With pork prices plunging, a bacon backup builds in Minnesota

If you're having trouble viewing this email, you may [see it online](. [Star Tribune]( Talkers Top stories - With pork prices plunging, a bacon backup builds in Minnesota: Coronavirus has pulled the rug out from under demand for pork belly and ribs, driving hog prices to [their lowest level in nearly two decades](. About two-thirds of pork belly, from which bacon is derived, is purchased by the food service industry, and the shutdown of restaurants, colleges and schools has hit hard. - Walz to tweak stay-at-home restrictions: Gov. Tim Walz is scheduled on Wednesday to [announce a new “Minnesota way” of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic]( — a strategy that keeps what worked during the current two-week, stay-at-home order, but puts the state on track to remove some of the restrictions that contributed to job loss and economic pain. Walz on Wednesday [activated the Minnesota National Guard]( to respond to spring flooding threats throughout the state, signing an executive order directing the Guard to work with local officials in affected areas. - Bernie Sanders drops out of 2020 presidential race: Sen. Bernie Sanders, who saw his once strong lead in the Democratic primary evaporate as the party's establishment lined swiftly up behind rival Joe Biden, [ended his presidential bid on Wednesday](, an acknowledgment that the former vice president is too far ahead for him to have any reasonable hope of catching up. The Vermont senator's announcement makes Biden the presumptive Democratic nominee to challenge President Donald Trump in November. - Minnesota Supreme Court allows voter data to be withheld from public: Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon [won the right to keep some voter information private]( with a state Supreme Court ruling Wednesday overturning two lower court decisions in a three-year legal dispute. Simon unveiled legislation Wednesday to [expand mail-in voting and reduce in-person polling places]( during the coronavirus pandemic, which could stretch into the summer and fall elections. - Minnesota hospitals get grants as COVID-19 spreads: [Grants totaling $50 million were announced Wednesday]( to help hospitals and other health care providers prepare for the COVID-19 pandemic, which has now caused 1,154 lab-confirmed illnesses and 39 deaths in the state. - COVID-19 could cost U up to $300 million: The University of Minnesota [could take a $300 million hit]( because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has shuttered campuses across the country and forced schools to switch to online learning for the foreseeable future. - UnitedHealth accelerates $2B in health care support: As financial stress for hospitals and clinics builds due to COVID-19, UnitedHealth Group says it is accelerating $2 billion in payments and other [financial support to health care providers.]( - Fatal crashes surge despite sharp drop in traffic across Minnesota: State officials say they have seen [a troubling surge in traffic fatalities]( even though Gov. Tim Walz's stay-at-home order last month targeting the coronavirus has sharply reduced travel by motorists across Minnesota. - Plastic bags see a resurgence thanks to COVID-19: Just weeks ago, cities and even states across the U.S. were busy banning straws, limiting takeout containers and mandating that shoppers bring reusable bags or pay a small fee as the movement to eliminate single-use plastics took hold in mainstream America. [What a difference a pandemic makes.](  Watch this RIP John Prine: Prine, the ingenious singer-songwriter who explored the heartbreaks, indignities and absurdities of everyday life in “Angel from Montgomery,” “Sam Stone,” “Hello in There” and scores of other indelible tunes, [died Tuesday at the age of 73]( from complications from the coronavirus. Jon Bream remembers Prine as [the songwriting legend who invented East St. Paul]( for one of his tunes. [Here's a clip of Prine performing "Sam Stone"]( during an appearance on PBS' "Sessions at West 54th."  Talk to us! Send feedback on this newsletter, questions, story tips, ideas or anything else to [talkers@startribune.com](.  Trending - In North Loop, cheering for medical workers catches on: Inspired by their counterparts in cities around the world, apartment dwellers in Minneapolis’ North Loop are cheering for the medical workers who are risking their lives to alleviate the human suffering caused by coronavirus. At 7 each night, residents in several buildings step out on their balconies — some of them with pots and pans — and [make noise for nurses, doctors and caregivers across the city](. - You deserve a nice lunch: With a little bit of planning, [your midday meal can be a delightful one.]( - Minnesota Public Radio names new president: [Former journalist Duchesne Drew]( has been named as the next president for Minnesota Public Radio, a position from which he will lead daily operations and programming for MPR News, as well as The Current and Classical MPR.  Sports roundup - Is MLB so desperate for games it would put lives at risk? COVID-19 isn't just a disease. It's an intelligence test. If Major League Baseball goes forward with a proposal to play games in the Phoenix area, its entire management team will get a failing grade, [writes Jim Souhan.]( - If NBA skips straight to playoffs, Wolves have league's best draft position: Of the major U.S. pro sports leagues trying to figure out how and when to return to playing once the coronavirus pandemic allows, the NBA and NHL [would seem to have the most urgency.]( - KAT still dealing with hospitalized mom, fractured wrist: Wolves president Gersson Rosas [praised Karl-Anthony Towns' courage]( as his mother fights the coronavirus. Rosas wouldn't comment on the broken wrist that sidelined Towns before the NBA stopped play.  Did someone forward this newsletter to you? You can [sign up for Talkers here](.  Worth a click What the heroes have to say: As coronavirus tore through northern Italy, hospitals became the front lines in a grueling war. Desperate patients crowded into emergency rooms, sick, dying and afraid. [These are the faces of the men and women who fought to save them](, the New York Times Magazine reports.  From the archives April 8, 1953: Spurred by the rapid development of the Williston Basin, Northwestern Refining Co. neared completion of the first stage of its major expansion to boost the production capacity of its refinery at St. Paul Park from 8,000 to 30,000 barrels daily. It was the first refinery to buy North Dakota crude and at the time got about half its supply from oil fields in North Dakota and eastern Montana. (Photo: Larry Schreiber/Star Tribune) Connect with Star Tribune [facebook]([twitter]([pinterest]([instagram]( [Manage email preferences]( • [Subscribe to Star Tribune]( • [Privacy Policy]( • [Unsubscribe]( This email was sent by: StarTribune, 650 3rd Ave S, Suite #1300, Minneapolis, MN, 55488 © 2020 StarTribune. All rights reserved. We value your opinion! [Give us your feedback.](