Confederate flag, Trump and moose Happy Friday to the 4 of you who are working today. Gov. Mark Dayton and Lt. Gov. Tina Smith continue their vacation (separately.) Allison Sherry reports on the GOP House defending the Confederate battle flag on public cemetery grounds. Rep. Betty McCollum switched her vote from 'no' on an Interior Dept. spending bill to "Hell no" after the flag issue came up, she told Sherry. Meanwhile, Trump turns up the megaphone after the RNC's Reince Priebus told him to tone it down. A national environmental group wants the moose protected under the Endangered Species Act, Josephine Marcottyreports. Warming temperatures seem to be driving down numbers in MInnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan. This hack of Office of Personnel Management system gets worse and worse: 21.5 million current and former federal employees. Will someone get fired? The feds are withholding money from Minnesota due to failures of our foster care system, Brandon Stahl reports. Too many times, children are put in foster care, then back in their family homes, and then yanked again because of abuse and put back in foster care. It's called "re-entry." For shame. More sadness: The Alexandria teen has died from the rare lake borne infection. MPR with MNsure woes. HRC with a risky move, taking on the NRA, though they would have run hard against her anyway, so it's not that risky. Insiders tell Politico that Iowa Gov. Scott Walker is dominating Iowa. Sen. Ted Cruz is dominating the Breitbart caucus. Michael Gerson, the George W. Bush speechwriter, thinks conservatives should oppose state lotteries and be more willing to crack down on payday lending. This could lead to some interesting coalition politics. Post op-ed. Have a good weekend everybody. If you're at the Twins game Saturday, find your way to the cheapest nosebleed seats and say hello.