At Issue: Oct. 18 — Legislature passes bonding bill, interview with Sen. Tina Smith

There’s finally something DFLers and Republicans in the Minnesota Legislature can agree on: $1.9 billion in public-works projects, tax relief and state agency spending.

This week on “At Issue,” we look at the Legislature’s ability to pass the so-called “bonding bill” in a bipartisan fashion. But that didn’t stop Republicans from trying to rescind Gov. Tim Walz’s peacetime emergency power, which was first instituted in March.

In a one-on-one interview, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith (DFL) explains her perspective on the coronavirus pandemic and how she believes President Trump has failed the American people in his response. Her Republican challenger, Jason Lewis, has tried to make public safety and calls to “defund the police” part of the campaign — and Smith responds (Lewis will join “At Issue” next week).

Plus, our political analysts dissect the dueling town hall approaches by President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, including the issue of “court-packing.”

Minnesota State Sen. Jeff Hayden, DFL-Minneapolis, bids the upper chamber a fond farewell and shares his thoughts on what’s worked — and what hasn’t — in his years of service.