December 7-9, 2017
Dec 07 00:23 Dems suddenly the virtuous party? Dec 07 02:22 The DFL's whiney hissy fit Dec 07 03:05 If Franken resigns... Dec 07 11:56 Franken resigns Dec 07 17:42 The Democrats' low standards Dec 08 02:50 Lapdog media praises Franken Dec 09 01:49 Ken Martin, DFL spinmeister Dec 09 11:12 The DFL's budget deficit myth Dec 09 13:53 CNN isn't fake news
Prior Months: Jan Feb ~ May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Dems suddenly the virtuous party?
By Wednesday night, the Democrats calling for Al Franken's resignation looked more like a lynch mob than political party. Over 30 Democrats were calling for his resignation . The first wave was coordinated:
Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, Kamala Harris of California, Patty Murray of Washington and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin kicked off the stampede on Wednesday, all putting out statements within minutes of one another saying it was time for Franken to go.
When asked, these ladies admitted that they'd coordinated their statements for maximum impact.
By late afternoon, over 20 Democrat senators were calling for his resignation. By nighttime, over 30 Democrats had called for Franken's resignation. All this happened after another anonymous woman accused Sen. Franken accused him of sexual misconduct. Forgive me for thinking that Sen. Franken was pitched aside for political considerations.
Kirsten Gillibrand was asked how she reached her tipping point. She replied "Well, obviously, there were new allegations today and enough is enough. I mean, this is a conversation that we've been having for a very long time. It's a conversation this country needs to have and I think that when we start to have to talk about the differences between sexual assault and sexual harassment and unwanted groping, you are having the wrong conversation. You need to draw a line in the sand and say 'none of it is ok. None of it is acceptable and we , as elected leadership, need to be held to a higher standard, not a lower standard, and we should fundamentally be valuing women and that's where this debate has to go."
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First, the allegations today were from an anonymous person. Sen. Gillibrand campaigned with Hillary, a woman whose husband had been accused by women who identified themselves as victims of Bill Clinton's sexual appetite. Ms. Gillibrand didn't hesitate in campaigning with the woman who destroyed other women who stood in her march to the presidency. What changed? I don't buy that Harvey Weinstein changed everything. Ms. Gillibrand and others used the excuse that Bill Clinton and Ted Kennedy were good on women's issues. Some of these same women used that same line in defending Franken.
Again, I repeat, what changed? A month ago, Democrats thought that an Ethics Committee investigation was the right thing. Now they're calling for Franken's scalp. It isn't like the Democrats suddenly developed principles and virtues.
By noon, three male Democratic senators, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Sherrod Brown of Ohio, and Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez had joined their female colleagues in saying Franken should resign.
I don't believe that Democrats suddenly became principled people who hate deviant sexual behavior. I think it's most likely that they're simply trying to get rid of their long-held reputation of being the 'Evil Party'. They know that Franken's toast and that Gov. Dayton will appoint another Democrat. In 2008, the DNC didn't care that much about Franken until he became the potential 60th vote needed to pass Obamacare and Cap and Trade.
To Democrats, Franken's just a replaceable part that's about to get replaced.
Posted Thursday, December 7, 2017 12:23 AM
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The DFL's whiney hissy fit
After reading this article , you'd think something catastrophic had happened. House Minority Leader Melissa Hortman and Senate Minority Leader Tom Bakk took turns criticizing Republicans after the budget forecast was released.
Hortman criticized Republicans, saying "Elections have consequences, and when Minnesotans switched control of the legislature to 100% Republican control, we went from a $1.6 billion surplus to a $188 million deficit in a little bit less than a year. Hopefully people will keep that in mind as we move into 2018." Bakk chimed in , saying "I pretty strongly advised the governor the last night of the special session not to sign the tax bill because it wasn't sustainable. I'm not happy I was right."
Talk about a pair of DFL drama queens. Dave Orrick and Bill Salisbury co-wrote this article , which explains how little of a deal this is. First, they wrote "the federal government reauthorizes a health insurance program for children, which it very well might, the forecast shortfall would fall to about $10 million. There are other such variables that could make it rise or fall." It's virtually certain that they'll reauthorize the CHIP program. That eliminates all but $10,000,000 of the deficit forecast. Next, the model used anticipated only 2.2% growth. That's because this forecast model predicts that Congress won't pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
It's absurd to think that the economy will grow at only 2.2% since it's grown at 3.1% and 3.3% thus far this year. The third quarter would've been better if not for 5 hurricanes hitting, virtually wiping out economic growth in Texas and Florida.
Even Myron Frans, the state budget commissioner, downplayed the deficit, saying that the "forecast deficit" was "more of a mist than a downpour."
This video is part of the DFL's press conference:
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Sen. Cohen's statements are partisanship at its worst. The term sore loser leaps to mind, too. The DFL talks about the 2013-14 biennium as though it was the glory days. They weren't. Since the 2011 budget, spending increased by more than $15,000,000,000. That's fifteen billion dollars with a B. That's a spending increase of more than 33% in 2 biennium. Let's also remember that the surpluses following the 2013 budget session were the size of the tax increase.
It isn't that the economy grew by leaps and bounds. It's that the tax increase accounted for roughly 90% of the surpluses. Any budget that doesn't produce economic growth is worthless. That's what the nation rejected when they said no to a third Obama term. Meager growth isn't something to be praised. It's something to be criticized.
The Republicans wanted to pass a pro-growth budget. Gov. Dayton resisted that. For the third time in 4 budget sessions, we had a special session. Yes, unemployment is low but that's because we're spending like drunken sailors. There's a reason why people of all age groups are leaving Minnesota, especially for our neighboring states.
If Bakk, Cohen and Hortman don't ditch their socialist and/or crony capitalist policies, that outmigration will accelerate. Finally, if the DFL constantly stands in the way of pipeline and mining projects, we'll never see the good old days again.
Posted Thursday, December 7, 2017 2:22 AM
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If Franken resigns...
According to this Washington Examiner article , Mark Dayton intends on picking Tina Flint-Smith to serve out the remainder of Sen. Franken's term.
I don't see that happening because it's a risky move. If he picks his lieutenant governor to replace Sen. Franken, the President of the Senate would become his lieutenant governor for what's left of Gov. Dayton's term. The President of the Senate is Michelle Fischbach , a Republican from Paynesville. That's a totally safe district for Republicans so there's virtually no chance for the DFL to flip that Senate seat.
The downside of having a Republican as the lieutenant governor for a DFL governor is that she'd be privy to Gov. Dayton's decisions. Theoretically, it's possible for the lieutenant governor to leak sensitive information to the Republicans. And once she's sworn in, there's no firing her.
A special election would follow for voters to pick someone to serve for the remainder of Franken's term, which ends in January 2021.
Another reason why I don't think it's likely Flint-Smith will be Gov. Dayton's pick is because Flint-Smith opted to not run for governor this time.
According to this article , if Gov. Dayton picked her, she'd likely be a caretaker senator:
If he taps Smith as a caretaker senator, Dayton would be giving the job to someone who apparently has no further political ambitions. Smith was Dayton's chief of staff in his first term, after which he chose her as his second-term running mate. She had previously decided not to run for governor to replace him.
The article names potential DFL candidates, too:
Meanwhile, a variety of party big names would likely consider running for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Franken: U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, who would be the state's first black senator; two other U.S. representatives, Rep. Betty McCollum and Rep. Rick Nolan; or state Rep. Ilhan Omar, who would become the Senate's first Somali-American member.
Republicans couldn't get lucky enough to run against Ellison or Omar. They've got more baggage than a DC-10. They'd be fortunate to win 10% of the rural vote. Ditto with Betty McCollum. On the GOP side, people are talking about whether Tim Pawlenty or Norm Coleman would run. I don't see either of them running, though I could picture Stewart Mills running.
Posted Thursday, December 7, 2017 3:05 AM
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Franken resigns
Simply put, Al Franken announced this morning that he's resigning from the U.S. Senate, though he isn't resigning effective immediately. Good riddance. Tucker Carlson summed things up perfectly in his monologue last night , saying in part "Franken was a mediocre senator and a thoroughly miserable person. Cruel to those beneath him, narcissistic, monumentally self-righteous. Al Franken should have been exposed years ago for the nasty poser he always was.
Instead, he was celebrated by the media, he was protected by a Democratic establishment that found him useful. Very few people who knew Al Franken personally, including me, are mourning his departure from Washington. Good riddance."
This morning's speech was vitriol-filled and bitter sounding. On one level, that's understandable. On another, it's typical Franken. He's always tried to portray himself as Paul Wellstone's friend and ideological ally. While there's little doubt that they shared the same ideology, there's no doubt that Franken and Wellstone were opposites in terms of integrity. Personality-wise, Franken was bitter and mean-spirited. He has a short fuse. That isn't who Paul Wellstone, who had a sunny disposition.
Now the question is whether Franken actually resigns and who Gov. Dayton names as Franken's replacement if he resigns. Thus far, the reporting is that Gov. Dayton will appoint Tina Flint-Smith, his lieutenant governor, to fill the spot with the understanding that she wouldn't run for re-election .
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The most notable part of Franken's speech is that he said he recalled some of the accusations differently without elaborating. That's been his storyline throughout. While it's disappointing, it isn't surprising. Let me echo Tucker's thoughts on Franken: Good riddance.
UPDATE: Here's the text of Franken's speech .
Posted Thursday, December 7, 2017 12:01 PM
Comment 1 by eric z at 09-Dec-17 09:26 AM
Strib online Dec. 9 has an update. Smith will not make any Sherman statement about her future and Dayton is weighing his options. Lori Swanson would be a great replacement, as would Keith Ellison. Swanson has the advantage of having already whomped Republicans in statewide contests.
Gary, do you see any Repubs as best? And do you see any likelihood of Pawlenty leaving his extravagantly compensated present position to seek Guv/Senator this cycle? My guess is he stays with the big paycheck.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 09-Dec-17 10:29 AM
I don't see TPaw running for office again. Greg Peppin and Brian McDaniel are trying to push a TPaw for Governor story but there's simply no appetite amongst the activists for that. TPaw for Senate might be a different calculation.
As for Republicans, I'd love to see Stewart Mills run. He'd play well in the suburbs plus he'd crush the DFL candidate in rural Minnesota and on the Iron Range. The miners have all-but-officially written off statewide DFL candidates because they're anti-mining. It's worth remembering that Trump crushed Hillary by 16 points on the Range last year.
The Democrats' low standards
Kirsten Powers' column is proof positive that the Democratic Party doesn't have high moral standards. That isn't to say that Republicans have high standards. It's just that I get a kick out of Powers saying that Democrats "have seized the high moral ground" after waiting a month to call for Al Franken's resignation. Spare me that blather.
Ms. Powers, don't portray that as the high moral ground. Democrats didn't abandon Franken's ship until they saw a political advantage in abandoning him. That isn't a profile in courage. That's a profile in political expediency. There's nothing virtuous about it.
I wasn't too impressed with Ms. Powers' writing when she wrote that "He's repeatedly apologized as several women accused him of sexually inappropriate behavior." Sen. Franken didn't apologize. It's quite the opposite , actually. Siraj Hashmi noted that "Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., announced on Thursday that he will resign in the "coming weeks," after weeks of allegations of sexual misconduct, revealing that Franken acted inappropriately with women both before and during his time in the Senate. Notably absent from that speech were the words 'I'm sorry' or 'I apologize.'"
Hashmi continued, saying "Instead, while saying he wanted to be 'respectful,' Franken remained defiant and said: 'Some of the allegations against me are simply not true. Others, I remember very differently.' Never did he admit any wrongdoing."
Powers had the audacity to write this BS:
Republicans have adopted the talking point that Democrats only called for Franken to resign so they could gain the moral high ground to bash Republicans when Roy Moore wins the Alabama Senate race next week, as is widely expected. Which raises the question: Is there something wrong with the moral high ground?
The minute Moore's accusers stepped forward, GOP leadership called on Moore to leave the race. Because Moore had won an election, meaning Republicans couldn't force him out. Let's compare that with Franken. In her own words, Powers wrote:
The dramatic announcement Thursday came after eight women accused him of sexual misconduct ranging from groping in photo lines to forcible kisses, and amid an avalanche of calls for his resignation by his Democratic Senate colleagues.
That's the moral high ground? Seriously? Further, Franken's been a creep his entire Senate career. It was known that women avoided getting in elevators alone with him. That's the Democrats' definition of the high moral ground?
For that matter, Republican voters apparently don't see sexual assault accusations as a barrier to voting for a presidential candidate.
Spare me. Republicans voted for a man who trash-talked but wasn't accused of sexual harassment or sexual assault. Democrats voted for a woman who defended her pervert husband after he was accused of raping Juanita Broaddrick. Hillary Clinton didn't care about women that her husband tormented or destroyed. She cared about accumulating political power.
Further, the American people knew what Trump had done and what the Clintons had done. They made a political decision, not a moral decision. That's their right and it isn't evil. It's making a decision between two flawed human beings. It'd be fantastic if our voting choices were always between 2 people of impeccable character. Unfortunately, we don't often get those choices.
In this interview, Ben Shapiro mocked Franken, saying that if he'd been smart, Franken would've admitted wrongdoing before dropping this in President Trump's lap:
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He's right. Franken isn't bright and he wasn't in the mood for being the Democrats' sacrificial lamb. In the end, the Democrats didn't care about seizing the moral high ground. They just wanted a political issue. Unfortunately for them, they failed.
Posted Thursday, December 7, 2017 5:42 PM
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Lapdog media praises Franken
It's kinda sickening to watch the media's coverage of Franken's demise. This article is about as bad as it gets. It quotes Hamline Professor David Schultz saying "It becomes hard to figure out if he is known as Al Franken the comedian, Al Franken the senator or Al Franken who has to leave the Senate in disgrace because of sexual harassment claims." Honestly, this isn't that difficult. Franken's legacy will be that of a pervert who thought he was funny but was actually just creepy.
Schultz also said "He became noted for issues such as net neutrality, he was a very strong critic of Donald Trump, became an advocate for women's rights." Actually, he became known as an obnoxious lefty bombthrower. This might've been his most famous moment:
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Even after that incident, lefty pundits in Minnesota still wrote about him rolling up his sleeves, learning policy and just keeping his head down while working hard for his constituents. They couldn't bring themselves to talk about the fact that women on Capitol Hill did everything possible not to get into an elevator alone with him. This article displays the disconnect between Franken and the women he tormented:
Menz said she decided to come forward after she learned of Tweeden's story and said she hopes sharing her story will help change the culture. She said she felt sorry Franken had to resign. "Instead of being able to own mistakes and move forward and make things right, he's having to resign," she said. "I feel sadness that he's having to leave a job because of the actions that he's taken, but it's unfortunate he's left a wake of women in his path that have had bad interactions with him .
"It isn't surprising that Franken felt entitled to continue being a jerk. His Twin Cities media protectorate treated him with kid gloves. People like Dr. Schultz kept his personal life out of the spotlight, thereby enabling Franken to be a pervert.
Good riddance.
Posted Friday, December 8, 2017 2:50 AM
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Ken Martin, DFL spinmeister
During Friday night's interview on Almanac, Ken Martin did his best to put Jennifer Carnahan on the defensive on the issue of sexual harassment. During the interview, Chairman Martin insisted that the DFL was into due process. Martin seemed to explain that's why they initially insisted that Franken subject himself to an Ethics Committee investigation. The problem with Chairman Martin's story is that the DFL understood that the Senate Ethics Committee "is where serious allegations go to die."
Further, Chairman Martin repeatedly accused Republicans of waiting forever before calling for Rep. Tony Cornish's resignation. That's BS. Chairman Martin said "you can say whatever you want about the Democratic Party but we're taking these things head-on because we believe we have to rise to a higher standard so that everyone else has to rise to a higher standard."
Chairman Martin, that higher standard that you're talking about, does that include waiting until the eighth woman accuses Sen. Franken of grabbing her breast before you call for him to resign? I ask because that's the truth. Prior to that, the DFL's position was that Sen. Franken submit to an Ethics Committee investigation. If that's the DFL standard, I'm certain I wouldn't call that holding the DFL to a high standard. I'd call that pretty lenient, actually.
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Shortly after peddling that garbage, Eric Eskola asked Chairman Martin "Would things have changed for Senate Democrats' thought on this if Minnesota had a Republican governor who would have picked a Republican to replace Sen. Franken?" Chairman Martin replied "Not for me. As Cathy just said, I'm getting beat up by it but I'm not going to back down. We have a zero tolerance policy. I believe those women who've come forward and I think it's our responsibility to do that so women feel safe to come forward to tell their stories."
What a bunch of BS. Letting eight women accuse Sen. Franken of kissing them unwantedly or putting his hand on their butt or on their breasts isn't a zero-tolerance policy. I'd argue that that's exceptionally lenient. Later, Chairman Martin insisted that the DFL "has a very zero-tolerance policy" that they work hard to uphold.
As for Sen. Franken's resignation, good riddance. As for Chairman Martin, it isn't like we didn't know that he's a world class spinmeister.
Posted Saturday, December 9, 2017 1:49 AM
Comment 1 by eric z at 09-Dec-17 09:07 AM
Gary, should being a lecher be a public service disqualification? Are you embracing zero tolerance, or is it too ambiguous or too exacting a standard? That seems an underlying question left out of the debate/spectacle.
You've female readers. What might they think, that way?
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 09-Dec-17 10:33 AM
Eric, I'm willing to let readers make up their own minds. It's just my responsibility to highlight Martin's hypocrisy/spin. Personally, Martin isn't the brightest bulb in the DFL's chandelier.
Comment 2 by eric z at 09-Dec-17 09:13 AM
A separate question, do you REALLY think Ken Martin is "world class" at anything?
Personally, I would prefer having a progressive in his DFL party leadership position. As to Franken, his policy positions were tepid but okay. Certainly he's no Wellstone.
Response 2.1 by Gary Gross at 09-Dec-17 10:35 AM
Eric, I certainly will agree that Franken wasn't a Wellstone. I disagreed with Wellstone but I never thought he was a pervert. I've never not thought that Franken was a pervert.
Comment 3 by eric z at 09-Dec-17 01:19 PM
Thanks Gary. At this time next year, we shall have seen.
I can wait.
Actually, there will be major clarity of a kind by mid-August of next year. The SoS website stating, "Vote by mail or in person -- June 29 through August 13 -- for the Primary.
By then some candidacies may have come and gone, while for now the GOP and DFL internal polling gurus are licking their chops and selling their snake oil.
Response 3.1 by Gary Gross at 09-Dec-17 07:33 PM
BTW, I don't buy the GOP or DFL gurus, polling or otherwise. I don't think they're in touch with real people. That's why Trump won. Agree or disagree with him if you'd like but he's willing to connect with people.
Comment 4 by eric z at 10-Dec-17 09:49 AM
Hubris and Ken Martin: DFL'ers should fear not learning a lesson from history. See:
http://www.startribune.com/hillary-clinton-al-franken-build-political-alliance/397202491/
Stating: 'The Clintons have long memories,' said Ken Martin, state DFL chairman and a personal friend of Hillary Clinton. 'It would not surprise anyone if Al Franken would be considered for any sort of post in the administration.'
Berniecrats deserve their chance now, given how GOP-lite did last presidential election. If it does not happen that Berniecrats get sufficient party power, the DFL may still be whistling in the dark.
The DFL's budget deficit myth
Earlier this week, the DFL announced that Minnesota was running a $188,000,000 deficit for this biennium. The MMB should be ashamed of themselves for publishing such foolishness. The 'deficit' report assumes several things that don't make sense.
First, it assumes that GDP will be 2.2% nationally. No credible economist is forecasting this. Further, we've had back-to-back quarters of 3.1% and 3.3% economic growth, with Q4 expected to be even better. The Q3 GDP of 3.3% is particularly noteworthy because that happened despite 5 major hurricanes in the quarter to the Gulf Coast. If not for those hurricanes, GDP likely would've topped 4%. The 'deficit' disappears with robust economic growth.
Another assumption made in arriving at this deficit projection is that the federal government won't make its $178,000,000 CHIP program payment. If they make that payment, the 'deficit' left would be ~ $10,000,000 regardless of whether we have sustained economic expansion.
Finally, the projected deficit is based on Congress not passing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, something that's virtually guaranteed at this point. The major parties in the House and Senate have said that they're voting for the bill. The House-Senate conference committee is consolidating the different versions of the bill into a single bill that will be passed, possibly by the end of this week.
Despite these things, Myron Frans was on Almanac Friday night pitching the Dayton administration's storyline that we might run a deficit:
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Sen. Bakk is trying to take a victory lap by saying it doesn't bring him joy that he was right that the tax cuts were unsustainable. At this point, I haven't seen proof that tax cuts aren't sustainable. Sen. Bakk's policies aren't based on growing Minnesota's economy. They're mostly dictated to him by Twin Cities parasites that hate mining and pipeline infrastructure. In Sen. Bakk's world (and Gov. Dayton's), infrastructure projects are viewed as selectively important.
I'd argue that the DFL policy of constantly growing the Rainy Day Fund each time that there's a surplus hurts Minnesota's economy. There's no justification for a Rainy Day Fund balance of $1,600,000,000. I don't have a problem with maintaining a Rainy Day Fund. I just think there should be a cap on that fund.
Posted Saturday, December 9, 2017 11:12 AM
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CNN isn't fake news
Despite CNN's 'week from hell', CNN isn't fake news. That's giving them far too much credit. Calling them a news organization is like calling the National Enquirer or Rolling Stone hard news organizations. At least with them, they don't pretend to be serious news outlets.
This Daily Caller article highlights one incident where CNN didn't take their journalism seriously. In the article, it says "CNN misreported key details of an offer made to Donald Trump Jr. last year of a batch of stolen WikiLeaks documents. The story, which CNN published on Friday and covered extensively on TV, was touted as the first evidence that the Trump campaign was given a heads-up about documents stolen from Democrats. But the story appears to have been riddled with errors, while also lacking key context.
Perhaps the most jarring error in the CNN report is the date on which Trump Jr. was sent the email. The network reported that a person named Mike Erickson emailed Trump Jr. and others on the Trump campaign on Sept. 4, 2016, with a link to WikiLeaks documents as well as a decryption key to access them."
This video shows CNN eating crow:
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In the video, the reporter admits that they'd just received a copy of the email that was the basis for their supposed breaking news story. CNN's admission that they ran a story without verifying their source document is journalistic malpractice. It's inexcusable, too.
What's ironic is that CNN's "article states that its information was based on a read-out of the Trump Jr. email provided by multiple sources, none of who are identified." CNN never saw the document and they relied on anonymous sources. If that isn't the definition of journalistic malpractice, there isn't a definition for that term.
Posted Saturday, December 9, 2017 1:53 PM
Comment 1 by Lisa at 09-Dec-17 02:12 PM
You hit the nail on the head again, Gary!
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 09-Dec-17 07:30 PM
Thanks Lisa. I don't respect people that don't prioritize the truth. I'm not perfect but I set my goals high.
Comment 2 by eric z at 10-Dec-17 08:40 AM
There is truth. There is opinion. Priorities vary.
Blogging tends toward opinions. Voters too, in voting.
When do you figure open-seat Senate candidacy announcements will really start to emerge? My guess would be most hopefuls will wait until January.
If you say the woman is married to a former hockey pro, it must be true; but htf should that matter in picking a Senator? Category: true, but uninteresting.
