NewsNight Minnesota; 6045; NewsNight Minnesota Episode from 11/17/1998; SD-Base

NEWSNIGHT Minnesota is a production of Katie scene for the stations of Minnesota Public Television the sleeves are rolled up paper is crumpled on the floor governor elect's transition team is in place and ready to get to work. Kim stone dead this is not right and I'm going to Harbin tonight three members of Jesse Ventura's covertness group of minds and bodies are here along plus Richfield and the Airports Commission are at odds over airplane noise and we have a segment I'm kind of nervous about me and US soldiers want to come with the pole. Welcome to NEWSNIGHT Minnesota a statewide news and information program for thoughtful Minnesotans bringing contacts to the region's most important stories. NEWSNIGHT Minnesota is made possible in part with support from the Blanton Foundation creating a stronger Minnesota by bridging rural and urban communities. The Nick Knight Foundation dedicated to improving the quality of life for Minnesota families and by Cargill supporting Minnesota's tradition of community service.

Let's start with the headlines another big piece of the Ventura administration was announced today the advisory committee. It is a star studded group from across the political spectrum and even outside the state. NEWSNIGHT Mary La hammer introduces us to the diverse group of people who were chosen for their ability to think in a non partisan manner like the new governor for a state sort of like opening up a surprise birthday present at one of your important birthdays. What's in this package we're finding out more and more every day. What's in this package. The Ventura administration. I guarantee to you that this advisory group will be both provocative and thoughtful and giving me advice about how we can make government work better for the people of the great state of Minnesota. You know they collected a two person committee will advise the governor elect on transition issues personnel and major policy initiatives. Now this committee is a good cross-section. As governor elect Ventura said we wanted to get all the people involved in this from Democrat Republican independent

from different walks of life. Minnesota Reform Party co-founder Dean Barkley will chair the committee. Former Colorado governor and Reform Party presidential candidate Richard Lamm will share his expertise on running a state. But I'm already very impressed of the people there. Governor elect to surround himself with and I'm here to help in any way I can. Lam says having a good staff and being candid and honest are his measures of a good leader and the state's current second in command will also be advising the new governor. And I certainly hope that I will be able to help in terms of policy certainly things that are that have been done in the past number of years that are good in that we are seeing results from we want to continue those. Lieutenant governor Joanne Benson joins Representative Charlie Weaver as the two Republicans on the team who lost their bids for higher office this year. We want what's best for Minnesota that's what all Minnesotans ought to want. This governor as much as anything campaigned on a desire to. Break

beyond partisanship and to show Minnesotans that we could actually have a government that worked together toward common goals. Former Congressman Tim Penny is one of two democratic officeholders on the committee former state senator Emily and Staples Tuttle is the other from the private sector comes vice president of the Financial Corporation Peter Bell. All Republicans Democrats independents have a stake in this governor doing well and we must all take that I believe very very seriously and executive director of the General Mills foundation. Retha Clark King I see this as a major opportunity for me working with others to use myself as a resource and pushing new and good ideas after non-singing as Advisory Committee Governor elect Ventura ducked out of the press conference early saying he had some pressing business in Los Angeles that business includes appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Late Late Show with

Tom Snyder reported. From the capital I Mary Lou Hamer for Newsnight Minnesota. Stay right where you are in just a couple of minutes we'll be joined by three members of the Ventura team. The University of Minnesota wired 20 million dollars to the federal government today that's right. Twenty million dollars. That payment is part of a settlement reached today in the LG lawsuit and that lawsuit the federal government claimed the university did not have FDA approval to sell a LG an organ transplant drug which the university earned profits from. The settlement will cost the university Thirty two million dollars when all is said and done. A subdued Mark Yudof had this to say. We knew that we had had some management problems some mismanagement some of these grants programs we knew were liable for something although we didn't agree on the numbers. And I guess my overwhelming feeling was let's get this behind this along with the business of the university building the medical school and all the other programs. This element appears to be the largest ever involving every third university.

Finally a few more quick headlines. Two school board is meeting tonight that's just one week before public school teachers there are set to go on strike. Negotiations are continuing. Minnesota farmers are catching a break from the eye our Ask the dairy farmers who had sold livestock can now qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit. That's because the livestock sold is no longer considered a capital gain. And a merry one hammer told us earlier about Ventura's appearance on Jay Leno and Tom Snyder but it's not going to be the only Minnesota political story on national TV. The Gilbert may oral race is going to be decided by coin toss tomorrow. On NBC Today show and finally the local WNBA team has their first head coach slash general manager he's Brian Adler. He's coach of the Cleveland quest which is a another woman's professional team and those are the headlines. Maybe this next story can be handled by a coin toss I don't know. Listen to this the last time we brought up this next topic we had a nice lovely civil discussion here on NEWSNIGHT we're talking about the new runway the Metropolitan Airport Commission wants to build and the City of Richfield we had both

sides on the show this past summer. Now Richfield wants millions from Mac basically for the inconvenience. And we ended the show with the conclusion that the two sides would peacefully negotiate a settlement fine. Then this past weekend wham all kinds of accusations started flying all over the news Ridgeville says Mac has been holding back some critical information about the impact the runway will have on their city. MCA now says it wants an apology from the city of Richfield for basically making up stuff and dragging their name in the mud. Well maybe we can get to the bottom of all of this tonight. We have the Richfield City Council Member Mike Sandall and Commissioner John Hilley of the Metropolitan Airports Commission I think it will come down Commission I want to start with you the last time you're on NEWSNIGHT June 2nd 1998 you said and I'm quoting It's silly to have governments fighting other units of government. And now we run into all the stuff that's happened since Friday Saturday Sunday and today. And I agree it is

silly to have other units of government fighting each other and in fact of the Metropolitan Airports Commission has been able to reach agreements with the city of Minneapolis. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Bloomington and various other communities affected by the airport. The only community where we have been unable to reach an agreement despite literally not only months but even years of discussion has been the city of Richfield I think that's very unfortunate. All right Mike help me out here what is the problem now. Richfield claims and I'm talking about the mayor. In particular and I don't other city council members feel the same way but there's some documents that were not released. Rich Fields been discussing with Mack as John pointed out for a long time what the potential impacts of low frequency noise on the residents in Richfield might be. All right. The new runway is going to be within two blocks of some of the homes in Richfield. And according to the studies that we've seen from Max there are going to be upwards of three to 400 operations per day. We've been worried about low frequency

noise and we've asked Mack on a number of occasions to sit down and help us define a technical solution to defining what those impacts might be and therefore what the mitigations are going to have to be. Just the last week or so we did. Serve Mac where the data Practices Act request to get whatever low frequency noise data they had and from that request came a study that Mack it commissioned at the end of 97. Measuring the low frequency noise at the current MSP on the current runways and that it would there would be a problem. Well it's it defined what the vibrations were. It didn't go so far as to say what the problem might or might not be that's the next step in the process. Now you think this was intentional. I mean that you it was so difficult for ritual to get this document. I'm not going to characterize it. Help me out here what could happen why did they have to go through so much just to get this.

I think what's important to realize is this document is is one of literally file cabinets and perhaps even truckloads of documents that have been generated in a nine year process and environmental process of that's been the most complex and the most comprehensive of any environmental process in the history of the state of Minnesota. What's unfortunate is that Richfield has taken this one document out of context. However what's important understand is that as a relates to low frequency noise we believe that Richfield is trying to over mitigate in trying to over characterize the problem particularly as it is to the extent within the city of Richfield and frankly is trying to compel Mac to use airport dollars and other taxpayer dollars up the settlement because the settlement figure and pay for redevelopment we understand you clearly hear tonight you're saying Mack did not intentionally make it difficult for ritual to get this information. No in fact they they submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to get these documents and we complied with that request. All right so what about this latest request from America now the one today demanding an apology from the city of

Richfield going to happen. If if we believe that that apology would move the process along they'd get an apology. I don't think we have anything to apologize for. We in fact were forced to make a data Practices Act request we had asked for this information in the past. We've asked that of members of the Mac staff directly and it took a data Practices Act request in order to get the information filing writes Are you willing to apologize Max didn't want that apology what good would that do. That doesn't help the process. The bigger issue here is this. We have offered Richfield a very significant mitigation package we've already now spent 64 million dollars in a city of Richfield we're committed to spend another 12 to 15 million dollars. The offer we made pushed that in excess of 100 million dollars just for the city of Richfield. I think we need to realize that the consequences of fooling around with this process any further I mean at some point we have to say we're willing to accept. These

mitigation dollars in this package and move forward. The problem is as if this runway is not constructed we will suffer some very significant consequences for the economic development of this region to support the jobs and business growth and that would be very disastrous. I got about a minute half left now some people would argue. So what you came up with this study that Mac was holding on to a chorister building is one way of course is going to be no ice. All we've ever asked for is that the potential significant environmental impact posed by low frequency noise be included in the US that as a matter of fact what we're asking you to do and all we've asked for is included in the. So what's going to happen there's an environmental board tomorrow morning and they have a lot of authority because they can basically this Mac on hold. Conceivably this is the final vote in a nine year process which will be made tomorrow and we course hope that it will rule in favor of allowing the project to go forward. All right now although the project will be allowed to go forward that still would not take care of the settlement which bill still seeks.

Well it would because we've already committed in the context of that to to extend the Richfield over 75 million dollars in mitigation money that we have already committed. All right. And would that be enough for ritual. We don't know because we haven't defined what the impact's going to be and therefore what the mitigation is going to require. All right to go back to my opening line here it's silly to have governments fighting over other units of government doesn't sound like we've got any closer here. Well as open result here to you guys I don't know. Well you know let's remember airports are always going to be controversial and I don't think anybody expected that we would be this far along in reaching agreement to consensus with all of these other communities around the airport the fact is we have concluded agreements with Minneapolis and fish and wildlife and these other communities. And I think that's a pretty significant accomplishment in light of the fact that this airport is located where it is. All right as I said the last time that we talked about this subject maybe the next time we talk about this there will be a settlement. Good luck.

To. You. Thank you. Thank you. Every team starts a new season with high hopes and tonight's guest are no different from the Minnesota Wild But this team could make for a wild Minnesota least politically. We're talking about Jesse elect Governor Jesse elect Governor elect Jesse Ventura's

transition team and three of its members are here tonight. Dean Barkley service chair of the campaign Peter Bell has just resigned as executive vice president of TCI Financial Corporation he's a Republican activist. And Joanne Benson Minnesota's current lieutenant governor. Governor let me start a Jew a lot of people take a look at this and think your might be some in your nose at the party that rejected you last summer. Absolutely not. I said immediately election evening that I would do anything I could to help the next administration be successful and the only reason to do that of course is because if you run for office you should only do it for the purpose of working with the citizens of Minnesota to make tomorrow better in Minnesota than it is today. And we have a great track record in the Carlson and ministration and we want to continue the good work we've done and even add to that in every administration should be working in that same way. Peter Bell you were here election night. You were deep in denial even 10 minutes after 11 o'clock that's

right. So I use a very humbling experience I'll tell you being in the political forecasting business. Well you know one of the messages I think of the election from Jesse was into needless mindless partisan bickering. I was a Republican before Jesse got elected I'll be a Republican after he leaves office but but I do think him in a bipartisan sense there is a higher calling which is what is in the best interest of this the state of Minnesota. And when the governor asks you to serve for the. For the betterment of the state I think you have to give serious consideration to that. And when I receive their call I felt it was an honor and all of us have to work at making this administration successful. All of us have a stake in that and I think the public expects and demands that and I think that's a very legitimate request. DEAN This team is supposed to do a lot of practical things. But there's also a tremendous I would imagine pressure on you and symbolism.

Republicans you want Democrats you want some Reform Party members Well we want to send a message that we're represent all a Minnesota and we don't have all the ideas ourselves and we wanted to create a group that was one creative two that would put down their partisanship for the good of the state of Minnesota and get in there make this a good administration so the whole state will be proud of what we do over there. And I think we accomplished that. This is a volunteer group going to work for the next six weeks or so. What's its mission I mean what are a couple of practical things you hope to get out of it. You want some advice. I mean a lot of us are new at this I mean we haven't governed before. I would been on the outside. We want some practical advice of good decision making. We want some creative ideas and thinking of how we can do things better differently than hadn't been thought of. Everyone one of the criteria that Jesse wanted me to have when we gave him the candidates can they think outside of current solutions we can come up with some better ideas and I think we've picked everybody that are independent thinkers that can come with some solutions some different ideas to give to give Jessie some ideas of how we can solve some problems facing the state. OK let's talk about the ideas and let's talk about idea overload.

I mean you can actually give the governor elect too much to focus on he can only focus on he's been talking about budget is one two and three. Right. And a lot of people have said don't try to do too much at once focus on a few things do them well. What do you think the few things are that. Jesse Ventura ought to do well. Well first of all you know he needs just to have that help with the budget. He needs to have the good ideas that that people can provide and that has to start right away but he also has to think about his own inauguration. And that's of course it's not only an important event it's symbolic of what he is going to represent to Minnesota so that is another issue. And then the other. Think that any governor has to do is surround himself with again with a lot of good people who have the best interests of the state in their heart and that's those three things have to happen simultaneously. I think he's going to budget is one two and three. But but there's many positions he has to fill the commissioner's appointment you just had people on dealing with the airport issue the head of the Mac is up for reappointment those kinds of nuts and bolts things

have to be accomplished. But thirdly I think the governor really has to pick three or four issues that are there that he's going to focus on where and I compare and contrast two presidents one was Carter in the other one was Reagan and one of the things I think Reagan did the Carter didn't was set up an agenda of three or four things he was really going to focus on really going to get done and. It was really did that occurred on the other hand I think kind of got mired down in details and I would hope that the governor elect would really say here are three or four issues that are very very important to me and I want to move the ball forward in the state of Minnesota on those three or four issues in a creative way. Now this team is going to work for six eight weeks or seven I'm probably going to spend our lot of there is this internal contradiction I suppose and that is if you are incredibly successful in the Ventura administration it's going to hurt the Republican Party a bit it's going to hurt the Democratic Party a bit. And so you would think that loyal Democrats or Republicans who have joined on with the enteric team

at some point would think. I got to choose you know. I think the place that the people who would get hurt if if that is the ministration is not successful are the people who are there and that includes all of the legislators both parties. All three parties three and they would be the ones actually I think would be held most accountable more than in fact the chief executive the governor in the other you know we are very careful to pick people that wouldn't fall into the political game. That said do you have the best interest of the state of Minnesota at heart to go and get things done for the people that we represent. If your answer is yes you're welcome into the administration if you want to get into this political gamesmanship that people are getting tired of than stand your parties and throw rocks at us I mean you're not going to accomplish anything. I really agree with that we have a success in this administration. A stake in this administration being successful in that kind of mindless partisanship just has no place in our political discourse we all need to work toward this governor being successful would hurt the Republican or Democratic Party is if either party is seen as

sabotaging this. The what is good for the people of Minnesota has got to be the primary goal of Democrats Republicans and Reform Party and the Reform Party as well. We just can't get involved in about a month ago. If you had one thing to tell Governor Ventura to concentrate on what would it be. I would say the budget now and focus and shape his agenda and his message in addition to that keep true to what got him here what elected him was his ability to communicate with listen to people and be true to himself and to Minnesotans and I'd say continue doing that. And I would say don't change what got you there. I mean just he's got to remain to be Jesse. And the message that he gave in the campaign he's got to continue on and not change and I think he's you won't see Jesse Jesse changing. OK I got to ask you this I know Dean who whom you voted for Peter I know you voted for him did you vote for or voted for the Republicans. OK. I just thought I should ask. Thank you all very much for coming. Thanks.

It's true except. They don't. I'm going to see a lot of that no truth to the rumor that Howard Mora has sent his resume to Jesse Ventura to become the next commissioner of linguistics. But as many as you know Mr. Moore is an expert on how to talk Minnesotan his popular ball cousin turned into a popular musical now performing at the Plymouth playhouse. It's pretty good you've got it. I would say not too bad but I might not be telling the truth. All right I think I think you actually qualify for emergency linguistic care there.

I hear you might be working on a sequel how to talk back on its own study Joshua and you and you will be the consultant. OK. No doubt about it we're going to do it OK. How's the musical coming at this point to play out. They've been it's been before an audience for about five or six shows and it's the grand openings on the 20th and it's going pretty well. I gotta admit I heard the rehearsal on this really funny just the month the crowd must just love it as they hear the different words. Oh yeah it's great and I think part of the cast is here tonight and they're going to do. A great song from the show called Brothers in ice. All right before we get to that I'm hearing something about. You and winter carnival. Coming up. I've heard something about it too I think we're going to be on a float and I may be wearing some kind of costume when I got a cast on with the person wearing the suit I expect it'll be similar to what the boys are wearing here. Arca All right perhaps a ski mask. All right how to talk I thought let's get out of here and let them perform a bit how to talk me into saluting. And it did it

did it not a solace that oh if you're looking for a red Bice it's the spirit of man that found its way to ESPN with my brothers and with my brothers a nice suit. And our color is dark and we're close. Close condones and though we can't feel our coal is actually a sharer and shows how happy we are. Butin do stand around and after they are very busy engines scream in a shrub you shall know later.

Somewhere around the edges ready the old shack in the woods Yeah I'm a fan that kicks the dangling grubs and worms and maggots from sticks the boys in the ruling with the boys in the hoods for others you know you only really Lolita should Janet actually dig for others and there's going to be an old maid a shed their own way to taken days off the play outside of Mary engaged in a do do do. Little. Of the. Of the. Little. Brothers and I just saw

the snowman attention furniture and Cardassian a kayak. Any guy action. Hahaha a few others in here that even have to think twice. Brother's a nice welcome to our crew. We are in a room with no no we're wilder than rice bowl wilder than rice. Others you know didn't need it and it did it did and it didn't do. You snipe Minnesota is made possible in part with support from the bland and Foundation creating a stronger Minnesota by bridging rural and urban communities. The Nick Knight Foundation dedicated to improving the quality of life for Minnesota families by Cargill supporting Minnesota's tradition of community service.