoned and Folliard says the program is still necessary.
February 20, 2001 - MPR’s Lorna Benson interviews Bo Thao, who proposed a new oral history project documenting the lives of Hmong women in the Twin Cities. Thao says she hopes the stories will empower younger women with the knowledge that Hmong women have always been leaders in their communities, especially in times of war.
March 6, 2001 - Howard Orenstein, of Citizens for a Safer Minnesota; and Lynda Boudreau, Republican state representative, answer calls from listeners about gun laws.
March 27, 2001 - MPR's Laura McCallum reports that just days before the first legislative committee deadline, abortion bills are gaining strength at the Capitol. Bills to create a special "Choose Life" license plate and to create a 24-hour waiting period before a woman could get an abortion passed their first legislative hurdles, but Governor Ventura says he'll veto both bills if they land on his desk.
April 9, 2001 - MPR's Capitol Bureau Chief Laura McCallum details bills and budget talks at the State Capitol. One includes a plan to build a new Minnesota Twins stadium with partial state funding. The proposal would provide $150 million in state money, which would cover half of the total stadium cost; the other half would come from the Twins and private sources.
April 23, 2001 - As part of Mainstreet Radio series Broken Trust: Civil Rights in Indian Country, MPR’s Dan Gunderson reports on the struggles of American Indians, with the voices of people who say their rights, and complaints, are ignored.
April 24, 2001 - As part of Mainstreet Radio series Broken Trust: Civil Rights in Indian Country, MPR’s Cara Hetland reports on decades of Native American civil rights complaints in South Dakota.
April 24, 2001 - As part of Mainstreet Radio series Broken Trust: Civil Rights in Indian Country, MPR’s Jeff Horwich reports that as a new generation of Indians comes of age, a long-standing genetic cut-off point for Indian people may be closely linked to the future of Indian nations and cultures.