When the Lights Went Out: The 20-Day Shutdown That Changed Minnesota Politics
In July 2011, Minnesota faced an unprecedented crisis: the total shutdown of state government. For twenty days, partisan gridlock brought essential services to a halt, shuttered state parks, and left 19,000 public employees in limbo. This episode explores the administrative chaos of that summer, from court-ordered mediation to the failure of new procurement systems, and examines how a single budget impasse permanently altered the state’s political landscape and the separation of powers between its three branches of government.
This episode provides a data-dense analysis of the 2011 Minnesota…
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