Minnesota Now

The state Senate approved rent help for Minnesotans affected by the surge of federal agents, but its future in the state House remains uncertain. We got the latest from our politics reporter.Plus, we met the Metro Transit's new police chief. And a coalition of Latino-led organizations is asking lawmakers to keep local government from cooperating with federal immigration agents. Also, meat packing workers are facing faster factory lines. Union leaders say it could be dangerous. We heard from one of those leaders.And local news reporter Courtney Godfrey is co-hosting the Paralympics at NBC. We talked to her about the games.The Minnesota Music Minute was “Easy Silence” by Dan Wilson, and “Playing House” by Anna Devine was the Song of the Day.

A bill to help cover rent costs for Minnesotans impacted by the surge of federal immigration agents has cleared the state Senate. State Senators voted 35-32 on Wednesday to send one-time funding of up to $40 million to county and tribal governments. The measure passed nearly along party lines with Democrats supporting and all Republicans but one opposed.Over in the House, which is tied between the two parties, lawmakers have introduced a similar bill, but it faces a tougher road to passage. A similar debate has been underway in Minneapolis, where Mayor Jacob Frey vetoed an eviction-related proposal Wednesday. It would have required landlords to give 60 days notice, instead of 30, before filing evictions. MPR News politics reporter Dana Ferguson joined to explain more about the conversations taking place at the state Capitol.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture wants to allow pork and poultry plants to speed up the pace of work. The agency says existing speed limits are outdated. Some plants have waivers that allow them to exceed those rules. Industry groups have praised the move to loosen requirements across the board. But labor representatives say a faster pace puts greater strain on workers' health and safety. Rena Wong is president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 663. It represents several meatpacking plants in the state of Minnesota. Wong spoke to MPR News host Nina Moini about her concerns about faster speeds in the plants.

The Winter Paralympic Games in Milano-Cortina are well underway. And Minnesota has the most athletes competing out of any other state. But there is another Minnesotan in the spotlight: Fox 9 reporter Courtney Godfrey. She is co-hosting the games with NBC. Godfrey lost her lower leg in a boating accident in 2017. Since then, she's been a member of the U.S. Para snowboard team and, at one point, had a goal of making it to the Paralympics. She talked with Minnesota Now host Nina Moini about her journey from athlete to co-host.

A coalition of 13 Latino-led organizations across Minnesota is pushing lawmakers to take action on immigration enforcement and economic support for communities affected by the recent surge of federal agents.The group, called the Minnesota Latino Leadership Alliance, has laid out a set of legislative priorities. That includes support for the proposed STAR Act, which would limit how state and local governments cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. Aaron Sepúlveda, legislative and policy director with the Minnesota Council on Latino Affairs, is part of the alliance. He shared more about the coalition on Minnesota Now.

The Metro Transit Police Department has a new chief – and he's a familiar name. Joseph Dotseth was announced Monday as the new permanent leader. He's been the interim head since the fall of 2024 after the last chief resigned only more than a year into his tenure. Dotseth has nearly 25 years of law enforcement service, all with the Metro Transit Police and he's worked in nearly every role with the department. He spoke with Minnesota Now about his priorities stepping into the role.

Gov. Tim Walz has a new plan to remake the way Minnesota provides Medicaid services, in an effort to combat fraud. Part of the plan includes changing the role counties play. We talk to a county administrator and a social service provider about what the proposed changes could mean. The use of psychedelics for treating addiction and severe mental illness is one step closer to becoming legal in Minnesota. We learn about the legislation.Plus, we look into why ACL injuries are becoming more common for high school athletes, especially in girls' sports. Hopefully, you didn't put your shovels away for the season. Paul Huttner has a look at how much snow may be on the way. And we meet an entrepreneur who created a sensory-friendly hijab.The Minnesota Music Minute was “Trouble” by Turn Turn Turn and “Hope” by Grant Glad was the Song of the Day. Use the audio player above to listen to the full episode.

A bill that would allow psilocybin, a psychedelic, to be used for therapeutic purposes to treat addiction and severe mental illness in Minnesota is one step closer to passing this session. The legislation would launch a state-run trial psychotherapy program using psilocybin. The bill is based off recommendations from a 2025 report by the state's Psychedelic Medicine Task Force. Two members of the task force joined MPR News host Nina Moini to explain the therapy and their support of the bill.Neuroscientist Jessica Nielson is chair of the task force and professor of psychiatry at the University of Minnesota. Stefan Egan is also a member of the task force and a veteran. He testified in support of the bill this week and shared his personal experience using therapeutic psilocybin.

A Minnesota occupational therapist has created a sensory-friendly hijab. Inspired by her siblings' experience with autism, Najma Omar set out to design a hijab that could help make loud noises less overwhelming. That led to SereniHijab, a hijab made of lightweight fabric with padding that covers the ears. Najma Omar joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about it.

State leaders are reacting to Gov. Tim Walz's proposal to centralize the way Minnesota provides Medicaid services. This comes as part of the Governor's push for anti-fraud changes at the state Department of Human Services. Walz said the current system, which is split among counties, managed care organizations and the state, has become increasingly difficult to administer. He laid out a plan Wednesday that would have DHS take over eligibility determinations for Medicaid programs. He also said the state would take the lead in modernizing what he called an “outdated system.” The plan would need lawmaker approval. It received immediate pushback from both Republicans and Democrats. For reaction from the county perspective, MPR News host Nina Moini talked with Julie Ring, executive director of the Association of Minnesota Counties. She also spoke with a Josh Berg, a board member with the Association of Residential Resources in Minnesota, or ARRM. He advocates for service providers that receive Medicaid funding.

Medical professionals and sports journalists have zeroed in on a problem that appears to affect women athletes at higher rates than men: ACL injuries. There's another trend in the data, as the Minnesota Star Tribune and New York Times recently pointed out. High school athletes are tearing their ACLs at higher rates than before, especially in girls' sports. A study by the National ACL Injury Coalition suggested the rates of serious knee injuries increased 32.3 percent in girls' sports over the 15 years between 2007 and 2022. That's almost double the 14.5 percent increase the study found in boys' sports. The ACL is a ligament that helps hold the knee in place. An injury usually means the end of an athlete's season; sometimes, it means surgery. For young athletes, it can also have particular social, emotional and economic impacts.For more, MPR News host Nina Moini talked with Jill Monson, lead physical therapist for the Complex Knee Injury Clinic at Twin Cities Orthopedics in Eagan.

Starting Thursday, two iconic Indigenous artists will make a three-day tour of northern Minnesota. Keith Secola is a renowned Anishinaabe songwriter and a member of the Native Music Hall of Fame. Gary Farmer is a Cayuga actor known for roles including Nobody in the 1995 movie “Dead Man” and Uncle Brownie in the hit TV show “Reservation Dogs.” He also has a band, Gary and the Troublemakers. Together, the artists are bringing contemporary Native blues rock and traditional sounds to Virginia, Bemidji and Grand Rapids, Minn., starting Thursday, and they'll meet up with some other local acts along the way. The Ancestral Fires Music Tour will finish Sunday with a stop in south Minneapolis. Farmer and Secola chatted with MPR News host Nina Moini about their upcoming tour.

A group of Minnesotans are back after a trip to Selma, Alabama over the weekend to commemorate 61 years since a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights movement. On March 7, 1965, state troopers attacked marchers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma. The day what would become known as Bloody Sunday and helped spur the passage of the Voting Rights Act. A contingent of Minnesotans from various civil rights and immigration rights groups were among the thousands who gathered at the Edmund Pettus Bridge over the weekend. They participated as a part of a trip organized by the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, an organization founded by Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. Christina Ojo is with the group Ayada Leads and Rico Durán is with COPAL MN. They joined MPR News host Nina Moini for a conversation about their time in Selma.

It's been more than 40 years since cleanup began on a hazardous waste site in Northern Minnesota. From the 1950s until the 1980s, the St. Regis Paper Company treated wood with toxic chemicals near downtown Cass Lake on the Leech Lake Reservation. Those chemicals spread into the soil and groundwater. Today, the pollution continues to limit wild rice harvesting and fishing in the area. And tribal environmental staff say the cleanup is failing. Reporter Gabrielle Nelson is an environmental reporter and Report for America Corps Member for the Indigenous news outlet Buffalo's Fire, based in North Dakota. She recently dug into this story and talked with MPR News host Nina Moini about her reporting.

The war in the Middle East is driving up fertilizer prices, as the spring planting season approaches. The war has closed the Strait of Hormuz, which is a critical shipping route for fertilizer. Dan Glessing is the president of the Minnesota Farm Bureau and a farmer in Waverly, Minnesota, about an hour west of the Twin Cities. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about the impact to Minnesota farmers.

Gas prices have been on a rollercoaster, and the war in the Middle East is raising concern that the cost of fertilizer will shoot up. An important shipping route is blocked. We heard from a Minnesota farm group about the potential impact on farmers here.One of the jurors from the first Feeding Our Future trial talked with MPR News about his experience in the courtroom. We learned how a polluted site is impacting life on the Leech Lake Reservation, more than 40 years after cleanup began. Two Minnesotans shared their experience in Selma, Ala. They took a recent trip honoring a critical moment of the civil rights movement. Two iconic Indigenous artists are traveling the state on the Ancestral Fire Music Tour. Our Minnesota Music Minute was “Fifth Element” by Let Joy.

A juror from the first Feeding Our Future fraud trial recounts deliberations, the shocking bribery attempt and the challenge of weighing the evidence to MPR News reporter Matt Sepic.

Gas prices are spiking across the state and country amid escalating tensions in the Middle East following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. We'll get a closer look at what that will mean for Minnesotans at the pump. A package of bills regulating the use of artificial intelligence across various industries is getting a hearing at the state capitol. We'll hear from the state Senator behind those bills.State lawmakers are also considering legislation that would prohibit schools from denying students an education based on immigration status. We'll hear more about what's in the bill and the Constitutional right to public education.Plus, we'll recap the big wins from the state boy's hockey tournament and the Vikings are looking to add to their roster in free agency. Our Minnesota Music Minute was “Hey, Bluebird” by Ber and our Song of the Day was “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea” by Roma di Luna.

The Minnesota Vikings are looking to beef up their roster this week with free agency. NFL teams can begin negotiating Monday. Signing players begins Wednesday. Minnesota Now sports contributors Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson shared who the Vikings might have their eye on for quarterback; and how the Minnesota Gopher's men's and women's basketball teams are shaping up ahead of March Madness.

The Minnesota Legislature is grappling with how fast-growing artificial intelligence should be regulated by the state. On Monday, the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee is hearing a package of bills from State Sen. Erin Maye Quade (DFL-Apple Valley) that would put regulations on how AI can be used in everything from health insurance decisions to chatbots used by children to dynamic pricing in the marketplace. Sen. Maye Quade joined Minnesota Now to talk about it.

State lawmakers are considering a bill that would enshrine the right to a public education to all students regardless of immigration status. That means schools and districts cannot deny undocumented students from enrolling. The bill would also require schools and districts to establish policies around interactions with the Department of Homeland Security. A coalition of some 20 different organizations are behind the legislation, which got a hearing in both the state House and the Senate last month. Alex Vitrella is a program director with the nonprofit Education Evolving and David Aron is general counsel with Education Minnesota. Both joined Minnesota Now guest host Chris Farrell to talk about the bill.

Gas prices across Minnesota are climbing as global oil markets react to escalating tensions in the Middle East following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. The current average price of a gallon of gas in Minnesota is sitting around $3.25. That's jumped up 42 cents from last week, according to AAA. And diesel prices have seen an even bigger increase over the past week. To help us understand the outlook for Minnesotans at the pump, Tyler Schipper joined Minnesota Now. He's an associate professor of economics at the University of St. Thomas.

In the six months since the Annunciation Church and School mass shooting, parents have been mobilizing. Last week, the Annunciation Light Alliance launched at the state capitol. It's a nonpartisan advocacy group of 160 Annunciation parents pushing for change that will keep kids safe. One family part of that work is taking another approach. Mike Moyski and Jackie Flavin are the parents of 10-year-old Harper Moyski, who was one of two children who were shot and killed in the mass shooting. In the last six months, they've welcomed more than 20 state lawmakers into their home — Republicans and Democrats — to have one-on-one conversations about gun violence and school safety. Mike and Jackie sat down with me for a conversation about how they're working to make sure no other family has to go through what they've gone through.

The parents of Harper Moyski, a child killed in the Annunciation school shooting in Minneapolis, have met with dozens of lawmakers in their home as they grieve. They say they're doing everything they can to end gun violence. A group of former top DHS lawyers say an ICE policy violates the Constitution. We heard more from one of them.And Stillwater's Jessie Diggins will retire later this month as one of the most decorated cross-country skiers in U.S, history. She shared her reflections on the end of an amazing career.Plus, did you know Minnesota is the most represented state in the Paralympics? We'll talk to one para-nordic skier preparing to compete.

The 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Milano-Cortina kick off Friday. There are several Minnesotans vying for a gold medal. Max Nelson is 21-years-old and graduated from Madame High School. He was diagnosed at two years old with a rare genetic eye disease that left him visually impaired. Now he's competing in his second games in Para-Nordic Skiing. Nelson joined Minnesota Now host Nina Moini from Italy to talk about his training for the games.

The U.S. House is expected to vote Thursday on a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Senate Democrats have held up funding to push for restrictions on ICE and Border Patrol. One of the changes they want to see is a ban on federal agents entering homes without a warrant signed by a judge. A leaked Department of Homeland Security memo from 2025 told agents they can force entry with only what's called an administrative warrant. Legal experts have said that guidance is illegal in that it violates the U.S. Constitution. A group of former top DHS lawyers from Republican and Democrat administrations made this argument in a New York Times opinion piece. Kara Lynum is part of that group. She was acting DHS general counsel and deputy general counsel under former President Joe Biden. Before that, she was an immigration lawyer in Minnesota.She spoke to host Nina Moini more about the issue.

Hundreds of cheese makers from across the world are gathering in the dairyland — Madison, Wisconsin — for the World Championship Cheese Contest. Taking place Mar. 3-5, it's a prestigious competition that honors the best every type of cheese imaginable. Among the competitors is Prairie Farms Dairy, which manufactures cheese in Faribault. But it's not your ordinary manufacturing plant. The cheese is aged in caves. Minnesota Now host Nina Moini spoke to the head cheesemaker at the plant, Francisco Zepeda.

A national Latino philanthropy organization created a new fund to support Latino communities in states that are experiencing a heavy immigration enforcement presence. Its first focus is Minnesota. Christian Arana is the Vice President of civic power and policy with the Latino Community Foundation, based in California. He recently visited Minnesota to help oversee distribution of the new fund and joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about it.

Tense exchanges played out Wednesday in a congressional hearing on fraud in Minnesota. Governor Tim Walz and Keith Ellison testified. MPR News reporter Dana Ferguson shared what she heard in Washington.A Minnesotan was among the soldiers killed in an air strike in the Middle East. We learned about Nicole Amor. Plus, a national philanthropic organization is creating a new fund to support Latino communities impacted by the ICE surge. A judge will soon decide whether to hold the U.S. Attorney in Minnesota in contempt for violating court orders in immigration cases. And we talked to the “big cheese” who is creating award-winning cheese in caves in southern Minnesota.The Minnesota Music Minute was “Not Today” by Guytano and “Closer to Fine” by Indigo Girls was the Song of the Day.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison testified before a congressional oversight committee Wednesday on fraud in state programs. The hearing drifted into debates over immigration law. There were heated moments and plenty of terse exchanges. MPR News politics reporter Dana Ferguson was at the hearing in Washington, D.C. and joined Minnesota Now with details.

People across Minnesota and the country are mourning an Army Reserve member from White Bear Lake who was one of six service members killed in Kuwait amid the ongoing war with Iran. MPR News reporter Estelle Timar-Wilcox joined Minnesota Now to share more about Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, who was killed in an airstrike on Sunday, according to the military.

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem testified before U.S. senators Tuesday about the tactics of federal agents in Minnesota. We heard more about what she said during the hearing.Plus, Google has identified itself as the company behind a proposed data center in Duluth.And state lawmakers are considering a ban on immigration enforcement agreements between local law enforcement and federal agencies. More on the bill and the arrangements it seeks to outlaw. We also heard more about the results from a survey looking at the impact of the federal surge on local businesses.And scholars from across the country met in the Twin Cities this week to talk about what ethical research looks like in a time of funding cuts and artificial intelligence.

A new survey is providing a clearer picture of the challenges businesses across the Twin Cities are facing due to the two-month long surge of federal agents. Neighborhood Development Center, or NDC, heard from more than 130 businesses and shared the results with a state Senate committee in February. Almost two thirds of respondents said the impact has been “high or critical.” Nearly 80 percent saw emergency financial assistance as the top priority. Natalia Mercado, director of business services with NDC, shared more of the findings with host Nina Moini.

Over the past year, thousands of federal science grants have been cut or reshaped by the Trump administration. At the same time, artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming how studies are designed, analyzed and written. So, what happens to the ethical guardrails meant to protect patients and public trust when both funding and technology behind scientific research are shifting at the same time? National experts will convene Wednesday to answer that question at a research ethics conference through the University of Minnesota.Susan Wolf, conference organizer and regents professor of law and medicine at the University of Minnesota, gave a preview of the gathering.

A bill that would ban Minnesota municipalities from signing immigration enforcement agreements with the federal government got a hearing Tuesday by a state House committee. If passed, the legislation would prohibit and terminate any agreements with the federal government that gives authority to state, county and local agencies to enforce civil immigration law. A new national ACLU report shows that since the start of President Donald Trump's second term, the number of local municipalities with these so-called 287(g) agreements has grown tenfold. In Minnesota, nine counties have signed agreements.The bill's lead author, State Representative Athena Hollins, DFL-St. Paul, and Julio Murphy Zelaya from the ACLU of Minnesota joined Minnesota Now to talk more about the legislation and the report.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defended her department's immigration enforcement tactics in front of a Senate committee on Tuesday and pushed back against criticism from Democrats who say she wrongly disparaged two protesters killed by federal officers in Minneapolis earlier this year.It was Noem's first congressional appearance since the shooting deaths of the two protesters galvanized widespread opposition to how the Trump administration is executing its mass deportation agenda, a centerpiece policy of President Donald Trump's second term. At the time, Noem portrayed the protesters, two U.S. citizens, as agitators, although accounts from local officials and bystander video contradicted assertions from her and other administration officials.In one exchange, retiring Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina called her leadership a “disaster” and skewered her handling of the immigration crackdown and her management of emergency response.In the hearing, which stretched nearly five hours, Noem defended her agency's treatment of immigrants caught up in enforcement activities, and blamed activists and others for attacks against officers.“I want to address the dangerous environment that our ICE officers face on the streets today," Noem said. “They are facing a serious and escalating threat as a result of deliberate mischaracterizations of their heroic work and rhetoric that demonizes our law enforcement.”Since the deaths in Minneapolis, the administration has taken steps meant to tone down tensions, including drawing down the operation there. But the administration has continued pressing restrictions against both legal and illegal immigration, has been buying up warehouses for immigration detention and persisting in federal enforcement in areas around the country. Noem said about 650 investigators remain in Minnesota as part of a broader fraud probe.The immigration tactics of Noem's department have triggered a clash in Congress over its routine funding, which remains unresolved, although a spending bill passed last year granted it a significant infusion of cash for the Republican administration's mass deportation policy. Noem called the partial shutdown “reckless” and blamed Democrats for a move she said put national security at risk.Her appearance in front of the Judiciary Committee also comes after a weekend shooting at a bar in Texas that is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism, leading to concerns that the escalating conflict in Iran could have repercussions for security in the U.S.Noem blames chaotic situation for her characterization of killed protestersIn what was initially billed as an effort to root out fraud in Minnesota, Homeland Security sent hundreds of officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection to the state. They were met by protesters who organized marches, patrolled neighborhoods for ICE activity with whistles and ferried food to immigrants too afraid to leave their homes.Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was shot and killed by an ICE officer on Jan. 7, setting off intense protests demanding an end to the operation. Then on Jan. 24, Customs and Border Protection officers opened fire on another Minnesota resident, Alex Pretti, who had been filming enforcement operations.Those deaths led to cries for accountability and transparency. Noem, whose initial comments portrayed both Good and Pretti as the aggressors, has come under withering criticism by Democrats and some Republicans, who have called for her to resign.Democrats repeatedly questioned Noem about her initial comments and called on her to apologize.“You and your agency rushed to brand these victims as, quote, domestic terrorists,” said Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the top Democrat on the committee. “We have ample video evidence and eyewitness testimony proving you are wrong. Your statements caused immeasurable pain to these families.”Noem said she was relying on information from people on the scene and blamed “violent protesters” for contributing to the chaos officers encountered.“I was getting reports from the ground from agents at the scene, and I would say that it was a chaotic scene,” she said.After public outrage over the deaths, Trump sent border czar Tom Homan to Minneapolis to take control of operations. Homan has since announced a drawdown of the ICE and CBP officers who had been sent to Minnesota to carry out what had been dubbed Operation Metro Surge, although he's been adamant that the president's mass deportation agenda will continue.Noem also faced some Republican criticismRepublicans largely kept the focus on the large numbers of migrants who came into the country under former President Joe Biden, portraying Noem as the leader of a cleanup effort of the former administration's mess.But she did come under some harsh questioning by members of her own party. Tillis, who called on Noem to resign following the shootings in Minneapolis, criticized her for erroneously arresting American citizens, for failures in her disaster recovery agency and for how she shot her own dog.“What we've seen is a disaster under your leadership, Miss Noem, a disaster," Tillis said. “What we've seen is innocent people getting detained that turn out are American citizens.”Tillis, who has already announced that he is not running for another term., added: “We're beginning to get the American people to think that deporting people is wrong. It's the exact opposite. The way you're going about deporting them is wrong."Another Republican, Sen. John Kennedy from Louisiana, also pushed her to explain why her department paid more than $200 million for an ad campaign she appeared in last year encouraging migrants to leave the country voluntarily and questioned whether Trump knew about the price tag ahead of time.Noem, who is set to appear Wednesday in front of a House committee, defended those ads, saying they were effective and went through the regular department bidding process.“Well, they were effective in your name recognition,” Kennedy said.

War is escalating in the Middle East after the U.S. and Israel launched a major military attack against Iran over the weekend ... the strikes have killed more than 500 Iranians. More reaction ahead from one Iranian Minnesotan.A local group says they're hearing widespread stories of Minnesotans being unable to pay their rent as a result of the surge of federal agents in recent weeks. How they're providing support.And we'll meet a Minnesota GOP leader and Trump backer who's trying to reconcile his political beliefs in light of the Trump Administration's massive immigration enforcement surge.Plus, a new design competition begins Monday, allowing students to submit ideas for a future George Floyd memorial in Minneapolis.Our Minnesota Music Minute was “Plumes” by HEYARLO and our Song of the Day was “Mississippi” by The Cactus Blossoms.

Design students in Minnesota can submit ideas for a future George Floyd memorial near the intersection of 38th and Chicago in Minneapolis. Floyd's aunt, Angela Harrelson said in a statement about the contest, “when it comes to honoring George's legacy, we're calling on the best of the best to help bring that vision to life.” After Floyd was murdered by police in 2020, the site became an organic memorial, as people made art and left offerings there. Late last year, the Minneapolis city council approved a plan to reconstruct the area known as George Floyd Square. The student design contest will run until mid-May. One or more of the winning designs could become a permanent installation. Two of the people behind the design competition joined Minnesota Now host Nina Moini. Niall-Julian Universe is with the nonprofit Rise and Remember, and Anjali Ganapathy is director of undergraduate studies in architecture at the University of Minnesota.

We've made it to March, and for college basketball fans, that means one thing: tournaments are around the corner. The Big Ten women's tournament starts later this week, followed by the men's. And March Madness tips off a couple weeks from now. Joining Minnesota Now to talk about where Minnesota teams stand, plus other sports updates, are sports contributors, Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson.

Rent was due Sunday, and for some Minnesotans paying it wasn't possible. Others scraped by, struggling after weeks of economic disruption tied to the recent ICE surge. In some families, a breadwinner has been deported. In others, people have stopped going to work out of fear, or workplaces have temporarily shut down. Over the past few months, staff at HOME Line say they've heard story after story like these. The organization is a nonprofit that provides free legal help and advocacy for Minnesota tenants. Jess Zarik is co-executive director of HOME Line, and she joined Minnesota Now to talk about what her team has been hearing, and what she expects in the weeks ahead.

Minnesotans are reacting to war in the Middle East after the United States and Israel launched a major military strike against Iran this weekend, hitting targets across the country that killed the country's supreme leader and multiple government officials. The offensive resulted in widespread destruction, civilian casualties and retaliatory strikes across the Middle East. Parham Alaei is the co-founder of the Minnesota Committee in Support of a Democratic Iran, a group that organizes Iranian Americans advocating for democracy in Iran. He joined Minnesota Now host Nina Moini to talk about his reaction to the war.

The federal government is withholding a quarter billion dollars in Medicaid funding to Minnesota — and said the state has 60 days to address fraud before that money returns. One mental health leader shared what the pause will mean for his work.There is a push for Governor Tim Walz to enact an eviction moratorium before March rent is due to ease the impacts from the ICE surge. We looked at what would be required for the governor to make that decision.Plus, some people are getting released from ICE custody without crucial documents. We heard one man's story.Plus, writers gathered to reflect and celebrate Ramadan at an event organized by Mizna, a group that promotes the work of Arab and Southwest Asian and North African artists.And a doctor who trained in Minnesota skied in the Olympics for Mexico. She shared more about her journey.