Search Results for: coronavirus in one state
June 30, 2021 — Scott Johnson
The divided Minnesota legislature appears to have ended the one-man rule of Governor Tim “tear down this” Walz overnight. It is perfectly fitting that Walz (I believe falsely) presents himself setting aside his crown as a matter of his royal grace (press release at 11:40 p.m. last night): After reaching a deal with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to protect monthly emergency food payments for Minnesotans, Governor Tim
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May 19, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Children — especially disadvantaged children — have constituted collateral damage in the war on Covid-19 that was cravenly or insanely or irresponsibly conducted by the authorities. The Star Tribune doesn’t put it quite that way, but it’s the obvious inference one draws from Chris Serres’s story
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May 7, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Are we free at last? The big news is that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is to end his mask decree no later than July 1 and withdraw size restrictions on business and social gatherings on May 28. Effective at noon today, size limits on outdoor gatherings are out. Mandated early closing times at bars and restaurants are eliminated. Other restrictions continue in place, all as set forth in Walz Emergency
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May 4, 2021 — Scott Johnson
My law school classmate Kevin Roche is the former general counsel of UnitedHealth Group and former chief executive officer of its Ingenix division. When it comes to the Covid epidemic, he has mastered the published research and related issues. His Healthy Skeptic site provides a wealth of relevant commentary and analysis that has proved a highly reliable guide to the course of the epidemic over the past year. Kevin’s reliability
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April 28, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Governor Tim “tear down this” Walz continues to wage the war on Covid. He clings to the temporary emergency powers he has exercised under state law in order to control the “dials” of our lives. It’s a long way to temporary. However, the war is over. There is no emergency. This series should come to an end. With the assistance of Kevin Roche, I continue to submit questions to the
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March 25, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Today is the first anniversary of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s self-parodying fiasco of a speech on the public health emergency allegedly created by Covid-19 (video below). I lived in blissful ignorance of Governor Walz before the speech. Now my motto is Tear down this Walz. The guy is a glorified used car salesman of the Joe Isuzu variety. I bought the car from him on March 25, 2020, but it
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March 21, 2021 — Scott Johnson
My pace in covering the course of the epidemic and related developments in Minnesota has slackened along with the Minnesota Department of Health’s pace in responding to my questions under the terms of their settlement agreement with me. I have yet to receive responses to my questions submitted on March 7 and March 14. They have finally responded to my question regarding cases traced to tribal casinos. It is a
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March 5, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Although Governor Walz continues to exercise one-man rule and we continue to suffer the effects, the local news on the epidemic has reduced to vaccines and vaccinations. When will Governor Walz give it up and restore regular order? When is the public health “emergency” over? I appear to be alone among the local media in asking the question. I submitted the three questions below on February 21. Legally obligated to
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February 25, 2021 — Scott Johnson
In the words of John Lennon, war is over (if you want it) — the war in this case being the war on COVID-19. The public health emergency is over and yet governors such as Minnesota’s egregious Tim Walz continue to control the “dials” of our lives, as the authorities here refer to them. They have us fighting on like Japanese soldiers who haven’t heard that the Emperor surrendered. Kevin
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February 17, 2021 — Scott Johnson
In the questions I submitted to the Minnesota Department of Health last week, I sought to learn why one of our internist readers was unable to get his prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine or ivermectin filled by a major pharmaceutical chain for his patients’ off-label use. In their responses MDH professed not to know. They referred me to the Board of Pharmacy. I called the executive director of the Board of Pharmacy.
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February 10, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Having awaited the courtesy of a reply for eight days, I found it anti-climactic yesterday to receive the mostly unresponsive answers to my questions submitted to the Minnesota Department of Health in the early morning hours of February 1: 1. Question: Please provide the data you have compiled bearing one way or the other on the effectiveness of your 5-point plan to reduce spread of the epidemic in long-term care
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February 2, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Star Tribune commentary editor D.J. Tice perfectly captured the public face of of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz in his weekend column “Taxing the rich is tricker than it seems.” It is one that I have tried to capture several times in this series. Tice observed: “Gov. Tim Walz is a man of many words. He invested a hefty surplus of verbiage last week while touting his new budget proposal to
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January 30, 2021 — Scott Johnson
In the settlement of my lawsuit against them last year, the authorities at the Minnesota Department of Health agreed to respond to three questions a week from me in the same fashion that they respond to questions submitted by other reporters. My lawsuit stood at the intersection of politics, public policy, and First Amendment/free press that on which this series has centered. MDH’s handling of my questions is located at
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January 21, 2021 — Scott Johnson
The past three Minnesota Department of Health press briefings have been devoted to the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine in Minnesota. They carry on in the disingenuous spirit to which we have grown accustomed but otherwise are lacking in general interest. Barring unforeseen circumstances I will cut back this series to installments in which I can report my own exchanges with the department (my own, that is, with a little
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January 12, 2021 — Scott Johnson
I enlisted the assistance of attorney Theresa Bevilacqua to recommit the Minnesota Department of Health to good faith compliance with the terms of the settlement agreement resolving my lawsuit against Commissioner Jan Malcolm and press flack Michael Schommer. MDH counsel stated that they want to make my arrangement with them work as intended. Previous deficiencies will be cured in due course, in part by my reformulation of a poorly phrased
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January 11, 2021 — Scott Johnson
Today is a big day for the subjects of King Tim. Our governor has graciously relaxed the strictures of royal decree 101 of 2020 in his first royal decree of the new year, effective at 11:59 p.m. last night. These are the highlights: • Indoor dining at bars and restaurants can open at 50% capacity, with a maximum of 150 people. Parties of no more than six people must remain
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January 5, 2021 — Scott Johnson
When I obtained evidence making out the illegality of the Minnesota Department of Health’s exclusion of me from regular press briefings, I retained Dorsey and Whitney’s Theresa Bevilacqua to represent me in a lawsuit against MDH Commissioner Jan Malcolm and MDH press flack Michael Schommer in federal district court. The case was assigned to Judge Donovan Frank, who promptly denied MDH’s motion to dismiss my lawsuit. Malcolm and Schommer then
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