The Strib's contract saga ends; the PiPress imports a Washington bureau; and there's a bit of justice for some magazine workers.
By David Brauer

It's a no-brainer, really. Before company comes, you clean up the house. You wash dishes, vacuum floors, dust furniture, buy flowers, prepare dinner. You want to make a good impression and, frankly, your guests expect a certain measure of hospitality. Read more...
By Steve Berg

Once it became clear at the end of spring training that Carlos Gomez would be the Twins' everyday center fielder and leadoff man, here was my take:
By Aaron Gleeman

Jan Berry, president of the MACC Alliance of Connected Communities, is floating the idea of using the health maintenance organization (HMO) model to provide human services. Read more...
By Scott Russell

Dirty early: Senate campaign goes negative

One day after a poll showing U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman with a 1-point lead on Al Franken, a Quinnipiac University survey gives Coleman a 15-point lead.
By David Brauer

Maria Cino, president and CEO of the Republican National Convention, went online with media representatives from around the nation Wednesday to discuss plans for the four-day event. The Washington Post has a transcript of the exchange here. Read more...

Maria Cino, president and CEO of the Republican National Convention, went online with media representatives from around the nation Wednesday to discuss plans for the four-day event. The Washington Post has a transcript of the exchange here. Read more...

That's a lot of Post-it Notes. 3M said today it recorded profits of $945 million during its second quarter. That's a 3 percent increase from last year and better than Wall Street analysts had expected. Rising international sales more than made up for losses from the slumping U.S. economy.

The Connecticut university's survey says Obama is up 46-44 on McCain, and public support for more off-shore drilling may be a reason.
By David Brauer