What Is It About Minnesota Universities?

Are Minnesota universities trying to make complete buffoons of themselves? Last weekend in “Regulators Gone Wild” I noted the blunderbuss bureaucrats, acting as a protection racket for the state’s hidebound universities, who tried to block online college courses from being offered in Minnesota.  Today comes the news from The Daily Caller of how Concordia College is threatening disciplinary action against a student for the sin of embarrassing Democratic Congressman Collin Peterson.  (Needless to say, if a student embarrassed a Republican congressman, she’d be a hero.)

The student, Kate Engstrom, asked Congressman Peterson a question after a public event, videotaped it openly (not secretly), and posted it on YouTube.  Since Peterson is thought to have embarrassed himself, the university administration has apologized to Peterson for their impertinent student, and is pondering action against Engstrom:

Has Engstrom been hailed as a hero for publicizing the raw, uncut statements of a sitting member of Congress running for re-election? Has she been lauded for her passion about politics and for exercising her right to free speech?

Of course not.

Instead, according to Engstrom, her adviser insisted on a hasty meeting and explained that the YouTube posting had angered various Concordia bigwigs.

Engstrom’s adviser also told her that Concordia’s president, William Craft, had had already apologized to Peterson. The Concordia administration confirms the apology.

“President Craft spoke to Rep. Peterson and expressed regret concerning what Rep. Peterson experienced on campus,” Concordia spokesman Roger Degerman told The Daily Caller.

Engstrom’s adviser also told her that Concordia’s president had suggested that she could face disciplinary action from the school for her actions.

Minnesota “higher education,” beclowning itself yet again.  Sounds like a case tailor-made for FIRE.

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