Minnesota Senate

The Minnesota legislature quickly approved Friday a $167.5 million flood package designed to rebuild washed-out roads, repair flooded businesses and damaged houses and restore damaged parks after severe flooding in Minnesota in June. The House approved the bill 125-3 and the Senate 60-7 in a two-hour special session before it went Gov. Mark Dayton for his signature.

Michael Brodkorb is a former staffer for Minnesota Senate Republicans whose lawsuit claims he was wrongfully fired. Majority Leader Dave Senjem says the suit has no merit and the Senate will prevail in court. Some DFLers fear the bills could climb to $1 million and want Republicans to set up a legal defense fund instead of using state money to pay the attorneys.

Michael Brodkorb's threatened lawsuit has prompted the Minnesota Senate to spend $85,000 preparing a defense. The former Republican staff member, who says he was wrongfully fired, met with Senate Majority Leader Dave Senjem in a St. Paul coffee shop Monday. Brodkorb's lawyer says he was blindsided by the meeting and calls it a chance encounter he would not have authorized.

The DFL leader proposed the Senate set up a legal defense fund to help pay the lawyers preparing a defense against a possible lawsuit. But the Rules Committee voted to allocate tax dollars for the legal fees. Michael Brodkorb is a former Senate Republican staffer who maintains he was wrongfully fired.