Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily midday digest of what local media outlets and Twitter-ers are gabbing about.
Jen Carnahan: Can't Be Trusted to Spell Own Name. Can She Be Trusted to Lead?
One hour ago, an email with the following subject line arrived via the Racket tipline: “This is dumb and petty, much like Jennifer Carnahan.” The reader, who included a screengrab of the congressional hopeful misspelling her name on her own campaign website, wasn't overstating anything—as hawk-eyed readers of the image above might deduce.
Does this gaffe matter? No. Was the typo Carnahan’s fault? Almost certainly not. It’s simply another hilarious footnote on the messy life of the former MN GOP chairwoman, a lady who: tried using political status to dodge National Park entry fees; befriended a sex trafficker; drunkenly welcomed death to her now-dead husband, Trump-loving U.S. Rep. Jim Hagedorn, whose seat she’s now-lovingly trying to fill; and reportedly brawled at a D.C. restaurant following his memorial service. Whew! Anyway, Jennifer has just two “n”s, not three.
In spiritually similar, uh, news: Republican gubernatorial candidate Paul Gazelka briefly quoted Nicole Richie on his campaign site.
Target Decenters
Big news for the "downtown is dead" contingent: Target Corp., the biggest employer in downtown Minneapolis, has announced it won't require its 8,500 staff members to return to HQ full time. The company is officially going hybrid, the Star Tribune's Nicole Norfleet reports, letting teams and workers decide if and when they want to come into the office and modifying its real estate with "flex floors" made up of temporary desks and different meeting spaces. Target brass have seen a "seismic transition in how people were defining work," Melissa Kremer, chief human resources officer, told the Strib. "It was no longer about where you go. It was about what you do." In other Target news: The retail giant underpays its hourly workers by embarrassing margins.
Your Gas Bill, CenterPoint CEO Pay Both Much Too High
CenterPoint Energy's CEO must've worked really, really hard last year. David Lesar banked $37.8 million, watchdog group Energy & Policy Institute reports, a figure that dwarfs the compensation received by his peers at rival utility companies. Bob Frenzel, for example, made just $8.4 million leading Xcel Energy. Besides being old white men, the two CEOs do have something else in common: They’re gouging their customers. CenterPoint recently hiked Minnesota gas bills by 63%, inspiring one customer to tell the Minnesota Reformer: “I’m struggling, to be honest. It’s got me depressed; I’m praying, praying, praying, because every day that bill is on my mind.” Lesar—who certainly doesn’t appear non-evil, physically speaking—has a lengthy career of alleged evils, which you can read in EPI’s report.
More State Fair Music Announced
Two more Minnesota State Fair Grandstand acts were announced this morning. First up, we've got the Counting Crows' "Butter Miracle Tour" (don't know what it means; not Googling it) with special guest The Wallflowers on Friday, August 26. Tickets go for $34-$51 and are on sale at 11 a.m. this Friday. On Thursday, September 1, the fair will host REO Speedwagon & Styx with special guest Levon; tickets are $41 or $51, and sales start at noon on Friday. Previously announced 2022 Grandstand acts include Zac Brown Band, Jim Gaffigan, Diana Ross, Alice in Chains, Breaking Benjamin, and finally, Pitbull and Iggy Azalea.
