St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her lashed out at multiple top local officials for asking her on a private call last Thursday to delay a homeless encampment sweep. One state representative grew so frustrated she logged off the call early, according to a recording reviewed by Axios.
Why it matters: Many attendees left the meeting concerned that the mayor had done lasting damage to her relationships with St. Paul’s legislative delegation — relationships Her, a former state lawmaker, had touted during her campaign — two officials who were on the call told Axios.
- Several call attendees believe the meeting went off the rails in part because Her was angry about a sexual harassmentcomplaint against her, revealed in news reports less than 24 hours before the call, those two officials said.
What they’re saying: “This meeting was about one question: whether the city can responsibly delay closing the encampment,” the mayor told Axios in a written statement.
- “If people heard urgency or bluntness in my voice, they heard it correctly,” she added. “My frustration was not directed at any individual in that room.”
Driving the news: The first of three encampment closures is set for Wednesday, marking a major shift in the city’s response to homelessness — a sensitive, controversial policy project for any mayor, let alone one facing separate headline-dominating allegations.
What happened: At least half of St. Paul’s state House delegation, plus a range of city and county officials, attended last Thursday’s virtual meeting to discuss Her’s sweeps plan, according to four officials granted anonymity by Axios to discuss details of a sensitive private call.
- Several state reps on the call were sympathetic to arguments by encampment residents and outreach workers that sweeps don’t help homeless people reach permanent housing.
- The mayor rebuffed them, telling attendees that a delay was highly unlikely.
Friction point: What alarmed Axios’ sources wasn’t the mayor’s argument per se, but her tone, her refusal to negotiate and her dismissiveness of other officials’ personal and professional dedication to a vexing issue.
- If all that was needed was a one-month delay, she demanded during one heated moment on the call, “Where the hell have we been? Why haven’t we brought these 30-day, 60-day solutions years ago?”
“This is extremely inappropriate,” interjected state Rep. Leigh Finke, who had personally agreed minutes earlier to commit her time to the issue. “I’m gonna follow up later,” she said, and logged off…