Latest news with #ex-Minnesota
Newsweek
19-07-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Watch: Ex-Minnesota Republican Leader's Trash Can Blown Up Outside Home
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Former Minnesota Republican leader Michael Brodkorb has shared footage of someone detonating a device in the trash can outside his home. "My family is safe but shaken," the ex-Minnesota GOP deputy chair said in a post to X, formerly Twitter, along with a clip from surveillance cameras at his home in Eagan, Minnesota, taken at 12:45 a.m. Friday. "I am furious." Newsweek has reached out to the Eagan Police Department for comment via email outside regular working hours. NEW: Please review the security video and audio of the 12:49 AM explosion outside my home. A masked individual detonated an incendiary device in my trash, causing a fire. @EaganPolice are investigating. If you recognize anything, please contact them at (651) 675-5700. — Michael Brodkorb (@mbrodkorb) July 18, 2025 Why It Matters The incident underscores rising concerns of political intimidation and personal security for public figures and commentators. Minnesota Democratic state Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband were fatally shot last month in what Minnesota Governor Tim Walz branded an act of "targeted political violence." Brodkorb has been a vocal participant in Minnesota political life—including breaking with his party to endorse Democratic candidates after a long Republican tenure. Such events can have a chilling effect on political discourse and may influence perceptions of safety among political activists and former officials. What To Know Both surveillance footage and Brodkorb's statements indicate the suspect wore a mask and arrived on a bicycle, remaining in front of the house for four to five minutes while appearing to use a phone. The individual ignored several other trash cans on the street before seemingly targeting the one outside Brodkorb's driveway. Michael Brodkorb speaks with reporters in St. Paul, Minnesota, on June 30, 2011. Michael Brodkorb speaks with reporters in St. Paul, Minnesota, on June 30, 2011. Jim Mone/AP Eagan Police Sergeant Rich Evans told The Minnesota Star Tribune that the incendiary device was "a mortar-style firework." An arson investigation has been launched. Brodkorb, his wife and three children were home at the time but were not harmed. However, he said they had been "terrified" by the attack. The 51-year-old held Republican Party leadership posts from 2009 to 2011 and attended the 2008 Republican National Convention as a delegate. In 2024, he publicly endorsed Democratic nominees former Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who lost to President Donald Trump in the general election. Who People Are Saying Brodkorb posted the footage on X, saying: "At 12:49 AM, a masked individual intentionally detonated an incendiary device—or large firework—in the trash can outside my home. It exploded, sparked a fire, and destroyed the can." In a second post, he continued, "Seconds after the video starts, a masked person on a bicycle stops in front of my house. Later in the video, you can hear them talking on the phone. At 12:49 AM, they light the device, it explodes, and then the person leaves. @EaganPD is investigating. Please share the video." Nicole Widdersheim, deputy Washington director of Human Rights Watch whose friend, British politician Jo Cox, was killed on the steps of her office, condemned political violence last month, telling Newsweek: "Public servants should not have to weigh the risk to their families before casting a vote or answering constituents' questions. Political violence doesn't just harm individuals—it poisons the system, scares away good people, and chips away at public trust." What Happens Next Eagan police have initiated an arson investigation and seek public input based on the released security footage. Law enforcement encourages anyone with information about the incident or the individual involved to report tips. No arrests had been made as of publication time.
Hindustan Times
19-06-2025
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Adrian Peterson caught on camera trading blows in wild poker brawl; video goes viral
Former NFL star Adrian Peterson was seen trading punches during a poker game dispute at a Texas social club. The altercation, which took place on May 27, was captured on video obtained by TMZ Sports. The clip showed the ex-Minnesota Vikings running back engaging in a fistfight with another man during a heated exchange at JokerStars, a Houston-based gaming venue. Peterson confirmed the incident in a conversation with TMZ. He stated that the disagreement began between him and a friend over a card hand and quickly escalated. 'One thing led to another,' Peterson said, adding that the pair 'squared up' after exchanging words. Also Read: What is Adrian Peterson's net worth? NFL legend's poker night fight video surfaces The video shows the two men throwing punches at each other. Peterson initially took a series of blows to the face before landing several punches himself as the fight moved toward the back wall. A bystander attempted to break up the brawl, but the two kept landing blows for several seconds. Following the incident, both individuals appeared with visible injuries. Peterson claimed he was not punched in the face but was injured after falling into a chair during the altercation. Alcohol was reportedly involved, though Peterson clarified that it was not the cause of the dispute. Law enforcement was not called to the scene, and the JokerStars club did not impose any penalties on either party, according to Peterson. Despite the intensity of the altercation, the NFL veteran said there were no hard feelings. 'Me and the guy, we're cool. We've known each other. It was literally like a brother situation... We agreed to disagree, we had our words, and we threw blows - and that was it,' Peterson explained. Peterson, a future Pro Football Hall of Famer, has taken up poker since retiring from football. He was present at JokerStars again last Thursday and acknowledged that he regrets the fight. 'I felt really bad,' he said, according to TMZ. ALSO READ: Saquon Barkley's Eagles contract makes history: Who are highest paid RBs in NFL? - Full list No. Police were not called, and no charges were filed. At JokerStars Social Club in Houston, Texas. No. He retired from the NFL and now plays poker in his free time.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
No resolution reached yet in criminal case against ex-state trooper Shane Roper
May 29—ROCHESTER — A resolution has not been met in the criminal case against Shane Roper, the ex-Minnesota State Patrol trooper involved in a fatal crash in May 2024. Roper appeared virtually in court on Thursday, May 29, for another hearing. He is facing nine criminal charges in Olmsted County District Court, including felony counts of second-degree manslaughter, criminal vehicular homicide and criminal vehicular operation, for his involvement in a fatal crash that killed 18-year-old Olivia Flores. The crash happened around 5:45 p.m. on Saturday, May 18, 2024, at the intersection of Memorial Parkway and 12th Street Southwest, near Apache Mall. Flores sat in the back seat of her friend's Ford Focus when the car was struck by a Minnesota State Patrol squad car, driven by Roper. During Thursday's hearing, District Judge Lisa Hayne said she would like to hear arguments on the change of venue motion "sooner rather than later." The next hearing, a settlement conference, was scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Aug. 20. If the case is not resolved by then, Hayne said, both parties will present their arguments. In previous court documents, the defense submitted a change of venue motion due to the case's publicity. If granted, the jury trial would move to a different county whose residents would be impaneled as jurors. The court is looking at dates in early 2026 for a possible jury trial. Recap of the criminal complaint According to the criminal complaint, Roper quickly approached the intersection of Apache Drive Southwest, an area where the primary entry points to the Apache Mall are located. This area tends to have "very active traffic ... on a typical Saturday." When Roper's car was 400 feet from the intersection, the squad camera showed a green traffic signal for eastbound traffic. A larger SUV also traveling east entered the left turn lane to go onto Memorial Parkway Southwest, obstructing the view for vehicles turning onto Apache Drive Southwest, the complaint said. A Ford Focus with three passengers was in that turn lane and attempted to drive through the intersection. "Due to Roper's excessive speed (traveling 83 miles per hour and at full throttle up until 1.4 seconds before impact), when the Ford Focus started through the intersection, Roper was unable to sufficiently brake or maneuver his squad car to avoid the collision," the complaint says. Roper's squad car hit the passenger side of the Ford Focus, the vehicle Flores was in, while traveling at least 55 mph. The impact sent both cars east through the intersection to collide with a Toyota Rav4. There were two people in the Toyota. Witnesses told police that the oncoming vehicle was "flying." Witnesses did not see or hear emergency lights or a siren. According to the complaint, the Ford Focus driver sustained a liver laceration, a bruised kidney and numerous additional minor injuries. The front passenger sustained a broken pelvis, lacerated kidney and other minor injuries. The passengers of the Toyota Rav4 sustained physical pain from the collision. In the squad car, Roper had a ride-along passenger who sustained rib bruising and multiple fractures from the crash. Roper was also injured. Weeks after the incident, Roper confirmed to law enforcement that he was attempting to "close the gap" between his squad car and a vehicle suspected of being in violation of a traffic code, the Post Bulletin previously reported. Roper said it was not an active pursuit and that he was not paying attention to his speed, according to the criminal complaint. He told police he did believe his lights were activated.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House ethics watchdog now open for business
The House's outside ethics watchdog will soon be able to begin investigating lawmakers after the longest period of dormancy in its 17-year history. The Office of Congressional Conduct — which vets misconduct allegations against lawmakers then sends findings to the House Ethics Committee, which can recommend potential formal action — has been effectively shuttered since the start of the 119th Congress as it awaited the appointment of board members. But on Tuesday afternoon, the House clerk read aloud the names of those four members from the chamber floor, permitting the office to make moves toward resuming normal operations once again. Karen Haas, a former House clerk, will serve as board chair; ex-Minnesota Democratic Rep. Bill Luther will serve as board co-chair. Another former House clerk, Lorraine Miller, alongside former Georgia GOP Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, will also hold seats. It follows drawn-out pleading by good government organizations and a personal appeal earlier this month from a group of House Democrats who directly asked Speaker Mike Johnson to appoint members to the board. 'Ensuring OCC can operate effectively should not be a partisan issue,' wrote Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and seven colleagues. It's not currently clear what the hold-up was about, though House GOP leadership made early moves to suggest it was seeking to slow-walk the OCC's ability to get up and running. The rules package at the start of this Congress included language that changed the name of the body and required the board to meet to formally appoint the staff, essentially stalling its ability to resume operations. Former GOP Rep. Porter Goss, who helped create the office in 2008, said he believed the inaction in forming OCC's board for the new Congress might have been intended to quietly kill it altogether. A spokesperson for Johnson did not respond to an inquiry about the reason for the delay. In any event, with the board's reappointment — all four members served last year, too — the OCC now has its work cut out for it. Staffers will soon face a mountain of cases that have accumulated during the OCC's months of relative inactivity. The absence of a board forced the agency to sit almost entirely idle: While it could continue to gather freely-accessible information to develop cases, it lacked the ability to open any investigations without a formal governing body. Beyond reviewing complaints against lawmakers, the inaction from House leadership in appointing a board for the new Congress also prevented OCC from formally changing its name on some official materials — as was required in the Rules package for this Congress — and from releasing reports on its activities. Launched in 2008 by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the OCC was a response to a series of ethics scandals roiling Capitol Hill at that time, including the high-profile bribery charges against the notorious lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Whereas the House Ethics Committee's operations are shrouded in secrecy, the OCC was set up to receive complaints from the outside public about any House member. The independent, nonpartisan body could then investigate the matter and turn over credible allegations to the bipartisan Ethics panel made up of House members evenly divided between the two parties. Goss said he, Pelosi and others proponents of the OCC believed that public-shaming could compel good behavior: Whereas the OCC is governed by a board of private citizens, the House Ethics Committee is a panel of members who adjudicate cases against their peers. And while the Ethics Committee is notoriously quiet, OCC is public-facing. 'The idea was that this would take the pressure' off the Ethics Committee, Goss said. The House also took months to reappoint members to its Ethics Committee in the longest delay in recent history. It followed the tumultuous circumstances surrounding the release of the report into former Rep. Matt Gaetz, accused of illicit drug use and paying a minor for sex. But many lawmakers revile the OCC, regarding it as a politically-motivated operation unfit to oversee the activities of the House. Shortly after Trump's first election, lawmakers sought to kneecap the office altogether. Former Rep. Gregg Harper (R-Miss.), who as a member of Congress served on the Ethics Committee, has since leaving office represented people with cases pending before the OCC and said in an interview he would advise future clients to not cooperate with the office's requests. He called it a 'gotcha organization' with little usefulness to the House and said it was time to shut it down to save taxpayer dollars. One current House member, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters around Congressional ethical concerns, argued that the OCC was a partisan entity that would take up just about any complaint — and that, despite the headaches the body creates, it has no real power in how the House Ethics Committee adjudicates complaints. In the meantime, polls have found public trust in the federal government, particularly trust in Congress, to be exceptionally low. Good governance activists argue that the OCC is a key tool in restoring that trust and bemoaned the delays in reconstituting the office. Aaron Scherb, a lobbyist for the progressive group Common Cause, cited concerns about 'misconduct just being swept under the rug' in the OCC's absence. 'As we've seen, the House Ethics Committee is extremely lacking in its investigations, and so the OCC has in some cases helped spur or kind of helped catalyze the House Ethics Committee to conduct more rigorous investigations,' Scherb said. A spokesperson for OCC declined to comment.
Politico
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Politico
House ethics watchdog now open for business
The House's outside ethics watchdog will soon be able to begin investigating lawmakers after the longest period of dormancy in its 17-year history. The Office of Congressional Conduct — which vets misconduct allegations against lawmakers then sends findings to the House Ethics Committee, which can recommend potential formal action — has been effectively shuttered since the start of the 119th Congress as it awaited the appointment of board members. But on Tuesday afternoon, the House clerk read aloud the names of those four members from the chamber floor, permitting the office to make moves toward resuming normal operations once again. Karen Haas, a former House clerk, will serve as board chair; ex-Minnesota Democratic Rep. Bill Luther will serve as board co-chair. Another former House clerk, Lorraine Miller, alongside former Georgia GOP Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, will also hold seats. It follows drawn-out pleading by good government organizations and a personal appeal earlier this month from a group of House Democrats who directly asked Speaker Mike Johnson to appoint members to the board. 'Ensuring OCC can operate effectively should not be a partisan issue,' wrote Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and seven colleagues. It's not currently clear what the hold-up was about, though House GOP leadership made early moves to suggest it was seeking to slow-walk the OCC's ability to get up and running. The rules package at the start of this Congress included language that changed the name of the body and required the board to meet to formally appoint the staff, essentially stalling its ability to resume operations. Former GOP Rep. Porter Goss, who helped create the office in 2008, said he believed the inaction in forming OCC's board for the new Congress might have been intended to quietly kill it altogether. A spokesperson for Johnson did not respond to an inquiry about the reason for the delay. In any event, with the board's reappointment — all four members served last year, too — the OCC now has its work cut out for it. Staffers will soon face a mountain of cases that have accumulated during the OCC's months of relative inactivity. The absence of a board forced the agency to sit almost entirely idle: While it could continue to gather freely-accessible information to develop cases, it lacked the ability to open any investigations without a formal governing body. Beyond reviewing complaints against lawmakers, the inaction from House leadership in appointing a board for the new Congress also prevented OCC from formally changing its name on some official materials — as was required in the Rules package for this Congress — and from releasing reports on its activities. Launched in 2008 by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the OCC was a response to a series of ethics scandals roiling Capitol Hill at that time, including the high-profile bribery charges against the notorious lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Whereas the House Ethics Committee's operations are shrouded in secrecy, the OCC was set up to receive complaints from the outside public about any House member. The independent, nonpartisan body could then investigate the matter and turn over credible allegations to the bipartisan Ethics panel made up of House members evenly divided between the two parties. Goss said he, Pelosi and others proponents of the OCC believed that public-shaming could compel good behavior: Whereas the OCC is governed by a board of private citizens, the House Ethics Committee is a panel of members who adjudicate cases against their peers. And while the Ethics Committee is notoriously quiet, OCC is public-facing. 'The idea was that this would take the pressure' off the Ethics Committee, Goss said. The House also took months to reappoint members to its Ethics Committee in the longest delay in recent history. It followed the tumultuous circumstances surrounding the release of the report into former Rep. Matt Gaetz, accused of illicit drug use and paying a minor for sex. But many lawmakers revile the OCC, regarding it as a politically-motivated operation unfit to oversee the activities of the House. Shortly after Trump's first election, lawmakers sought to kneecap the office altogether. Former Rep. Gregg Harper (R-Miss.), who as a member of Congress served on the Ethics Committee, has since leaving office represented people with cases pending before the OCC and said in an interview he would advise future clients to not cooperate with the office's requests. He called it a 'gotcha organization' with little usefulness to the House and said it was time to shut it down to save taxpayer dollars. One current House member, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters around Congressional ethical concerns, argued that the OCC was a partisan entity that would take up just about any complaint — and that, despite the headaches the body creates, it has no real power in how the House Ethics Committee adjudicates complaints. In the meantime, polls have found public trust in the federal government, particularly trust in Congress, to be exceptionally low. Good governance activists argue that the OCC is a key tool in restoring that trust and bemoaned the delays in reconstituting the office. Aaron Scherb, a lobbyist for the progressive group Common Cause, cited concerns about 'misconduct just being swept under the rug' in the OCC's absence. 'As we've seen, the House Ethics Committee is extremely lacking in its investigations, and so the OCC has in some cases helped spur or kind of helped catalyze the House Ethics Committee to conduct more rigorous investigations,' Scherb said. A spokesperson for OCC declined to comment.
