June 1-4, 2011
Jun 01 10:56 Where's the Support for Gov. Dayton's Tax Increases, Budget? Jun 02 02:10 Trapped in The Worst Place in the World Jun 02 11:22 Putting the Government Before the Economy Jun 02 12:06 What Chutzpah!!! Jun 02 13:20 BREAKING NEWS: Gov. Dayton Shuts Down Legislative Hearing Jun 03 01:49 Ryan Winkler Needs Better Boogeymen Jun 03 16:42 What Budget, Gov. Dayton? Jun 03 20:25 Today's Jobs Report Paints Gloomy Picture for Economy, President Obama's Re-election Jun 04 14:08 When Mitt Met Lindsey?
Prior Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr May
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Where's the Support for Gov. Dayton's Tax Increases, Budget?
The last thing that the DFL's apologists in the Twin Cities media will ask DFL legislators is whether there's real support for Gov. Dayton's overall budget or his tax increases.
It's true that the DFL voted for Gov. Dayton's tax increases during the final days of the regular session but that should be viewed with an asterisk behind it. That's because Gov. Dayton's budget, including Gov. Dayton's tax increase proposal, is still orphaned . Gov. Dayton's budget still can't find a DFL legislator to sponsor it.
The DFL apparently understands that the public, despite what the Minnesota Push Poll says, still doesn't want their taxes raised. DFL legislators might talk glowingly about Gov. Dayton's but they still don't want there to be any proof that they support his tax increases.
The last thing they want is to have their suppoort for Gov. Dayton's tax increases and budget to be hung around their necks during next year's campaign.
Another indication of the weakness of DFL support for Gov. Dayton's budget and his tax increases is how the DFL will offer amendments that, if enacted, would implement Gov. Dayton's budget. If DFL legislators are willing to offer amendments that are essentially major portions of Gov. Dayton's budget, then vote for those major portions of Gov. Dayton's budget, why won't they just sponsor Gov. Dayton's budget?
It's like DFL legislators are saying that they love major porions of Gov. Dayton's budget, they just don't want their electoral fortunes tied to Gov. Dayton's agenda.
It's worth asking these questions:
1. Is Gov. Dayton's budget that unpopular with the public?
2. Is the DFL's agenda unpopular with John Q. Public?
3. Is Gov. Dayton that unpopular with the public?
I think those things are plausible explanations but I think there's something actually much more straightforward than that. I think the DFL's actions are best explained by the fact that DFL politicians understand that the Republicans' growth and reform agenda appeals to alot of Minnesotans .
In the coming days, I hope to highlight all the appealing reforms that Republicans passed and that Gov. Dayton vetoed because he's insisting on raising taxes.
Throughout this session, I've repeatedly said that Gov. Dayton's, the DFL legislature's, chief argument wasn't an economic argument. I still haven't heard Gov. Dayton or any DFL legislator explain how raising taxes will improve Minnesota's economy or make Minnesota more competitive in attracting new economic growth in Minnesota.
That's because that explanation doesn't exist.
In Gov. Dayton's mind, apparently, the only thing that matters is whether his policies are fair. Apparently, effectiveness isn't a high priority with Gov. Dayton or with DFL legislators.
At the end of the day, the DFL's unwillingness to sponsor and fight for Gov. Dayton's budget, including Gov. Dayton's tax increases, send the signal. The signal that the DFL is sending to the public is that the DFL isn't willing to fight for Gov. Dayton's agenda, at least not while it has his name attached to it.
Finally, the DFL most likely understands that the Republicans' growth and reform budget is popular with the folks.
Pehaps that's why DFL legislators didn't enthusiastically and unapologetically fight for Gov. Dayton's budget and tax increases.
Posted Wednesday, June 1, 2011 10:56 AM
Comment 1 by dmc at 01-Jul-11 09:56 PM
Most people don't pay attention enough to know that the famous smoke and mirror budget shifting of the last 8 years with Pawlenty - is what got us in this mess to begin with. While my taxes continue to rise the taxes of those at the very top and been reduced.
I am sick of Tea Baggers who only want to say NO to everything and have no interest in discussion and governing - just their egos. Reminds me of a 4 year old pouting - and when my 4 year old pouted he got a swat on the butt.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 01-Jul-11 10:55 PM
I'm tired of know-it-all progressives. They're like the college prof who couldn't admit he didn't have time for commoners. They usually got verbally abused & shamed in public.
Yes, yes, yes, we know that progressives saw TPaw as Satan's spawn. It's because he kept beating them like a drum in negotiations. There's a reason why the obstructionist DFL Senate got the nickname of "Where good reforms go to die." It's because they stayed stuck in the 1980s & 1990s until We The People took them to the woodshed this past November.
Trapped in The Worst Place in the World
There isn't a worse place for a politician to be than in Michael Brodkorb's crosshairs. That's illustrated in Michael's op-ed in the Strib . For a conservative blogger like myself, reading Michael's op-ed was pure joy. These paragraphs are a perfect example:
In the final days of the 2011 legislative session, GOP leaders in the Minnesota House and Senate provided DFL Gov. Mark Dayton with an opportunity to speak directly to both legislative caucuses. It was a historic bipartisan meeting, filled with the discussion and debate that Minnesotans expect. In this private meeting, both Gov. Dayton and the GOP legislators were respectful of differing views.
How did Dayton reward this olive branch from the GOP leadership? He publicly attacked the legislators who politely asked questions of their governor by calling them "extremists" and by saying they "know little about government and care even less."
Rather than using his powerful soapbox to rally Minnesotans together, he chose to take a swipe at the mothers, fathers, teachers, veterans, Cub Scout leaders and small-business owners who serve as citizen legislators. Dayton attacked, but the Star Tribune editorial page was silent.
It isn't a mystery to anyone who's read this blog to know that I'm a partisan conservative. It isn't a mystery to loyal readers of this blog that I appreciate liberals who routinely make coherent arguments for their policies.
What I can't stand is when politicians talk respectfully behind closed doors, then trash their opponents after they've stepped up the microphones. By pulling that stunt, Gov. Dayton has proven beyond all doubt that he's a petty, little man who isn't deserving of respect.
Saying that Republicans "know little about government and care even less" is an infantile cheapshot I'd expect from a punk like Anthony Weiner, not from Minnesota's governor. I doubt that Gov. Dayton believes what he said. If he does, he's more petty than I'd imagined.
Gov. Dayton isn't the only DFL politician Michael puts in the crosshairs:
Bakk, who earlier in the session flat-out refused to produce a budget solution, was speaking to the press, comparing these same hardworking GOP legislators to members of "cults." It's worth noting that while Bakk has time to stroll the halls of the State Capitol launching personal attacks on citizen legislators, his caucus hasn't found any time to provide substantive budget solutions.
Michael is referring to Sen. Bakk's quote about the Republicans' principled stand :
"I'm worried about it. It seems we have a group of elected officials right now that their principles are so burned into their soul, it's almost like a religion or a cult. You can't compromise on that, those kind of strong-held feelings, that's problematic for the legislature going forward.
Sen. Bakk's statement was emphatic but not nearly as telling as his facial expression when he made this statement.
There's another recurring theme to this op-ed:
Dayton attacked, but the Star Tribune editorial page was silent.
Bakk attacked, but the Star Tribune editorial page was silent.
Martin attacked, but the Star Tribune editorial page was silent.
I'd add another disgusting episode to the things that the Strib was silent about, which was the DFL gay rights activists spitting on a man with a cane to help him navigate the Capitol halls while fighting the ravages of MS.
Finally, Michael's most important point couldn't be brought across more succinctly than this:
That budget increased general-fund spending to an historic level without raising taxes, while implementing necessary reforms to education and health care and providing the incentives needed to encourage private-sector job growth in Minnesota.
The largest general-fund budget in state history wasn't enough for Dayton.
There's no sense attempting to negotiate with a man who, upon seeing the biggest budget in Minnesota state history, argued that the budget needed to be $2,000,000,000 bigger.
Gov. Dayton should be ashamed of himself for insisting on raising taxes without having an economic justification. The Strib should be ashamed of themselves for not covering politics.
Posted Thursday, June 2, 2011 2:10 AM
Comment 1 by Jeff Wilfahrt at 02-Jun-11 08:29 AM
Mr. Gross,
Having read your piece it sounds as if you were present in the room to hear and observe. Is that in fact the case or did you write this piece on hearsay from your conservative friends?
My personal, and I mean up front and face to face, meetings over the last three weeks with conservative members of the House and Senate were rather brusque, save Rep. Kriesel and Rep. Ortman. I suspect the same behavior was evident in the meeting you apparently have first hand knowledge of.
Something in your piece doesn't ring true with my personal experience. Please explain the discrepancy.
Jeff Wilfahrt, Rosemount, MN
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 02-Jun-11 09:18 AM
First, I wasn't in the room that night. I was watching it via livestream. After that night was over, I contacted several legislators & their LA's about the goings-on that night. One legislator told me what happened that night. Other legislators confirmed the incident. Tuesday, another legislator sent me the email that's printed in my blog. BTW, that's an exclusive.
I've consistently maintained that it's ok to fight passionately against the things you disagree with or for the things you passionately agree with. Spitting on an elected representative or senator or governor doens't just push the envelope or cross the line. It rips the proverbial envelope into tiny pieces & it takes a running start before jumping well across the proverbial line.
I'll be clear about this: The reason why I started asking questions is because the catcalls and protests were audible while watching the session.
As for your smart-ass comment about this being hearsay, I'll just direct you to Dictionary.com's definition of hearsay:
an item of idle or unverified information or gossip; rumorSince this has been verified by a number of legislators & their legislative assistants, that proves it isn't hearsay. Hearsay isn't verified or verifiable. This incident has been verified by multiple sources.
Comment 2 by Rex Newman at 02-Jun-11 08:36 AM
I've had my differences with the too-often too-prenetic GOP uber alles Brodkorb, but he was spot on today. He no doubt had to tone it done a bit to get the Strib to print it, but even so there is no way the Strib can walk back what he said. It's a matter of record, how can they? Trouble is, they don't care and they won't change.
It still seems amazing to me that the Strib owners don't understand how much more business they could have if they would just balance out a little more, which only requires printing the truth a little more often.
Comment 3 by eric z at 02-Jun-11 09:03 AM
If they are extremists, which they are, then what is the fault in being honest?
Would dishonesty have been better, good manners, etc.?
This is POLITICS not parlor room, don't offend mom's sensibilities.
Dayton is one of the few fully honest, non-evasive governors we have had. Will he try to sit and be rational with extremists. Yes. He has. He's shown that.
Will he call a horse chestnut a chestnut horse? Because some guy named Michael might be critical?
No. He's not a lackey. Not anyone's boot-licking Pawlenty clone, who has a far nastier steaek, but who, what? Has better manners? Come on. Get real.
THEY ARE EXTREMISTS. They were elected by extreme minded out-state and 'burb greed-mongers, and were elected to be extreme. Bachmann, she was elected to be middle of the road consensus builder? No way.
An EXTREMIST for voters wanting extremism. As with this most recently elected GOP legislative pack.
Comment 4 by eric z at 02-Jun-11 10:54 AM
Brodkorb, in calling Dayton divisive, was being divisive.
He cirticizes Strib, yet they publish his criticism.
If he wants everyone to agree with him or be called unfair, he's unfair, and it was quite fair to allow him a chance to have his views published.
He's no real cause to complain. The fact is there is not agreement, but people were talking. The fact is Brodkorb calls Dayton inflexible, Dayton characterizes the GOP as extremist.
Those latter things are factual, but facts about opinions. The opinions are where disagreement resides, and it is mirrored in not having a consensus.
The DFL majorities had a much harder time with Pawlenty.
I want to see Dayton unallot some GOP pet pork, and then listen to the howl from those who where peachy with it when Pawlenty did it to the other side.
It's factional. If there were a true and viable multiparty system, not just the IP trying to straddle the middle and being irrelevant except for siphoning votes from the two dominant party sometimes making a DFL'er lose, Hutchinson for example undermining Hatch; or sometimes the other side saying "But for Horner ...".
The far right seems for the present to have coopted the Republican party. The people with nowhere to turn are the progressives. Obama is a middle of the road politician. Clark was a moderate. The GOP far right has been more successful in forcing its party at the caucus and local level to move to more extreme postions than those successful Republicans of the past who now are hearing, RINO. The progressive end of the spectrum should be that effective. They are the ones who have no real press attention.
Dayton proposed a very moderate change in taxation at the high end of the spectrum. Moderate, for sure. He is no Huey Long. And the press combined with the other holders-owners of extensive wealth, to sabotage that.
Rank and file reporters do what they are told, or exected to do, or they get replaced. The incentive to not be replaced works a heavy "invisible hand" upon what is characterized as middle-of-the-road politics, in the press.
Brodkorb's got his crying towel out, crying Crocodile tears.
Comment 5 by Rex Newman at 02-Jun-11 10:59 PM
The reason the DFL Legislature had so much trouble with Pawlenty was that Pogemiller & his sock puppet Kelliher were no match, neither having any leadership skills. The very flawed Dean Johnson beat Pawlenty in 2005. If Pawlenty had faced Roger Moe, I doubt TPaw would be running for Prez now.
Putting the Government Before the Economy
If there's anything that's predictable, it's that the DFL has consistently put other things ahead of growing Minnesota's economy. For instance, DFL legislators put a higher priority on funding an antique form of government than they put on putting in place policies that would create a dynamic state economy.
Funding education, important though it may be, isn't the be-all, end-all of economic development. Funding another debt bill, aka bonding bill, is, at best, a momentary shot in the arm. The past 3 years, it hasn't lived up to that minimal expectation.
Gov. Dayton's insistence on raising taxes is hurting Minnesota, especially in light of the fact that the Dakotas have a vastly superior business climate. Gov. Dayton's insistence on closing the state if he doesn't get his tax increase isn't rational and it isn't doing what's best for the state.
It's doing what his ideology, and his supporters, demands. It has nothing to do with balancing the budget while not destroying Minnesota's competitiveness. Gov. Dayton's insistence on raising taxes has nothing to do with improving Minnesota's economy.
This session, the DFL spent incredible amounts of energy talking about how the state would be hurt if this budget cut or that reform were to be implemented. The DFL insisted that cutting budget to programs I'd never heard of would hurt Minnesota.
Thinly veiled in the DFL's accusations is their real preference. The DFL's real preference would've been to balance the budget simply by raising taxes.
This isn't new. It's something that Tarryl Clark talked about in January, 2009 in this interview with Tom Hauser :
Hauser: You can talk about reform all you want but reform inevitably ends up meaning that some people that are getting state services now won't be getting them after this reform, whether it be in HHS, whether it be in education, early childhood, any of those things.
Tarryl: Sure, and an estimate, a good estimate would be that maybe we could figure out how to save about $500 million.
Tarryl was convinced that the best Minnesotans could hope for in finding wasteful spending or reform-driven cost savings was $500,000,000. I'm betting that Rep. Keith Downey would respectfully disagree with Tarryl on that. King would, too.
According to King, Rep. Downey is a reform and ideas machine. Based on the number of reforms he's proposed, including a number of reforms that Gov. Dayton vetoed, I'll state that I'm more likely to trust Rep. Downey than I'd trust former Sen. Clark.
In fact, I'd argue that the difference in mindset between Rep. Downey or Rep. Banaian and Gov. Dayton is what this dispute is all about. Reps. Downey and Banaian studied how government does things, then proposed reforms that improve how government operates while protecting taxpayers wallets.
Gov. Dayton didn't instruct his staff to conduct an exhaustive search for reforms. Had they done that without regard to whether some reforms would upset their supporter, Gov. Dayton likely would've found enough cost savings to eliminate the need for a tax increase.
Had Gov. Dayton signed the budget bills and the reforms offered by Reps. Banaian and Downey, Minnesota's budget would be heading for a surplus. Most important is the fact that the reforms would've made Minnesota a substantially more business-friendly state.
While DFL whiners like Rep. Thissen and Rep. Winkler were questioning Republicans about jobs (their definition is mostly measured by jobs created by the government spending money), Republicans were consistently writing legislation that would've created a dynamic, private sector economy.
Admittedly, it'll take time to start creating new jobs but it's something that would've been well under way had Gov. Dayton signed the Republicans' straightforward reforms into law.
Unfortunately, Gov. Dayton took the ideological path that leads to stagnant economic growth rather than doing what's right.
Posted Thursday, June 2, 2011 11:22 AM
Comment 1 by eric z at 03-Jun-11 07:29 AM
Governor Dayton inherited stagnant economic growth.
The Bush-Pawlenty years were a disaster you cannot blame on Dayton.
If Pawlenty had not been so Draconian with the DFL's sensible legislation efforts, we'd not be in the deep pit we face.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 03-Jun-11 04:26 PM
Eric, Let's re-acquaint you with reality. In 2007, the first set of budget bills the DFL passed, their complete budget, called for a 17+ spending increase PLUS 6 major tax increase while we had a $2.2 billion surplus. That isn't sensible. That's idiotic. The only thing more idiotic than the DFL's budget is President Obama's bankruptcy plan. No, I don't mean a plan to stave off small business bankruptcies. I'm referring to his budget, which is pushing us towards a national bankruptcy.
Let's fast-forward to 2009. That's when, a week into the budget session, Tarryl Clark essentially said that it's impossible to find more than $500,000,000 in budget cuts in a $30+ billion budget. The DFL is the party that accepts as mainstream people who aren't interested in reforms, won't consider shifting priorities & whose first, second & third tools out of the budgetary toolbox are progressive tax increases, regressive tax increases & any other type of tax increases they can think of.
There's nothing sensible about a political party that gives sacred cow treatment to entire sections of the budget & who won't consider the possibilility that cronyism & an overreliance on empathy can lead to spending way too much.
Minnesota & America are on glidepaths to bankruptcy. We can't continue spending like the economy is hitting on all cylinders, producing record surplus after record surplus & people have the money to a) be both charitable & b) put their life savings at risk.
Comment 2 by walter hanson at 03-Jun-11 03:22 PM
Gary:
I will offer my services to mediate the budget here.
One, I here by order both sides to write up a budget of $34 billion.
Two, every item that both sides agree on is to be immediately passed thus avoiding a shut down of key services.
Three, the sides work out the rest of the spending to get to $34 billion.
Four, next January governor Dayton represents his tax increase and the new spending that the tax increase will do so it can be debated for the whole session.
Now for these services have I just earned $50,000 or a $100,000.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
What Chutzpah!!!
I'm just listening to Uptake's tape of Gov. Dayton calling for a mediator to settle the budget dispute. More on the mediator thing in another post. Here's what Gov. Dayon say in the audio clip:
GOV. DAYTON: Taking their claim that they were once at $32,000,000,000, which is unsubstantiated, but even giving them the benefit of that doubt, they've come up to $34,000,000,000. This is $39,000,000,000, which current law, as of January, requires the state to spend for the next biennium and I've come down to $35,000,000,000.
Either Gov. Dayton doesn't have a clue how budgets work, which I don't believe, or he's got more chutzpah than I initially gave him credit for. This isn't remotely close to the truth about how budget work. The $39,000,000,000 that Gov. Dayton is referring to are budget forecast numbers. They aren't appropriations.
Gov. Dayton doesn't have the authority to spend that $39,000,000,000. If he did, there wouldn't be a budget impasse. Gov. Dayton's threat to shut government down wouldn't have any substantiation.
There's more to this morning's budget events that I'll include in another post shortly after I finish this post. Check back to this blog by mid-afternoon for more on this breaking story.
Posted Thursday, June 2, 2011 12:06 PM
No comments.
BREAKING NEWS: Gov. Dayton Shuts Down Legislative Hearing
Giving the Twin Cities media more proof that Gov. Dayton isn't qualified to be governor appears to be Gov. Dayton's highest priority these days. Gov. Dayton's call for mediation to break the budget stalemate is the latest proof:
DFL Governor Mark Dayton says he'd like to hire an outside mediator to help bridge his differences with Republican lawmakers over the state budget. Dayton made the suggestion today during a news conference. He said he's at an impasse with the GOP-controlled Legislature over the best way to erase a $5 billion projected budget deficit. He said Republicans refuse to budge on their opposition to raising taxes and characterized the current state of budget talks as nonproductive.
"And it's not going to lead us to the resolution we need before July first," Dayton said. "So to get somebody who has the expertise and can set parameters and help define a process that will define a process that will lead to a successful resolution is in the best interest of all Minnesotans."
Gov. Dayton's abdication of leadership is just the latest proof that he isn't qualified for the job. This isn't about ironing out the last few details of an agreement. It's a fight over whether raising taxes and growing government during a recession will put Minnesota on the right path, both in terms of short term growth and long term prosperity.
The simple answer is "it won't."
The more comprenshive answer is that raising taxes on "the rich" who "aren't paying their fair share" hurts families more than it hurts "the rich." People putting their money at risk will putting less of their money at risk. Sometimes, that comes in the form of laying people off. Sometimes, it's in the form of lower wages or pay cuts. Other times, it takes the form of employers not offering a high quality health insurance plan or them contributing less to that plan.
In the most drastic cases, it leads to a business pulling up stakes and moving to another state.
Whether you think that's fair or not, that's reality.
This session, Republicans passed reforms of the permitting process, alternative teacher licensure, both of which became law. Later in the session, they passed King Banaian's budget reform bill, Keith Downey's 15 by 15 bill in addition to Steve Gottwalt's health care reforms.
This legislation would've improved how government delivered services while reducing the cost to Minnesota's taxpayers.
Another thing that's upsetting is Gov. Dayton's refusal to explain how his tax increases will improve Minnesota's economy, lower property taxes or keep Minnesota competitive with other states and other countries.
The governor made the announcement several hours before a scheduled hearing on his budget by a legislative commission of mostly GOP lawmakers. Dayton said he would not allow his commissioners to participate in a hearing by the Legislative Commission on Planning and Fiscal Policy. The panel, made up of mostly Republican lawmakers, aimed to discuss Dayton's budget proposal. Dayton said he would not allow his commissioners to "be berated" in a hearing that he characterized as a "political stunt."
"It's political grand standing kind of theater to distract people away from that they're unwilling to compromise," Dayton said. "The fact that they're budgets will have drastic effects on the lives of Minnesotans."
Hasn't Gov. Dayton called something a political stunt once before? Not quite but close :
#mDayton letter to Bakk urges Dems to vote against his tax proposal 'as a way to reject this charade.' GOP forcing floor votes today #mnleg
Sounds eerily similar, doesn't it? Charade and political stunt must be his limited vocabulary for when he's gotten trapped in an impossible situation.
Now Gov. Dayton has psychic abilities? Gov. Dayton knows that Republicans were just going to grandstand in an attempt to make Jim Showalter look bad? Please. I've seen Jim Showalter's work product. An attentive eighth grader could make him look bad. For instance, here's part of Showalter's work product :
At 2:00 pm Monday afternoon, Sen. Parry, Rep. Lanning and Commissioner Showalter met with Gov. Dayton in Gov. Dayton's office. According to Sen. Parry, the Gov. Dayton he saw 'was a very angry governor.' Gov. Dayton shouldn't be upset with the letter. Gov. Dayton should be upst with the spreadsheet Commissioner Showalter prepared for the other commissioners.
LFR got a copy of that spreadsheet last night. What jumped off the page were two columns in particular. The 4th column on the spreadsheet is titled 2012-2013 House Across the Board Reductions. The 7th column of the spreadsheet is titled 2012-2013 Senate Across the Board Reductions. Neither column accurately reflects what's in the GOP budgets.
The MMB spreadsheet 'reports' that the House GOP budget calls for 10% across-the-board reductions. Further, the MMB spreadsheet 'reports' that the Senate GOP budget calls for 9% across-the-board reductions. This spreadsheet isn't saying that about specific departments. It's saying that each line item is getting hit with a 10% cuts. K-12 education gets hit with a 10% cut, as does Corrections, the MPCA, the PUC, Agriculture, DEED or any other department.
Commissioner Showalter's MMB spreadsheet says that the House GOP budget calls for an across-the-board 10% spending cut for each state agency. Commissioner Showalter's spreadsheet also reports that the budget bills passed by the Senate call for an across-the-board 9% spending cut.
Commissioner Shellito's testimony demolished Commissioner Showalter's credibility with this information:
SHELLITO: Rep. Lanning, I appreciate that and I understand your frustration but I would then give you my viewpoint. Yes, you've given us a 3% increase in the omnibus bill, both sides. Thank you.
What Commissioner Shellito was concerned with was the effect Keith Downey's 15 by 15 legislation would have on his department. Shellito's worries were triggered by Showalter's spreadsheet, which were based on a series of worst case scenarios.
Gov. Dayton should be ashamed of himself. He's pushing an agenda that isn't driven by what's best for the state but by what his ideological benefactors want. Rather than make an argument based on sound economic principles, Gov. Dayton's arguments have been over fairness.
At a time when Minnesota's economy is struggling and Minnesota's government is spending too much, I don't care whether ecomic policies are fair. I just want them to be policies that restore prosperity to Minnesota.
Until that becomes Gov. Dayton's goal, mediation won't change the dynamic one iota. If Gov. Dayton won't abandon his political allies' ill-advised ideological agenda, state government will remain on track for a Dayton shutdown.
Posted Thursday, June 2, 2011 1:20 PM
Comment 1 by Shoebox at 02-Jun-11 02:13 PM
Why are you disparaging eighth? Most of them are much better grounded in the realities of spending as it relates to their income than any of Dayton's staff!
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 02-Jun-11 02:33 PM
I didn't think I was disparaging them. I thought I was disparaging Jim Showalter.
Comment 3 by Shoebox at 03-Jun-11 07:51 AM
Busting your chops, man!
Response 3.1 by Gary Gross at 03-Jun-11 04:12 PM
Busting your chops, man!Seriously??? You??? The people whose sense of humor mysteriously disappeared??? Congratulations on finding your long-lost weapon. LOL
Ryan Winkler Needs Better Boogeymen
This afternoon, Rep. Ryan Winkler posted a couple feisty comments on Twitter. Of the multiple tweets Rep. Winkler made, this tweet was the most vacuous:
@LFRGary @rachelsb If the DFL makes an economic argument, and the GOP is listening to Rush Limbaugh on headphones, does it make a sound?
Since I was the lead name mentioned, I replied thusly :
@LFRGary @rachelsb You should try it once...JUST ONCE...& find out!!! # RyanNeedsANewBoogeyman
The next time Rep. Winkler tried making an economic argument for why raising taxes will a) strengthen Minnesota's economy in the short- and long-term, b) improve Minnesota's competitiveness with our neighboring states and internationally, c) make Minnesota prosperous again and d) incentivize entrepreneurs to put their money at risk, it'll be the first time that any DFL legislator will have made that argument.
It's time for Rep. Winkler to put his boogeymen away. The debt that's accumulated during President Obama time in office scares people. Rush Limbaugh doesn't. Admittedly, it gets progressives excited but that's just proof of how out of touch they are with America.
We're at a crossroads, both in Minnesota and nationally. What's needed is gubernatorial leadership and legislative statesmanship. Unfortunately, Gov. Dayton and Rep. Winkler have failed those tests miserably.
I can't help Gov. Dayton at this point but perhaps I can help Rep. Winkler by showing him what real statesmanship and leadership looks like. That's why I'm nominating this FaceBook post :
Gov. Dayton's latest actions are further evidence of what we're up against as we try to resolve our state budget and avoid a state shutdown.
The governor is forbidding commissioners from meeting with legislative leaders, who are working feverishly to put a budget in place. The governor also said he wants to hand over budget responsibility to a mediator. These announcements both come at a time Minnesota is counting on his leadership.
There have been other inconsistencies in the budget process, but these latest developments are perplexing. The Legislature and the governor are responsible for passing and approving a budget, but involving a mediator effectively creates a fourth branch of government. This is a crucial point in our state's history when a governor should show leadership and have a firm grip on the wheel, not turn to someone else for direction.
When Gov. Dayton suggested that this deficit be resolved by a mediator, Gov. Dayton could've just as easily said that there was a leadership vacuum in the governor's office.
The notion of hiring a mediator to resolve the budget deficit sounds like Congress or the president appointing another blue ribbon commission for the latest crisis that they're too spineless to deal with directly. In the DFL's mind, big issues like what we're facing require political cover, not great solutions that create prosperity.
Whether we're talking about Rep. Winkler or Gov. Dayton, the hymnal remains the same. The DFL's hymnal requires funding government at the level government says it needs rather than at the level that decisionmakers say it should be. Without that type of leadership, problems turn into crises.
The Legislature proposes a modest state spending increase of 6 percent, which allows us to account for natural economic growth while staying within our $34 billion in anticipated revenue for the upcoming biennium. On the other hand, the governor wants to raise taxes and outspend our projected revenue by $1.8 billion. He has failed to detail how this additional revenue is supposed to be used, putting that vague responsibility on the Legislature. That failure also means the governor has not taken yet his share of responsibility for the $1.9 billion in expenditure cuts he must make from his last complete budget in March.
Gov. Dayton's justification for his spending increase is increasing LGA for Class 1 cities. Even if LGA increased, there's no guarantee that property taxes wouldn't increase:
One thing that stunned me was Mary Kiffmeyer's statement that, in testimony before the House Taxes Committee, two people from the Dayton administration said that they couldn't guarantee that property taxes wouldn't go up if LGA is increased. Other legislators said that they've had small town mayors approach them, telling them that big city mayors don't speak for them.
The argument for higher taxes is an ideological argument. That might explain why Gov. Dayton won't let Commissioner Showalter answer questions in an open committee hearing setting. Perhaps that's why he's refused to negotiate with Republicans.
In December, I predicted that Gov. Dayton wouldn't win many policy fights . Thus far, I've been right with that prediction. The best that Gov. Dayton's done is battle to a stalemate in a losing fight. That might qualify as a victory per the DFL's dictionary but battling to a stalemate isn't winning.
Rep. Winkler has tried whipping the faithful into a frenzy. He's succeeded with that, mostly because all that's needed is mentioning Rush Limbaugh's or Sean Hannity's name. It doesn't take the world's greatest salesman to whip the DFL into a lather.
Gov. Dayton hasn't succeeded apart from signing Dan Fabian's permitting reform into law and when he signed the alternative teacher licensure law. In other words, Dayton's victories have been in signing a bill that EdMinn hates into law.
Gov. Dayton isn't a leader. Rep. Winkler isn't a statesman. I'd say that they deserve each other.
Posted Friday, June 3, 2011 1:49 AM
Comment 1 by IndyJones at 03-Jun-11 12:56 PM
If a "mediator" was the solution to budgets it sure would allow us to fire a lot of politicians. No point in duplicating a solution.
Comment 2 by walter hanson at 03-Jun-11 03:25 PM
Ryan Winkler should know the reason why Rush is listened to and he's not is because most people (unless you're a liberal democrat or get government services) know that the government can't spend money to create jobs and wealth. Since what Winkler, Dayton, and others think it's still possible we ignore them.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
What Budget, Gov. Dayton?
One of the interesting things about the impending budget showdown is that there's only one budget that's codified into legislative language. That's why I'm skeptical about Gov. Dayton's statement that he " won't negotiate against my own budget ":
Republican leaders said they want more specifics from Dayton on spending cuts he would support, saying they already laid out a full budget vision in a series of bills Dayton vetoed last week. 'We have not seen those same priorities from the governor,' Zellers said.
But Dayton said he won't discuss spending cuts until Republicans budge on his demand for new state revenue.
'I won't negotiate against myself. I won't negotiate against my own budget. I won't negotiate spending reductions until they're willing to negotiate on revenue increases. I've made that perfectly clear for over a month now,' Dayton said.
Gov. Dayton doesn't have a budget. He's got some numbers on spreadsheets but that isn't a budget. A budget also gives state department basic instructions on what the money can and can't be used for. The budget Gov. Dayton talked about doesn't exist because DFL legislators refused to co-sponsor his proposal.
Let's also stipulate that Gov. Dayton didn't explain why we need higher taxes. He's explained that "the rich" aren't "paying their fair share." That doesn't explain why raising taxes will strengthen Minnesota's economy or improve Minnesota's competitiveness with neighboring states and internationally. That doesn't explain why raising taxes will make Minnesota prosperous again and give Minnesota's entrepreneurs an incentive to put their money at risk.
The message sent by Gov. Dayton's budget outline is that he intends to spend like the economy is going strong. It isn't, as evidenced by this morning's jobs report . Let's stipulate that Gov. Dayton's spending plan indicates that he won't touch the DFL's special interest allies' sacred cows.
Gov. Dayton hasn't talked about how his proposed tax increases will hurt workers. It's guaranteed that they will. First, it'll hurt because businesses will either reduce wages, scale back their contributions to their employees' health insurance premiums or lay them off entirely.
Gov. Dayton frequently talks about how Republicans won't tell the truth that not raising marginal incometax rates will result in higher property taxes. That argument isn't compelling. When Gov. Dayton still allowed them to testify, Dayton administration staffers' testimony to the House Taxes Committee was that raising LGA wouldn't prevent property tax increases.
Quickly summarizing, what we know is that a) Gov. Dayton's budget is really a spending outline, b) Gov. Dayton still hasn't explained how raising taxes will strengthen Minnesota's economy, improve our competitiveness or give entrepreneurs an incentive for putting their money at risk and c) DFL legislators dislike it to the point that they won't sponsor Gov. Dayton's budget.
Neither Gov. Dayton nor the DFL have put a budget together much less put one together that appeals to Minnesotans. That's because they haven't put a budget together. Period. What the DFL's motivation behind that is is anyone's guess but I'll offer my opinion on it.
I think it isn't anything more complicated than the fact that the DFL wants the finished product to be to their liking but they don't want to be asked about specific policies, specific line items on their spreadsheets or their overall vision. They know that the minute they put a budget together is the minute that they'll be held accountable for their policies, priorities and vision.
It's time that the DFL manned up and put something specific together that Minnesotans and GOP legislators can examine. If the DFL don't put a budget together, there isn't a base of information to start negotiations from.
Until the DFL takes that important first step, the DFL will own this impending shutdown.
Posted Friday, June 3, 2011 4:42 PM
Comment 1 by eric z at 04-Jun-11 01:27 PM
Do you envision a long special session?
Do you see Zygi being satisfied, even with extra time to lobby in the special session?
Do you see anyone's pork surviving an assault on spending? I cannot see any honest effort that way having a lot of pork fat for anyone.
Dayton's budget acknowledged his view that some GOP desires might be more legitimate than others, and he included concessions that way.
It appears the GOP will kill its own earmark and pork desires, or else make concessions to reach some awful but acceptable compromise to both of the major parties.
Can they credibly pull off a straddle?
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 04-Jun-11 03:08 PM
Do you envision a long special session?The only way of avoiding it is if Gov. Dayton comes to his senses & does what's right for Minnesota, not for his DFL special interest allies.
Do you see Zygi being satisfied, even with extra time to lobby in the special session?Zygi can do backflips & sommersaults this summer & it won't happen.
It appears the GOP will kill its own earmark and pork desires, or else make concessions to reach some awful but acceptable compromise to both of the major parties.If that's what it looks like, get better glasses. Republicans know that Gov. Dayton's budget will demolish Minnesota's economy. The notion that you can raise taxes while people are inclined to be cautious without killing the economy is stupid. I knew better than that in the eighth grade.
While ABM is packaging their lies, I'll be joining forces in educating voters on what's at stake. I'm already doing that through a variety of outlets & I'm about to expand the number of outlets.
Sen. Bakk whines about how Republicans are "destroying higher ed." When my series on reform & corruption comes out, he'll be a laughingstock. That's when I'll highlight the fact that Republicans are the party of growing the economy & reforming government. I'm betting that's the message that'll appeal to Minnesotans.
Today's Jobs Report Paints Gloomy Picture for Economy, President Obama's Re-election
This morning's jobs report had one positive economic effect, namely that the report is driving up Maalox sales with President Obama's re-election strategist and team. This is giving Team Obama heartburn.
More importantly, it's putting Americans in shaky financial shape.
In the 'What government giveth, government taketh away' category, we're now seeing proof that the stimulus initially prevented government job losses. Unfortunately, that's changing now :
Employment in local government continued to decline over the month (-28,000). Local government has lost 446,000 jobs since an employment peak in September 2008.
States are still running deficits, proof that the stimulus failed economically while triggering unprecedented deficits.
That isn't the change the country voted for.
Local governments are the logical first place to look for public sector job losses because they can't run deficits. When the economy stinks as bad as it's stunk for as long as President Obama's economy has, it will effect deficits and trigger public sector job losses.
Adding to the unsettled nature of things is the fact that President Obama's economic team apparently won't deviate from their failed strategic plan. They insist that we're heading in the right direction, that there will be bumps in the road :
"There are always going to be bumps on the road to recovery. We're going to pass through some rough terrain that even a Wrangler would have a hard time with. You know that," President Obama said at an auto plant in Ohio this afternoon.
Obama's joke about the Wrangler was met with widespread boos.
In 2008, President Obama couldn't do anything wrong. He had the Midas touch. This year, it's like he's got the anti-Midas touch. That's where everything gold that he touches turns to rusty iron. In 2008, thousands of people flocked to his campaign rallies. People were fainting at these rallies, too.
Now? The tide has shifted dramatically, as evidenced by the booing at his latest visit to a manufacturing plant.
The tide is shifting against President Obama. Couple today's jobs report with home prices hitting their lowest levels since 2006 to Q1's anemic GDP report and you've got sufficient reason to think that President Obama's policies are failing, not succeeding.
His strategists know that painting that dismal economic picture won't get President Obama re-elected.
At least Maalox sales will increase.
Posted Friday, June 3, 2011 8:25 PM
Comment 1 by eric z at 04-Jun-11 01:22 PM
I get the feeling if your people would run Ron Paul you might win. The hesitancy is strange to me. He is the one Republican seeming to talk sense, not buzz words, not divisive mixed-up stuff. He is coherent, and clear about what he really stands for, whether you agree or disagree.
Pawlenty comes across as a lesser candidate on such measures. I'd buy the used car from Ron Paul.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 04-Jun-11 02:57 PM
Simply put, Ron Paul isn't a serious candidate. I know lefties love him but he simply isn't taken seriously except by his loyalists. Frankly, if this economy doesn't improve, most of the GOP candidates will be able to defeat President Obama.
I wouldn't have any trouble picturing TPaw, Rick Perry & Michele Bachmann as the 45th POTUS.
Comment 2 by IndyJones at 04-Jun-11 04:13 PM
Everyone assumes Obama will be the candidate. I don't..he has the Gunwalker issue that will eat on him like Watergate and he doubled down on stupid with his handling of Israel and the other middle east countries. The Dems are beginning to abandon him and at a "proper" time Hillary will step in to save the day. Most of the candidates running are Rinos and what is the difference between them and Hillary? Not much. The only chance is a Bachmann, Palin, Paul, or DeMint combination. I'm done with Rinos. A vote is a two part process. One is to get rid of the Rino or Dem and the other is to replace with a tea party candidate.
Response 2.1 by Gary Gross at 04-Jun-11 05:07 PM
Sorry, Indy, but I won't have any difficulty supporting TPaw, Perry, Ryan or Bachmann. The only position in the executive branch that Ron Paul is qualified for is the Treasury Secretary. After that, no thank you. He's an isolationist & a passifist.
When Mitt Met Lindsey?
Since affirming that he's running for president, Mitt Romney has admitted that he's a manmade global warming hoax believer :
Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney broke with Republican orthodoxy on Friday by saying he believes that humans are responsible, at least to some extent, for climate change.
'I believe the world is getting warmer, and I believe that humans have contributed to that,' he told a crowd of about 200 at a town hall meeting in Manchester, New Hampshire.
"It's important for us to reduce our emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases that may be significant contributors."
In addressing climate change and energy policy, Romney called on the United States to break its dependence on foreign oil, and expand alternative energies including solar, wind, nuclear and clean coal.
This morning, I wrote on Twitter that Mitt's buying into the manmade global warming hoax was his attempt to lock down that all-important Lindsey Graham vote in the South Carolina primary. This afternoon, I received a PAC's fundraising letter:
Some politicians will say and do anything to feel popular. That need to fit in has created an incestuous relationship between Republicans and Democrats that has prevented the implementation of commonsense policies. To actually implement our shared conservative vision, we must first address the politicians in the party that claims to represent us: the Republican Party.
Lindsey Graham continually undermines conservative efforts on a wide range of issues, from immigration to the debt ceiling. He is the quintessential big-government Republican, committed to maintaining the power of the central government that he helps control. This time, we have had enough. We are going to send a shot across Lindsey's bow by running a media campaign in his home state of South Carolina. This will not only serve to pressure Graham to at least pretend to be a conservative, but will also send a message to all big-government Republicans (are you listening Scott Brown?) that we will no longer support the politicians who betray us!
Mitt Romney is the worst kind of politician. He has absolutely no foundation based on principle. He tailors his message based on what is politically expedient. After we announced the launch of our Stop Romney campaign, a handful of people have argued: ?but he is the only person who can beat Obama. This is the narrative that the liberal media has been pushing. Night after night, in the old-media complex, pundits claim that independent voters will only respond to a pandering ?moderate like Mitt Romney.
First, I want to make it perfectly clear that I want to see Scott Brown re-elected in Massachusetts. In Massachusetts, Scott Brown is as conservative a person as can get elected with an R behind his name. It's also worth noting that Scott Brown hasn't tried pretending that he was as conservative as Jim Demint.
Now that that's out of the way, let's focus on Mitt's faults. In terms of personal character traits, Mitt's flip-flops are disastrous in a TEA Party world. People are demanding honesty and character in their elected officials. Mitt isn't devoid of those traits but he doesn't have an overabundance of those traits, either.
Entering the presidential sweepstakes, Mitt's attachment to the father of Obamacare was seen as his biggest difficulty in winning the Republican nomination. Now that he's sided with Lindsey Graham on MMGW, that's running a very, very close second.
Why would TEA Party conservatives and clear-thinking independents vote for Mitt, knowing that he's gone off the reservation on two issues of great importance to Republicans?
I've said before what I'll repeat now: Mitt is the quintessential CEO, changing his packaging and presentation to fit his needs. That isn't what a principled TEA Party conservative does. That means Mitt isn't a TEA Party conservative who'll never earn the votes of TEA Party conservatives. If he's the nominee, expect TEA Party activists to abandon the Republican Party in droves.
Let's ask some other questions, starting with whether I'd trust him picking Supreme Court justices. I wouldn't because Mitt isn't a federalist or a constitutionalist. Period. Would I trust Mitt to limit the authority of the EPA or the FCC? Based on what I'm seeing, I wouldn't.
This election isn't just about creating jobs, as Mitt wants us to believe. It's about limiting government's reach, governing according to principles that the Founding Fathers put at the heart of the founding documents and finally sealing the U.S./Mexican border.
I can't say I'd be confident Mitt wouldn't sell us out on each of those things.
I still haven't picked a candidate that I'm supporting. In fact, I don't think it'd be wise to do that for at least 4-6 months. That said, I'm announcing that I won't take Mitt seriously because he isn't principled and I can't be certain he wouldn't undercut the TEA Party/conservative movement a minute after his inauguration.
I won't support politicians that I don't trust, even if they get Lindsey Graham's approval.
Posted Saturday, June 4, 2011 2:08 PM
Comment 1 by Terry McCall at 06-Jun-11 02:33 PM
Gary,
Good points. We can not endorse another media and neocon chosen RINO candidate. How did McCain work out for us?
I remember a guy who everyone said was too old to be electable; who long articulated the Barry Goldwater, small government, more liberty, constitutional message. The Party chose the moderate who lost to the peanut farmer in 1976. Reagan ran again, and in 1980 won in a landslide with votes from the middle and from unions.
The media declares a new Republican 'front runner' every other week. Only one consistently wins key polls with the base, and is in a dead heat with Obama; Ron Paul.
Regards,
Terry
