We have written several times about Minnesota state Senator Nicole Mitchell, who was caught burglarizing her stepmother’s home at 4:30 in the morning, more than a year ago. Her case finally came to trial this week. The prosecution’s case featured body cam footage of Mitchell’s arrest, hiding in her stepmother’s basement and dressed in a cat burglar outfit, that had not previously been seen.
Mitchell testified on her own behalf, which turned out disastrously. She told the jury that she lied to the arresting officers, and on cross-examination was led through an exposition of which of her statements had been truthful, and which had been lies.
Today the trial concluded, and the jury was out only briefly before returning guilty verdicts on both counts with which Mitchell was charged, first degree burglary and possession of burglar tools.
I am not sure we will ever fully understand what was going on with Nicole Mitchell’s bizarre burglary attempt, but the real story here is the corruption that is endemic to Minnesota politics. Mitchell was arrested in the middle of the 2024 legislative session, when the Democrats held a 34-33 advantage in Minnesota’s Senate. They couldn’t do anything without her vote. So the Senate voted on whether Mitchell would be able to vote for the remainder of the 2024 session, and the tally was 34-33, with Mitchell casting the deciding vote on whether she would be allowed to vote. Only in Minnesota.
One bill after another passed the Senate 34-33, with Mitchell playing the decisive role. Once the session was over, leaders of the DFL party unanimously demanded that Mitchell resign–Governor Tim Walz, now-DNC Chairman Ken Martin, and many more. Of course, they didn’t demand that she resign during the session. They needed her vote. But when it was over, the Democrats figured they had plenty of time for a special election to fill her seat before the 2025 session began.
But Mitchell surprised them. She refused to quit, insisting on her day in court. Her trial should have been conducted some months ago, but the judge granted a continuance so that she would be able to participate in the 2025 legislative session, despite the felony charges against her.
Once again, Mitchell was vital to the Democrats’ plans, as, time after time, she cast the critical vote in a body that was split 34-33. Only after the DFL-controlled legislative session was safely in the books did her case go to trial, with an entirely predictable result.
During the last session, a Republican House member was arrested and charged with a sex crime. The Republican leadership immediately demanded that he resign, and he immediately did so. Until now, that has been the normal practice on those rare occasions when a sitting legislator has been charged with a crime. But the Democratic Party is smashing all norms in its pursuit of absolute power. The real corruption that is revealed by the Nicole Mitchell case is not her bizarre crime, but rather the fix that allowed the DFL to maintain its one-vote Senate majority until today.
