November 6, 2001 - MPR’s Michael Khoo reports on Governor Jesse Ventura’s stance against public funding on a new stadium for Minnesota Twins. His view and actions have drawn criticism from some voters and fellow politicians.
November 7, 2001 - Midday presents an update on the future of the Minnesota Twins and professional baseball in Minnesota with a discussion with Jay Weiner, Star Tribune sportswriter and MPR sport analyst; and Bill Lester, executive director of the Sports Facilities Commission; and attorney Michael Ciresi.
November 7, 2001 - MPR’s Art Hughes reports on how Minneapolis voters overwhelmingly picked challenger R.T. Rybak for mayor of Minneapolis. Rybak beat two-term incumbent Sharon Sayles Belton in mayoral election with 65 percent of the vote. He leads a pack of new faces on the city council that signals a significant change of direction. Hughes summarizes the two campaigns and outcome.
November 7, 2001 - MPR’s Michael Khoo reports on political debate over Major League Baseball’s potential owner vote to contract two teams from the league…one being the Minnesota Twins.
November 7, 2001 - Minneapolis Mayor-elect R.T. Rybak got started on his move to City Hall, a day after trouncing incumbent Mayor Sharon Sayles Belton. Rybak announced the first two people who will head his administration's transition team, with an initial focus of affordable housing.
November 7, 2001 - MPR’s Dan Olson takes a look at the eight year tenure of Sharon Sayles Belton, outgoing mayor Minneapolis. Highlighted accomplishments include crime reduction campaigns, downtown development, budget challenges, curtailing housing discrimination, community schools, and rise in property values.
November 7, 2001 - MPR's Tom Scheck reports on results of Major League Baseball owner meeting, where a vote took place to contract teams in the league. Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig says baseball's owners overwhelmingly voted to continue the process of contracting two teams before the 2002 season starts.
November 8, 2001 - MPR's Andrew Haeg reports that Minnesotans continue to ponder life without the Minnesota Twins. The team is a prime candidate for elimination if Major League Baseball carries through its intended plan to contract the league. If the Twins are shut down, businesses will lose customers….and local community organizations will lose an important benefactor.
November 8, 2001 - As part of Mainstreet Radio’s “Harvest of Frustration” series, Dan Gunderson reports on how sugar beet farmers in Minnesota and North Dakota are hopeful the 2001 harvest marks a turn for the better. In the past couple of years, sugar prices fell to 20 year lows, turning what was once seen as guaranteed big money into just another break even crop.
November 13, 2001 - Studies show African Americans and other people of color are in Minnesota's criminal justice system at a rate far greater than their presence in the population. That disparity has grown despite years of studies. No one seems to know why Minnesota's predominantly white population turns overwhelmingly nonwhite inside the state's prison gates. Some blame police practices as racial profiling for bringing more people of color into the court system. But in the end, judges bear the responsibility for sending people to jail. Minnesota Public Radio's Elizabeth Stawicki reports on the connection between judges and racial disparities in this installment in our series, The Color of Justice.