May 15-16, 2015
May 15 03:05 President Obama's weasel words May 15 14:03 Progress in budget negotiations May 15 19:40 Potential budget deal reached - Dayton trying to blow it up? May 15 23:23 Dayton, Education Minnesota sabotage budget deal May 16 02:40 The Bakk-Dayton feud escalates May 16 02:52 Heavy blogging weekend ahead May 16 10:17 Pull the plug on ABC's debate May 16 12:13 Gov. Dayton refuses to listen May 16 18:03 DFL declares war against Tom Bakk
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
President Obama's weasel words
During President Obama's press conference with GCC nation leaders and delegations, he said some utterly laughable things. Here's the video of the entire press conference:
Here's the partial transcript I did to highlight what Charles Krauthammer called President Obama's weasel words:
PRES. OBAMA: I invited our GCC partners here today to deepen our cooperation and to work together to resolve conflicts across the region. I want to thank each of the leaders and delegations who attended. We approached our discussions in a spirit of mutual respect. We agree that the security relationship between the United States and our GCC partners will remain a cornerstone of regional stability and our relationship is a 2-way street. We all have responsibilities and, here at Camp David, we have decided to expand our cooperation in several important and concrete ways.
First, I am confirming our ironclad commitment to our GCC partners. As we've declared in our joint statement, the United States is prepared to work jointly with GCC member states to deter, confront and defend any GCC state's territorial integrity that is inconsistent with the UN charter. In the event of such aggression or the threat of such aggression, the United States stands ready to work with our GCC partners urgently to determine which actions may be appropriate, using the means at our collective disposal, including the potential use of military force for the defense of our GCC partners. And let me underscore that the United States keeps its commitments.
If I recall correctly, Charles counted 5 sets of weasel words in that final paragraph:
- The United States is prepared to work jointly with
- urgently to determine which actions may be appropriate
- I'm confirming our ironclad commitment
- including the potential use of military force
That's 4 sets of weasel words that mean nothing. Combined, though, they aren't as frightening to GCC member states as this statement:
And let me underscore that the United States always keeps its commitments.
I don't recall the exact wording Charles used in conveying what he thinks President Obama's statement meant but I'll come close with this paraphrase:
This is President Obama's statement of abandonment of the GCC member nations.
Remember, this summit was called by the Obama administration to assure them that he wasn't a terrible ally. These nations wanted a written statement saying that a) the United States wouldn't abandon them and b) the United States would provide military supplies to GCC member nations. Instead, President Obama stopped well short of those commitments. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have every right to worry that the Obama administration will do next to nothing if Iran tries destabilizing these Arab nations.
UPDATE: Here's the video and transcript of Charles Krauthammer's analysis of President Obama's summit:
CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS: President Obama trying to reassure Gulf nations by committing to help protect them from external attacks, including not ruling out the potential use of military force and we're back now with our panel. I gather that you don't view this as Article 5 of the NATO agreement.
CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER: This was absolutely pathetic. If this was meant to reassure the Gulf states I'm sure their hair is still standing on end. Let's go over this. There are a few ellipses here. In the event of such aggression, the United States stands ready, that's a weasel word number one, to work with -- weasel word number two -- with our partners to urgently determine -- boy, that's rough, that's a weasel phase number three -- what actions -- well, he doesn't say what actions, just any actions -- that's the fourth.
And now the kicker, "may be appropriate." I mean, I have never seen a statement with more caveats in it, which would give any less confidence to any ally. Obama, if you noticed, was reading that. That wasn't a bad ad-lib. That wasn't Jeb answering the wrong question. That was a prepared statement for a summit that is meant to reassure the Gulf Arabs that we are not selling them out. That was a sell out announcement.
WALLACE: I was going to follow up with that. The whole point of the summit was to try to assure the Sunni, the Gulf states, the six nations around the Persian Gulf led by Saudi Arabia that we aren't going to sell them out with Iran and that they can be sure of their security. Should they be reassured?
KRAUTHAMMER: They should be terrified. In fact, in one with of the other answers he was answering the objection that we're going to be unleashing billions of dollars into the Iranian treasury, which they will obviously use for the mischief, the destabilization that they are doing in the region, including Yemen, Syria, et cetera, threatening the Gulf Arabs.
His answer was, among other things not to worry, is that Iran has a lot of economic needs and they have made a commitment to their people to invest in infrastructure. So, they are not going to spend it, I assume, on Hezbollah, Hamas the Houthis and all the others. That is preposterous. And any Gulf Arab who hears that would be triply terrified.
Posted Friday, May 15, 2015 1:43 PM
Comment 1 by eric z at 15-May-15 07:43 AM
So? Are you saying our forces should be put at risk of death for the benefit of Arabs who are disinclined to fight their own fights, except with IS as their proxy?
What?
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 15-May-15 01:37 PM
Eric, it's great to hear from you again. As for sending in boots on the ground to fight in Yemen, which the Iranians are attempting to destabilize, I don't favor that. What I favor is supplying the Saudis and Jordanians with weapons to continue their fight against the Iranians.
As for ISIS, I'd support boots on the ground for 2 reasons. First, ISIS needs to be destroyed. Each day, I read an article about how they're expanding their terrorist network further west. It isn't a matter of whether they're coming. It's a matter of how soon they'll get there. Second, putting boots on the ground in Iraq would dramatically reduce Iran's influence in the Arab world, which is definitely in the U.S. interest. Finally, on the limited issue of whether we should send in boots on the ground to eliminate ISIS, the American people overwhelmingly support that policy.
Progress in budget negotiations
This headline is positive news in terms of whether we're heading for a shutdown:
Minnesota legislative leaders reach deal for $3 billion higher ed bill
Here are the details of the agreement:
Legislative negotiators settled on a spending increase for Minnesota's public colleges and universities Thursday, one of their first agreements after days of private talks.
Minnesota's next two-year budget will include $166 million in new higher education spending, bringing total state spending on the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities to $3 billion. The increase is likely not enough new funding to continue a freeze on tuition in place since 2013. School leaders requested roughly more than $270 million in new taxpayer money to hold the line on tuition and for other initiatives.
Gov. Mark Dayton wanted $283 million in new college spending to freeze tuition and invest new money in the University of Minnesota Medical School.
That's the first major spending bill that negotiators have reached agreement on. That's a positive sign. In 2011, the legislature passed a number of bills that met with Gov. Dayton's approval only to have him reject them without an agreement on raising taxes.
What people don't remember is that Gov. Dayton could've signed a bunch of bills in 2011 that would've kept the government open. He chose to veto those bills in his attempt to raise Minnesotans' taxes. That's indisputable fact.
This is the final weekend of the regular session. Thus far, 2 budget bills have been signed. This is the first budget bill that negotiators have reached agreement on. That leaves 5 budget bills still to be negotiated and voted on. That's a daunting task but it's amazing what can get accomplished when all parties might get blamed.
Posted Friday, May 15, 2015 2:03 PM
Comment 1 by Mystique at 15-May-15 07:03 PM
Will that be enough for Potter's worldwide travels?
Potential budget deal reached - Dayton trying to blow it up?
It sounds like we'll avoid a state government shutdown :
After five days of closed-door negotiations, Minnesota's top lawmakers said Friday evening that they have come to an agreement on state budget targets, in a deal that keeps MinnesotaCare intact and, as of yet, does not include transportation and tax initiatives.
'We are as close as we can possibly be to having an agreement,' DFL Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk said as he addressed reporters alongside Republican House Speaker Kurt Daudt. A spokesman for Gov. Mark Dayton said he is reviewing the offer.
Bakk said they will review the numbers Friday night before specifics are released. The Legislature is expected to suspend the rules to allow committees to work through the night, starting immediately. Daudt said his key priority was to get the work done so the legislative session would wrap before its Monday at midnight deadline. 'It's going to take some breakneck work over the next three days to get that done, but we feel like we're there,' Daudt said.
Looking back at this week, not finishing on time simply wasn't an option, especially with a $2,000,000,000 surplus. All sides would've lost, though I think the DFL would've had a tough time 'winning' the PR fight.
Still, there were signs early in the week that the DFL, especially Gov. Dayton, was planning on sabotaging the efforts in search of legacy accomplishments like universal pre-K and another tax increase. At this point, it looks like there's a fight forming for transportation and taxes for next year's session. That's a fight Republicans should relish.
While Republicans haven't won on their middle class tax cut initiative, they've won on the issue of raising the gas tax. That isn't happening. I can't imagine that there'd be much of an appetite for raising the gas tax next February for the DFL, especially when it's just months before the general election. At that point, I can't picture Sen. Bakk wanting to touch that hot potato, especially considering the fact that he's hinted that we don't really need a new transportation plan.
UPDATE: Gov. Dayton appears to be attempting to blow up the deal with last-minute demands on K-12 Education funding and universal pre-K. Apparently, Gov. Dayton isn't interested in doing the right thing.
Posted Friday, May 15, 2015 7:42 PM
No comments.
Dayton, Education Minnesota sabotage budget deal
Earlier tonight, I wrote this post that said a budget deal had been reached. This picture of Sen. Bakk and Speaker Daudt seemed to confirm that a deal had been reached:
Since then, though, Gov. Dayton has tried sabotaging the deal. Here's the first tweet I saw announcing his opposition to the deal hammered out at his mansion:
Gov. Dayton has sent his education funding requirements to #mnleg leaders and is now waiting to hear back. https://t.co/hQCIk8vUjt
- R. Stassen-Berger (@RachelSB) May 16, 2015
Thankfully, some people are relatively sane:
. @kdaudt echoes Bakk about proceeding with #mnleg -struck accord as discussed: "It's solid as far as we're concerned"
- Brian Bakst (@Stowydad) May 16, 2015
Others are trying to pay off the special interests :
In an exclusive interview with the Pioneer Press Friday night, Gov. Mark Dayton said lawmakers reached their budget deal without checking with him and stood by his demand that they give early childhood through high school funding at least $550 million more over the next two years.
'If I'm not able to agree to anything that's in there, including the E-12, I do not take responsibility any more than either of them for the fact that we couldn't reach an agreement,' Dayton said as he closed out a long day of negotiations at the governor's residence.
Now that's a shocker. Gov. Dayton saying he isn't taking "responsibility" for something. Minnesota, this is why Gov. Dayton was given the title of being the worst senator in the United States Senate. The House and Senate rejected Gov. Dayton's universal pre-K proposal. Gov. Dayton's response to the bipartisan rejection was to insist on an additional $550,000,000 for the K-12 formula:
The governor said he had few objections to the budget plan as lawmakers laid it out other than its level of education spending. 'I won't accept anything less than $550 (million),' for education, he said. 'If they agree to that: .I'm not aware of anything else that could stand in the way of the overall agreement.'
That means Gov. Dayton is willing to shut down the government because the legislature won't increase K-12 funding that Gov. Dayton first proposed tonight . What type of lunatic would attempt to pull a stunt like that at the eleventh hour?
If there's a shutdown, it's because Gov. Dayton engineered it at the eleventh hour. That isn't statesmanship.
That's acting like a spoiled brat.
UPDATE: Speaker Daudt and Sen. Bakk agreed to spending targets. Follow this link to find out more about the agreement.
Originally posted Friday, May 15, 2015, revised 16-May 1:20 AM
No comments.
The Bakk-Dayton feud escalates
Most everyone with a pulse who's watched Minnesota politics remembers the outright feud that erupted when Sen. Bakk sabotaged Gov. Dayton's proposed pay raise for his commissioners, which I wrote about in this post . This is how icy things got between Gov. Dayton and Sen. Bakk:
Dayton said he will no longer negotiate with Bakk without witnesses.
Bakk declined Thursday afternoon to comment on Dayton's rebuke but earlier in the day said he had spoken to the governor Wednesday about the options the Senate might have regarding the salary increases. Bakk, DFL-Cook, indicated one of the options he mentioned was delaying the pay hikes through June. 'I laid this out,' Bakk said.
A month later, Sen. Bakk and Gov. Dayton essentially said that they'd kissed and made up. Most reporters took them at their word. I pretty much accepted it in the sense that they weren't going to cause political mischief for each other. I didn't think they'd ever forgive and forget.
Based on this week's negotiations, the budget agreement that Speaker Daudt and Sen. Bakk worked out and Gov. Dayton's attempt to sabotage their deal, I'm thinking that Gov. Dayton and Sen. Bakk didn't kiss and make up. I think that they relish the thought of getting the better of each other. I think they've buried the hatchet...in a Garth Brooks sort of way:
Here's the lyrics to the refrain of Brooks' song:
We bury the hatchet
But leave the handle stickin' out
We're always diggin' up things
We should forget about
When it comes to forgettin'
Baby, there ain't no doubt
We bury the hatchet
But leave the handle sticking out
The question left unanswered is whether the DFL will stop squabbling long enough to prevent a government shutdown. Speaker Daudt has shown the ability to govern, which was a big question at the start of the session. The new question is whether Gov. Dayton and Sen. Bakk are capable of acting like adults long enough to govern.
Thus far, that's far from a sure thing.
Posted Saturday, May 16, 2015 2:42 AM
No comments.
Heavy blogging weekend ahead
I'm planning on spending a ton of time at this computer Saturday...if the negotiators and conference committees start churning out the budget bills. I've heard that several conference committees, including the Higher Education conference committee will meet this morning. Now that Speaker Daudt and Sen. Bakk have agreed on the budget targets , conference committees should be able to put bills together relatively quickly. The big unknown is whether Gov. Dayton will attempt to throw another monkey wrench into the Daudt-Bakk agreement.
Regardless, this figures to be a great weekend of politics...if you like hurry up and wait.
Posted Saturday, May 16, 2015 2:54 AM
No comments.
Pull the plug on ABC's debate
The RNC should pull the plug on the Republican presidential debate that ABC is hosting . It isn't just that George Stephanopoulos didn't clothe himself in glory with his nondisclosure of his donations to the Clinton Foundation. It's that ABC is caught in another controversy that proves ABC isn't trustworthy :
Games may have been played yesterday in connection with the week's resounding media story. On Thursday morning, Politico media reporter Dylan Byers broke the story of George Stephanopoulos's big-money donations to the Clinton Foundation (at first they were reported as $50,000 but grew to $75,000 by day's end). The headline of Byers's story: 'George Stephanopoulos discloses $75,000 contribution to Clinton Foundation.'
Big deal. The Internet exploded with commentary, criticisms of Stephanopoulos, liberal-media slams and claims that the PR department of ABC News had done something untoward in handling the story.
Thanks @ABC for leaking statement to @DylanByers after @AndrewStilesUSA and @FreeBeacon asked you about Stephanopoulos donation to Clintons
- Matthew Continetti (@continetti) May 14, 2015
. @AndrewStilesUSA spotted the donation yesterday. I told him to ask @ABC for comment. They said they'd give a statement - to @DylanByers!
- Matthew Continetti (@continetti) May 14, 2015
In other words, ABC issued a statement to a newspaper that they thought would write a friendlier story about the Stephanopoulos story rather than let a real journalist write the story he'd discovered. That's a pretty scummy thing to do. I don't think it's coincidence that ABC gave the Washington Free Beacon a comment ... 10 minutes after the Byers Politico article broke. Here's why:
When the Washington Free Beaconers put their heads together Thursday morning, there was still no comment from ABC News. 'I say, 'Let's begin to move this story,'' recalls Continetti. The piece wasn't complicated: A network news anchor had contributed to a charity run by the first family of the Democratic party and hadn't told viewers when that charity emerged in news coverage. What was complicated was its landing. 'Literally as we were about to hit 'post,' we are alerted to the Dylan Byers piece that just went up,' says Continetti, who moved to publish their piece without the ABC News statements. Those arrived later.
This sounds like Stephanopoulos and the ABC PR department trying to direct the story to a friendlier media outlet. They know that the Washington Free Beacon is a right-of-center newspaper. Stephanopoulos might've suspected that Stiles' article would've been harder hitting than Byers' spoon-fed article.
The RNC shouldn't be in the business of fighting reporters' fights. Still, it shouldn't let networks host debates if they've shown themselves to not be trustworthy. It isn't just that Stephanopoulos isn't trustworthy. It's that ABC has proven that they aren't trustworthy. They're more trustworthy than MSNBC but they're far from trustworthy.
Posted Saturday, May 16, 2015 10:17 AM
Comment 1 by walter hanson at 16-May-15 11:55 AM
Gary:
Keep in mind the idea was to have a bunch of debates with different outlets so people could hear the candidates at least once. Unlike 2012 and earlier I believe R.P. of the RNC is paying attention to who the moderator is so we can get fairer questions.
Mind you this might give R.P. an excuse to make a fuss about who might moderate the debate and allow him to pull the plug if he doesn't like the moderator and thus do what you're suggesting.
Not to mention I will love one candidate if he or she gets a horrible question to politely mention is the person just like George and have no standards.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Gov. Dayton refuses to listen
Gov. Dayton is refusing to listen to people's concerns about universal pre-K. Here's a list of concerns from the Minnesota School Board Association:
These concerns include 1) the elimination of the school readiness program; 2) requiring that 4-year-olds be in school longer than other students; 3) limited facility resources; 4) mandatory class size and staff-to-student ratios; 5) parent participation requirements; 6) requiring that early childhood teachers be paid comparable to K-12 teachers; 7) coordinated professional development with community-based early learning providers; and 8) requiring school districts to recruit, contract and monitor early childhood programs for fiscal and program quality.
Check out this study's conclusion on universal pre-K:
My research examines two critical questions: the costs and benefits of these programs. The results are fairly clear - targeted programs could have better results at much lower cost.
What part of lower costs and better results does Gov. Dayton disagree with? During his press conference, he said that it was unacceptable to not fund his universal pre-K program at his levels.
That sounds like a dictator. That doesn't sound like Gov. Dayton is interested in keeping the government open. If he wanted it to stay open, he wouldn't have repeatedly said that the ball is in the legislature's hands, that they had to send him bills he "could sign." He repeatedly insisted that this wasn't about him, which is insulting. Bakk and Daudt have done their work. If Gov. Dayton isn't happy with their bipartisan agreement, that's Gov. Dayton's problem.
Apparently, he's willing to shut Minnesota's government down again. He apparently thinks that his is the only voice that matters. If the government is shut down again, it will be a) Dayton's fault and b) a major hit against Gov. Dayton's legacy. Acting like a spoiled brat doesn't enhance a leader's image.
Posted Saturday, May 16, 2015 12:13 PM
No comments.
DFL declares war against Tom Bakk
The Bible says that a house divided cannot stand. I've never known that to be wrong, which means the DFL is heading for a collapse. The DFL, or more specifically Tina Smith, has declared war on Tom Bakk and the state of Minnesota. Whenever there's a press conference, Tina's right there, acting as Dayton's keeper. Here's proof of the Metro DFL's turning on Sen. Bakk:
Tina Smith clearly controls the Metro DFL. It isn't surprising, then, that the Metro DFL has put its stake in the ground over half-day universal pre-K even though studies show it isn't great policy. Customized pre-K plans are cheaper and they produce better results. Look at all of the requirements the Smith-Dayton-DFL plan imposes on program operators:
- the elimination of the school readiness program;
- requiring that 4-year-olds be in school longer than other students;
- limited facility resources;
- mandatory class size and staff-to-student ratios;
- parent participation requirements;
- requiring that early childhood teachers be paid comparable to K-12 teachers;
- coordinated professional development with community-based early learning providers;
- requiring school districts to recruit, contract and monitor early childhood programs for fiscal and program quality.
That reads like a union contract, not education legislation. How much money would be saved if "early childhood teachers" weren't "paid comparable to K-12 teachers"? Why does the Smith-Dayton-Metro DFL legislation mandate "class size and staff-to-student ratios"?
What's happening here is that Education Minnesota is pushing for a mandatory program that a) all parents have to use, b) requires teachers to be paid union scale wages and c) requires new schools to be built. That isn't a program built for "the kids." It's a program that's "for Education Minnesota."
If I had $10 for each tweet I've seen this weekend that talks about this program being for the children, I'd be wealthy. Tina Smith, Paul Thissen and most Metro DFLers are machine politicians. Their agenda is focused on satisfying their special interest allies. They aren't focused on solutions. They're about doing whatever they need to do to gain and maintain power.
When Sen. Bakk pulled his stunt about Gov. Dayton's pay raise for department commissioners, he started a civil war within the DFL. Tina Smith and the Metro DFL haven't forgiven him for that. Gov. Dayton certainly hasn't. He'd rather bury the hatchet and leave the handle sticking out than forgive Bakk.
During his first term, speculation spread throughout the Capitol that Dayton's chief of staff ran things, not Gov. Dayton. Tina Smith was Gov. Dayton's chief of staff.
Smith worked in marketing for General Mills, ran her own marketing firm, and served as a Vice President of Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota.[3] She served as Chief of Staff for Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, and as senior advisor and Transition co-chair for Dayton's 2010 gubernatorial campaign. Dayton appointed Smith as chief of staff when he took office in 2011.
When Dayton's running mate from 2010, Lt. Gov. Yvonne Prettner Solon, announced she would not seek re-election, Dayton passed over better-known political officeholders, citing Smith's work on shepherding the new Minnesota Vikings Stadium through the legislature, as well as her work on supporting the Destination Medical Center Project with the Mayo Clinic and the City of Rochester, MN.
Smith and Thissen were the people who talked Gov. Dayton out of accepting a deal that would've prevented the state government shutdown. Sixteen days later, Gov. Dayton signed the budget that Tina Smith and Rep. Thissen told him not to sign in June.
If there's another shutdown, it'll be because Smith and Thissen will have gotten to Gov. Dayton and given him terrible advice...again. In 2011, the Republican negotiators were different (Amy Koch and Kurt Zellers) but the DFL negotiators were the same (Gov. Dayton, Tina Smith, Sen. Bakk and Rep. Thissen). This time, Sen. Bakk negotiated a bipartisan deal with Speaker Kurt Daudt. Gov. Dayton, Lt. Gov. Smith and Rep. Thissen are still pushing policies that appear to be driving us into another shutdown.
That isn't surprising. It's just disappointing.
Posted Saturday, May 16, 2015 6:03 PM
Comment 1 by Rex Newman at 17-May-15 09:16 AM
I think I've shared before that I was at a dinner with a deputy of early childcare proponent Art Rolnick, then at the Federal Reserve. Said deputy lamented that few also mention that Rolnick said nothing about the government running it, hinting in fact that small organizations and "diversity" work best.
He was of course correct. The rise of public employee unions and self-serving administrations hiding behind phalanxes of experts and supported by the political party they bought vs. the fall in educational achievement is undeniable causation, not mere correlation.
"Experts" are particularly dangerous to small children, a not-unrelated example being the First Lady's school lunch revolution. If anything, child nutrition has worsened, given its focus on unappealing and small portions.
Hey! [Education Minnesota] teachers! Leave those kids alone!
Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 17-May-15 11:15 AM
In the 1960s, the big 'revolution' was the 'expert' report that supposedly showed that spanking children destined them to underachieving.
Needless to say, that's been debunked 100 times over. How surprising. Not.
