“I can make just about any subject about Minnesota,” explains McMahon, who now goes by the apropos title “America’s Government Teacher” thanks to a meteoric rise on social media that started with a sobering look at the electoral college and included profile-raising conversations with everyone from The Daily Show to Ken Burns.  

She continues, “Minnesotans love nothing more than talking about Minnesota, which is really why I'm here. It's not that I don't have other work to do. It's because Minnesotans love Minnesota; they have a weird, very strong affinity for it.”  

McMahon isn’t kidding about not having any work to do. Aside from 12 years of teaching, the natural-born entrepreneur ran successful yarn and photography businesses in the years leading up to her current role as an easy-going civics educator who also happens to host a hit podcast (“Here’s Where It Gets Interesting”) and an online book club (“Governerds Insider”) so popular it's long had a waiting list and appearances by such authors as Food Network phenom Ina Garten and prize-winning journalist Adam Higginbotham.  

Oh, and she also has a best-selling book about history’s long-overlooked transformational figures (“The Small and the Mighty”) and a Substack (The Preamble) with more than 250,000 subscribers.

We recently spoke to McMahon about why she moved back to Minnesota after stints in San Francisco and the DC area, and why she can’t imagine basing her blossoming empire anywhere else.  

On ice skating all winter: 

Nearly every elementary school had its own ice rink when I was growing up. I spent a lot of time skating at the one in our neighborhood. It’s what I did all winter. 

The Lester River was also two blocks away from our house, so it was something my sisters and I could do by ourselves.  

Part of the appeal was going to the warming shack and buying candy. Like, ‘Let’s go get some Laffy Taffy and hang out with our friends.’ It was the outdoor equivalent of going to the mall — where your friends were.  

That's just not true here; you can live in downtown Minneapolis, and it's still not hours away. 

On cabin culture: 

You don't need to be rich to own waterfront property here because we have 14,000 lakes. If you want to get a couple of acres and plonk a trailer on it, you probably can.  

Everyone knows someone with a cabin here, too, whereas summer cabins are reserved for the rich and famous on the coasts. 

On Duluth's dramatic views: 

The city of Duluth is built into the side of a large hill, which has an elevation change of about 700 feet from the shoreline to the top. That can make it difficult to drive in during the wintertime, but it offers water views and vistas unlike almost anywhere else. 

It can't compare to the south shore of Lake Superior. And it can't compare to many of Lake Michigan’s shores, which are much sandier and beautiful in other ways. 

On Minnesota’s top-ranked voter turnout: 

It's always seemed normal to me. It wasn't like some people vote and some people don't. In my perception, of course, you voted. 

I once asked my [DC] students why they thought Minnesota had such great voter turnout because, by statistical measures, it shouldn't. We don't have the most college degrees or the highest incomes — things that are traditionally pretty good predictors of civic engagement.  

The answer is complicated; I just asked them to speculate. They all sat there thinking about it for a minute until one boy finally raised his hand and said Minnesota is an aberration because 'there's nothing else to do there.' It's as though what we're doing is dog sledding to the polls every Friday night.  

On feeling like a flyover state:  

An interesting perception on the part of the rest of America is that Minnesota is just a flyover state. The most recent election changed that perception a little bit, but Minnesota was essentially the equivalent of an Antarctic research station — 40 people living in a metal building — in [my students'] minds.”  

So, I pointed out that, 'No, we actually have the largest mall in the world. We have all of the sports teams — hockey, football, baseball, basketball. Who's watching those if nobody lives there and there's nothing to do?' That was news to them. They realized, 'Oh, I guess the Timberwolves are from Minnesota. Weird.'  

California is also very crowded and densely populated. Most available land is eaten up, at least in the places where most people live. Growing up in northern Minnesota, it was the opposite. We're 150 miles from a major population center here. 

What I really missed was turning on the tap and having delicious, clean Lake Superior water come out of it. I also missed the clean air and being able to see the clouds, beautiful sunsets, and brilliant blue skies in the wintertime.

On what’s right with winter: 

Winter is coming, whether you enjoy it or not. Your mindset has a lot to do with how much you enjoy it. 

I like winter. Yes, it does feel cold, but I love snow. I miss it when I'm when we don't have it. Like last year, we had no snow, and it was terrible. 

This weekend, we got about seven inches of snow, which was nice to see. I love a good snowstorm and wish we had more of them. I wish we had 120 inches of snow a year instead of 75. 

On keeping things interesting: 

We have unique microclimates here, too, much like those of Northern California's wine country. I love the range of weather that it offers. Subconsciously, I think it’s part of what is attractive to me about living here.  

I love the summer. The fall is breathtaking — too short, in my opinion. I love a good thunderstorm. I like its unpredictability. I like the fact that it's hot one day and cold the next. That all amuses me.  

I would not want to live in Arizona, where it's sunny 350 days a year. Even though the sun is nice to see, I need the variety. 

On aging gracefully: 

Some of the oldest rocks in the world are literally found in Minnesota, and the North Shore is one of the most interesting places, from a geology standpoint, of anywhere on planet Earth. 

Like there’s this large magnetic rock towards the end of the Gunflint Trail. It completely throws off your compass when you stand near it.  

We think about Minnesota from the perspective of French voyagers who started exploring the area a few hundred years ago, but humans have lived in and around here for a minimum of 6 to 9,000 years. And that's only from the fossil records that we know about, things like pottery shards in the Boundary Waters that are 6000 years old. 

On being a “Minnesota mom”: 

I think the characterization of 'Minnesota mom' is meant to be like, 'Wow, look at the adversity she has overcome. She's made something of herself despite just being a mom from Minnesota.’ 

It's a very common misconception that Minnesota is all just a bunch of rednecks and farmers, too. No shade to rednecks or farmers.... I live on a dirt road, right? I think farming is important. But when you bring up the number of large businesses that are headquartered in Minnesota — 3M, Target, Medtronic, General Mills, Honeywell — it's very surprising to people who assume those kinds of businesses exist only in places like New York and Los Angeles. Maybe Chicago. It's just a very unique culture. 

On living in the “Canada of the United States”:  

With the most recent election, we saw this characterization that Minnesota shares many similarities with Canadians in terms of the types of social programs we have and how we prioritize our money when we have a budget surplus. Like free lunches for kids — to most Minnesotans, that seems like a no-brainer. ‘'Why wouldn't we feed children at school?’  

Minnesota is also unique in that we have one population center, and the rest of the state — a large place geographically — is quite rural. There's this juxtaposition of this business powerhouse with areas that are very involved in natural resources, mining, and farming. It's not the only state to have that rural/urban push-pull, but it's different than other places. 

On the unpredictability of Minnesota politics: 

Minnesota has always been an interesting place politically. At one point, Jesse Ventura was the governor while we had Rod Grams — one of the country’s most conservative senators — and Paul Wellstone, one of the most liberal. As in left of Bernie Sanders.  

To have all of that happening at one time — Rod Grams representing this very far-right faction, Paul Wellstone representing this left-leaning faction, and this third-party governor, an ex-wrestler — is very illustrative of what a unique place Minnesota is. 

At its core is a shared belief system that the government should pay for a lot more things than it does—that we should have things that would traditionally be a progressive viewpoint. In the middle are shared values not always found in other states. 

On laissez faire life: 

Another unique Minnesotan cultural trait is that it's very laissez-faire. If you want to have eight cars in your yard, so be it. There are exceptions to this, of course, but Minnesotans, by and large, tend to have a 'you do what you want, that doesn't affect me' kind of vibe to government intervention. 

For example, when I was living in Maryland, you had to get your car inspected to put Maryland plates on it. My air conditioning at the time was broken; the Freon needed to be replaced. In order to pay the State of Maryland the $900 it was going to cost to retitle my car, I had to get my air conditioning fixed.  

That seemed stupid to me, like, 'Why isn't it my choice if I want to have a functional air conditioner?' We're not talking about a safety issue where your wheels are falling off and you're going to get into a car accident. If I want to be hot in my car, why can't I be hot in my car?  

That's not how we roll in Minnesota. If you want to drive your car with a broken air conditioner, it doesn't affect me. I don't care; go ahead and do that. People do it all the time. 

We also love several restaurants in Grand Marais (The Angry Trout, for example), Va Bene and Duluth Grill in Duluth, and Zelo in Minneapolis. It’s a very popular restaurant. It’s not groundbreaking, but everything you have there is just really good, which is why it’s been open for 30 years.  

The Picket Fence in Edina and 3 Kittens Needle Arts in Mendota Heights are two shops I love off the top of my head. That big [Northrup King] building in Northeast Minneapolis is such an interesting place to visit, too. I love to support local artists. 

On using Minnesota as a photo studio:

Northern Minnesota is such an incredibly beautiful place. It really takes photography to the next level, as there is so much natural beauty to incorporate. 

I have a million secret spots to shoot at, but Enger Tower and Enger Park are truly spectacular. The gardens and views there are incredible. One of my favorites in the winter is Lester Park, which has a very high percentage of evergreen trees.

On her family’s top road trips: 

We love going to Grand Marais, World's Best Donuts, Drury Lane Books, and Joynes Ben Franklin.  

Small town Grand Marais is very, very fun for us. It's such an insulated community... It takes a minimum of two, two-and-a-half hours to get anywhere else, so it’s created this very unique culture that is warm and welcoming. It’s not one of those communities that makes you feel like an outsider. It feels quirky — full of people who are dug in there because they love it. 

Stillwater is such a pretty, quaint little town, too, with so many bed & breakfasts. So is Red Wing and the Bluff Country area along the St. Croix and Mississippi Rivers. 

On welcoming change: 

Minnesota has a very different feeling. I love that you can visit this big agricultural state. I love Minnesota's dairy industry and timber industry. All of these things have created unique histories within the state. 

Rochester used to be a place where there was a hospital surrounded by farms. Even that has started to take on a very multicultural vibe, with lots of new ethnic restaurants opening and arts opportunities. 

Even towns that have historically not been focused on that, in the way that Duluth has, have really started flourishing. That's fun to see. I'm proud of what Minnesota has become. 

Read the rest of our Stars of the North interview series.