Plus: Voter who voted twice in the 2020 election faces charges in Hennepin County; gas prices in Minnesota are below $4; and weighing a self-defense claim in the Apple River stabbing case.

Welcome to the Glean, MinnPost’s twice-daily roundup of Minnesota news.

For the AP Todd Richmond and Christina Cassidy write, “Wisconsin’s secretary of state has no role in elections, but that could change if Republicans are able to flip the seat this year and pass a law that would empower the office with far more responsibilities. All three GOP candidates competing for the nomination in Tuesday’s primary support the shift and echo former President Donald Trump’s false claims that fraud cost him the 2020 election. … In Minnesota, the leading Republican candidate has called the 2020 election ‘rigged’ and has faced criticism for a video attacking three prominent Jewish Democrats, including the current secretary of state, Democrat Steve Simon, who is seeking reelection.”

In the New York Times editorial writer Michelle Cottle writes, “Of all the political quandaries and questions of the 2022 midterms, one burns especially bright: How is it that Senator Ron Johnson, the two-term Republican from Wisconsin, remains a remotely viable candidate for re-election? The Trump era has given us so many … let’s say, colorful … characters. But Mr. Johnson may be the senator who most fully embodies the detached-from-reality elements of MAGA-world — the guy most likely to spend his spare time fashioning tinfoil hats while cruising QAnon message boards. … Democrats always think they are going to sink the senator with one of his impolitic utterances, a person close to the Johnson campaign told me. But this Johnson ally points out that there have been so many statements and controversies over the years and very few of them really sink in or stick with people. Translation: Plenty of Wisconsin voters came to terms with Mr. Johnson’s brand of crazy years ago.”

In the Alexandria Echo Press Mike McFeely says, “Steve Kubeny has words of wisdom for anybody who says, ‘There aren’t any fish in my lake.’ ‘If you drained all the water out of their lakes,’ Kubeny said, smiling and sweeping his arm toward the water of Portage Lake in Otter Tail County, ‘people would be amazed at how many fish were in them.’ … Other DNR fisheries personnel survey lakes in their areas. Some lakes are electrofished if the DNR wants to target specific species, like crappies. (DNR workers) recently surveyed channel catfish in the Red River near Wahpeton, North Dakota, using electrofishing. The data is available at the DNR’s website under the Lake Finder feature. Anglers can type in a lake’s name and county to find data and the DNR’s analysis of the fishery.”

Kim Hyatt of the Strib reports, “When a Minnetonka man was confronted by a detective about casting an absentee ballot and voting in-person in the November 2020 general election, he said ‘sorry about that.’ But now the dual voter, Alexander Leonard Peck, 30, faces two felony counts of unlawful voting and registering in more than one precinct, according to charges recently filed in Hennepin County District Court. Peck is accused of voting absentee under a Minneapolis address in late September, and again Nov. 3 at an Edina polling location.”

For the Duluth News Tribune Travis Gulbrandson says, “Patrick Walsh recently celebrated the fourth year of a business he co-founded, Anatomic Inc., which sells human stem cell-derived sensory neurons to pharmaceutical companies for the possible creation of new, nonaddictive painkillers. Walsh, who grew up near Forada, Minnesota, earned a bachelor of arts degree in biology with a chemistry minor from the University of Minnesota-Morris, and a master’s degree in stem cell biology from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. … Currently, three researchers at the company are working on two neuron types each, so within a year or two they may have six different types plus the one they already have. ‘That might help pharmaceutical companies develop different types of drugs for different types of things.’ Walsh said. ‘That’s one aspect of the business, is trying to support pharmaceutical companies as they do their research.’”

A WCCO-TV story says, “There’s good news at the gas pump. The average price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Minnesota is now below $4. It’s $3.99 a gallon as of Sunday morning. That’s down 2 cents since Saturday. In Wisconsin, the average is down to $3.74 a gallon.”

Stribber Matt McKinney writes, “If the Apple River stabbing case goes to trial, the jury will need to look at accused killer Nicolae Miu’s frame of mind — was he genuinely in fear for his life? — as they steer the case toward a conviction or an acquittal. … the jury will have to consider Miu’s intentions as they weigh his version against the victims’ assertions that Miu struck first and then drew a knife on unarmed young people. ‘What was his thought process? Why did he have that knife in the first place? It’s all in his state of mind,’ Minneapolis defense attorney Joe Friedberg said. At least two witness videos of the encounter were turned over to authorities, and in one Miu appears to have opportunity to leave, according to the criminal complaint. That’s a key element in any self-defense claim, Friedberg said. ‘If you can walk away, you’ve gotta do it,’ he said.”

For MSN.com David Edwards says, “MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell revealed plans over the weekend to stage a trial where voting machines are the defendants. While speaking with Steve Bannon at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday, Lindell explained that the ‘trial’ would take place at his upcoming ‘Moment of Truth Summit’ on election fraud later in August. Lindell said he would ‘have the trial of the machines’ on the second day of his summit. ‘Hold it!’ Bannon interrupted. ‘The trial of the machines!’ ‘The trial of the machines,’ Lindell repeated. ‘You’re going to put the machines on trial?’ Bannon asked. ‘Absolutely,’ Lindell agreed. ‘We’re going to put them on trial.’”

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Longtime Twin Cities journalist Brian Lambert writes The Glean for MinnPost. He also blogs with Joe Loveland at Wry Wing Politics.

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