June 16-29, 2018
Jun 16 08:43 Why would Gov. Dayton care? Jun 21 23:05 Back in the saddle Jun 21 23:46 The Showstopper-in-Chief Jun 22 06:29 Trump's silent endorsement Jun 22 19:37 Imagine Jun 23 05:29 Imagine, Part II Jun 28 16:14 Ocasio-Cortez's victory is a Democrat defeat Jun 29 00:09 Democrats come unhinged Jun 29 14:28 The immoderate Democrats
Prior Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr May
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Why would Gov. Dayton care?
When Gov. Dayton vetoed the Republicans' tax conformity bill, Gov. Dayton complained that Republicans didn't "punish" corporations enough. Now, they're spinning the veto by promising "software, forms and everything else Minnesotans need to get their state taxes done will be ready in time." That's not all. Cynthia Bauerly, the commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Revenue promises "there won't be a bigger state tax bite."
That's easy for her to say. She'll have another job by the time Minnesotans file their taxes next year. What's important is that Commissioner Bauerly's statement is verifiably false. People with higher incomes who itemize will pay more in taxes. That's been proven in every state in the US.
What's also proven is that the Dayton administration is filled with cronies who are political hacks. Why should I trust Commissioner Bauerly, especially when she says something that she can't be held accountable for? What's going to happen to her if she's caught lying next April? By then, we'll have a Republican governor and a new commissioner. She'll likely have a lucrative job in the private sector.
In early April, Ms. Bauerly wrote this op-ed in which she said "In his March 25 commentary, John Spry asked if the governor's tax plan would mean a tax cut for Minnesotans. Let me answer: It does. Over 2 million Minnesota families and many small businesses and farmers will see a tax cut under the Governor's plan."
First, it's important to know that Professor Spry is the leading tax economist in Minnesota. In his op-ed , Dr. Spry wrote this:
Gov. Mark Dayton is proposing a $1.4 billion tax hike over the next four years, according to his official 2018 budget documents. But he is incorrectly telling the people of Minnesota that his tax hike provides 'tax cuts for over 2 million Minnesotans." This difference occurs because the official budget documents include all of his tax proposals. In his public statements, he brags about selected parts of his tax plan, while omitting some big tax increases from his calculations. He proposes increasing taxes on Minnesotans by reinstating the 2 percent tax on everybody's medical bills that is scheduled to go away. This tax hike raises about $999 million per biennium in tax revenue beginning in 2020, according to his budget documents.
Gov. Dayton also proposes more than $30 million a year in additional business-to-business sales taxes on software used in data centers. There are also other assorted business tax hikes in his budget. Consumers would pay these business taxes through higher prices. Workers would pay through lower wages and reduced employment opportunities. Investors would pay through lower rates of return.
In other words, Commissioner Bauerly omitted some important things. She omitted some important things because Gov. Dayton tried playing games by putting together a bill that included tax increases. Then he put together a bill that cut taxes. When Commissioner Bauerly says that Minnesotans won pay more in taxes next April, why shouldn't we think that she's being dishonest? Why shouldn't we think that she isn't being fully truthful?
Posted Saturday, June 16, 2018 8:43 AM
Comment 1 by Chad Quigley at 17-Jun-18 07:30 AM
They can't get MNLARS to work so why would we think they can get the software, forms, and "everything else" we will need to file ready in time?
Back in the saddle
It feels good to be back in the blogging saddle again after spending the last 2 days in the hospital with back spasms. The good news is that they ran a CT scan and x-rays and didn't find anything in terms of broken bones or anything out of the ordinary. I was given instructions to not spend as much time in front of the computer so I'll obey those instructions.
Posted Thursday, June 21, 2018 11:05 PM
Comment 1 by Gretchen Leisen at 23-Jun-18 01:06 PM
Welcome back. Hope you are feeling better. You were missed, especially after the Duluth rally with POTUS. You are right. Sometimes sitting at a desk in front of a computer or TV, for that matter, can cause havoc on muscles which have not been exercised.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 30-Jun-18 12:35 AM
Thanks Gretchen. I'm currently in Sartell at a rehab center but I've got access to a computer. I get discharged this Monday.
The Showstopper-in-Chief
By all accounts, Wednesday night's Trump rally was a major success for Pete Stauber. First, President Trump is wildly popular in the Eighth District. Next, Stauber got a ton of positive attention during the campaign rally. Third and perhaps most importantly, President Trump drew a ton of people to the rally . Check out the people gathered at a parking ramp near the arena:
So sorry, people wanting to get into the already packed arena - I LOVE YOU ALL! pic.twitter.com/PFvXrsvgkA
- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 20, 2018
Stauber's campaign manager must've smiled after seeing that picture. Stauber's campaign manager must've been pleased to see Pete handle the big spotlight this beautifully, too:
[Video no longer available]
That doesn't guarantee a Stauber victory this fall but it'll guarantee him tons of favorable press. This report noted something incredible:
At least 25 percent of the audience was under the age of 30, and around 40 percent were women. The senior citizen percentage was less than 10 percent - the lowest I've ever seen at a Republican event. Other than the hundred or so party leaders, this was a vastly different crowd from the Minnesota Republican Convention that I attended in Duluth three weeks ago. None of the attendees I spoke with in the concession line at the rally were politically active (other than voting) and none were born-and-bred Republicans.
If that's the case, then I'm inclined to move this race from the toss-up category to the slightly leans GOP category. That isn't good news for the DFL because they've got 3 top-tier candidates who are beating the daylights out of each other through the mid-August primary.
Posted Thursday, June 21, 2018 11:46 PM
No comments.
Trump's silent endorsement
President Trump didn't officially endorse Tim Pawlenty during his rally in Duluth this week but he helped Pawlenty's campaign by mentioning his running mate in the opening minutes of the rally:
[Video no longer available]
Trump said "I also want to thank Lt. Gov. Michelle Fischbach for being here. She has been so great. Got a big race coming along. She's gonna do great. The Johnson campaign tried downplaying the mention:
Johnson campaign manager Justin Arnold dismissed the significance of Trump's mention of Fischbach. "She's the sitting Lt. Governor of Minnesota and was there in that capacity," Arnold said in an email. "It's not surprising at all that she would be mentioned."
With all due respect, President Trump didn't just mention Fischbach as the sitting lt. gov. of Minnesota. President Trump also mentioned that she's "got a big race" and that "she's gonna do great" in that upcoming race.
The bigger point is that Jeff Johnson travelled to Duluth in the hopes of getting Trump's endorsement and came away without getting mentioned. That's noteworthy considering the fact that he's the Republicans' endorsed candidate for governor.
I don't dislike Jeff Johnson. I think he's a good man who's solid on policy. It's that I like Tim Pawlenty more. Pawlenty has clearly had a better run of things in terms of fundraising than Johnson. President Trump's mention of Lt. Gov. Fischbach won't help Johnson's fundraising.
On the DFL side, Erin-Squared will likely win the DFL Primary because Lori Swanson and Tim Walz will likely split the rural vote while E-Squared will feast on urban votes thanks to the DFL primary in the Fifth District. That primary will be way in the rear-view mirror by the time November rolls around.
Posted Friday, June 22, 2018 6:29 AM
Comment 1 by Gretchen Leisen at 23-Jun-18 01:10 PM
Trump does have a way at tweeking liberals buttons. In case you missed it, Rolling Stone ran a report on the Duluth rally and those who were in attendance. We now have an official new name - we are 'lightweight Yahoos."
Imagine
Imagine a political party implicitly saying that they don't want this nation's laws enforced. Imagine if this same political party also implicitly said that they wouldn't lift a finger to help fix problems. Imagine if that political party wanted to run a re-election campaign based solely on their obstructionism.
Actually, you don't have to imagine it. It's what's happening this minute. It's what Democrats intend on doing. This minute, Democrats are standing in the way of fixing the loopholes in this nation's immigration laws. If the loopholes were about gun control, Democrats would be demanding that those loopholes be closed. If we were talking about taxes, Democrats would be demanding that those loopholes be closed. When it comes to this nation's immigration laws, Democrats insist that those loopholes remain open.
Beyond that, Democrats actually think that they can win back control of the House and possibly the Senate by being obstructionists. At a time when the American people are demanding solutions, the Democrats' message to those voters is that they proved daily that they hate President Trump. They're unanimously opposed to Republicans' reasonable attempts to fix our immigration laws. That's after Democrats unanimously voted against the Trump/GOP tax cuts that have this economy running stronger than at any time during the Obama administration .
Consumer confidence is sky-high. Wages are steadily increasing. Unemployment is microscopic. Unemployment for women is the lowest it's been in 50+ years. Minority unemployment is the lowest it's been in history. Think of this: these major accomplishments have happened without a single Democrat voting for any of the policies that have caused this regeneration.
The only thing worse than the Democrats' obstructionism and insistence on not enforcing this nation's laws is the MSM's treating this position as routine. I've scoured Youtube in an attempt to find a single video of the MSM criticizing the Democrats' obstructionism. I didn't find a single video showing a network news anchor or correspondent criticizing the Democrats.
Let's put this before the American people. Let's tell them that the Democrats insist on not enforcing our borders. Let's tell the American people that the Democrats won't lift a legislative finger to stop MS-13 from entering the country. Let's tell the American people that Democrats won't lift a finger to prevent human trafficking, sex trafficking or drug cartels. Let's point the finger at Democrats for the murders of Kate Steinle, Grant Ronnebeck and others.
I triple-dog dare Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi to meet with a group of angel families and explain why they won't build President Trump's wall. Democrats won't do that in a million years. That's because they're too indebted to the special interests to do the right thing. The Trump/Republican campaign slogan is exceptionally simple:
The Democrats' slogan would be slightly different. The Democrats' slogan would read 'Putting the Special Interests First.'
Posted Friday, June 22, 2018 7:37 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Quigley at 23-Jun-18 05:39 AM
The ultra progressive wing of the Democrat party is really overplaying their hand especially when the recent poll puts most of the blame on the illegal immigrants for the separation of children. The people who elected Trump may not have a voice in the media but they sure will come election day in November and I think the left may take another beating.
Comment 2 by Gretchen Leisen at 23-Jun-18 08:59 PM
Hopefully the 'deplorable, lightweight Yahoos' who attended the rally in Duluth will help swell the GOP vote in November and Make Minnesota Red. Let's pray that your prediction comes true.
Imagine, Part II
Imagine the world without the United States. Better yet, imagine the world without a superpower whose stated national goals of "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" are found early in that nation's Founding Document . Then picture the consequences of not having such a superpower. Picture the oppression that wouldn't be called out. Then picture the despots that wouldn't be singled out.
There's a need for the United States. We are the example to the world of what's possible. Unfortunately, the Democrats' vision isn't one of a great superpower that other nations gravitate towards. Their vision is of a nation that doesn't believe in the rule of law, that prefers chaos over order, that picks appeasement over strength on the international stage.
The Declaration of Independence isn't just a founding document. It's a statement that shouts to the world what our national goals will be:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. - That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, - That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
It's true that most people want immigration reform. That being said, it's equally true that that people want order, not chaos. Who can look at what's happening at the Tex-Mex Border and call that orderly?
[Video no longer available]
In this post, I wrote "I triple-dog dare Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi to meet with a group of angel families and explain why they won't build President Trump's wall. Democrats won't do that in a million years. That's because they're too indebted to the special interests to do the right thing." Here's a panel of Angel Moms whose children were killed or murdered by illegal aliens:
[Video no longer available]
What are Democrats thinking? They're actually siding with the drug cartels, gangs like MS-13, human traffickers and sex slaves. Why isn't the MSM reporting on this part of the immigration issue? There isn't a justification for not covering this aspect from a financial standpoint.
Do-nothing Democrats deserve to get questioned about their immigration policies. If they aren't willing to a) close the loopholes in our immigration laws, b) build President Trump's wall and c) virtually eliminate the flood of illegal immigrants, then people need to throw the bums out.
The Declaration of Independence that we have the unalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. If Democrats aren't willing to guarantee those rights with their immigration plan, then they need to be thrown out.
Posted Saturday, June 23, 2018 5:29 AM
Comment 1 by eric z at 27-Jun-18 12:49 PM
Imagine the Boss of Queens losing a party primary to a twenty-eight year old Latina who takes the subway, eats at diners, and is still paying off student loans.
Imagine people having sense for a CHANGE. A real one, maybe, this time . . .
Imagine any single presently self-declared Republican Conservative ever having written favorably about Never Trump.
Does that stretch your imagination?
Ocasio-Cortez's victory is a Democrat defeat
When Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez pummeled Joe Crowley , it's likely that Bernie Sanders did a dance. Though it's unconfirmed, it's likely that House Republicans quietly celebrated, too.
Why wouldn't Republicans celebrated because she's now the highest-profile Democrat to call for abolishing ICE. While the American people want children re-united with their illegal alien parents, that doesn't mean they want open borders, which is what abolishing ICE would trigger. (Like Yassir Arafat, Democrats never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.)
Nobody I know faults Ocasio-Cortez for celebrating. They're just thrilled at the opportunity to tie the open borders tag around the Democrats' necks. Certainly, Nancy Pelosi isn't happy with this development. She'd hoped to convince the American people that the Democrats were centrists/moderates like Conor Lamb. Thanks to Ms. Ocasio-Cortez and Mark Pocan and other Democrats pushing for the destruction of ICE, that wish disappeared. Whether Ms. Pelosi wanted to pretend she was a centrist isn't up to her.
[Video no longer available]
Republicans should send special thanks to MSNBC for highlighting Ocasio-Cortez's victory. Then again, it's impossible to hide Joe Crowley's defeat.
Make no mistake about this. This is the Democrats' worst nightmare. How do Democrats explain away Pocan's bill calling for the abolition of ICE ? It's one thing to criticize the harsh treatment of children of illegal aliens. It's another to call for open borders.
Posted Thursday, June 28, 2018 4:14 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 28-Jun-18 06:02 PM
While I don't think we can take the progressive socialists lightly, I think it's great these far left people are winning so the whole country can see how screwed up they are.
Comment 2 by Rex Newman at 28-Jun-18 07:37 PM
After an admittedly bad last week, Trump might be having his best week ever! MAGA! Gifts like this, Kennedy retirement falling out of the sky! It's too much winning, we can't take anymore! MAGA!
Now if we could only MMGA...
Democrats come unhinged
Let's be blunt. I could use that title for 20 articles per day if I wanted and each of those articles would be about different articles. This time, I'm talking about the Democrats' reaction following Justice Kennedy's retirement announcement.
Nan Aron's op-ed is a classic example of the left's coming unhinged. Aron wrote "While the news of Justice Anthony Kennedy's retirement is not entirely unexpected, it still comes as a thunderclap. This is even more true now than it would have been last June, when speculation also swirled around his possible departure. Since then, we have had another year to observe the Trump administration's downward spiral into cruelty and incoherence, an approach to governing that has not spared the judicial branch. Trump has continued to target courts and judges with the crudest of insults, even as his White House works overtime to push forward lower-court judicial nominees who are among the most ideologically extreme and professionally underqualified we have seen in nearly 40 years in this field."
Aron's opinion is based solely on the fact that none of the likely candidates are wildly liberal whose rulings aren't utterly predictable before the lawsuit gets to the Supreme Court. Aron isn't alone. Watch CNN's Jeffrey Toobin totally lose it in this interview:
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That's a stunning prediction. It's also wildly inaccurate. By comparison, though, his prediction is mild compared with Chris Matthews' diatribe:
[Video no longer available]
Wow! That's what unhinged looks like. Couple those videos with the Left's increasing calls for abolishing ICE and you're looking at a political party that's too unhinged to be given the reins of power. Speaking of which, the first 2 Democrat presidential candidates (Kamala Harris and Kirsten Gillibrand) have joined in calling for abolishing ICE.
Why would anyone think that these people are fit for office? What proof is there that they aren't permanently unhinged? It's one thing to disagree with the opposition about policy. This isn't that. This is about people losing it emotionally.
In fact, check out Maxine Waters lose it:
[Video no longer available]
Do these people look like anyone you'd trust with your pet? If you wouldn't trust them babysitting your pet, why would you give them control of any of the levers of political power? I surely wouldn't.
Posted Friday, June 29, 2018 12:09 AM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 29-Jun-18 03:32 PM
While I did not like the Obama administration and was frustrated at almost everything they did, I never became unhinged like these whack-a-doodles. There's no way I'd allow these nut jobs access to may pets!
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 30-Jun-18 12:34 AM
Chad, let's be blunt. I think more & more people are noticing that Democrats aren't just wrong on the issues but that they're nuts as hell. It's my belief that this will hurt the DFL locally & Democrats nationally in this year's elections. Until Democrats truly become more moderate, people won't trust them enough to deliver them a majority.
The immoderate Democrats
I've been writing for months that Democrats aren't anything close to moderate. I've written about how Democrats unflinchingly sided with environmental activists during the Obama administration rather than side with miners or pipeline construction unions. I've written about Salena Zito's observations from the campaign trail showing how disconnected Democrats are with Blue Collar America. This article highlights how immoderate Democrats are and how they aren't pretending to be moderate anymore.
The article's second paragraph says "Socialist Bernie Sanders is unquestionably the spiritual leader of the Democratic party, which is radicalizing itself in his image, and on the strength of her blowout Democratic-primary win over liberal incumbent Joe Crowley in the party-ruled NY-14 congressional district, soon-to-be-congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is now one of the most prominent faces in the Democratic party. A poll last fall put support for socialism at 44 percent among Millennials, and even more disturbingly, 23 percent of this group agreed that Joseph Stalin is a 'hero.' Socialized medicine, i.e., Medicare for all, is the hottest issue on the Left (unless you count hating Trump as an 'issue')."
There's no questioning whether Bernie-mania is running wild within the Democratic Party. What's getting questioned is whether Bernie-mania will help or hurt Democrats. At this point, I'm betting that it'll hurt Democrats. Imagine how upset entrepreneurs will be when watching this video:
[Video no longer available]
Imagine being a small business owner working 60+ hours a week but then being told that they aren't paying their fair share of taxes. To most people in that situation, they think they're paying too much taxes while working too hard.
If Democrats want to preach the gospel of tax fairness while the economy roars, that's their option. I'll just predict it won't turn out well.
Posted Friday, June 29, 2018 2:28 PM
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