Lori Sturdevant

Minneapolis, Saint Paul

Writer at Freelance

Retired Star Tribune editorial writer and columnist; author of books about Minnesota's heroes and heroines.

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Articles

Tariffs and farms: A delicate situation

1 week ago | mankatofreepress.com | Lori Sturdevant

Minnesota Farmers Union president Gary Wertish got my attention when he told me that President Donald Trump’s tariff policy could push Minnesota into a new farm crisis, one that could do more damage than the 1980s version. I remember that farm crisis — and if you were of sentient age in Minnesota in the 1980s, you do too. The pain of lost farms, dashed dreams and depleted communities caused by a crash in commodity and land prices was felt well beyond farm country — and would be again.
Tariffs and Minnesota's farms: A delicate situation

1 week ago | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

Opinion editor's note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here. Minnesota Farmers Union president Gary Wertish got my attention when he told me that President Donald Trump's tariff policy could push Minnesota into a new farm crisis, one that could do more damage than the 1980s version. I remember that farm crisis - and if you were of sentient age in Minnesota in the 1980s, you do too.
Threats to cut U research funds put Minnesota's future economy at stake

3 weeks ago | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

By Lori Sturdevant The rate of return to Minnesota on state investment is a statistic in which Bruininks takes particular pride, since it was on his presidential watch that a consultant was first contracted to calculate it. He had the latest numbers, and they are impressive: For every $1 in state funding the University of Minnesota receives, it generates $16.75 in combined direct and indirect economic activity in Minnesota.
Keep an eye on the Minnesota AG’s race for 2026

1 month ago | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

Keith Ellison seems ready and willing to take on the Trump administration. Still, if he seeks a third term, it’s likely to be close. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison talks with supporters after speaking at the “Fund Our Future” rally calling for elected officials to block cuts to vital programs and increase revenue for public services on Feb. 18 at the State Capitol Rotunda in St. Paul.
Sturdevant: For the love of democracy: While dysfunction permeates Minnesota, hope blooms in Maine

2 months ago | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

In the coastal state, Republicans and Democrats alike think that big money has too much political sway. January 28, 2025 at 11:30PMCNN early votes were on a big screen at a Vice President Kamala Harris and running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz election night party at Howard University in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 5, 2024. (Renée Jones Schneider/The Minnesota Star Tribune)Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.
This Minnesota legislative session is poised to begin like 1971’s

Jan 11, 2025 | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

May its impact, in the end, warrant a similar comparison. January 11, 2025 at 11:30PMThe Minnesota Legislature will convene on Jan. 14 for the 2025 session. (Glen Stubbe/The Minnesota Star Tribune)Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.
Returning his primary focus to the governorship, Walz enters the bonus zone

Nov 8, 2024 | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

But until the 1980s, none did. The governors with storied names — Pillsbury, Olson, Stassen, Youngdahl, Freeman, the Anderson Minnesotans called Wendy to distinguish him from the ones called Elmer — all served six years or a bit less. Their reasons for leaving office varied. I doubt that Floyd B. Olson would recommend his exit mode, orchestrated by the Grim Reaper. But Olson evidently thought that six years was long enough to be governor.
Divided government at the Minnesota Capitol may sound good, but

Oct 17, 2024 | ourcommunitynow.com | Lori Sturdevant

ShareWhat really could result is persistent gridlock and diminished problem-solving capacity. Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here . Dispatches from 135 Minnesota legislative races (134 House, one Senate) have been hard to hear over the presidential-political din. But I didn’t miss reports about the comments of retiring DFL state Rep.
Divided government at the Minnesota Capitol may sound good, but …

Oct 17, 2024 | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

One example: highway funding. A decadeslong pattern of small gasoline tax increases every few years to cover the rising costs of highway building and maintenance ended in the 1990s as a “no new taxes” dictum took hold among Republicans. Reports that detailed the ensuing deterioration of state roads went unheeded. It took a major bridge collapse in 2007 and a dramatic veto override vote in 2008 to add a nickel to the per-gallon tax, the first such increase since 1988. That was it — until 2023.
Sturdevant: How a good No. 2 prepares to be No. 1

Sep 20, 2024 | startribune.com | Lori Sturdevant

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here. I would have been eager to speak with former Lt. Gov. Marlene Johnson last week even if she wasn’t touting the release of her new book. That book is “Rise to the Challenge: A Memoir of Politics, Leadership, and Love,” out this month at University of Minnesota Press. More about that in the endnote.