Organizers of the Border Battle Tug-of-War last year raised $4,000 for first responders by staging a massive tug-of-war on the Stillwater Lift Bridge prior to a Vikings-Packers game.

But when organizers approached the Minnesota Department of Transportation for permission to hold the event again this winter, MnDOT officials denied their request, stating they could “no longer support annual or recurring events on the structure.”

“Allowing individual events creates a precedent issue and makes it difficult to determine which events are allowable moving forward,” Matthew Schleusner, the agency’s east area principal engineer, wrote in an email to organizers. “We certainly recognize the community’s enthusiasm for this tradition and the bridge’s significance as a shared landmark, but due to the bridge’s historic status, we need to maintain consistency in how the space is managed.”

On Monday, organizers announced that the fundraiser for first-responder associations in the St. Croix River Valley will move to the causeway of the Old Hudson Toll Bridge, otherwise known as the Hudson Dike, in downtown Hudson, Wis. The event will be held at 10 a.m. Jan. 4, right before the two NFL teams face off at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

“We’re disappointed,” said Cory Buettner, who helps organize the event. “I find it hard to believe that our event could somehow negatively impact the integrity and historical significance of the bridge.”

A sign leads to the Old Toll Bridge in downtown Hudson, where this season’s Border Battle Tug of War will be held. (Courtesy of Cory Buettner)

MnDOT officials have previously accommodated a few events on the historic bridge, which no longer carries vehicular traffic, under a “special-occasion justification,” Buettner said. Among them: last year’s Border Battle and a pasta dinner to mark the opening of the Chestnut Street Plaza.

About 300 signed up to compete in last year’s Border Battle, and another 600 or so came out to watch, said Buettner, who owns Leo’s Grill & Malt Shop in downtown Stillwater.

The event is a fundraiser for the Stillwater Police Association, the Stillwater Fire Department Relief Association, Lakeview Health EMS, the North Hudson (Wis.) Police Department and the Town of St. Joseph (Wis.) Fire and Rescue Department.

How it works

Here’s how the Border Battle works: A series of tugs will take place throughout the morning with 25 team members on each side. All participants must register in advance and pay a $30 fee. The minimum age is 18.

Participants pulling for the Vikings will receive a beanie with a purple-and-gold Border Battle patch on it and Packers fans will receive a beanie with a green-and-gold Border Battle patch on it.

Football fans from Minnesota and Wisconsin met on the Stillwater Lift Bridge on Sunday morning, Dec. 29, 2024, to watch the first-ever “Border Battle” tug-of-war event preceding the game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Green Bay Packers. (Feven Gerezgiher / MPR News)

The winning state will get bragging rights — and raise more money, Buettner said. Sixty percent of the net proceeds will go to the first-responder associations on the winning side of the river; associations on the losing side will get the rest, he said.

“We feel the Lift Bridge is a public asset and that during this time, when the Loop Trail is not heavily used, that we should utilize this as a landmark where people from both sides of the river can come together and have a good time and do something good for the heroes in our communities,” he said.

Every other year?

Stillwater Mayor Ted Kozlowski said he hopes officials from MnDOT, which owns the Lift Bridge, might be more accommodating next year.

“I like the idea of swapping between Stillwater and Hudson every other year to build ties,” he said. “The main issue is the city doesn’t own the Lift Bridge. I think it’s worth a discussion with MnDOT for future years.”

Buettner said he also likes the idea of going back and forth.

“It truly is a border battle,” Buettner said. “We’re looking for a little wedge of possible compromise because our event is in the dead of winter on a Sunday morning when the trail is not very busy.”

Kent Barnard, a spokesman for MnDOT, said Monday that he did not think agency officials will change their minds. The bridge, built in 1931, is a designated historic property and must be “managed in accordance with those preservation requirements,” he said.

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“We are opposed to commercial or recurring activities on it,” he said. “We have done one-off events, including we had the dinner on there, and then last year we did allow that Border Battle to go on, but we do not support annual or recurring events on the Lift Bridge.”

MnDOT officials, Barnard said, do not want to be put in the position of having to decide who gets to do an event and who doesn’t.

“The bottom line is: It is not an event space. It is used for transportation. It’s not for special events. If we continue to do this, we’re going to continue to get more requests and more requests, and it puts us in an awkward position of having to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to things.”

Who won last year? Packers fans prevailed by a score of three tugs to two, Buettner said. “But the Vikings won the football game. Most importantly, everyone had a good time.”

Border Battle Tug-of-War

What: A tug-of-war pitting Minnesota Vikings fans against Green Bay Packers fans in a fundraiser for the Minnesota and Wisconsin first responder organizations.

When: 10 a.m. Jan. 4, which is the day the teams face off at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

Where: Old Hudson Toll Bridge, Hudson, Wis.

Cost: $30 per participant

Information: borderbattle.org.

By STEPHEN GROVES

WASHINGTON — The House is expected to vote Tuesday on legislation to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, the culmination of a monthslong effort that has overcome opposition from President Donald Trump and Republican leadership.

When a small bipartisan group of House lawmakers introduced a petition in July to maneuver around House Speaker Mike Johnson’s control of which bills see the House floor, it appeared a longshot effort, especially as Trump urged his supporters to dismiss the matter as a “hoax.” But both Trump and Johnson failed in their efforts to prevent the vote.

Now the president has bowed to the growing momentum behind the bill and even said Republicans should vote for it. His blessing all but ensures that the House will pass the bill with an overwhelming margin, putting further pressure on the Senate to take it up.

Trump on Monday said he would sign the bill if it passes both chambers of Congress, adding, “Let the Senate look at it.”

Tuesday’s vote also provides a further boost to the demands that the Justice Department release its case files on Epstein, a well-connected financier who killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial in 2019 on charges he sexually abused and trafficked underage girls.

A separate investigation conducted by the House Oversight Committee has released thousands of pages of emails and other documents from Epstein’s estate, showing his connections to global leaders, Wall Street powerbrokers, influential political figures and Trump himself.

Trump’s reversal on the Epstein files

Trump has said he cut ties with Epstein years ago, but tried for months to move past the demands for disclosure. On Monday, he told reporters that Epstein was connected to more Democrats and that he didn’t want the Epstein files to “detract from the great success of the Republican Party.”

Still, many in the Republican base have continued to demand the release of the files. Adding to that pressure, several survivors of Epstein’s abuse will appear on Capitol Hill Tuesday morning to push for release of the files. They also met with Johnson and rallied outside the Capitol in September, but have had to wait two months for the vote.

That’s because Johnson kept the House closed for legislative business for nearly two months and also refused to swear-in Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona during the government shutdown. After winning a special election on Sept. 23, Grijalva had pledged to provide the crucial 218th vote to the petition for the Epstein files bill. But only after she was sworn into office last week could she sign her name to the discharge petition to give it majority support in the 435-member House.

It quickly became apparent the bill would pass, and both Johnson and Trump began to fold. Trump on Sunday said Republicans should vote for the bill.

Rep. Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican who sponsored the bill alongside Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, said Trump “got tired of me winning. He wanted to join.”

How Johnson is handling the bill

Rather than waiting until next week for the discharge position to officially take effect, Johnson is moving to hold the vote this week. He indicated the legislation will be brought to the House floor under a procedure that requires a two-thirds majority.

“I think it’s going to be an important vote to continue to show the transparency that we’ve delivered,” House Republican leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said Monday night.

House Democrats celebrated the vote as a rare win for the minority.

“It’s a complete and total surrender, because as Democrats we made clear from the very beginning, the survivors and the American people deserve full and complete transparency as it relates to the lives that were ruined by Jeffrey Epstein,” said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries.

What will the Senate do?

Still, it’s not clear how the Senate will handle the bill.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has previously been circumspect when asked about the legislation and instead said he trusted the Justice Department to release information on the Epstein investigation.

But what the Justice Department has released so far under Trump was mostly already public. The bill would go further, forcing the release within 30 days of all files and communications related to Epstein, as well as any information about the investigation into his death in federal prison. Information about Epstein’s victims or continuing federal investigations would be allowed to be redacted, but not information due to “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”

Johnson also suggested that he would like to see the Senate amend the bill to protect the information of “victims and whistleblowers.”

But Massie said the Senate should take into account the public clamor that forced both Trump and Johnson to back down.

“If it’s anything but a genuine effort to make it better and stronger, it’ll backfire on the senators if they muck it up,” Massie said.

___

Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Matt Brown contributed to this report.

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While the Timberwolves performance against likely playoff teams has frustrated the fan base this season, Minnesota’s ability to dispose of cellar dwellers has been impressive.

Two days after a disappointing loss to Denver, the Wolves blew out a short-handed Dallas team, 120-96 at Target Center.

The Mavericks, who were on the second half of a back to back, were down five rotation players. The Wolves showed them no mercy.

Not only has Minnesota taken advantage of its soft opening schedule by devouring every cupcake that’s come it’s way, it’s done so in convincing fashion.

That frequently wasn’t the case for these Wolves in past seasons. But their ability to beat teams they have a clear talent advantage over has propped up their position in the Western Conference standings through 14 games. Minnesota is now 9-0 this season against teams with losing records.

Here are takeaways from Minnesota’s blowout victory:

Reid rolls

After a slow start to the season, Naz Reid is finding his rhythm for Minnesota — and it’s largely stemmed from his energy on the glass.

Reid scored 22 points on Monday on a strong shooting performance, but he also grabbed 12 rebounds to pace the Wolves on the glass.

It’s the second time hitting 12 boards in three games for Reid, who’s averaging 18 points a game in that span.

Clark the spark

Minnesota (9-5) took a minute to establish itself Monday, but that shifted quickly the second Jaylen Clark checked into the game.

Clark instilled a defensive tenacity his teammates picked up on. Dallas (4-11), who’s short on ball handlers, didn’t handle the pressure well. The Mavericks turned the ball over 19 times Monday, which directly resulted in 24 Wolves points.

Dallas shot just 40% from the field and 30% from distance.

McDaniels can’t miss

Anthony Edwards is struggling with his outside shot at the moment. The star guard is 2 for 21 from 3-point range over the last three games. But Minnesota has hardly missed his outside production, thanks to the sharpshooting of Jaden McDaniels.

The defensive stopper went 3 for 4 from deep against Dallas, putting his season-long number at north of 50%. That’s been a bugaboo at times throughout McDaniels’ career, but his confidence and results appear to be an aberration.

Most important, McDaniels is hitting shots from the wing and the top of the floor, with the former being an area where he struggled mightily as recently as last season.

His ability to hit the long ball solves plenty of potential spacing issues for Minnesota.

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Health insurer Medica on Monday announced the acquisition of all of rival UCare’s 2026 Medicaid and individual and family plans.

UCare, based in Minneapolis, currently covers about 300,000 members in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. Minnetonka-based Medica covers 1.4 million members across nine states, according to a press release.

The announcement follows UCare’s decision earlier this year to terminate its Medicare Advantage contracts as the company’s board began exploring opportunities for an acquisition, according to the release. Private Medicare Advantage plans augment U.S. government Medicare coverage for seniors.

“As a nonprofit, community-focused health plan, Medica has a long history of serving members in Minnesota, guided by our mission and trusted relationships with providers, customers and members,” said Lisa Erickson, CEO of Medica, in the release. “Now we have the opportunity to build upon both Medica’s strengths and UCare’s legacy, allowing Minnesotans to continue to have a health care experience that ensures they feel cared for.”

Erickson will continue as Medica’s president and CEO.

“Combined, UCare and Medica have nearly a century of industry expertise and a shared commitment to community-driven coverage for those who need it most,” said Hilary Marden-Resnik, president and CEO of UCare. “This is a significant agreement that will enable us to preserve access to coverage for Minnesota’s most vulnerable members.”

The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2026, subject to closing conditions including required regulatory approvals. Terms of the agreement were not announced.

The release says individuals enrolled in UCare’s plans will continue to receive services without interruption.

In a separate news release, state Sen. Matt Klein. DFL–Mendota Heights, promised to “monitor developments, assess legislative oversight needs, and seek input from consumers, providers, and agencies across the state to fight for consumer choice, patient access, and quality of care in our healthcare system.”

Klein is chair of the Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee.

“I am deeply concerned about the long-term implications of shrinking consumer choice, particularly as Minnesota braces for unprecedented instability within both the provider and payer landscape,” Klein’s release says.

MNsure, the state’s health insurance marketplace, said in its own release that UCare members’ plans through the exchange will not change in coverage or cost for plan year 2026.

“MNsure is working closely with both UCare and Medica to ensure a smooth transition and uninterrupted coverage for Minnesotans,” the state agency said.

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