...children and their families. "This is a really important time to look at how at how Minnesota kids are doing," said Diane Benjamin. According to the Pawlenty administration, its proposal to fix the projected $4.2 billion deficit would largely...

...ranking. "Being Number 1 is always nice, but we're usually among the top few (states) in these studies," said Diane Benjamin, of the Children's Defense Fund of Minnesota. "What we're seeing is the impact of a strong economy in the 1990s...

...child-care advocates said. "It's not acceptable that there are that many kids fending for themselves," said Diane Benjamin, of the Children's Defense Fund in St. Paul. "Parents are between a rock and a hard place. They hold their...