February 18-19, 2009
Feb 18 01:24 The DFL's Status Quo Leadership Feb 18 01:52 Illinois's Dead Man Walking Feb 18 10:07 What If Fraud Happened & The DFL Didn't Care? Feb 18 11:50 Starting With a Scandal, Ending With A Scandal Feb 19 09:35 Listening Tour Or DFL Lack Of Leadership Tour? Feb 19 11:35 Obama Administration Losing Credibility Feb 19 13:39 Setting Things Straight Feb 19 15:27 Chamber President Chimes In On Budget Battle
Prior Months: Jan
The DFL's Status Quo Leadership
It's rumored that the DFL has taken control of the Minnesota legislature. While that's the runmor, I haven't seen proof of that, especially as it relates to the budget deficit. Perhaps this email exchange between Rep. Gene Pelowski and the people on his email list constitutes leadership:
From: Gene Pelowski [mailto:Rep.Gene.Pelowski@house.mn]The DFL is lining up their special interest allies to flood these meetings and paint a picture of abject horror. They want their allies to savage Gov. Pawlenty's budget proposal while painting a picture of unending misery.
Sent: Tuesday, February 17, 2009 10:13 AM
This Friday, February 20, there will be a bicameral hearing held in our region. Senators and Representatives from both political parties will be in Winona from 3:30 to 5:30 PM, Winona City Hall, 207 Lafayette St. The purpose of this hearing is to get testimony from affected programs in every level of government, education, health care or service impacted by the cuts suggested by the Governor's state budget.
I am writing you to ask that you or a designee get scheduled to testify. You may do this by going to the House website at www.house.mn and clicking on "Town Meetings".
We would ask you to focus your comments on the impact of the Governor's budget including what is the harm to your area of government or program. Please be as precise as possible using facts such as number of lay offs, increases in property taxes, cuts in services, increases in tuition, elimination of programs. To be respectful of the time necessary to hear from a large number of constituents it would be advised to use no more than 3-5 minutes to convey your message. If you choose to provide handouts or printed materials, please plan to bring approximately 25 copies, enough for committee members and media.
Sincerely,
Representative Gene Pelowski
District 31A
What's missing is most telling. What's missing from Rep. Pelowski's email is his imploring his constituents to talk about reforming the way things are done. That's because there isn't proof that reforms are part of the DFL's agenda. Quite the opposite, actually. There's ample proof that their motto is 'Keep doing what we've been doing'.
Staring at the biggest deficit in Minnesota history, the DFL insists on doing the same thing using the same formulas that yield the same results. Then-Gov. Clinton said in a presidential debate that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. That's something I've always agreed with President Clinton on.
This is unquestionably why Assistant Senate Majority Leader Tarryl Clark told Tom Hauser that, at most, we could find $500,000,000 in savings in the budget. Rep. Pelowski's email is proof that the DFL never intended on finding better ways to make government smaller or more efficient.
The DFL has lived in a status quo world for more than a decade. It's time that changed. We can't afford another year of status quo DFL leadership, much less another decade.
The House and Senate GOP is offering a stark contrast to the DFL's status quo policies. Wednesday afternoon, the House and Senate GOP leadership is holding a press conference to announce their legislative proposal, which is to cut the pay of legislators and Minnesota's constitutional officers.
The contrast couldn't be more stark. The DFL is counting on their special interest allies to keep the status quo intact. The GOP is offering solutions to whittle government's bite on the taxpayer's collective wallets. that's before we start talking about Gov. Pawlenty's reform proposal to cut education costs or his initiative with Wisconsin Gov. Doyle . Both initiatives are designed to increase buying power for everything from alt for road to food services to IT supplies.
The things in Gov. Pawlenty's initiatives represent cost savings. They aren't budget cuts, where actual services get cut. Service levels are maintained while controlling costs.
If the DFL had an reformist attitude instead of a status quo attitude, there wouldn't be a need for Rep. Pelowski's email pleading for the DFL's allies to maintain the status quo.
There's only one thing in this state bigger than the budget deficit. That would be the DFL's new ideas deficit.
Posted Wednesday, February 18, 2009 1:24 AM
Comment 1 by A Friend at 18-Feb-09 09:49 AM
http://unioneagle.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2324&Itemid=1
Princeton school board places trio on administrative leave.....
tried to contact you through your contact link but got a blank page
Illinois's Dead Man Walking
The end is coming quickly for Roland Burris. The Wednesday edition of the Chicago Tribune is asking for Sen. Burris' resignation :
The benefit of the doubt had already been stretched thin and taut by the time Roland Burris offered his third version of the events leading to his appointment to the U.S. Senate. It finally snapped like a rubber band, popping him on that long Pinocchio nose of his, when he came out with version four.By the time that the story broke that Sen. Burris had tried raising money for ousted Gov. Blagojevich, the envelope had been pushed too far already. It's time we said what's on everyone's mind: Why did Rod Blagojevich pick Sen. Burris? He's a man of few recent qualifications. He's run and lost his most recent attempts for elective office.
Let's see if we have it right: Burris had zero contact with any of Gov. Rod Blagojevich's cronies about his interest in the Senate seat being vacated by President Barack Obama- unless you count that conversation with former chief of staff Lon Monk, and, on further reflection, the ones with insiders John Harris, Doug Scofield and John Wyma and, oh yeah, the governor's brother and fund-raising chief, Robert Blagojevich. But Burris didn't raise a single dollar for the now ex-governor as a result of those contacts because that could be construed as a quid pro quo and besides, everyone he asked refused to donate.
The story gets worse with every telling.
Enough. Roland Burris must resign.
The most likely reason why Blagojevich picked Burris is because he was just about to launch a massive PR campaign. Blagojevich picked Burris at least in part because of skin color. Simply put, Blagojevich knew that Harry Reid wouldn't deny an African-American the seat formerly held by President Obama.
After all the fuss, Roland Burris is today's version of a dead man walking. His political life is essentially over. It's time for him to slide into retirement so he can become a hero of the Nutroots.
Good riddance.
Posted Wednesday, February 18, 2009 1:53 AM
No comments.
What If Fraud Happened & The DFL Didn't Care?
If you've been reading this blog, it's fair if you think this post is about voter fraud. It isn't. In this instance, it's about welfare fraud. This article has a couple telling tidbits of information. Here's the first:
Rep. Tony Cornish says, "To find out how much abuse is really going on, we think that it's possible a one in three or four out of every application has had error or purposefully bad information given." Welfare fraud investigators tell the Republican Caucus nearly 1.67 billion dollars is lost to abuse of the system every year.With the state facing a deficit that's already at $4.8 billion, I'd think that identifying and eliminating $1.67 billion worth of welfare fraud would be a high priority. It isn't with the DFL:
"Senator Sheran says with a nearly seven billion dollar state budget deficit lawmakers have to be careful that money is spent where there would be a beneficial monetary return to the state. Sen. Kathy Sheran says, "Welfare really comprises of the general fund about one percent of that budget so it's a very small amount."To his credit, House GOP Leader Marty Seifert isn't letting Sen. Sheran off the hook so easily:
Rep. Marty Seifert says, "That number is greatly under exaggerated by her and people who don't want reform.In my post about voter fraud, I ridiculed Mark Ritchie for claiming that he couldn't find any voter fraud in Minnesota by saying it's impossible to find fraud if you're doing your best to not look for fraud. I'd say the same thing applies to welfare fraud.
Applying the bankrobber cliche on robbing banks, shouldn't Minnesota's legislators look for cost savings by looking where the money is? Isn't it logical to think that the best way to balance the state's budget is to look for potential cost savings in the biggest budgets? I realize that logic isn't the DFL's strong suit but they should try it. After all, tough times put additional pressure on us all.
Posted Wednesday, February 18, 2009 10:07 AM
Comment 1 by J. Ewing at 18-Feb-09 11:24 AM
You don't even have to look for fraud. Common sense (and Pareto's law) say that you find the biggest budget impact in the biggest budget items-- education and welfare. You simply cannot tell me that a 2% reduction in these things-- $1/2 Billion couldn't be found just in the sofa cushions. And considering the nature of these things, a 10% cut is reasonable, GIVEN the willingness of these "public servants" to do their jobs properly.
Comment 2 by Walter Hanson at 18-Feb-09 06:42 PM
The problem for the DFL in the process of trying to crack down on the fraud the people who they want to vote for them might lose their benefits and not vote for them.
Even worse the DFL measures a success in welfare spending by if more people are collecting it and how more money is being spent.
Republicans have this alien concept to them that a success in welfare spending is reducing the number of people collecting and having less money spent.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Starting With a Scandal, Ending With A Scandal
Last fall, I led the charge against Lisa Fobbe because her history on the Princeton school board was riddled with lax oversight and a scandal involving Mark Sleeper. Based on this article , the Sleeper scandal is now heading to fruition:
Responding to complaints against three district employees, the Princeton School Board moved to place superintendent Mark Sleeper, human resources director Brandon Nelson and community education director Tim Dalton all on paid administrative leave. The resolution was approved during a special board meeting Feb. 16. The complaints could not be explained because of data privacy practice concerns.A loyal LFR reader tells me that the speculation in Princeton is that Sleeper's scandal is tied to this article :
During the time the trio is on leave, the district's new law firm Ratwik, Roszak and Maloney, as well as the district's auditing firm, Kern, Deweneter, Viere, LTD, will investigate the claims.
At its Jan. 27 meeting, the Princeton School Board approved paying the director of business services, Carol Peterson, a sum of $15,000 relating to a disagreement between Peterson and the district.What's interesting is this email from Princeton School Board Chairman Dan Whitcomb:
In the text of the agreement, Peterson is cited as having made numerous claims to the district about her employment. Peterson's legal council maintains that there are viable legal claims relating to harassment, discrimination and retaliation suffered by Peterson. The district disputes the viability of the claims and says it has investigated the situation and taken appropriate action.
In the agreement both sides agreed to a mutual denial of liability. Peterson agreed to release the district from any current claims or from any similar claims in the future. The district, in turn, will pay Peterson $15,000 as well as reinstate 10 of her sick days and 20 of her vacation days.
We want to inform you of action that was taken by the School Board last night. The School Board authorized an investigation into complaints made against three employees, Superintendent Mark Sleeper, Director of Community Education Timothy Dalton and Director of Human Resources Brandon Nelson. The employees have been placed on administrative leave pending the completion of the investigation. In accordance with the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, the School Board is prohibited from disclosing any additional information at this time. The Board understands that this will cause a temporary disruption in school operations and is striving to minimize any disruption. In the interim, Director of Business Services Carol Peterson will handle Human Resources matters and Activities Director Glen Klaphake will handle Community Education matters. The Board plans to assign an individual to perform the Superintendent duties on a temporary basis by February 24. We ask for your patience and understanding during this time.It's important to remember that I wrote last October that Lisa Fobbe and Mark Sleeper had questions to answer . At this point, those questions remain unanswered. Here's one of the questions Joel Stottrup raised back then:
Sincerely,
Dan Whitcomb, Board Chair
Why has Carol Peterson, director of business services for the Princeton School District not been on the job since early August?After that, I said this:
If I lived in Princeton, I'd want to know why the school district is paying a company almost $5,000 a month to do the business manager's job. Mr. Stottrup's article quotes the district's human resources director as saying that Ms. Peterson hasn't been terminated. If that's true, what's the explanation for Ms. Peterson not working?Lisa Fobbe might be a state senator but that doesn't mean she shouldn't answer questions about this because she was dealing with it when she still chaired the Princeton School Board.
There's an easy way to clear this up. Lisa Fobbe should either compel Mr. Nelson to explain why Ms. Peterson isn't working or she should explain it herself. School board members are public servants. As such, they're accountable to their constituents. If people are asking questions, then they're obligated to answer those questions.
Let's remember that she was a school board member when Princeton hired Sleeper just months after he was 'suspended' from Fergus Falls High School:
High School Principal Mark Sleeper was issued a 15-day suspension Friday by the school district for inappropriate and unprofessional behavior between himself and an employee under his supervision last spring.This is the disciplinary action taken by the Fergus Falls School board:
"The disciplinary action taken by the board was the issuance of a Letter of Reprimand to Principal Sleeper, which letter will be placed in Mr. Sleeper's personnel file and includes disciplinary action." The letter also requires that Sleeper attend monthly counseling regarding his behavior and relationship to employees of the school district. It also states he shall not be involved in any incidents of unprofessional behavior. "If any complaint or charge is filed by an employee or any other person for past, future incidents,further disciplinary action, including termination, will be pursued by the district," the letter reads.I asked then what I'm asking now: Why would Ms. Fobbe and the Princeton School Board promote someone with that type of history? Let's remember that Ms. Fobbe chaired the Princeton School Board when Mr. Sleeper was promoted to superintendent of all Princeton schools.
I found this quote totally disturbing:
"We felt he was the most qualified to lead our high school," Meinz continued. "The feeling of the board is that whatever issues there were previously, they have been resolved.Treating a person with a disciplinary history like "every other employee" isn't exercising good judgment. In fact, it's leadership malpractice, which should be laid directly at Ms. Fobbe's feet.
"We're looking forward to his positive leadership at the high school. We will judge him solely on the merits of his performance , like we do every other employee. We make every effort to hire the best person."
It's time that Mr. Whitcomb cleaned up the mess Sen. Fobbe left him with. It's unfortunate that Mr. Whitcomb had this dumped in his lap but that's to be expected when following someone who exercised such poor judgment.
It's also time for SD-16 voters to correct the mistake they made in electing Lisa Fobbe to the state senate. The good news is that their next chance is November, 2010. It's time that this culture of corruption is eliminated once and for all.
Here's Mr. Whitcomb's press release relating to the settlement:
The District Board members cannot comment directly on the details or issues that necessitated the settlement agreement.Mr. Whitcomb has a tall task confronting him. I hope he's able to clean up Ms. Fobbe's mess. School district employees shouldn't have to deal with harassment.
This is due to data privacy concerns, ongoing investigations and possible future disciplinary actions, the Board may determine necessary.
I would like to convey the following message to all District employees.
The Princeton School Board of Education will not tolerate or condone employee harassment resulting from the performance of their inherent responsibility to report employee misconduct, the inappropriate use of district funds or criminal activities. District employees are free to bring attention of and to notify and report such activities to their immediate supervisors, indirect supervisors, or any School Board Director with out repercussion. It is the responsibility of District Directors, Supervisors and School Board Directors to investigate these reported activities and appropriately take necessary action as required by State Statutes or District Policies.
Posted Wednesday, February 18, 2009 11:50 AM
Comment 1 by craig Johnson at 18-Feb-09 05:27 PM
The 09 school board is drudgeing up two year old isseues thast havwe been investigated and resolved. But carol peterson and dan whitcomb and a few other board members have an agenda and they sprnd the district into the ground to reach there goals . They keep hiring consultanrs and auditors to re audit . . . .enough. Lets find out why the business maager carol peterson submitted contracts and recomended contracts for the middle school for the school board to approve and the companies were not bound by insurance. And it cost the district thousands to try and recoup a portion of the loss. School board members are not building or contract or educational professionals.So they are only as good as the people who are employeed by the distric. And As a ex board member the only administrator who should not be employeed with tax payers money is Carol Peterson.
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 19-Feb-09 01:38 AM
First, I'm thankful that Mr. Johnson isn't an educator because his spelling is terrible.
As for Mr. Whitcomb & the school board drudging up old issues, perhaps it's because they were left with alot of loose ends from the previous school board.
Mr. Sleeper isn't an "old issue." He's an ongoing issue. I know that because his second ex-wife wrote about it. I've posted that here. I'll trust her more than I'll trust Mr. Sleeper.
Comment 3 by Wendy at 19-Feb-09 08:57 AM
WOW - if you are an ex-board member - go back to school and learn how to spell!!
You might want to watch who you slander online as it could come back to bite you.
Guess you are a bit angry that you weren't re-elected but that's your problem. I think if our previous board had not brought this pervert into our schools we wouldn't be faced with what we are now. If you and the rest of the previous board had taken care of this issue, the new one wouldn't have to.
Everything needs to be an open book so the taxpayers know the hell is going on. Carol Peterson can only do things under the direction of the board and/or superintendent....consider that before you slander people again.
Comment 4 by Susan at 19-Feb-09 09:14 AM
Just to clarify, Carol Peterson was NOT employed by the Princeton School District when the middle school was built.
Comment 5 by Bonnie at 19-Feb-09 06:43 PM
I would like to add that the Superintendant is also careless in handling some of his duties to the students and parents of students that attend school. I think he needs to resign or be terminated.
My daughter attends the Princeton High School and when she reported a crime it was not handled appropriately and the comment made by the Superintendant about threats that were made and the harassment my daughter went through was that they are just girls having fun!!!!!! Not acceptable when the crime is of the sexual nature and the threats were of burning peoples houses and of physical harm including rape.
Comment 6 by Lee Steinbrecher at 24-Feb-09 08:21 PM
It is a shame that the community of Princeton is being represented by a group of people who are on a witch hunt. I just attended a school board meeting where the Chairperson of the board refused to take citizen comment of more than 30 seconds. The comments were limited becasue they spoke the truth. The members of the Princeton School Board have violated state law and their own policies.. They have left them selves vulnurable to a law suite and if they are found guilty, can be removed from office. There are enough people in this community who are angry enough to file that suite, and I hope someone makes it happen. The present board is the joke of this community. As for Lisa Fobbe, my freinds, she cared about the kids and that is what we elected her for, and that is so much more than most of the present School Board members in this community.
There are also many people in this community that realize that the wrong administrator may have been put on leave, and I think that person knows who they are.
Comment 7 by craig Johnson at 25-Feb-09 09:46 AM
Slander you say. . . I voted NO on the settlrment issue concerning carol peterson.It was a bogus claim and the current board did not follow the settlement agreement. It's public record what my opinion is.The Money being spent by this board to further there agendas is a crime agianst the kids and tax payers of this district.And school board members who do not make a living as an educator should not pretend to be one. Not allowing the public to speak or limiting time at school board meetings is cowardice!!! Ask school staff how they perceive the present board. . .
Comment 8 by w at 25-Feb-09 10:08 AM
I don't understand the concentration on Carol Peterson? Why are you people not focused on Mr. Sleeper and his sleeping around activities at the high school. I guess because you are men, you don't care about the superintedent and his fine example of sleeping with district employees? Yes, our school district is only as good as the people we hire....having him as a superintendent doesn't say much for Princeton at all.
Comment 9 by cmc at 25-Feb-09 07:43 PM
I think change is good!
Can't figure out why we would have hired him in the first place.
Yippie! Glad your gone!!
Comment 10 by Dan Whitcomb at 15-Apr-09 07:01 AM
I am done shaking the apple trees and all the rotten apples have now dropped out. Limbs have been pruned so the tree of education can sprout a new.
Comment 11 by Do the right thing at 17-May-09 11:39 PM
I would like to thank board member Whitcomb {thanks for shaking all the rotten apples out!) and the others who uncovered what I can only guess is a very small piece of what Mr. Sleeper ( my goodness it feels good not to have to call him Superintendent, that is a title that deserves respect, which I feel he did not,) and the others may have been up to. I already know through my own dealings with him that he, Mr. Johnson and several others who are no longer on the board feel it is their personal duty to not follow the rules that govern the district and the board, the rules the board has in fact set up to govern themselves and prevent abuse of power. These rules were obviously ignored and broken. Yet for some reason the previous board could not see that or act upon it, oh, wait that's because they ignored and broke them also!! Now that this junk is exposed and cleaned up (Thank you again to the current board, and Gary for realizing back during the election that something was rotten in the state of Denmark, and for speaking out) my only fear even though I consider myself primarily a democrat is what hand Lisa Lobb will have in serving the same sort of injustice to our state and local government in this extremely difficult, yet important time as she dosed out and ignored as the previous "Chair" of the board during the time that Mr. Sleeper became employed in that capacity and started reeking all this havoc. I hope that the current board does not become comfortable and set in routine as the lackadaisical prior board, that Mr. Hahn will see his job as the honor that it should be and that returning board member Valincourt appreciates this second chance to make a difference in the lives of future generations of Tigers and will stand up and speak out when he knows that rules are not being followed unlike last time. I know as a past member of his speech team that he has no problem raising his voice to be heard, he just needs to do some internal assessments to remember why he chose the field of education and use that rediscovered spirit to do the right thing!
Comment 12 by Do the right thing at 17-May-09 11:45 PM
Sorry my spell checker changed a few things with out my realizing, I am speaking about Lisa Fobbe and Superintendent Lahn.
Comment 13 by steven juntunen at 23-May-09 04:21 PM
maybe someone should give me a call - i have a lot of truthfull inside information - on how dishonest district management people can treat - a good employee who lives and works by "Faith" and appropriately questions - the dishonest acts - of all the district management employees you are talking about here - because I cared about "who I worked for" - not these people - "BUT THE KIDS - TEACHERS - STAFF - PARENTS" - i know a lot more than they would want me TO devulge publicly - BUT THE TRUTH - NOT THEIR LIES- NEEDS TO BE KNOWN BY ALL - GIVE ME A CALL @ (763)614-9425 MY CELL - OR (763)241-9516 - MY HOME - IN CASE YOUR WONDERING WHAT INFO - 1)SYSTEMATIC HARRASEMENT AND VERBAL THREATS -QUOTE!! "NO ONE GOES OVER ME TO THE SCHOOL BOARD - IF YOU TRY - I WILL MAKE IT HELL ON YOU - YOUR CONTRACT IS ONLY FOR ONE YEAR - SO WE'LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS IN THAT YEAR" - 2)UNWANTED SEXUALLY EXPLICIT MATERIAL ON DISTRICT COMPUTERS 3) WRONGFULL SLANDEROUS INFORMATION PROVIDED TO MY NEW EMPLOYER VIA A PERSONAL REFERENCE CHECK - THAT HAS CAUSED UNDUE EXTREME STRESS AND ANGUISH 4)ALLOWING VIOLENT INDIVIDUALS TO MEET WITH SOCIAL WORKER IN THE DISTRICT BLDG WITHOUT APPROPRIATE SECURITY MEASURES IN PLACE TO PROTECT STAFF AND PRESCHOOLERS - LETS JUST HAVE A CUSTODIAN WALK BY, HA HOW INCOMPETANT, ETC., ETC., ETC.,
Comment 14 by michael robertson at 08-Sep-09 11:16 PM
The underlying dynamics that enable any person to be in a position without the proper transparency, and scutiny, set up the likelihood this will ocurr again. The Board has an opportunity to create scaffolding (through policy and regular and consistent enforcement of policy) that would establish specific checks and balances to prevent individuals or groups of individuals from self-serving covert alignments that run roughshod over subordinates, and large and small parts of school systems.
Ultimatley, we are all tempted to pocket the $1 dollar bill we find in the hallway... But when the culture and community of that building or hallway is open, involved, accountable to each other and receptive... this rarely occurs.
The school board can help create policies that support transparency and ethical, resolution-seeking responses at the earliest opportunity. This would foster communication, understanding, and dialogue and authentic resolution.
There must be incentive for individuals to acknowledge violations and problem behaviors at the earliest levels, with little cost to themselves. Otherwise, most individuals in an organization will distrust openness and scrutiny admitting no wrong doing. Instead they will require the distric to prove they violated a policy, rule, or conduct. The costs associated with contention, and escalating formality perpetuate costs so that by the time they reach levels of external investigations and laywers the district has no choice but participate at a similar level to fund and allocate resources....
There are a lot of reasons that apples rot... the accomplishment, and effort invovled in removing them is a gigantic acknowledgement and validation of the elected board to be able to take actions which were previously prevented. Developing policies and procedure to educate train, clearly separate the Board and future board members about their duties and responsibiities to govern the district. For example, it may be valuable to create a term for the presiding board member position, to enable a check and balance which might prevent a replay of the recent president's rulership.
Listening Tour Or DFL Lack Of Leadership Tour?
King posted DFL Rep. Gene Pelowski's email in this post . Yesterday morning, King posted about this editorial . Congratulations to the St. Cloud Times Editorial Board for getting it right. This section nails it perfectly about what these meetings are really about:
Sorry, we've seen enough of these types of political efforts to know their only real purpose is to provide political cover to legislators after they have made that tough decision. Please note, that's a decision expected to come months later, and perhaps even under the cover of that political darkness known as the party caucus system. Don't think so? You really think legislators are holding these sessions because they will yield a miracle cure for the state's money problems?It's time to apply truth-in-advertising laws to this tour. If they were, this tour would be titled 'The DFL's In Search For Political Cover Tour'. After reading Rep. Pelowski's email, it's impossible to think that this is anything other than turning public opinion for when the DFL decides that they're going to start their tax-raising agenda.
The Democrats' tour is also their attempt to criticize every aspect of Gov. Pawlenty's budget. It's a last ditch effort to take the spotlight away from them not having a plan. Thanks to Rep. Paul Kohls, they aren't going to get away with it. Here's the text of Rep. Kohl's op-ed:
Dear Friends,To be fair and balanced, Here's a portion of Tarryl Clark's Your Turn editorial in today's St. Cloud Times:
I'm still waiting. I'm waiting for the DFL leadership in the legislature to offer a suggestion on how it intends to solve our state's budget deficit. And I'm waiting for an opportunity to present my budget resolution to the Ways and Means Committee.
Instead of coming up with an alternative to Governor Pawlenty's budget proposal , which they have made abundantly clear they don't agree with, the legislative "leadership" has planned a tour of Minnesota to gather input from citizens . I absolutely commend the effort to gather input from everyday citizens, but I'm incredibly disappointed that they are unwilling to put their own ideas on the table prior to touring the state.
In fact, the most generous thing that can be said about the legislative leadership is that they are spending lots of time trying to figure out how much money Minnesota is going to receive from the massive federal spending bill passed last week. I appeared on Fox 9 News on Sunday morning with Assistant Senate Majority Leader Taryl Clark (DFL; St. Cloud) to discuss the stimulus bill. My message was simple, whatever money we receive will be one-time money and we cannot try to use it to fix our ongoing structural budget problems. If we rely on it too heavily, we will find ourselves in another major deficit in 2011.
I'm hoping that Minnesotans will send a clear message to legislators over the next couple of weeks at the hearings that will be held across the state. I think most Minnesotans want us to get to work solving the budget deficit by cutting spending, not raising taxes. If you are able to attend one of the meetings, please do so and make sure our common sense message is heard. A list of the hearings can be found here:
http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/budgettownhallmeetings.asp
Thanks again for your support.
Warmest regards,
Rep. Paul Kohls
Lawmakers will get their first look at his new budget sometime after March 3. We will need to examine it closely, listen to our citizens and then accept, reject or modify what it proposes do. So that's how it goes. The governor proposes; the Legislature examines; the public speaks; the Legislature listens and then it acts.I'll believe that they listened to everyone when I see the DFL propose things that aren't already on their agenda. I'll be honest. I'd be skeptical after the games the DFL played in 2007. That skepticism grew when I read Rep. Pelowski's email encouraging DFL activists to flood the meetings :
We would ask you to focus your comments on the impact of the Governor's budget including what is the harm to your area of government or program. Please be as precise as possible using facts such as number of lay offs, increases in property taxes, cuts in services, increases in tuition, elimination of programs.The more I think about it, the more I question whether the numbers presented will be accurate. I'm not suggesting that activists are dishonest. I'm suggesting that their statistics might be the worst case scenario numbers.
It's also worth noting what isn't in any of the DFL's proposals: reforms. When Gov. Pawlenty started talking about the opportunities this deficit created, the DFL immediately picked up on that verbiage.
Unfortunately, they haven't picked up the action part of it yet.
Posted Thursday, February 19, 2009 9:35 AM
No comments.
Obama Administration Losing Credibility
I'm not the only one who's noticed that the Obama administration isn't running a tight ship these days. Karl Rove's WSJ column highlights that fact, too:
Team Obama was winging it when it declared the stimulus would "save or create" 2.5 million, then three million, then 3.7 million, and then four million new jobs. These were arbitrary and erratic numbers, and they knew there's no way to count "saved" jobs. Americans, being commonsensical, will focus on Mr. Obama's promise to "create" jobs. It's highly unlikely that more than 180,000 jobs will be created each month by the end of next year. The precise, state-by-state job numbers the administration used to sell the stimulus are likely to come back to haunt them as well.Here's proof that the Obama administration isn't being taken seriously:
TRADERS REVOLT: CNBC HOST CALLS FOR NEW 'TEA PARTY'; CHICAGO FLOOR MOCKS OBAMA PLANThis is a top-of-the-page headline on Drudge. This isn't unexpected. Last night, while talking with my brother, I said that my IRA would be better off if President Obama and Tim Geithner stopped giving high profile speeches. When President Obama signed the spending bill, the stock market dropped 297 points. When Geithner introduced his TARP II plan, stocks dropped 382 points.
Mr. Rove is right. When people walk into a polling station, they aren't going to remember the number of jobs that Obama's policies saved. They'll want to know if jobs were created. They'll want to know if the Obama administration has led them to prosperity or has put them on a path to prosperity.
UPDATE: Drudge just linked to the video of the Tea Party comments. Unfortunately, they don't have an embed code. Instead, follow this link to view the CNBC video. It's stunning in that the traders are totally opposed to much of President Obama's plan, especially the mortgage bailout.
If the Obama administration doesn't change directions, voters will reject their policies and stop listening. That's the worst place for an administration to be.
A few things are certainties: I'm not the first person who hinted that the Obama administration's credibility was flagging. Karl Rove and CNBC won't be the last ones to ridicule the administration's policies.
Last but certainly not least, the Obama administration is putting itself in the precarious position of trying to sell radical, anti-capitalist policies to a capitalist nation. That isn't a place where they want to be, especially this early in the session.
UPDATE: RCP has posted the embed code for the CNBC video. The more I listen to it, the more I think it's the type of thing that will rock President Obama's world.
Posted Thursday, February 19, 2009 2:11 PM
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Setting Things Straight
Last week, Michele Bachmann appeared on Chris Baker's show on KTLK. Now liberal groups are criticizing her for some statements that she made. What's new? Here's one of those attacks :
ACORN is "under federal indictment for voter fraud," but the stimulus bill nevertheless gives ACORN "$5 billion." (In reality, ACORN is not under federal indictment and isn't mentioned in the stimulus bill at all.While it's true that ACORN isn't under federal indictment, it's settled fact that many ACORN activists have pled guilty to filling out fraudulent voter registration forms. While it's true to say that ACORN isn't mentioned in the less-than-stimulating stimulus bill , it's also factually accurate to say that the 110th Congress passed the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 last year which included standards that barred groups such as ACORN from receiving assistance under the Neighborhood Stabilization Program but that they excluded that provision in this year's bill.
It's also worth noting that the printed out version of the bill contained $4.19 billion in Neighborhood Stabilization Program funding. The final bill, which wasn't printed out until the middle of the night just hours prior to Friday's vote, contained 'only' $2 billion in Neighborhood Stabilization Program funding.
Here's another thing that Rep. Bachmann is being criticized for saying:
the "Community-Organizer-in-Chief" is also orchestrating a conspiracy involving the Census Bureau, which the president will use to redraw congressional lines to keep Democrats in power for up to "40 years." When the host said he was confused, noting that congressional district lines are drawn at the state level, Bachmann said Obama's non-existent plan is an "anti-constitutional move."I'm not an attorney so I won't comment on whether President Obama's plan is unconstitutional but I will point out what Rep. Darrell Issa, (R-CA) and Rep. Patrick McHenry, (R-NC) put in their letter :
"Requiring the census director to report directly to the White House and placing responsibility for administration of the Bureau outside the Department of Commerce may even violate federal law," the letter stated. "According to Title 13 of the U.S. Code, the Bureau is to be administered 'within, and under the jurisdiction of, the Department of Commerce.' According to U.S. Code, the Executive Branch is limited to providing support for the Bureau in the form of information and resources."It's pretty solid that U.S. law prevents President Obama's blatant power grab. It's also important to note what Rahm Emanuel said in 2006 :
"If you think redistricting is always partisan and political, which it is...it's going to be on steroids this time."It's no secret that redistricting fights are partisan fights. What's troubling, though, is that putting the former chairman of the DCCC in charge of census data means that there isn't a check or balance to guarantee census integrity. Giving a partisan political operative like Rahm Emanuel a blank check with regards to putting the census data together is risky at best.
While it's true that state legislatures draw the specific lines, it's equally true that they're limited by the raw census data.
Rep. Bachmann is right in highlighting a partisan process that's conducted without congressional oversight. The thought of having Rahm Emanuel, a product of the Illinois scandal machine, put the census data together without oversight is alarming.
I appreciate Rep. Bachmann for highlighting the potential for corruption in this process. Sunlight is the proper disinfectant for the process.
Posted Thursday, February 19, 2009 1:39 PM
Comment 1 by StraightIsStraight at 19-Feb-09 10:04 PM
Setting the record straight? ACORN is not under federal indictment. Volunteers for ACORN plead guilty of a crime which in no way helps ACORN. In fact, those that defrauded registrations hurt ACORN. How that's even close to what Rep. Bachmann said is putting quite a spin on her words. Second, if the Census is in the hands of the Commerce Department - and this may be news to you - it's therefore in the hands of the Executive Branch. Do you know who heads the Executive Branch? That's not a power grab, that's obeying the law. And you failed to support her claim that ACORN received any money in the stimulus bill. Because it's not. Why don't you ACTUALLY set the record straight rather than defend someone who is clearly out of touch with America, and should probably be investigated for being anti-American. She voted against jobs in this country - can you get more anti-American?
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 19-Feb-09 10:30 PM
Do you know who heads the Executive Branch? That's not a power grab.
The President's Chief of Staff is part of his personal staff & isn't subject to congressional oversight. Cabinet officers are subject to congressional oversight because they go through the confirmation process.
Volunteers for ACORN plead guilty of a crime which in no way helps ACORN. In fact, those that defrauded registrations hurt ACORN.Yet ACORN keeps the pay arrangements the same. ACORN workers still get paid for each registration they bring in. If ACORN was interested in running a clean operation, they'd change the way their employees get paid, right?
While it's true that convictions & guilty pleas hurt ACORN pr-wise, voter fraud helps get more liberals elected, which is their goal.
And you failed to support her claim that ACORN received any money in the stimulus bill.They haven't received any money YET!!! BUT THEY WILL. Why else would Pelosi's corruptionmeisters lift the ban on ACORN being eligible for NSP funding?
Comment 3 by Nick Kelsier at 22-Feb-09 06:35 AM
And do you honestly think that if Mrs Bachmann had been in office when Tom Delay used his office and subsequent authority to redraw congressional districts in Texas in favor of Republicans that she would have uttered a peep? Can you name one specific example of her actually shining sunlight on anything at all? Because allegations of malfeasance when she offers no evidence of it hardly is not "shining sunlight" on anything. She is the modern day Joe McCarthy.
Chamber President Chimes In On Budget Battle
Teresa Bohnen, the president of St. Cloud's Chamber of Commerce, has weighed in on tonight's budget balancing battle with a timely message. Here's what Ms. Bohnen said in her LTE:
Legislative leaders are taking their show on the road to solicit comments on Gov. Tim Pawlenty's recommendations to resolve the state budget crisis.I want to commend Teresa Bohnen for applying some pressure to the legislature. They've had ample time to put their priorities and their initiatives together in legislative form.
Where is their plan? It's pure political gamesmanship to judge the governor's recommendations without exploring what other options are available.
If legislative leadership truly wants a conversation on the budget, then citizens should have the opportunity to weigh in on the merits and/or lack of merits of all the plans on the table. As of today, there unfortunately is only one.
We encourage citizens to attend the local meeting and ask, "Where is your plan so we can compare?" And if the plan is not ready yet, "when will you return to our community to present your recommendations?"
Last spring, Gov. Pawlenty vetoed some things in the bonding bill so that the legislature was forced into addressing what was then a $935 million deficit. The thought that legislators haven't heard a gazillion earfuls of constituent input on the budget is disengenuous.
I'd further suggest that legislators putting something together tells their constituents what the legislators' priorities and solutions are. Then there's the issue of the legislature living up to its responsibilities. Thus far, we've seen little proof that they've engaged in the process.
They'd better start because time's a wastin'.
Posted Thursday, February 19, 2009 3:27 PM
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