July 27-28, 2014
Jul 27 01:59 Nolan's in trouble Jul 27 04:14 Student fee reform required Jul 27 11:15 Jeff Johnson's sharpest attack against Gov. Dayton Jul 27 12:51 Smart diplomacy's failings Jul 28 04:00 Deceitful liberal calls himself conservative Jul 28 03:56 Rick Perry: Stopping villains, helping kids Jul 28 12:15 Nolan's environmentalist roots Jul 28 15:10 Franken's dishonest fundraising Jul 28 17:01 Jeff Johnson releases fundraising totals
Prior Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Nolan's in trouble
When superPACs and other special interest organizations make a major ad buy in a formerly safe congressional district, it's usually proof that the incumbent is in trouble. When that major ad buy happens months before the election, it's a guarantee that he's in trouble. That's why this ad is proof, at minimum, that Rick Nolan, Nancy Pelosi and AFSCME are worried about Stewart Mills flipping this seat this November:
What's interesting, and predictable, is that Nolan's special interest allies are lying through their teeth about Mills supporting "tax breaks for the rich." Let's look at Mill's issues page for the truth:
The Eighth District is a Main Street economy and job growth here comes from the ground up. That means we need tax reform that's geared toward small business growth. Stewart doesn't believe that Washington creates jobs- entrepreneurs and business owners create jobs.
When Republicans talk about tax reform, they're talking mostly about tax simplification . That's because tax compliance hurts small businesses far more than it hurts big corporations. Big corporations have tons of lobbyists to get favorable tax breaks and tons of accountants that stay on top of the ever-changing tax code.
Meanwhile, an entrepreneur might be the chief salesman of the product, the guy who does payroll and fills in when someone's missing. He's also the guy who has to stay on top of the onslaught of regulations and changes in the tax code. In short, tax compliance hurts small businesses far more than it hurts big corporations.
In other words, the AFSCME/House Majority PAC ad is BS.
Another important part of the AFSCME/House Majority PAC ad says that Stewart Mills opposes the minimum wage. I've paid a ton of attention to the Mills campaign. I've yet to hear him talk about the minimum wage. His stump speech is mostly about a) starting over and getting health care reform right, b) making PolyMet and job creation in Minnesota's Eighth District a reality and c) standing up for the Second Amendment.
There's nothing in there that's about "tax cuts for the rich" or the minimum wage. Those mining jobs are anything but about the minimum wage. Those future miners certainly aren't "the rich." That's who Stewart Mills will fight for if he's elected, mostly because it's the right thing to do.
After the DFL convention, Rick Nolan railed that Stewart Mills was the personification of the one-percent:
Nolan started off the campaign with a shot the Republican contender Stewart Mills. 'He is, no mistake about it, a one percenter who is there to represent the 1 percent not the 99 percent,' Nolan said.
I said then what I'll repeat now: Mills Fleet Farm is one of the most blue collar retail chains in the nation. They have lots of auto parts, lawn care products, sporting goods and a smattering of clothing, ranging from blue jeans to flannel shirts. What they don't have are products that might be found in Macy's or Nieman Marcus.
According to University of Wisconsin Superior Political Science Professor Alison Von Hagel , "I guess one could say it could be seen as putting words in his (Mills) mouth." That's understatement.
I'd argue that it's filled with assumptions based mostly on ideology, not fact. In that sense, it's what I expect from far left liberals like the DFL and Nancy Pelosi. Their relationship with the truth is minimal at best.
Stewart Mills is a salt-of-the-earth type of guy. He's totally comfortable hanging out at the Mills family hunting shack. That isn't to say he's uncomfortable running the Mills Fleet Farm benefits program. He knows that pretty well, too, which is why he wants to start over on health care reform so that it's affordable for everyone.
Right now, thanks to the ACA, it isn't affordable for many.
That, of course, isn't part of the AFSCME/House Majority PAC ad. That truth doesn't fit with the Democrats' storyline. If it doesn't fit with the Democrats' smear campaign, it's ignored.
High-ranking people in DC thinks Nolan's in trouble. That's why he was put on the DCCC's equivalent of the 'Endangered Incumbents List.' That's why the House Majority PAC and AFSCME paid for this ad this early. If they thought Nolan wasn't in trouble, they would've saved their money until the stretch run.
Posted Sunday, July 27, 2014 1:59 AM
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Student fee reform required
Over the past couple of years, one thing that's become apparent is that student fees are being levied to pay for some questionable things. This article highlights something outrageous that student fees paid for:
Samantha Hedwall, the Women's Center Assistant Director at MSUM, told Campus Reform that the program is a 'sex education class for the college age student' as 'it combines sex education with laughter.'
The university is bringing in two speakers from the organization Sex Discussed Here! to speak to college students about sex and sell their merchandise. The lecture is aimed at freshman, though some are still minors when they enter in the fall. In Minnesota, being a minor and engaging in certain sexual acts could lead to a charge of criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree.
However, according to Hedwall, 'You don't have to be 18 to learn about sex.'
Hedwall explained that the program touches on the issues such as consent, female orgasms, sexual decisions, tips for partners, as well as 'being a man, being a woman, [and] being in a safe sex, same gender identity group.'
While the lecture itself is optional, the fees in order to pay for this event - and others like it - are mandatory. Every student at MSUM must pay $453.60 in activity fees each year in order to fund these programs. The Women's Center received a subsidy for 2013-2014 totaling $33,114 from student activity fees, while the LGBT Center received $16,304.
While I won't be shocked to find out that students voted for these fees, I'd be surprised if they thought their fees paid for BS like this. Further, I'm betting that the people running the Women's Center and the LGBT Center weren't lobbying for these subsidies from student fees.
Simply put, this is a ripoff to students. They shouldn't have to pay for any events sponsored by their university's Women's Center or LGBT Center. For that matter, taxpayers shouldn't have to pay for these centers' budgets. If universitiess want either or both of these centers, let's see if they can find sponsors who are willing to pay for their activities.
In the past, universities have pushed for higher student fees. In fact, that's happened twice in the last 5 years at St. Cloud State. The first time, the Potter administration said that they'd have to shut the football program if student fees weren't raised. This year, the Potter administration made a similar, though not as dramatic, pitch.
Student fees are just one way that universities rip off students. Unfortunately, it isn't the only way they rip off students.
Posted Sunday, July 27, 2014 4:14 AM
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Jeff Johnson's sharpest attack against Gov. Dayton
Jeff Johnson's interview with Bill Hanna, the editor of the Mesabi Daily News, provided Johnson's sharpest attack on Gov. Dayton yet. Here's the heart of Johnson's criticism:
'I believe strongly that if Dayton wins, PolyMet will not happen. He is getting and responding to great, great pressure from environmentalists. Saw it at the DFL Convention when they got a resolution on copper/nickel tabled,' Johnson said.
I think that's accurate. Gov. Dayton's silence is deafening, especially considering the fact that he's called himself the "jobs governor." It's more like he's the jobs governor as long as it doesn't interfere with the environmental activists' anti-mining agenda.
Ken Martin breathed a big sigh of relief when a watered-down pro-mining resolution to the DFL Party Platform was tabled before it came up for debate. Martin was happy because he kept the lid on the major differences between Range Democrats and the Twin Cities 'Metrocrats'.
In siding with Twin Cities Metrocrats, Gov. Dayton sided with people whose median household income is $63,559 . What's Gov. Dayton's justification for siding with the Metrocrats rather than siding with people whose median household income is $46,231 ? There was a time when Democrats stood up for the less fortunate. In this instance, Republicans are fighting for lower income people and the Democrats are fighting for Twin Cities elitists.
Those thinking that that's just a political cheap shot should notice who serve as Conservation Minnesota's strategic advisors . There's no more anti-mining organization than Conservation Minnesota. Most of the people on that list are Twin Cities elitists. That's who Gov. Dayton has fought for.
'I will do everything I can to get PolyMet and other copper/nickel projects open up here. This has been delayed far too long and the governor helping those delays by being silent. A governor's silence on a major project like this with so many jobs is deadly.
Gov. Dayton's leadership on this issue hasn't existed. He's hidden in his little cubicle and said nothing about PolyMet. Meanwhile, Gov. Dayton has fought hard for projects like Rochester's Destination Medical Center and the Vikings stadium in Minneapolis.
Gov. Dayton didn't hesitate about pushing for those projects. Why hasn't he shown the same enthusiasm in fighting for the PolyMet project? Is it because the Vikings stadium and DMC were high priorities but PolyMet isn't one of his priorities? If that's the case, Gov. Dayton should just admit that jobs in northern Minnesota just aren't the high priority for him that Twin Cities jobs are.
That's political suicide but it's the honest thing to do. Unfortunately, doing the right thing isn't a priority with Gov. Dayton or the DFL. They're worried about doing what will keep them in office. Doing what's right for all of Minnesota isn't a priority with Gov. Dayton or the DFL.
This was Jeff Johnson's stiffest attack on Gov. Dayton yet. He's been the candidate who's put together a statewide organization. He's leveled the sharpest criticism against Gov. Dayton. That's why he was the GOP candidate who did the best against Gov. Dayton in the latest KSTP-SurveyUSA poll.
In this interview, Jeff Johnson didn't shy from criticizing Gov. Dayton on an important issue. Republicans are looking for a candidate that will take the fight to Gov. Dayton. Jeff Johnson certainly fits that requirement. If miners are paying attention, they'll know that he's fighting for them. If they've paid attention, they know that Gov. Dayton hasn't fought for them.
The evidence is clear. Gov. Dayton has been silent on PolyMet. He's shown that he'll fight for Twin Cities projects but he won't fight for the biggest jobs project on the Range. If the Range wants 4 more years of getting ignored, they should vote for Gov. Dayton. If they want high paying jobs, their only choice is Jeff Johnson.
It's that simple.
Posted Sunday, July 27, 2014 11:15 AM
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Smart diplomacy's failings
Then-Sen. Obama and then-Sen. Hillary Clinton both railed against President Bush's confrontation of terrorists where they lived. They both preached the gospel of "smart diplomacy." Six years later, we now know that "smart diplomacy" is just a euphemism for appeasement and retreat, if not outright isolationim.
Nowhere is the failure of the Obama-Clinton "smart diplomacy" foreign policy more apparent than in Libya. Walter Russell Mead's article highlights that failure succinctly by quoting a State Department travel advisory:
The security situation in Libya remains unpredictable and unstable. The Libyan government has not been able to adequately build its military and police forces and improve security following the 2011 revolution. Many military-grade weapons remain in the hands of private individuals, including antiaircraft weapons that may be used against civilian aviation. Crime levels remain high in many parts of the country. In addition to the threat of crime, various groups have called for attacks against U.S. citizens and U.S. interests in Libya. Extremist groups in Libya have made several specific threats this year against U.S. government officials, citizens, and interests in Libya. Because of the presumption that foreigners, especially U.S. citizens, in Libya may be associated with the U.S. government or U.S. NGOs, travelers should be aware that they may be targeted for kidnapping, violent attacks, or death. U.S. citizens currently in Libya should exercise extreme caution and depart immediately.
Sporadic episodes of civil unrest have occurred throughout the country and attacks by armed groups can occur in many different areas; hotels frequented by westerners have been caught in the crossfire. Armed clashes have occurred in the areas near Tripoli International Airport, Airport Road, and Swani Road. Checkpoints controlled by militias are common outside of Tripoli, and at times inside the capital. Closures or threats of closures of international airports occur regularly, whether for maintenance, labor, or security-related incidents. Along with airports, seaports and roads can close with little or no warning. U.S. citizens should closely monitor news and check with airlines to try to travel out of Libya as quickly and safely as possible.
The status of the country's interim government remains uncertain. The newly elected Council of Representatives is scheduled to convene by August 4, but political jockeying continues over where and when to seat the parliament. Heavy clashes between rival factions erupted in May 2014 in Benghazi and other eastern cities. In Tripoli, armed groups have contested territory near Tripoli International Airport since July 13, rendering the airport non-operational. State security institutions lack basic capabilities to prevent conflict, and there remains a possibility of further escalation.
TRANSLATION: Libya is a disaster. Contrary to President Obama's statement that al-Qa'ida is on the run, terrorist organizations, aka militias, control Libya. In September, 2012, Benghazi was a hot spot. These days, the entire country is a hot spot.
'Smart diplomacy' has become a punch line, and the dream Team Obama had of making Democrats the go-to national security party is as dead as the passenger pigeon.
President Obama is in way over his head. He's never been interested in learning about the different actors on the world stage. That can't be said about Hillary. She's been interested in the different actors on the world stage. She just hasn't been that bright. She could've stood up to President Obama but she didn't. She acquiesced in the name of political considerations.
Libya isn't a fight that needed to be fought, though it definitely needed monitoring. Killing militias would've been much more advisable than killing Khadaffi.
President Obama's favorite foreign policy straw man is that there are only 2 options: all out war or isolationism. That's either proof that he's a liar or that he doesn't have a clue. It might be proof of both.
Taking out Khadaffi was stupid. Not confronting Putin is equally foolish. Smart diplomacy isn't as smart as arming people who would love to fight for their own freedom. Why President Obama prefers giving Putin free run of eastern Europe but insists on killing north African dictators is beyond me.
Posted Sunday, July 27, 2014 12:51 PM
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Deceitful liberal calls himself conservative
This LTE is mostly BS, starting with the first paragraph:
Why I, a fiscal conservative, vote Democrat:
Opposition to minimum wage: I believe that prior to passing the increase in the minimum wage, it was frozen for 10 years. This means that every year an employee stuck with a minimum-wage job, that person received a reduction in purchasing power equal to the rise in the consumer price index.
This clown isn't a fiscal conservative anymore than I'm a social moderate. The assumption that people are stuck "with a minimum-wage job" year after year is preposterous. I've lived 58 years and I've yet to meet a single person that's been stuck with a minimum-wage job for more than 2 years. The thought that a person would be stuck with a minimum wage job for 10 straight years is a dishonest construct, not a bit of reality.
That isn't the only evidence that this gentleman is a liberal. Here's another bit of proof:
Wanting to shrink government employment to nothing. I have worked in both the public and private sector. If the function being performed is necessary, why is it so terrible if government employees are paid more generously for the same type of work? Some people dislike this because they are simply jealous.
It might be worth questioning whether this gentleman went to the Barack Hussein Obama School of Strawman Arguments. That's a distinct possibility. I've yet to hear of a single TEA Party activist, much less an establishment Republican, who wanted to eliminate government.
The fact that he's putting this dishonest argument into an LTE makes me question whether he's stupid or if he's just dishonest. I'm betting on him being dishonest.
Opposition to Obamacare: While I would have chosen a system like Canada's, I find the total opposition to Obamacare to be misguided. A friend of mine had a daughter who took a clerical job paying $14 per hour with a private-sector employer. That employer gave her an insurance policy requiring her to pay out $7,000 before insurance would kick in. How many $14-per-hour employees have $7,000 lying around? She applied for Obamacare and although she has co-pays, her insurance payments are triggered immediately.
If this young lady doesn't have a deductible, then she bought a gold- or platinum-level plan. Bronze- and silver-level plans have high deductibles. I wrote this post to highlight this problem. Here's what Robert Laszewski said about the Affordable Care Act:
If an entrepreneur had crafted Obamacare he would've gone to a middle class family. A family of four make(s) $54,000 a year has to pay $400 in premiums net of subsidy and for that the standard silver plan has an average deductible around $2,500 and a narrow network. They're going to pay almost $5,000 for that? So the entrepreneur would say I've got $5,000 in premium and all this deductible, what do they want for that? And they probably would've said we want office visits and lab tests because the kids need to go in occasionally and then we want catastrophic care. The problem with Obamacare is it's product driven, not market driven. They didn't ask the customer what they wanted.
The ACA's bronze- and silver-level plans have high deductibles. That's statistically verifiable :
Her insurer, Kaiser Permanente, is terminating policies for 160,000 people in California and presenting them with new plans that comply with the healthcare law.
'Before I had a plan that I had a $1,500 deductible,' she said. 'I paid $199 dollars a month. The most similar plan that I would have available to me would be $278 a month. My deductible would be $6,500 dollars and all of my care after that point would only be covered 70 percent.'
This self-proclaimed fiscal conservative is nothing of the sort. He's a liberal. Period. More than anything else, this is proof that liberals can convince themselves that they're damn near anything. Their ability to self-delude aside, the truth is that they aren't in touch with reality.
Posted Monday, July 28, 2014 4:00 AM
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Rick Perry: Stopping villains, helping kids
One of the things that Rick Perry hasn't gotten credit for is his moving 1,000 National Guardsmen to the Tex-Mex border. It isn't that people haven't commented on Gov. Perry's decision. It's that there's been too much second guessing of his decision :
The governor is simply trying to grab headlines, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest replied.
He said the administration hopes 'Gov. Perry will not just take these kinds of steps that are generating the kind of headlines I suspect he intended, but will actually take the kinds of steps that will be constructive to solving the problem over the long term.'
Like most of the stuff coming from this administration, Earnest's comments are BS. It isn't that Gov. Perry is trying to grab cheesy headlines. It's that he's trying to fix a problem created by the federal government that's spilled into his lap:
Deploying 1,000 Guardsmen 'has nothing to do with unaccompanied minors or children crossing the border,' Perry said, because data show 'only 20 percent of those apprehended crossing the border illegally are children.'
The Texas Department of Safety found that 203,000 illegal immigrants were arrested and charged with more than 640,000 crimes since 2008, Perry told the Trib. 'Of those crimes, 3,000 were homicides and nearly 8,000 were sexual assaults,' he said. 'Thousands of lives have been shattered forever, that shouldn't have (been), if the federal government had done its job.'
Thanks to President Obama's indifference to protecting Americans, literally thousands of Texans' lives have been ruined. The Texas Department of Safety's statistics are irrefutable. The children flooding in are just part of the crisis. The biggest part of the crisis, though, is that thousands of illegal immigrants have committed heinous crimes that've ruined people's lives.
Border Patrol data show that the number of children entering Texas illegally has grown from about 5,000 in 2012 to more than 50,000 this year. 'Inaction encourages other minors to place themselves in extremely dangerous situations,' Perry wrote in his letter to the president. '...Every day of delay risks more lives. Every child allowed to remain encourages hundreds more to attempt the journey.'
President Obama doesn't see this as a humanitarian crisis as much as he sees it as a political opportunity. He wanted tens of thousands of illegal immigrants to flood into the US in the hopes of forcing Republicans to pass "comprehensive immigration reform." President Obama's problem is that the crisis got tons of press, which made it look like a) the administration tried manufacturing this crisis and b) this administration and other Democrats don't care about consistently enforcing the border.
Republicans have repeatedly said that they won't pass immigration reform until enforcing the border becomes a high priority for this administration. That isn't something pro-open borders organizations like La Raza or pro-open borders legislators like Luis Guttierez are interested in.
That's their problem. The overwhelming majority of people polled demand that the border be secured before talking about legalizing the illegal immigrants already in the country.
It's gotten to the point that Republicans get better grades on immigration than Democrats get. Gov. Perry might run for president in 2016. At this point, he should because he's getting high marks for taking border security seriously. He's taking his law enforcement responsibilities seriously, too, which is more than they think about President Obama.
Posted Monday, July 28, 2014 3:56 AM
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Nolan's environmentalist roots
If there's a message we should take from this article , it's that Rick Nolan is an environmentalist first and foremost:
BRAINERD, Minn. -- U.S. Rep. Rick Nolan voiced opposition Thursday to Enbridge Energy's proposed Sandpiper oil pipeline route, which would cut across northern Minnesota.
Citing environmental and economic concerns, the Minnesota Democrat issued a statement in which he spoke of potential threats to environmentally sensitive areas such as wetlands, porous sandy soil, drinking water sources and what he termed some of the cleanest lakes in the state.
Rick Nolan will say anything to not upset environmental activists. Chloe Rockow, Stewart Mills' communications director, highlighted that in this statement:
"It looks like once again, Rick Nolan wants to have his cake and eat it too," she said. "We've seen too many instances where Rick claims to support projects like Keystone, Polymet, or Twin Metals but then turns around and supports the very regulations that stop them from moving forward. This is just another example of Rick's extremism stopping a project that could really benefit the 8th Congressional District."
I'd put things differently. Here's what I would've said: Rick Nolan likes most of these big projects in the theoretical sense. It's just that Nolan, like most Democrats, won't pull the trigger so they'd become reality. It's just that Nolan, like other Metrocrats, aren't interested in improving people's lives. They're more worried about talking a good game.
The truth is that this project would bring lots of jobs to the Eighth District. Another truth is that Nolan, like other Democrats, wants to talk like he supports these projects without supporting these projects. That leads to an important question of great import.
Nolan supposedly supports PolyMet, which, according to environmentalist organizations like Conservation, might pollute entire watershed districts. How can Nolan support the PolyMet mining project but oppose the pipeline project? Further, why would Nolan support rerouting the Enbridge pipeline through important, productive agricultural properties? Is it that he doesn't put a high priority on agricultural properties?
If the truth was told, it would be that Nolan's taking his position on Enbridge and his position on PolyMet for purely political reasons. It doesn't have anything to do with setting solid public policy. That's why a vote for Rick Nolan is a vote for politics-as-usual in DC.
Minnesotans deserve better than that.
Posted Monday, July 28, 2014 12:15 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 29-Jul-14 10:14 AM
I really like Mills and everything he stands and wish he was running against do nothing McCollum so I could vote for him but, the 8th already had a conservative in Cravaak and they booted him in favor of Nolan. The Iron Range will continue to vote for those that promise the world and deliver nothing except for more unemployment. They get what they deserve.
Comment 2 by walter hanson at 29-Jul-14 12:33 PM
Chad:
Keep in mind what got Chip voted out was simply that the DFL pushed out thanks to Obama and same sex every one of their loyal voters and they managed to barely win in a district that the DFL had won easily for a half century.
What will flip this district and the work was begun by Chip and continued by Mills is that he is going to DFL voters for several elections and pointing out that the DFL doesn't have their interests in heart. That is what alarms the DFL because if they will vote for Mills then they will vote for the Republican for statewide office, state lawmakers, and the lower offices.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Franken's dishonest fundraising
Al Franken's fundraising e-letters are getting more dishonest by the day. This is Franken's latest dishonest e-letter fundraising appeal:
Dear Cindy,
There are tell-tale signs when a race is heating up. And all the signs in Minnesota point in that direction.
Polls have been getting closer and closer, prompting the Rothenberg Political Report to take Minnesota off its 'safe Democrat' list. Outside money is funding attacks against Al. His opponent's ads distort Al's record of fighting for Minnesota families.
By themselves, each of these facts is alarming. Taken together, they can only mean one thing: the GOP is coming after Al big time, and he'll need our help to fight back.
Team Franken needs to reach $200,000 in the next 3 days, and they're about $15,000 off the mark right now. Help me help Al by contributing $5, or whatever you can, today.
Al is a middle class champion in the Senate. Which means he's a special interest nightmare. That's why a super PAC was formed with just one purpose: attack Al.
And in today's post-Citizens United politics, where there is one super PAC spending money, there will probably be more.
There's only one way to successfully beat back outside spending in today's politics -- solid grassroots support. That's what Al needs right now.
And that's why I'm writing today, to help Al get the grassroots support he needs and deserves. Give $5 or more to make sure Team Franken reaches $200,000 in the next 3 days.
Reading the signs is easy when you've been at it long enough. Fighting back against the special interests is hard.
Thanks for doing your part today.
Donna Brazile
Unles Ms. Brazile is talking about internal Franken polling, she's lying. I've watched this race as closely as anyone who isn't working for the Franken or McFadden campaigns. I've only seen a couple of polls on the race. I wrote this post about the KSTP-SurveyUSA poll, which was done in early June. We're almost to the end of July. There hasn't been another public poll since the KSTP-SurveyUSA poll.
For the record, I don't doubt that it's still a tight race.
Here's another blast of dishonesty in this fundraising e-letter:
His opponent's ads distort Al's record of fighting for Minnesota families.
Thus far, Mike McFadden's ads have focused on either policies or his biography. I might've missed something but I haven't even seen any of Team McFadden's ads mention Franken by name.
More importantly, though, Sen. Franken has fought for middle class families if they live in the Twin Cities . He hasn't fought for middle class families on the Iron Range. In fact, Sen. Franken ignored the Iron Range on his campaign website and in his acceptance speech at the DFL State Convention in Duluth.
That isn't the definition of fighting for the middle class on the Iron Range.
Based on what I've noticed, I'd say that Franken's frantic fundraising e-letters specialize in dishonesty and paranoia. I don't expect that to change anytime soon.
Posted Monday, July 28, 2014 3:10 PM
Comment 1 by Lady Logician at 28-Jul-14 04:18 PM
Funny, I don't see ANY "middle class Minnesotans" on this list....
http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/contrib.php?cycle=2014&cid=N00029016&type=I&newmem=N
LL
Comment 2 by walter hanson at 29-Jul-14 09:42 AM
Gary:
What do you expect from a man who does a television ad where he says that it was out of control Wall Street Banks that caused the banking crisis. He doesn't take into account:
One, the loans were being given out to people who weren't qualified in the past because they were pressured by the government to give out loans that they shouldn't have given out in the first place to people who might not afford them.
Two, they said the products were guaranteed because the US government said they were guaranteed. Any Wall Street employee will say the product is good to be resold because the US government guarantees the payment.
Franken creates the impression that it wasn't the person's fault or governments fault. Only Wall Street which I'm sad to say is the only one that shouldn't be blamed.
I can hardly wait for the look of "This doesn't not compute" when McFadden raises it in a debate.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Comment 3 by Chad Q at 29-Jul-14 10:09 AM
What middle class families was Franken fight for when he became the deciding vote for Obamacare which kicked millions off of their insurance and forced them to pay higher premiums and deductibles?
This guy is a fool yet he will win again because he's promising to hand out more goodies and make the rich pay for it all.
Jeff Johnson releases fundraising totals
Minutes ago, I received this email alert from the Johnson for Governor campaign:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Gregg Peppin
July 28, 2014 Ph: 612-209-9351
NEWS RELEASE: Johnson Campaign Raises $169,595 Since June Report
GOLDEN VALLEY - Jeff Johnson, the Republican-endorsed candidate for Governor, has raised $169,595 since the June 16th campaign finance report.
His campaign had $122,886 cash on hand as of July 21.
'Our campaign is on track for a victory in the primary,' said Scot Crockett, Johnson's campaign manager. 'We have an active voter contact program with primary voters, television ads are being released, and we are working with the Republican Party to get out the vote on primary day,' Crockett said.
'I am confident that we will win in August, and beat Mark Dayton in November,' Crockett concluded.
While this isn't a blockbuster total, it's definitely a significant improvement over Johnson's last fundraising report. Johnson's trend is definitely heading in the right direction.
The Johnson campaign is heading in the right direction, too. Over the weekend, they hit Gov. Dayton with their sharpest criticism of the campaign :
'I believe strongly that if Dayton wins, PolyMet will not happen. He is getting and responding to great, great pressure from environmentalists. Saw it at the DFL Convention when they got a resolution on copper/nickel tabled,' Johnson said.
Hitting Gov. Dayton with this criticism in the Mesabi Daily News will have an impact. I've been reading MDN for about 4 years now. If I had to give MDN a nickname, it'd be the 'Miners Daily News' because their editor, Bill Hanna, focuses like a laser beam on mining issues.
While I wish the MNGOP had more cash on hand, the fact is that they've helped their endorsed candidates with their Victory Centers throughout the state. That's likely helped Jeff Johnson's GOTV operation. While this doesn't guarantee a Johnson victory in the primary, it's definitely helping unite the party.
Posted Monday, July 28, 2014 5:01 PM
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