May 14-16, 2018
May 14 01:41 Exposing the national media May 14 10:48 Getting the politicians' attention May 14 13:00 Pushing Met Council accountability May 14 21:16 Libert vs. citizen participation May 15 08:46 City Council's shifting rules May 15 15:50 Additional Dayton administration incompetence highlighted May 15 23:45 Tina Smith vs. Gina Haspel May 16 00:36 Suitcases filled with cash? May 16 10:00 The GOP's prosperity policies
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Exposing the national media
That might seem like a rhetorical question but it isn't. It's meant to highlight just how badly the DC media, aka the MSM, misread what's happening outside the Beltway and along the coasts. Fortunately for Minnesotans and others in the Great Lakes and Rust Belt states, there's a reporter who understands Heartlandspeak. Her name is Salena Zito and she's a national treasure.
Salena has a book out that talks about the populist movement happening across the nation. The name of the book , which she co-wrote with Brad Todd, is "The Great Revolt: Inside the Populist Coalition Reshaping American Politics." Follow the link above to get your copy. That's a strong suggestion. (It doesn't become an order until you purchase it. LOL) But I digress.
During the panel discussion on CBS's Face the Nation, Dan Balz said "I ended up talking more to Republicans than people who had supported Trump. But in talking to some of the Democrats in the Midwest, I think there's a feeling that the national Democratic Party doesn't understand the Midwest in the same way that a lot of the Trump voters felt that they didn't understand the Midwest. And their view is, the Democrats have to figure out a way to be able to talk to the center of the country while continuing to hold the coasts. And if they can do that, then they will be genuinely competitive in 2020."
Then they turned to the real expert (Salena Zito) on the issue:
BRENNAN: And, Salena, that's a question you're asking in your book. I mean, is that even possible?
SALENA ZITO, "WASHINGTON EXAMINER": Well, and, you know, one of the things about this coalition is, is that Donald Trump wasn't the cause of it. He was the result of it. So this coalition, I believe, is willing to continue to break things, even outside the ballot box. I'm unsure what's going to happen in -- in the midterms. But I do understand that it is still pretty strong and it's pretty intense and they still believe that both political parties, not just the Democrats but the Republicans as well, aren't listening to what they have to say. And I find that fascinating that this movement is going on. But we're still not hearing it. And -- and so that --
BRENNAN: Not hearing it you're saying on Capitol Hill? Not hearing it how?
ZITO: Not hearing it in the way it's depicted when -- typically when there's news reports and they talk about, you know, well, the Trump voter is this and or that and this is what they want. Case in point, look at the Republicans in West Virginia, they were convinced that Don Blankenship had a chance. Well, I had been to West Virginia. It's in my backyard. I live in Pittsburgh. Don Blankenship had zero chance. Absolutely none. But both the Republican establishment and a lot of the news media thought this was something that was going to happen. So they still don't understand what is causing this coalition to stay together, but also to have their voice be heard in the ballot box.
In my estimation, there are 2 motivators for the Trump coalition. First, to tap into this coalition requires good listening. If you aren't hearing what the people are frustrated about, you won't tap into the power of this movement. The other requirement is to fulfill the promises made to the people you've just listened to.
Trump the candidate promised to move the US Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. That promise gets fulfilled today. Another promise kept is getting out of the Iran deal. That was fulfilled last Tuesday. Another promise kept is the reduction of regulations. That started a month into his administration. It's still continuing.
[Video no longer available]
I've been pretty contrarian about the midterms thus far. After watching Salena today talk about Don Blankenship and how the MSM got it badly wrong, I'm more convinced than ever that the Democrats' blue wave won't materialize. That isn't because I think that people think Republicans have changed into this promise-keeping political party. My theory is that there won't be a blue wave because Democrats haven't prioritized listening to people. Identity politics gets in the way of that. Further, it's also my theory that they haven't prioritized making and keeping promises with people who aren't part of their identity politics special interests.
Posted Monday, May 14, 2018 1:41 AM
No comments.
Getting the politicians' attention
One of the things that people don't get about the Trump phenomenon is why his followers are steadfastly loyal. The answer is simple. They've been complaining for years, decades sometimes, without getting the politicians' attention. The thing that Trump's done that's built his unwavering support is that he's listened.
Here in St. Cloud, the 5 ostriches aren't interested in listening. Because they haven't been interested in listening, a small but principled group of determined citizens is about to get the ostriches' attention. Their petition states " A Citizen Committee for an Initiative and Referendum Regarding a Call for Action by Elected O?cials Representing the City of St. Cloud Presented to the City Clerk on May 14th, 2018 Under the provisions of the Home Rule Charter of the City of St. Cloud, MN under the Comprehensive Revision Adopted March 18, 1952 and it's Amendments Through the Period of Time Ending July 10th, 2017 (Home Rule Charter), we the undersigned residents and registered voters in the City of St. Cloud acting as a Citizen Committee, as de?ne by the Home Rule Charter, are exercising the Powers Reserved by the People under Article V of the Home Rule Charter, do hereby petition for a proposed resolution of the City of St. Cloud addressing actions to be taken by elected o?cials of the City of St. Cloud regarding the federal government's Refugee Act of 1980 and it's amendments. Said resolution shall be placed before the voters of the City of St. Cloud at the next General Election. (Provisions of the Home Rule Charter are o?ered for information purposes following the signatures of the Citizen Committee)."
The citizens of St. Cloud have said that they're worried about the expenses attached to the Refugee Act of 1980. The ostriches have declared that the city can handle the additional burdens or they've denied outright that the financial burdens exist. The citizens that signed this notice of petition steadfastly disagree with the ostriches, aka Jeff Goerger, Dave Masters, John Libert, Carol Lewis and Steve Laraway.
At tonight's city council meeting, Councilman Johnson will speak to this issue at tonight's City Council meeting. Expect lots of eyerolls and looks of total disinterest on the ostriches' faces. When they decide to ignore something, they set their heart, mind, soul and strength to it.
Posted Monday, May 14, 2018 10:48 AM
No comments.
Pushing Met Council accountability
At some point, the Met Council's structure will get changed. The Met Council was created in 1967 when " it lacked any regional perspective in governance or long-term vision. Development was intruding on such basics as sewage treatment and water supplies with untreated waste going into the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers and lakes and streams. Hundreds of individual septic systems and private wells foretold a public health disaster waiting to happen. There were no regional parks. Natural areas were under threat from haphazard housing projects and shopping centers."
The key part of John Diers' op-ed is the opening paragraph, which says " We recommend that the 1967 Legislature create a Metropolitan Council, directly elected by popular vote of the people , to solve the pressing area wide governmental problems of the Twin Cities in a coordinated manner. The Council would be responsible only for those area wide functions and services which cannot be handled adequately by municipalities and counties and which are specifically assigned to the Council by the Legislature. "
51 years later, the Met Council is still an unaccountable body of government whose members are still appointed by the governor. That certainly wasn't the type of government that the people who advocated for the Met Council envisioned.
Congressman Jason Lewis has introduced an amendment to legislation in Congress that would require all metropolitan planning organizations that receive federal funds have locally elected officials on their boards. The Metropolitan Council is presently exempt from that requirement having been grandfathered under earlier legislation. In a statement from Rep. Lewis:
"Our amendment does not seek to change the operations or scope of the Met Council. It does not attempt to change the activities of the board. It simply requires that for a board to be in compliance they need to have locally elected official representation consistent with every other MPO in the country."
It's time for the Met Council to comply with federal law. It isn't doing that right now.
Posted Monday, May 14, 2018 1:00 PM
No comments.
Libert vs. citizen participation
During the Open Discussion & Announcements section of tonight's St. Cloud City Council meeting, Councilman Johnson rose to speak about the petition I wrote about in this post . After a few introductory comments, Councilman Johnson recognized Dr. Palmer for the purposes of letting him speak on the petition. Before Dr. Palmer was allowed to speak, Councilman Libert objected.
What happened next was nothing short of befuddling. First, the rule cited by Council President Lewis and Councilman Libert is unconstitutional on its face. Government can't make rules that silence citizens. Period. That's what this means:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech , or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances .
By objecting, Libert prohibited a citizen from speaking. The Supreme Court has held that political speech is the most protected speech of all. This isn't the first time that the City Council has silenced Dr. Palmer. But I digress.
After Libert's objection, Councilman Johnson reasserted his right to recognize a citizen to speak. Matt Staehling then ruled that Libert was within his rights in preventing Dr. Palmer from speaking. Johnson and Palmer both immediately demanded that the specific Council rule be posted on the overhead screen rather than accepting Staehling's ruling. How stupid is a rule that lets a councilman recognize a citizen but another councilman can essentially exercise a one-person veto that prohibits that citizen from speaking?
Putting things impolitely, these liberals on the Council aren't intellectual giants. I've met kids in high school that have more intellectual heft than some of these councilmembers.
While that was going on, Council President Lewis announced that she was going to look for the rule on her brand new iPad. Councilman Johnson predicted that she wouldn't find it. Dr. Palmer quipped that his older iPad must be defective because that rule wasn't on his iPad. Watch this all play out in this video:
[Video no longer available] After much arguing, Council President Lewis moved onto the final portion of the meeting. Once again, the St. Cloud City Council attempted to silence Dr. Palmer. The question must be asked why the City Council is intimidated by Dr. Palmer. Further, what gives them the right to stifle the speech of its citizens? Let's remember that if this petition is put on the ballot, it isn't binding. Dr. Palmer simply wants to bring up the subject because the City Council has attempted to silence discussion on the issue.
Meanwhile, the citizens are infuriated that their representatives on the City Council won't talk about what's important to their constituents. In St. Cloud, we don't have a government of, by and for the people. Instead, we have a government of people who see themselves as imperialists. They aren't there to serve the people. To people like Laraway, Lewis, Libert, Masters and Goerger, citizens are essentially a nuisance.
Originally posted Monday, May 14, 2018, revised 15-May 6:54 AM
Comment 1 by John Palmer at 14-May-18 09:55 PM
Gary you failed to mention the Mayor who often brags about being a Constitutionalis in your narrative. Tonight the Mayor was missing in action when it came to defending the US Constitution. You can't be a supporter of the US Constitution and then sit by and let it's First Amendment rights be shredded. Maybe the Mayor is a fair weather Constitutionalist? But this is the same Mayor who let his city administrator violate both the First Amendment rights of a citizen and has ignored the findings of a recent (Sept. 2017) ruling of the Minnesota Supreme Court. Some people would describe the Mayor's behavior as hypocritical.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 14-May-18 10:21 PM
That's a fair point, John. It's one of those things where I was thinking about a gazillion other things that had pissed me off that I missed that.
John, you've served as a parliamentarian at plenty of conventions throughout the years. Have you ever seen a rule so stupid that lets one city councilmember recognize a citizen but that also lets another city councilmember exercise what amounts to a 1-man veto that prevents that citizen from speaking?
Tonight, Carol Lewis, John Libert & Dave Kleis get ripped to shreds. That must change.
Comment 2 by Mary Dombrovski at 14-May-18 09:59 PM
Yep....that is pretty much what happened at the St. Cloud City Council meeting tonight.......very sad the council doesn't want to listen to the very citizens they were elected to represent. Sad indeed..........
Response 2.1 by Gary Gross at 14-May-18 10:24 PM
Mary, what's needed is citizens like yourself getting upset & voting these ostriches (Goerger, Laraway, Lewis, Libert & Masters) out of office the next time they're up for re-election. BTW, this year, Laraway, Libert & Masters are up for re-election.
Comment 3 by Dave Steckling at 14-May-18 10:14 PM
This council is beyond a 3 ring circus act. While there is a molecule of humor in their clowning around, their actions are unworthy of intelligent adults.
Comment 4 by Mary Dombrovski at 15-May-18 07:49 AM
Gary.....I am very concerned about what is going on in St. Cloud and am doing what I can....however I am not even a city resident and therefore cannot vote, though what happens in St. Cloud doesn't just stay in St. Cloud as you well know. We need city residents to come out in numbers to help bring central MN back to the people!
Response 4.1 by Gary Gross at 15-May-18 08:52 AM
Mary, you can still have an impact by contacting friends in St. Cloud & encouraging them to vote out the people stifling free speech.
City Council's shifting rules
Last night, the St. Cloud City Council disgraced itself by silencing a citizen. Specifically, Councilman John Libert, who is up for re-election this year, objected to Councilman Jeff Johnson recognizing a speaker. If you read my article last night, you know that the speaker Councilman Johnson wanted to recognize is John Palmer, a retired professor at St. Cloud State. Dr. Palmer holds the title of Professor Emeritus.
Last night, a faithful reader of LFR sent me a copy of the changing rules of order for the City Council. Saying that they reflect an autocratic mindset sounds over-the-top. The history and the detailed rules say something else. For instance, Rule No. 16 of the City Council Rules of Order "through August 2017" said "Recognition of Speakers a) Any member may recognize any person for the purpose of addressing the Council. Said recognition shall terminate upon motion passed by a majority vote of members present."
By the Dec. 11, 2017 Study Session, Rule 16 had morphed into "Recognition of Speakers: a) Any member, at a regular council meeting, may recognize any person for the purpose of providing testimony or addressing the Council on a specific agenda item being considered by Council. Said recognition shall terminate upon motion passed by a majority vote of members present. Such recognition may also be extended at council study sessions with the consent of the majority of members present."
Last night, a different rule was in place:
Recognition of Speakers: a) Any member, at a regular council meeting, including study sessions, may recognize any person, without objection , for the purpose of providing testimony or addressing the Council on a specific agenda item being considered by Council. Said recognition shall terminate upon motion passed by a majority vote of members present.
The First Amendment guarantees citizens the right to "peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
Dr. Palmer had the right to "petition the Government" and address their grievances. Had this happened in August, Dr. Palmer would have had the right to address the Council, though I suspect that Council President Lewis still would have improperly shut him down. She, along with the other ostriches, haven't hesitated in restricting citizens' speech rights if it's speech they don't agree with. What's most infuriating is the fact that the rules that were in place last night weren't approved by the City Council nor were they voted on in this form.
Think about that. Dr. Palmer was silenced by the city council president after she agreed with one of the city councilmembers who cited a rule that wasn't voted on and that's likely unconstitutional. Such reckless regard for the rules lead to anarchy like we saw last night. This is what that looked like last night:
[Video no longer available]
Compare the St. Cloud City Council's behavior with the behavior in this article :
"I feel like justice was finally served," said Robin Hensel, whose refusal to move her chair at a 2013 Little Falls City Council meeting was at the heart of the court's decision. Hensel, a grandmother and peace activist who frequently protests at Camp Ripley, said she never thought she would actually get charged when she moved a folding chair to the open space between the public galley and the City Council's dais.
This is the major takeaway from that incident:
In its ruling Wednesday, the Supreme Court sided with Hensel, saying: "The statute is broad and ambiguous, prohibiting any conduct or speech that 'disturbs an assembly or meeting,' whether expressive or not. An individual could violate the statute by, for example, wearing an offensive t-shirt, using harsh words in addressing another person, or even raising one's voice in a speech."
The Founding Fathers, aka the men who wrote the Constitution, wanted more speech, not less. They didn't want speech being oppressed. They rebelled against that in their Declaration of Independence.
When Carol Lewis and John Libert silenced a retired professor, they trampled on a citizen's right to free speech. What's most alarming is that they silenced a man even though they didn't know what he was about to say. It's time to fire these autocrats the next time they're up for re-election. It's time to fire them because they're autocrats, not constitutionalists.
Finally, Mayor Kleis bears some responsibility, too. As Dr. Palmer highlighted in the comments last night, Mayor Kleis didn't fight against the constitutional missteps that happened last night. That can't happen again. There's never a time when the Constitution shouldn't be defended. Last night, Mayor Kleis missed an opportunity to defend the Constitution.
Posted Tuesday, May 15, 2018 8:46 AM
Comment 1 by Crimson Trace at 15-May-18 04:45 PM
Gary: 'without objection' is nebulous. John Palmer did not object to being recognized by Council member Johnson. I must have missed the 'without objection by any other council member language. So this means any council member who feels like a member of the public might be controversial should simply object.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 15-May-18 08:57 PM
CT, the other option for the Council is to grow a pair & actually listen to the people rather than objecting to hearing from We The People. That would be a revolutionary idea, something that they could be proud of. Unfortunately, the ostriches don't have the stones to do that.
Additional Dayton administration incompetence highlighted
It isn't difficult to find incompetence within the Dayton administration. The first high-profile example of incompetence, of course, was the MNsure disaster. This year, we've dealt with the MNLARS crisis, which is definitely a major case of incompetence.
State Sen. Karin Housley's investigation into the nursing home abuse crisis is a case of both incompetence and corruption since the caretakers who abused their patients weren't investigated. Only a portion of these cases were investigated.
The daycare scandal is both a matter of incompetence and corruption. It dwarfs the nursing home scandal. This morning, we learned through Fox9's excellent reporting that "Scott Stillman spent eight years managing the state's digital forensics lab, meaning he mined data from computers and smart phones. 'I have never seen anything like this level or scope in my 27-year career as an investigator,' he told Fox 9." Later in the interview, Stillman "was so alarmed by what he found that in March of 2017 he fired off a series of emails to his supervisors at DHS. 'We are working on and overwhelmed by a significant amount of fraud cases involving organized crime, defrauding hundreds of millions of dollars annually in taxpayer monies,' he wrote."
That means that the Dayton administration knew about this ripoff and did nothing. Let that sink it. The Dayton administration knew about this ripoff and did nothing. Now they're denying hearing about it:
According to Stillman, he alerted a number of people in DHS including the Commissioner's Chief of Staff with the following message: "Significant amount of these defrauded dollars are being sent overseas to countries and organizations connected to entities known to fund terrorists and terrorism."
At a Monday press briefing, the governor told Fox 9 his office was not told about the warnings. Sources tell the Fox 9 Investigators people within the governor's office were told about the concerns a couple of years ago. "My chief of staff, current and previous staff, from what I'm told, did not get any information alleging there was that kind of theft," Dayton said.
The Dayton administration finished with this gem:
DHS responded with a statement: "The Deputy Commissioner, communications and legal staff learned there may be emails on this subject when Fox 9 made its data request in March. The then-chief compliance officer was informed at the time the emails were originally sent."
What type of communications team did they establish in the Dayton administration? Or didn't they bother with that whatsoever? Or are they just lying?
Think about this: hundreds of millions of dollars left in suitcases via MSP. An inspector notices this & reports it to the Department of Human Services. Nothing happens until this Fox9 investigation. Then Gov. Dayton insists that he never heard about these whistleblower reports.
This isn't uncommon with Democrats. The Obama administration didn't admit that news about Fast and Furious made it to Eric Holder's desk. President Obama still insists that he found out about Hillary's private email address through a news report even after he sent her emails at her private email address. Why should anyone think that Democrats care one iota about accountability and honesty?
Posted Tuesday, May 15, 2018 3:50 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 15-May-18 05:48 PM
And yet the fools in this state would vote for this moron for a third term if he chose to run. I think the GOP needs to tell Dayton that he should get the money for the schools from the child care fund because it sure seems to be flush with cash.
Tina Smith vs. Gina Haspel
Just minutes ago, Tina Smith announced via this tweet that she won't vote to confirm Gina Haspel as the next CIA Director. In the tweet, Smith said "I've been clear since the start. I will vote NO on Gina Haspel. We cannot have someone lead the CIA who has involvement with torture on her resume. That Bush-era legacy is not something to be proud of."
Sen. Smith's after-the-fact quarterbacking is insulting. After 9/11, everyone was certain there'd be another terrorist attack. There wasn't another terrorist attack because the Bush 43 CIA discovered the intelligence that took out entire terrorist networks. That happened only because of the enhanced interrogation techniques employed right after 9/11.
Smith's faux moral preening is sickening. If she wants to argue whether 'torture' is effective, that's one thing. Arguing that it's immoral to torture a terrorist to gain information that disrupts an entire network of terrorists tells me that Smith puts a higher priority on moral preening than on doing whatever is necessary to prevent terrorist attacks. People with that attitude are foolish. They shouldn't be U.S. senators.
I've been clear since the start. I will vote NO on Gina Haspel. We cannot have someone lead the CIA who has involvement with torture on her resume. That Bush-era legacy is not something to be proud of.
- Tina Smith (@TinaSmithMN) May 16, 2018
At the time that these techniques were used, they were perfectly legal. The 'torture law' didn't get enacted until years later. Apparently, Tina Smith thinks it's ok to punish a person for doing things that were perfectly legal at the time they were done.
Further, Smith apparently hasn't considered whether Gina Haspel is qualified for the job. Unlike Smith, Haspel was on the front lines taking out terrorist networks and keeping America safe. After helping Walter Mondale lose to Norm Coleman in 2002, Tina Smith went to work for "Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota." Wow. Talk about fighting on the front lines in the war on terror. Simply put, Tina Smith isn't qualified to render an opinion on fighting terrorists. She's a community activist. She isn't a policy wonk by any stretch of the imagination. She's a policy lightweight.
On the other hand, she's perfectly suited to do what Chuck Schumer orders her to do. That seems to be the only thing she's skilled at.
Posted Tuesday, May 15, 2018 11:45 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 16-May-18 06:14 PM
Did you expect anything less from the less than qualified junior senator? Both of our senators are an embarrassment to this state.
I'll take a former water boarder over a limp wrist like Kerry, Clinton, or Obama all day long. What's wrong with a little torture anyway? Oh sure the Geneva Convention doesn't allow it but do you think our enemies follow it? Let's ask Otto Warmbier. Oh that's right, we can't because he was tortured to death.
Comment 2 by Rexnewman at 18-May-18 09:14 PM
Tina no doubt, probably enthusiastically voted for HRC. Some women are more equal than others?
Response 2.1 by Gary Gross at 19-May-18 02:26 AM
Just like the former Soviet Union, where all men are equal but where the oligarchs are more equal. That's a political philosophy that Tina likely feels comfortable with.
Suitcases filled with cash?
The DFL is doing its best to deny their responsibility for hundreds of millions of dollars of fraudulent child care payments to happen. That's what this MPR article amounts to.
The MPR article defends the Dayton administration by saying "Johnson said there wasn't any evidence presented in the former cases to indicate ties to terrorism. He also said he found the $100 million figure to be not 'credible.' That would account for half of the child-care assistance program. 'From what we know about the scope of fraud within the program, we're obviously concerned about it, but it's not at that level,' said Johnson."
Naturally, Keith Ellison is on the wrong side of this issue. The MPR article quotes Ellison as saying "Financial stability for the Somali people, both here and in Somalia, is one of our strongest protections against the terroristic threat posed by Al-Shabaab. We should be making it easier for our constituents to support their families, not impugning the community for it. Fox 9 should issue a thorough correction and apology for its irresponsible reporting.'"
Ellison knows better than to say this. A high percentage of the money being sent to Somalia is money that's been gained through fraud. That's been verified by Chuck Johnson, the acting commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Services, when he said "Essentially, it's like a shadow situation where there's not really care being provided for the children, but the children are signed up for care as if they are. And in some cases, the parents are paid a kickback to be part of that scheme."
I'm certain this is a foreign concept to Rep. Ellison but Fox9 News shouldn't apologize for reporting on this criminal activity. We know this is criminal activity because Chuck Johnson admitted that "an investigation that began in 2014 led to the closure of 13 child care centers, six felony convictions and $4.6 million in court-ordered restitution."
Jim Abeler was interviewed by FNC's Shannon Bream about the scandal:
Here's Tim Pawlenty's statement on the scandal:
Posted Wednesday, May 16, 2018 12:36 AM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 16-May-18 06:07 PM
Round them all up and ship them back to where they came from. No need to import people who don't like us and then steal our money to send it back to support terrorists, when we have our own liberal terrorists like Dayton we have to support.
The GOP's prosperity policies
Now that the GOP majorities in the Minnesota House and Senate have gotten together and ironed out their difference, their tax cut bill is heading to Gov. Dayton's desk . That's the good news. The bad news is that Gov. Dayton intends to veto it unless he gets additional funding for K-12 education.
The article states "The Minnesota House has passed a tax bill compromise with the Senate that promises to reduce tax rates and bring the state code in closer alignment with recent federal changes. That compromise, which has yet to be voted on in the state Senate, still doesn't have the approval of DFL Governor Mark Dayton. The agreement that House and Senate negotiators finalized just prior to Tuesday's vote would reduce taxes for an estimated 2.2 million Minnesotans. It would reduce state income tax rates for the first time in 18 years."
Gov. Dayton's job is to put in place policies that make Minnesotans' lives better. Thankfully, it won't be his job much longer. Frankly, he's been mediocre (at best) at it. Instead, Gov. Dayton has threatened to raise taxes if he doesn't get $138,000,000 in additional K-12 appropriations.
Rep. Greg Davids issued this statement after the House passed the bill:
If Gov. Dayton vetoes this bill, Republicans should campaign on this from now until Election Day.
Posted Wednesday, May 16, 2018 10:00 AM
No comments.
