October 28, 2006 Posts
05:35 Court Gets It Right 06:05 How Can This Be? 12:52 Bachmann-Wetterling Debate Notes 18:55 Pelosi's Puppet & Schumer's Shill 21:30 Pawlenty Earned Outdoorsmen's Votes
Court Gets It Right
The Foley ballot fiasco is finally over. For once, the court got it right. I quoted Jeb Bush this post as saying:
Gov. Jeb Bush said the secretary of state has the authority to provide "information to guide someone on how to vote to give them the simple fact there is going to be an election where by law Mark Foley is on the ballot but he's not running; Joe Negron is."Yesterday, the appellate court got it right and the Florida Democratic Party cried uncle on the matter:
Elections supervisors in Mark Foley's former district received permission from a Tallahassee appeals court Friday to post notices stating a vote for the disgraced Republican congressman will go to replacement candidate Joe Negron. The Florida Democratic Party said it would not appeal the decision, ending a two-week court battle. "Confused voters should not be required to guess as to how their vote will be counted, or be forced to question poll workers and rely on the potentially inconsistent, incomplete, or partial information," the appeals court stated.The court is right in rejecting the sign that mentions only Negron/Foley but it's right in approving a sign that mentions all three candidates. This isn't rocket science; it's just the right decision. It also means that I was right in saying this:
Writing for a three-judge panel, District Judge James Wolf said Florida law allows poll workers to display informational notices, so long as they are impartial and do not favor a specific candidate. The unanimous ruling reversed an Oct. 28 decision barring the signs.
"The voters of 16th District won with today's ruling," Negron said. "Voters deserve to know how their vote will be counted."
The court-approved notice states: "A vote for Mark Foley [Rep.] will be counted for Joe Negron [Rep.], the Republican candidate." The sheets also say a vote for Democratic candidate Tim Mahoney counts for Mahoney and a vote for unaffiliated candidate Emmie Ross counts for Ross.
"The notice merely informs the voters of who would be actually receiving their vote when they cast their ballot for any candidate in this Congressional race," the appeals court stated. The judges rejected a separate notice published by Secretary of State Sue Cobb because it named only Negron.
I suspect that Gov. Bush and Secretary of State Sue Cobb will prevail on appeal.
Posted Saturday, October 28, 2006 5:35 AM
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How Can This Be?
I thought that there was a massive wave building to sweep Republicans out of office this November. If that's true, how can it be that a Democratic incumbent is in trouble? If there's this massive wave sweeping Republicans out, certainly that means that Democrats couldn't be in danger, right? Then explain this:
Stabenow has raised more than $12 million since becoming a senator in 2001; Bouchard reported raising about $4.6 million as of Sept. 30. With Michigan's sluggish economy the main issue in the race, Bush and Bouchard stopped by the Morley Candy Makers factory on their way to the main event because, Bush said, "One, I like small businesses. Two, I like sweets." Stabenow's campaign suggested Bush's visit would do nothing to help Bouchard, comparing it to "throwing an anvil to a drowning man."Ms. Stabenow's little jab is typical stuff whenever the President shows up at your opponent's fundraiser. It's also a feeble attempt to downplay the President's ability to rally voters. Ms. Stabenow knows that the money he raised for Mike Bouchard will hurt her election chances. Click here or here to donate to Mike's campaign and rid the U.S. Senate of a senator who is dangerously incompetent.
Debbie Stabenow has had little effect in the Senate. She hasn't gotten things done to improve Michigan's citizen's lives. Michigan's citizens are suffering from a bad case of liberal leadership-itis, a disease whose symptoms include economy-wrecking tax increases and a leadership vacuum. The only known cure is electing an unabashed tax-cutting conservative who will lead, not dither in indecision. Fortunately, Michigan voters have that opportunity this election. I'm betting they won't miss this opportunity.
As for that wave sweeping Republicans out of office, I suspect that it's more like a little wave lapping up on Lake Michigan's shore than the Washington-built tsunami that's been predicted far and wide.
Posted Saturday, October 28, 2006 6:05 AM
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Bachmann-Wetterling Debate Notes
Several things came through loud & clear at this debate. Thankfully, none of those things will benefit Patty Wetterling.
Here's how Eric Black characterized Ms. Wetterling's response:
Wetterling, who criticized the recent bill to build a fence on the Mexican border, advocated prosecuting employers whom she blamed for hiring illegal immigrants. "Stop them, charge them, jail them," she said.That sounds pretty hostile to the business community, doesn't it? That's before Ms. Wetterling increases taxes on small businesses.
QUESTION TO THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY: ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION TO MS. WETTERLING? DO YOU LIKE WHAT YOU HEAR? I didn't think you'd like what she's saying.
On the other hand, Sen. Bachmann said that sovereign nations have a responsibility to secure the border, that the fence was an important tool in securing the border and that she was against a guest worker program.
Speaking of taxes, Ms. Wetterling stuck with the Democratic talking points of being for "middle class tax cuts" but said that she'd "only raise your taxes if you're Paris Hilton." Sen. Bachmann said that she's always been about cutting taxes, then took the opportunity to chastize Ms. Wetterling's ads as being wrong. Wetterling said that she "stands by my ads."
TRANSLATION: That's my lie & I'm sticking with it.
On the issue of North Korea, Wetterling chastised the Bush administration for not having direct talks with Kim Jong Il, saying that that was the only way to prevent them from going nuclear. That's assinine on its face. Presidential failure Jimmy Carter negotiated the 'Agreed Framework" with Kim Il Sung; the two governments agreed to it, then Il Sung broke the treaty before the ink was dry. Wetterling said that diplomacy was the only solution to preventing Iran from going nuclear, too.
With all due respect to Ms. Wetterling, that line of thinking will put WMD's in the terrorists' hands. It's typical Kerry-esque thinking that things will be all better if we just talk with these despotic nations that seek our destruction, that these thugs will change their ways if they know our peaceful intentions.
Sen. Bachmann said that assuming the NoKo's are trustworthy is foolish. I couldn't agree more. And that goes twice for Iran. Sen. Bachmann also said that the NoKo's developing nukes is why we need a missile defense shield.
It's obvious that Ms. Wetterling would join the Democratic Party foreign policy team that's best characterized as the 'Head in the sand' or 'Ostrich' brigade. That line of thinking is the dominant foreign policy theory in the Democratic Party and Ms. Wetterling seems to have bought into it hook, line and sinker.
In fact, that's another thing that came through loud and clear. I've yet to hear Patty Wetterling give an answer that isn't almost a verbatim answer of the Democratic talking points, leading me to think that she hasn't thought a single one of these issues through , that she's simply memorized the talking points.
MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION OF THIS CAMPAIGN: Will we elect someone who will be the Democrats' shill on every single issue by electing Ms. Wetterling or will we elect someone who can think on their feet and will disagree on principle with the GOP when she disagrees with their positions?
The thought of electing Nancy Pelosi's puppet should scare every thinking person in MN-6.
Check out this post at BachmannvWetterling, too. Here's the biggest news from the post:
Thompson asked some questions of the candidates, and after awhile Thompson asked Wetterling about her false ads attacking Bachmann. I'll get to that in more detail in a bit, but Thompson asked some direct questions, and asked Wetterling to explain and defend the ads. After that exchange, during a commercial break, Wetterling quit. She left. She put down her headphones and left. Thompson later said "I don't think she liked my line of questioning on the ads."My question for MN-6 voters is this: If Patty Wetterling will just stomp her feet and quit fighting when a radio talk show host asks her tough questions, why should we think that she'd fight for Minnesotans when Ms. Pelosi starts pulling the puppet strings?
Frankly, I find it difficult to think of a single reason why I should have confidence in Ms. Wetterling's willingness to fight for MN-6 residents.
Posted Saturday, October 28, 2006 12:52 PM
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Pelosi's Puppet & Schumer's Shill
Those are my new 'official' nicknames for Patty Wetterling and Amy Klobuchar. The last I checked, neither had said anything that wasn't straight from the Democratic policy handbook. You didn't know that they had a policy handbook? I'd say shame on you if it wasn't for the fact that it's more like a policy sheet. Here's the reported contents of that sheet:
- Bush should have held bilateral talks with Iran & North Korea, and multilateral talks with the rest of the world. Bush Bad.
- Bush didn't talk with North Korea. That's why they've got nukes now. Bush Bad.
- What terrorists in Iraq? There aren't any terrorists in Iraq. If you don't believe us, ask the Mainstream Media. Bush Bad.
- Bush hasn't enforced the borders. Just say no to border fences. Vote for open borders. Bush Bad.
- Repeal Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy. Bush Bad.
Last night, St. Patty tried getting creative on the taxes issue. She said "Let me reassure you. I DON'T WANT TO RAISE YOUR TAXES. I'll cut your taxes...unless you're Paris Hilton."
Later that night, Sen. Bachmann, Ms. Wetterling and John Binkowski appeared on the Steve Thompson radio program on KSTP-AM 1500. Here's what an unscripted moment for Ms. Wetterling produced:
Wetterling: She voted to raise property taxes in the Senate. She did that.
Sen. Bachmann jumped all over that like Justin Morneau jumps all over a hanging slider in the middle of the plate. Here's Sen. Bachmann's response:
Patty, I hate to burst your bubble, you can't vote to raise property taxes.
This falls into the category of separation of powers, not a Democratic strength. Municipal and county governments set property tax rates. That's beyond the state legislature's reach.
If you think that separation of powers issues are a Democratic strength, check out this Amy Klobuchar answer about Iraq:
As with any effective plan, there should be a realistic time-frame based on specific milestones and benchmarks, with honest and current information from the administration about the status of our efforts, the training of the Iraqi forces, and the restoration of basic services to Iraq. In fact, the leaders of Iraq's otherwise sharply divided Shiites, Kurds and Sunnis agreed that there should be a time frame for the drawdown of American troops. If the president is unwilling to provide a plan, Congress should call upon the Joint Chiefs of Staff to do so.
That's what happens when Ms. Klobuchar doesn't stick with her prepared script. She says that the Legislative branch should give orders to the Executive Branch in direct opposition to the Commander-in-Chief's orders.
It's obvious that, even though she's a lawyer, Ms. Klobuchar either has little understanding of the Constitution or little respect for the Constitution's separation of powers.
Speaking of Ms. Klobuchar, she's said that she wouldn't have voted to confirm Chief Justice Roberts or Associate Justice Alito to the Supreme Court; she'd increase taxes for the highest wage earners; she'd push for getting our troops out of Iraq "within a realistic time-frame based on specific milestones and benchmarks." There isn't a dime's worth of difference between Ms. Klobuchar's positions and DSCC Chairman Chuck Schumer's positions.
What Minnesotans have to decide this week is whether we want to elect thinking people like Michele Bachmann and Mark Kennedy to the U.S. House and Senate or if we want to elect Pelosi's Puppet and Schumer's Shill to those positions.
While that isn't a difficult decision once you know the facts, it is vitally important that we get it right and elect Sen. Bachmann and Rep. Kennedy.
Originally posted Saturday, October 28, 2006, revised 19-Dec 8:37 PM
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Pawlenty Earned Outdoorsmen's Votes
That's the Strib's Dennis Anderson's opinion. Here's Anderson's list of Pawlenty positives:
- He shows up. Whether it's the annual DNR planning meeting with the agency's constituents, a wildlife fundraising banquet or one of the two recent duck rallies on the Capitol Mall, Pawlenty is there. Other governors haven't been.
- His appointments of DNR leaders, commissioner Gene Merriam and deputy commissioner Mark Holsten, have been solid, and the agency has improved.
- His support of bills to dedicate a portion of the state sales tax to conservation has been consistent and strong.
- He supports moving toward a Missouri-style citizens-commission model for Minnesota resource management.
- He forced the Legislature's hand on revising the structure of the Legislative Citizens Commission on Minnesota Resources.
- He appointed Bob Schroeder as his deputy chief of staff and point person for conservation. A forester by training, Schroeder has been a liaison of reason and energy to hunters, anglers and other conservationists.
- He will soon appoint a commission to study how conservation is funded and delivered in Minnesota, the first step in braking the logjam that has stymied conservation efforts here historically.
The governor, like most Minnesota politicians, is overly enthusiastic about biodiesel and ethanol, and seems too little concerned by half about the consequences of farming Minnesota even more intensively than it is farmed now.Overall, I'd have to say that this type of endorsement can only help Gov. Pawlenty get re-elected. Minnesota sportsmen should be thankful for Gov. Pawlenty's attention to conservation.
Also, the picture of a weak MPCA has come into focus even more clearly under Pawlenty. The agency simply is too poorly staffed and funded to carry out its mandate. More to the point, that mandate needs to be more clearly focused in favor of clean water, and vigorously supported by the governor.
Posted Saturday, October 28, 2006 9:30 PM
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