July 7-9, 2010
Jul 07 03:22 The Smear Campaign Starts Jul 07 05:22 Which Party Is Compassionate? Jul 07 07:03 What Media Bias Looks Like Jul 07 15:52 Boxer Criticizing Fiorina on Job Creation? Jul 08 04:40 Tarryl Sets Challenger Fundraising Mark, Michele Doubles Up On Tarryl Jul 08 05:32 Who Cares About Tonight's LeBronathon? Jul 09 05:15 The Lobbyists' Alliance and Tom Emmer Jul 09 07:32 West Virginia Special Election
Prior Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009
The Smear Campaign Starts
There's now question that Far Left's villification campaign against J. Christian Adams is into full gear. What's embarrassing are the arguments they're making against J. Christian Adams. This hit piece is a great example:
A former Justice Department official told Main Justice that the attorney behind the controversial New Black Panther Party voter intimidation case was hired in the Civil Rights Division Voting Section under a process the DOJ Inspector General later determined was improperly influenced by politics.Here's my reaction to that argument: So what? How does this information change the facts of the case? Does this information change whether James Jackson or King Samir Shabazz intimidated potential voters and election judges? Does this information change what we've seen on that video?
Joseph Rich, the former chief of the Civil Rights Division's Voting Section and a 36-year employee of the Department of Justice, said that shortly before he left the DOJ in 2005 he received a call from Bradley Schlozman, then a Deputy Assistant Attorney General who later became acting Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division.
Of course it doesn't.
You'd think that if people are going to argue something, they'd make a compelling argument that changes people's minds. Instead, the radical Left isn't trying to persuade anyone. They're just smearing someone who's opposed their agenda.
The bad news is that this is just the start of the smear merchants' campaign. The smear merchants are being deployed into political campaigns literally as we speak.
The good news is that the smear merchants' arguments are flimsy at best and easily refuted.
J. Christian Adams has the facts on his side in this instance. He's also got Bartle Bull, a man of opposite political beliefs but a man who's lived and breathed the civil rights movement because of his attachment to Bobby Kennedy, on his side.
Couple those things with the video and you've got a pretty formidable base to fight from.
Posted Wednesday, July 7, 2010 3:26 AM
No comments.
Which Party Is Compassionate?
This week, the DFL and their well-funded progressive allies have tried painting the picture that conservatives, Tom Emmer especially, lack compassion. They point to Tom Emmer's statements on tip credits, suggesting that Tom Emmer wants to cut wages for people earning a living in the hospitality industry.
Thanks to King's research , we finally have a study to work from:
Do higher tipped minimum wages boost server pay?In other words, there's little proof that Tom Emmer's call for tip credits is his calling for wage cuts. It isn't surprising that the DFL's special interest allies aren't interested in knowing the truth.
Published in Applied Economics Letters 12 (2005), pp. 391; 393; doi 10.1080/13504850500092459
Abstract: Do tipped servers in states with higher tipped minimum wages earn more, ceteris paribus, than servers elsewhere? Using 1999 data on waitpersons and bartenders, little evidence is found of a premium to servers in states with more generous minimum wages.
The DFL wants Minnesotans to focus solely on this issue, hoping that tehy can paint Tom, at least through their eyes, as yet another heartless conservative. I question them on that. I think their portrayal as an inaccurate mischaracterization.
What the DFL doesn't like getting out is that they've added crippling amounts of regulations on everything from health care mandates to the business permitting process and licensing fees.
That's before talking about the DFL's penchant for attempting to pick economic winners and losers. This year, as with the past 2 election cycles, DFL candidates are running on the promise of tilting the tax code towards companies towards green jobs.
Is it compassionate to tilt the economic playing field in one direction, leaving the other industries to fend for themselves under an overly burdensome taxation and regulatory burden? Is it compassionate to attempt to keep raising taxes on small businesses?
The DFL legislature's first goal is to figure out new ways to fund a Twentieth Century government. The state Senate has had a DFL majority since 1972. The running joke with legislators is that the Senate is where good reforms go to die, usually at the hands of Linda Berglin.
Is it compassionate to fight for crippling taxes that send companies scurrying to other states and their employees trodding to the unemployment line? It isn't in my estimation.
Having sat through more than a few of Tom Emmer's stump speeches, I know that Tom wants to change government's mission. It isn't a stretch to argue that one of government's jobs is to protect each agency's budget.
The good news for Minnesota's taxpayers is that Tom will have help if we elect King Banaian and other conservatives. At King's announcement, he got a commitment from Kurt Zellers that his bill to change Minnesota budgeting to zero-based budgeting. Follow this link to learn more about how zero-based budgeting works and how it has the potential to save Minnesota's taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.
I'd argue that fiscal conservatives like Tom Emmer and King Banaian are the truly compassionate politicians because (a) they protect the taxpayers' wallets, (b) they stabilize labor costs at prices that lead to job growth and (c) their policies help Minnesota's families stay employed in good paying jobs by companies that won't leave.
Finally, I'd argue that more people would prefer government agencies whose first priority is serving their constituents rather than worrying about whether their budget will get a nice increase.
Posted Wednesday, July 7, 2010 5:22 AM
Comment 1 by ewj at 07-Jul-10 11:46 AM
Isn't g also the same same person who stated that an increase in the minimal wage would cut employement by 4% in the same year? He was no right then, in fact employment rose.
Economics and cause and effect are very tricky things. Human behavior and crowd souring has a greater impact
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 07-Jul-10 03:05 PM
Perhaps if you spelled your words right, I could answer your question with confidence. I'll take a stab at what you meant & try & answer that way. If you're asking if King said that an increase in minimum wage would result in a drop in employment by 4 percentage points, I can confidently state that he most certainly didn't make that type of dire prediction.
My guess is that you're just another progressive smear merchant hoping to smear King's name. I'm betting that because the tone to your comment is that of a push-poll.
King measures his words rather carefully. He's also cautious in making predictions. Get lost & don't come back if you're just out to smear people without even a tiny bit of proof.
What Media Bias Looks Like
When I first wrote about the New Black Panther Party voter intimidation scandal 10 days ago, the article I quoted didn't mention Bartle Bull's name. I didn't know about his involvement in the incident until Part I of Megyn Kelly's interview with J. Christian Adams.
I find it most interesting that my Google news search of J. Christian Adams' name turns up 277 entries. What's even more interesting is that my Google news search of Bartle Bull's name yields a paltry 8 hits.
By comparison, a Google search on the terms BP Oil Spill yields 19,700 stories.
First, those story counts are miniscule for people at the epicenter of a major scandal, which this voter intimidation scandal is, even though the Agenda Media isn't treating it as such.
Second, I think it's rather odd that Bartle Bull's name isn't connected with J. Christian Adams' name much more frequently. Bull was an attorney deployed at the Philadelphia, PA voting site where the New Black Panthers were intimidating voters and election judges.
Let me revise that statement. I think it's entirely intentional that the Agenda Media isn't mentioning Bartle Bull's name in connection with this case. I think it's intentional because the Agenda Media knows that they can't cast this as a conservative crackpot with an axe to grind the minute they mention that a civil rights attorney who was a close friend of Bobby Kennedy's in the 1960's witnessed the acts of intimidation.
I just did searches of the New York Times, the Washington Post and the LA Times in connection with Bartle Bull. Each search came up empty. I wish I could say that I'm surprised but I'd be lying. It would be an accurate statement to say that I'm upset that these newspapers haven't covered this scandal.
When Republicans retake the House this November, one of the things they should do is conduct oversight hearings into why this case was dropped after the DoJ attorneys won a default judgement against James Jackson, King Samir Shabazz and the New Black Panther Party.
It's bad enough that the 3 major newspapers are essentially ignoring this case. It's worse that the Agenda Media isn't telling people that the new Black Panther Party's threats and intimidation were witnessed by credible witnesses, including a close friend of famed civil rights advocate Bobby Kennedy.
Frankly, I think it's appalling that they're getting away with this level of negligence. Worse, it's appalling that Congress isn't treating this issue with the seriousness it deserves.
As Mssrs. Adams and Bull have shown, this shouldn't be a partisan issue. This should be an issue that 80+ percent of the nation agrees on. Instead, you've got the Agenda Media, the Holder Justice Department and the Obama administration pitching a whitewash.
That's unacceptable and it won't be tolerated. Their individual days of reckoning are fast approaching. It won't be pretty when their days of reckoning arrive.
Posted Wednesday, July 7, 2010 7:23 AM
No comments.
Boxer Criticizing Fiorina on Job Creation?
In a just world, I wouldn't have believed it had Sen. Boxer criticized Carly Fiorina about creating jobs. Since we don't live in a just world, I shouldn't be surprised with this NPR article . Here's what's rich to me:
"She laid off American workers without a second thought," Boxer said at the site of a highway transportation project near the Golden Gate Bridge that is partly funded by federal stimulus dollars. "And if she had been in the Senate instead of me, the economic recovery act would not have passed. And these people would not have their jobs," she said of the construction workers surrounding her.If Sen. Boxer wants to argue that California is better off because she voted for the failed stimulus bill, that's her right. The First Amendment certainly lets Sen. Boxer say extremely foolish things. It appears that she's just exercised that right. Why anyone would willingly tie themselves to the failed Obama/Pelosi stimulus bill is beyond me.
That's before we start talking about the damage that the Endangered Species Act, legislation that's under the jurisdiction of the Environment and Public Works Committee, which she chairs, has had on killing jobs in California's San Joaquin Valley. Sen. Boxer could dramatically improve the employment conditions in the San Joaquin Valley if she wasn't such a committed environmentalist. Her not lifting a finger has helped drive up unemployment rates in the San Joaquin, a rate that's been high for well over a year.
The policies that Sen. Boxer enthusiastically supports are crippling California's economy. It's my opinion that she'll be in deep trouble the minute Carly Fiorina starts her advertising blitz highlighting the policies that Sen. Boxer has advocated and the effect that those policies have had on California's jobs situation.
When Carly's ad blitz happens, Sen. Boxer's pathetic career will be exposed for supporting an endless string of radical, anti-capitalist, job-killing causes. In short, I wouldn't want to be in Sen. Boxers' shoes.
Posted Wednesday, July 7, 2010 11:34 PM
No comments.
Tarryl Sets Challenger Fundraising Mark, Michele Doubles Up On Tarryl
Wednesday afternoon, Tarryl Clark reported that she'd raised $910,000 in Q2 . A few hours later, Michele Bachmann announced that she'd raised $1,700,000 during that same time period.
According to this article , it didn't take Tarryl Clark long to respond to Michele's fundraising total:
This was also the quarter where my opponent, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann brought in her good friend Sarah Palin to hold a big-ticket fundraiser to fill her campaign coffers. In fact, she is building her campaign on these kinds of big-ticket events across the country, like the $500 per plate dinner she recently held in Texas.Actually, the "big-ticket fundraiser" that Sarah Palin hosted put more money in the state Republican Party's coffers than it put into Michele's coffers.
Tarryl's just jealous that Michele keeps topping her fundraising totals. Tarryl had a great fundraising first quarter in 2010, raising $505,000. She was rightfully proud of that fundraising total. A week later, Michele announced that she'd topped Tarryl by $305,000. Here's what I said in summarizing Michele's fundraising totals:
Besides the $810,000 raised, the numbers that should scare Tarryl are the 3,500 first time contributors, 7,100 contributions of $100 or less and 8,000 total contributors this quarter and the $1.53 million cash on hand.I'm sure that Tarryl figured to catch up this quarter after raising $910,000. If I was in her shoes, that certainly would be my expectation. Instead of catching up, this morning, Tarryl finds herself falling further behind. More importantly, while Tarryl raised her money by getting contributions from 24,000 contributors, Michele raised her money by getting contributions from 28,000 contributors :
"I could not be more appreciative of the 28,000 contributors who have so generously supported my campaign this quarter," Bachmann said. "We have a dedicated team committed to ensuring the election of strong, grassroots conservatives this November. With their support we'll be able to fight back against the Obama-Clark agenda and their special interest allies who have made me a top target for defeat."This time, the thing that Tarryl should worry about is that 25,000 of Michele's donors last quarter contributed $200 or less. Most likely, most of those contributions came from TEA Party types. (BTW, this should settle the issue on whether the TEA Party activists will play a big role in this election.) For all of Tarryl's insinuating that Michele's being supported by Wall Street fat cats and other special interests, the truth is that the vast majority of Michele's contributions come from modest donations.
With an average contribution size of $55, and more than 90% of the contributions in amounts of $200 or less, Bachmann for Congress has a broad base of supporters from all walks of life. For the cycle, Bachmann for Congress has raised $4.1 million, besting her total raised for the 2008 cycle in only the 2nd quarter of the election year. The campaign will file its final figures with the Federal Elections Commission in time for the July 15 deadline.
In late March, I wrote that Tarryl faced an uphill climb against Michele. Nothing's happened to change my opinion. In fact, what's happened since has just re-enforced my opinion.
To be fair to Tarryl, she's had a great fundraising operation, though I'd argue that she's benefited considerably from being Michele's opponent.
There's a reason why the Cook Report rates MN-6 as "likely Republican." At this point, Tarryl needs to be praying for a major gamechanging event. If that doesn't happen in the next 118 days, she'll lose by a fairly solid margin.
Posted Thursday, July 8, 2010 4:40 AM
Comment 1 by J. Ewing at 08-Jul-10 06:21 AM
I would be a little more pessimistic in my outlook for this race. I do not believe we have seen the depths to which Democrats and liberals (if there remains a distinction at all) will sink to gain a victory. In fact, I do not believe there is a limit to how low they will go. Look for a "Tea Party" candidate, or a spurious claim of child abuse against Michelle, or something lower.
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 08-Jul-10 06:33 AM
Jerry, It isn't that I think the DFL & the DCCC won't throw the kitchen sink at Michele. I know that they'll try & make this a competitive race.
It's just that it's important to remember that Michele's supporters know Michele & they trust her.
If this was Michele's first run & this was an open seat, then whisper campaigns & allegations of scandals would have a better chance of changing votes.
These days? Not so much.
Comment 3 by walter hanson at 08-Jul-10 08:09 AM
J. Ewing just what can they throw at her know. They have thrown she doesn't care about employing people. They have thrown she has national ambitions instead of carrying local. I can go on, but I can't imagine after two campaigns where they have thrown negative commercials they can't come up with anything new.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Comment 4 by R-Five at 08-Jul-10 10:20 AM
As I posted, all the money is on Bachmann, either for or against. A "Clark Tarryl" would raise a lot of money, too.
Who Cares About Tonight's LeBronathon?
ESPN has been hyping their big 'special program' tonight at which point LeBron James will announce which team he's signing his next contract with. Other lapdog puppies, aka the sycophantic sports media, keep hyping the event, too.
Personally, I won't be watching this non-event for a myriad of reasons.
First, LeBron isn't famous for his great accomplishments. He's famous for being famous. He's been put on a pedestal all his life, starting way back in grade school. Yes, that's right. GRADE SCHOOL. When LeBron announced that he'd go directly to the NBA from high school, the lottery became known as the LeBron Sweepstakes.
Second, I won't be watching because he hasn't earned it. If there's anything I can't stand, it's watching a pampered manchild with a slick PR agent get tons of undeserved adulation.
Third, a long time ago, ESPN said that we should knock them down a few pegs if they ever got away from being "a bunch of sports fans talking about sports." That's what Chris Berman implored of us during the 20,000th episode of SportsCenter. I loved SportsCenter back then, even with Keith Olberman as one of the hosts. Dan Patrick, Bob Ley and especially Chris Berman came across as regular guys talking sports.
Tonight's LeBronathon is a far cry from SportsCenter's glory days. I can't blame ESPN for wanting to do something to capture high ratings. After all, they're in the business of making money. It's just my choice to ignore them.
Posted Thursday, July 8, 2010 5:32 AM
Comment 1 by walter hanson at 08-Jul-10 08:03 AM
There's a fourth reason Gary. The Timberwolves are so bad nobody is talking about Labron even thinking of coming to Minnesota. Why watch when he's going to another team. I'll just suffer watching another losing season hoping not only they win the lottery (something they have never done), but that they can get a player worth the top pick of the lottery.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Comment 2 by Eric z. at 09-Jul-10 06:58 AM
USA today interviewed Art Modell about LaBron, and leaving Cleveland. Can you thing of a greater insult to Cleveland? Now, Beasley and Al Jefferson, and knowing the Wolves want to dump Al, what are the other GMs going to do? "We might take him, if you keep part of the contract liability," will be something Kahn hears time and again. Corey Brewer probably wants to move back to Florida.
The Lobbyists' Alliance and Tom Emmer
Thursday afternoon, the Alliance for a Better Minnesota, aka ABM, sent out this tweet :
Who are these lobbyists and why is @TomEmmer at their beck and call? - - http://www.mnprogressiveproject.com/diary/6581/who-are-these-lobbyists-and-why-is-emmer-at-their-beck-and-callI followed the link to a post on Minnesota Progressive Project's blog. Here's the central part of MPP's post:
All we get are bumper sticker statements about shrinking government and bunk about how the magical hand of the free market will solve everything.Predictably, MPP's response is totally defensive:
Well...I suppose I could let Emmer say it for himself. Here's the latest:
"Government may be the most important employer in Saint Paul, but it is the rest of the state that pays the bills. We will talk to manufacturers and employers of all stripes this week asking what they see as critical to get our economy moving again.
"We will ask them how government hinders their efforts, and how government can help. Not through phony 'stimulus,' but through enabling them where we can, and getting out of the way when we must." (emmerforgovernor.com)
Let's break this down a bit ...What products do state employees make that add to Minnesota's GDP? Nothing. This isn't an argument to eliminate all state employees. It's merely a statement that government absorbs wealth. It doesn't create wealth.
"Government may be the most important employer in Saint Paul, but it is the rest of the state that pays the bills." Emmer believes that state employees do not contribute to the economy? The state government is a major employer in this state (like any state).
As for the statement that state government being a major employer, as it is in any state, that's true in Minnesota. By contrast, though, 13 of North Dakota's 15 biggest employers are in the health care industry.
"We will talk to manufacturers and employers of all stripes this week asking what they see as critical to get our economy moving again." Didn't the Republicans drive our economy off the cliff? How is it that more of the same is going to improve anything?First off, I won't exempt Republicans from blame for damaging the economy. What I will do, however, is argue that there's plenty of blame to go around. Certainly, it didn't help that Barney Frank insisted that Freddie and Fannie were solvent and good for years. Certainly, it didn't help that Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Christopher Dodd led a filibuster of legislation that would've reformed Fannie and Freddie.
Second, while there's plenty of blame to go around on getting this recess started, there's only one direction that fingers can be pointed for the extension of the Great Recession. The Democrats rammed through their failed stimulus bill, rammed through their job-killing health care reform bill and raised taxes by $670,000,000,000.
"Not through phony 'stimulus,'..." Republicans hold the quixotic belief that, for example, fixing or building roads doesn't stimulate the economy. They believe that paying people to work will not give these people money to spend. It is Republicans at their reality-defying best. It is only by "enabling [business owners where we can, and getting out of the way when we must," i.e., tax breaks and less regulation that the magical hand of the free market can works it's magic.The stimulus failed. PERIOD. It didn't create the 4,000,000 jobs that President Obama once predicted. Of the $862,000,000,000 stimulus money spent, just $40,000,000,000 went towards shovel-ready construction jobs. Unemployment jumped by 3 percentage points since ARRA was enacted. Government got more bloated by alot by ARRA, too.
Let's be clear in identifying ABM's economic belief. They're clearly anti-capitalist. They prefer centralized control economies over free markets where people make their own decisions based on what's best for them and their families.
Finally, MPP tries smearing Tom Emmer by accusing him of cozying up with lobbyists :
Turns out Emmer's lobbyist helpers are Patrick Connolly of Patrick Connolly and Associates and Carl Kuhl of Kuhl Partners. Both Connolly and Kuhl have done work for the Chamber of Commerce and Connolly has also worked for the Minnesota Restaurant Association, which clears up where this whole lower the minimum wage for waiters idea came from in the first place.It isn't possible to be more hypocritical than ABM is being here. ABM wouldn't exist if not for lobbyists and union groups. For instance, here's ABM's board of directors and staff :
ABM Board of DirectorsAccording to the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board website, here's a list of lobbyists on ABM's board and staff:
Chair
Jon Grebner, AFSCME
Treasurer
Jessie Danielson, America Votes
Secretary
Ryan Greenwood
TakeAction Minnesota
Members-at-Large
Luchelle Stevens, SEIU
Ken Martin, Win Minnesota
Connie Lewis, Planned Parenthood
Ben Goldfarb, Wellstone Action
ABM Staff
Executive Director
Denise Cardinal
Deputy Director
Joe Davis
Internet Director
Xavier Lopez
Denise Cardinal, Jessie Danielson, Joe Davis, Jon Grebner, Ryan Greenwood, Connie Lewis and Xavier LopezIn other words, ABM's president, treasurer, secretary, executive director, deputy director and internet director are registered lobbyists. Lobbyists criticizing a man who believes in capitalism and free markets is a fight that the lobbyists won't win, especially considering the fact that the lobbyists are anti-capitalist and anti-free markets.
This is dangerous territory for ABM to be treading on. Here's what Mark Buesgens said in April:
The head of a committee table in the Minnesota Legislature is no place for a registered lobbyist, according to State Representative Mark Buesgens, R-Jordan. Buesgens, who formerly chaired the House Education Policy and Reform Committee, criticized Democrat legislators for allowing Education Minnesota President and registered lobbyist Tom Dooher to sit at the table with legislators during Tuesday's hearing on Minnesota's "Race to the Top" application.Let's examine MPP's response to Tom Emmer's brand of capitalism. This statement really jumps out at me:
"Special interests have absolutely no place at the committee table, no matter who they represent," Buesgens said. "This one in particular has consistently stood in the way of education reform and spent millions upon millions of dollars over the years to elect reform-averse legislators. Putting him at the head of the table for all to see sent a clear message, like having Vito Corleone watching over his foot soldiers."
According to Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board records, Dooher is registered lobbyist number 2005, having first registered on June 18, 2007. Board documents also show that the EdMinn PAC gave $155,700 to the Minnesota DFL House Caucus in 2008, the most recent election year.
"Special interests do not run the Legislature, or at least that's what we are told. But apparently if you are willing to fork over enough cash, Democrats can find room for you at the head of the table. It's a disgrace," Buesgens said.
EdMinn PAC and Education Minnesota are technically separate entities, but the PAC's 2008 year-end report shows $691,320 in income from Education Minnesota coming in monthly installments of $57,610. The report also shows the union giving the PAC "miscellaneous income" totaling $93,946 that was "used to record staff time."
"They are one and the same in every way that matters, and today they got to lord over the Legislature," Buesgens said.
Government may be the most important employer in Saint Paul, but it is the rest of the state that pays the bills. Emmer believes that state employees do not contribute to the economy? The state government is a major employer in this state (like any state).That reply is predictable considering all the government employee unions that fund or support ABM.
For instance, America Votes is one of the organizations that supports ABM. Here's a list of America Votes' partners :
PartnersABM would have you believe that Tom Emmer is led around by the nose by one special interest group or lobbyist after another, that they set Tom Emmer's agenda. That's spin a Clinton would be proud of. The reality is that ABM wouldn't exist if not for special interest groups, lobbyists and anti-capitalists.
AFL-CIO
AFSCME
American Association for Justice
BISC
Campaign for Community Change
Clean Water Action
Democracia Ahora
Education Voters of America
EMILY's List
Human Rights Campaign
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
League of Conservation Voters
NAACP Voter Fund
National Education Association
Planned Parenthood Action Fund
Progressive Future
ProgressNow Action
SEIU
Sierra Club
United Food and Commerical Workers International Union
USAction
Women's Voices. Women Vote.
Women's Campaign Forum
Working America
ABM will fight for bigger government because, for the most part, that's who their employer is. ABM won't fight for the average Minnesotan. ABM won't fight for Mainstreet Minnesota. They'll fight for their union comrades because that's where their bread is buttered.
Posted Friday, July 9, 2010 5:15 AM
Comment 1 by Janet at 09-Jul-10 06:12 AM
I hope the Emmer campaign reads this, Gary. As usual, quite thorough.
J
Comment 2 by Eric z. at 09-Jul-10 07:06 AM
What about Horner? I have not read much about that candidacy. Is it viewed as a non-issue, a nothing, in GOP insider circles? To me it seems Horner offers business interests an option to extremism, but that's from the outside looking in and hence full of guesswork.
On so-called conservatives and the free market, are you aware that in Ramsey, Anoka County, GOP oriented city council members are playing against private development interests elsewhere in the market, having bought and now managing the Ramsey Town Center promotion that arose from Met Council thinker Natalie Steffen and others, including GOP oriented land speculators? Why it is not socialism, or called such by true conservatives is unclear to me.
Would Emmer support or criticize such things, or is he one to say some friends do this, some do that, and I approve of my friends?
Anyway, I am toying with dropping blogging and getting one of those hundred grand waiter jobs. Do you know where I should apply?
Response 2.1 by Gary Gross at 09-Jul-10 07:39 PM
Horner who? The guy might not even win the IP primary. Even if he wins, he's been exposed as just another corrupt politician. In a November election, he'll take more votes from the DFL candidate than from Tom Emmer because Horner will be competing with Dayton for the tax increase vote while Tom eats up the redesign-government,don't-raise-taxes vote.
Comment 3 by Colin at 09-Jul-10 10:58 AM
Government doesn't *absorb* wealth. Did you flunk economics? Almost all of the revenues go back out to the private sector economy through wages or infrastructure improvements, which are both products that benefit the economy. I could see someone rational arguing that government doesn't produce infrastructure or public safety efficiently enough, especially with so many lobbyists begging subsidies or poisoning bidding processes. That doesn't make your words any more sane.
Comment 4 by Gary Gross at 09-Jul-10 05:31 PM
Almost all of the revenues go back out to the private sector economy through wages or infrastructure improvements...Except for the money that goes into never-never land, never to be seen again.
This isn't a revolutionary concept.
Comment 5 by David Siegel at 09-Jul-10 10:18 PM
Hi,
Dave Siegel here. Executive Vice President of the Minnesota Restaurant Association. I just need to make one thing clear, we did not and have never proposed a rollback of server wages. Every tip credit proposal we have brought to the legislature in 20 years has been a go-forward position. In other words, we would never roll back server wages, but rather, lock them in at current rates (generally $7.25 per hour today) when the minimum wage inevitably goes up (as Margaret Anderson Kelliher proposed today).
Comment 6 by eric z. at 10-Jul-10 07:58 AM
Horner and Hahn do present a contrast. The IP is interesting that way. With the GOP set on Emmer and his having no challengers, crossover could occur in the primary.
Are there enough GOP contested down ticket situations to avoid crossover, and if not, what's more likely, choosing the IP ballot or the DFL ballot in order to affect the outcome?
On the ABM negative mailings and TV spots seem a part of the process. I recall several elections back getting in the Sixth District some awful stuff from the RNCC, against Patty Wetterling. Not supporting Bachmann. Trashing Wetterling.
It seems both major parties are doing this - or affiliates. The ABM is more remote from any official status than RNCC, yet saying both sides do it is true.
Gary, is there any reform possible? Free speech is not open and protected if these things are curbed - so what is the proper balance?
Obviously, there is less of that in primaries, among candidates wanting the same general election spot. And in local contests there can be whispering campaigns.
The post is interesting in its focus, but I believe the caveat that both sides do it needs mention. There is this lawsuit effort Strib reported about corporate interests wanting to directly contribute corporate funds to candidates - beyond support or negative ads paid and published outside of the campaigns.
Is that a good or bad thing, dropping such a limit?
Response 6.1 by Gary Gross at 10-Jul-10 02:01 PM
On the ABM negative mailings and TV spots seem a part of the process. I recall several elections back getting in the Sixth District some awful stuff from the RNCC, against Patty Wetterling. Not supporting Bachmann. Trashing Wetterling. Actually, there's a significant difference between the stuff. The NRCC ads, as I recall, hit Wetterling hard but they were honest ads. The ABM stuff is almost all fictional. Conservative bloggers discredited the ABM TV within 6 hrs.
ABM isn't about hitting Emmer hard. ABM is about making things up that don't have a basis in reality. One of their posts says that "In Tom Emmer's Minnesota, education budgets will be slashed & Minnesota's roads won't get plowed" in the winter. That's pure fiction that they're presenting as fact.
In the commercial, ABM makes the claim that education funding was cut during the Pawlenty-Emmer years. WRONG!!! Spending increased from $4,600 per student to $5,124 per student. That's verifiable statistical fact.
I've studied ABM closely. I haven't written about even a third of the things I've learned about them. I haven't scratched the surface on them. Saying that they're more remote to the DFL than the NRCC is isn't based in what I've learned. They're attached at the wallet. The groups that support ABM are the groups that contribute heavily to the DFL. Officially, it's true that there's a degree of seperation. In reality, there isn't a degree of seperation.
The best thing to limit the influence of groups like ABM is to expose them when they're crooked actors. That's what I'm doing. If it's just an organization like the NFIB or the NRA or the ABA, let them participate. That's the proper balance.
This argument that corporations don't have First Amendment rights is laughable. NOWHERE in the Bill of Rights does it mention that these protections are only for individuals. NOWHERE. Based on that fact alone, that means that corporations aren't afforded the constitutional protections against unreasonable searches & siezures codified into the Fourth Amendment.
West Virginia Special Election
According to this article , there will be a special election this November for the open Senate seat caused by the death of Robert C. Byrd:
West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin has decided that he will hold a special election this year to fill the Senate seat left empty after the death of Robert C. Byrd.This immediately becomes an unexpected potential GOP pickup this November. It's almost certain that this November's matchup will be Gov. Manchin vs. Rep. Shelly Moore-Cupito. Cupito thought about running against Byrd 4 years ago but opted not to. At the time, people thought that she would've given Byrd a stiff challenge.
The decision follows an announcement by Mr. Manchin said he would "speak with the state's legislative leadership immediately to determine how we will further proceed in order to reach a conclusion to this matter," The New York Times reported.
The governor said he would prefer special election, as opposed to filling the remaining two year of Mr. Byrd's term. Mr. Manchin will appoint a temporary placeholder until November when the seat will be filled by vote.
On Wednesday, Mr. Manchin said he would "highly consider" running for the seat himself in the event of an election. He didn't comment on the attorney general's decision Thursday.
Mr. Byrd died last week at the age of 92. The longest-serving senator had about 30 months remaining on a term that expires in 2012.
I'll be watching to see what the initial poll results will be once the field is set. I suspect that the initial polling will have Cupito trailing Manchin. I further suspect that Manchin's lead will be largely attributable to greater name recognition.
This isn't what the DNC or the DSCC wanted because it's just one more competitive seat that they'll have to defend. They're already defending too many competitive seats as it is. Adding another competitive seat will just stress their funding that much more.
The DNC and the other liberal alphabets can't absorb much more without causing their organizations alot of damage. Saying that they're fighting an uphill fight this cycle is understatement.
As bad as that news is, what's worse for them is that they've got lots of well-funded candidates that are trailing badly. HINT TO DNC: All the money in the world is worthless if you've got a crappy message.
Posted Friday, July 9, 2010 7:35 AM
Comment 1 by Skip at 09-Jul-10 05:30 PM
Since I'm too lazy to look it up, doesn't W. Virginia have an election law that provides for the filling of empty offices? How is it the Gov can just make it up as he goes along?
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 09-Jul-10 07:36 PM
Manchin is calling a 1-day special session to change the law & establish the new special election.
Comment 2 by walter hanson at 10-Jul-10 07:17 AM
Gary the thing that might excite me about this is will Capito run against cap and trade let alone global warming. Even Sarah Pallin who everyone loves during the campaign in 2008 because she loves the environment is reluctant to attack it. This could send us back to the 17th century. There is now that open seat since a long term Congressman was defeated in the primary where if the Republican candidate took a tough stand pointing out voting for the Democrats helps keep the cap and trade people in power.
The other question if they write a blll authorizing a special election will Capito have to give up her seat and who might be ready to keep that seat Republican.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
