November 28, 2001 - All Things Considered’s Lorna Benson talks with Steven Wagner, one of three St. Cloud professors who released results from a St. Cloud State University poll that shows Governor Ventura's approval rating has dropped sharply. 44% of respondents rated Ventura's overall performance as "excellent" or "pretty good." That's down from 63% the year prior.
November 27, 2001 - MPR’s Tom Scheck provides a debrief on Major League Baseball owners meeting in Chicago, where MLB Commissioner Bud Selig said both he and the owners still plan to eliminate two teams before next season. The Minnesota Twins are widely considered a top prospect for elimination, but Selig acknowledges there may be obstacles along the way.
November 22, 2001 - The Minnesota Wild is a young team and they are figuring out what they are good at doing and what kind of team they will become.
November 21, 2001 - All Things Considered’s Lorna Benson interviews Stanford economist Roger Noll about a report released that concludes Major League Baseball is unlikely benefit economically from its contraction plan. Noll, who wrote the report, says the League WOULD benefit if it could eliminate only the struggling Montreal Expos, but he says there are no other teams struggling enough to make buying them out worthwhile.
November 20, 2001 - MPR’s Michael Khoo talks with All Things Considered’s Lorna Benson about what came out of a first meeting of a tri-partisan task force looking at various ballpark proposals, including one for the Minnesota Twins. Khoo breaks down some of the testimony at meeting.
November 20, 2001 - All Things Considered’s Lorna Benson interviews John Wodele, communications director for Governor Ventura, about projected state budget shortfall. Finance Commissioner Pam Wheelock says the projected budget shortfall could be as high as one billion dollars when the revenue forecast is announced. The Ventura administration is asking state agencies to plan for budget cuts of up to 10%.
November 19, 2001 - Twins fans are breathing a cautious sigh of relief following a court order barring Major League Baseball from eliminating the Twins before the end of 2002, when the team's Metrodome lease runs out. Both the Twins and Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig say they plan to appeal the ruling. Former Twins slugger Kirby Puckett, now an executive vice president with the ballclub, says he's waiting for something a bit more concrete than the injunction, but he says there's no doubt the ruling helps baseball fans.
November 19, 2001 - All Things Considered’s Lorna Benson interviews Minnesota Orchestra Concertmaster Jorja Fleezanis about anger local musicians have over a new aviation security bill, with calls to members of Minnesota's congressional delegation to express their concerns.
November 16, 2001 - MPR’s Tom Scheck shares details on Hennepin County District Judge Harry Crump ruling that the Minnesota Twins must play baseball in the Metrodome next season. In an order filed, Crump ruled in favor of the injunction request filed in prior week by the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission.
November 13, 2001 - All Things Considered’s Lorna Benson interviews Fay Vincent, Major League Baseball's former commissioner, who weighs in on MLB’s owner vote to contract two teams.