A Bluestem Prairie

Late afternoon news digest: what about Brian edition

The Post Bulletin's Political Party blog tells Southern Minnesota readers that Davis Attends Cheney Fundraiser and likes it:

Reached today, Davis said he was invited and was "happy to go to venues where I can interact with the loyal party base that attend these events." He said there was no direct fundraising for his campaign. He spoke only briefly with the vice president and told him of his cousin, who ranches in Wyoming, Cheney's home state. He had not met Cheney previously.

That should come as a relief to First District residents.  Given the way the Davis hypes his one year (over two decades ago) of working in a nuclear engineering firm right after graduating from college, we were worried that he had served as part of Cheney's National Energy Policy Development Group back in 2001.  Indeed, given those credentials as a policy expert, we're not sure why Davis wasn't on that earlier secret guest list, too.

Over at Minnesota Central, our friend McPherson Hall breathes a sigh of relief that the hush-hush fundraiser wasn't a hunting party in MN GOP Issues Cheney Hunting Orders. For ourselves, we're relieved that Cheney didn't crack another joke about his own peeps when Davis told him about the cousin.

And to think that only a few weeks ago, Davis was so deeply sensitive to perceived slights to rural dwellers that he was in a froth about Barack Obama; the rough and tumble primary battle against Dick Day must be toughening him up so he can handle meeting Cheney without wincing.

The Post Bulletin's blog also notes the Farm Bill forum with Walz and Peterson this Friday in Fairmont. Everybody is invited:

The newly passed 2008 Farm Bill will be the topic at of a town hall meeting in Fairmont this Friday, June 13, featuring House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Detroit Lakes, and Rep. Tim Walz, D-Mankato, who also serves on the committee.

The event will take place at the Red Rock Center, 222 East Blue Earth Avenue, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event is open to the public, according to an announcement from Walz.

Tim Walz was Maxing out on ONE in Minnesota according to the organization's website:

During the event, US Congressman Tim Walz stopped by the booth to thank ONE members for being at the convention as well as for the work they are doing. Congressman Walz said he has been a supporter of the campaign for years and is glad we could be there to spread the word about the campaign. He put on a band and took a photo with ONE members.

Our friends from the Corner House Comments have had a letter published in the Luverne paper: Time for new GI bill is now; encourage legislators to support it.

The Republican Leader reports South Branch Root proves flooding fury down the line threatening Preston and Lanesboro; the Spring Grove Herald reports Flooding grips area again;county declares state of emergency for second time in a year. The Winona Daily News says Southeast Minnesota bracing for more rain. 

For those kind souls who sent us worried emails after reading the Strib headline, Winds blow trucks over, send cows flying; I-94 reopens, we are fine. Sometimes an ox's girth is an advantage. Unfortunately, the more lithe souls in Worthington for the national windsurfing championships  and music fest will not be quite so happy if they're grounded by the lousy weather.

Steve Sarvi blog day: the need for real representation

Like many Minnesota progressive bloggers, we're taking part in the Steve Sarvi blog day, in which we ask that readers contribute to DFL-endorsed Second District congressional candidate Sarvi via Act Blue.  As soon as this is posted, we'll be chipping in with a contribution.

Others have already posted about Kline's awful record (higher education , veterans issues and great YouTube on energy here), the Second's recent trend toward blue, and a personal story from the father of an active duty Marine. Others focus on how Sarvi's a great fit for the district. Watch the for more posts via MNBlue and MNCR. Kudos to MNBlue's Big E for developing the project.

So we'll focus on one of the issues that got some of our ancestors in colonial Boston in such a lather:  detached leadership serving interests other than those of the citizenry. As people in my father's family moved westward with the frontier--finally stopping in Minnesota in the mid-1850s--the principle that leaders serve the people moved with them.

We first met Steve Sarvi at last year's Minnesota Farmers Union convention and were immediately impressed with his understanding of issues facing rural Minnesotans and vets. While Minnesota's Second District is suburban, it also encompasses LeSueur, Goodhue, and Rice Counties.

Steve understands small town and suburban communities, having served as a city administrator in Lanesboro, Watertown and Victoria, and mayor of Watertown. He stepped down as mayor of Watertown when he volunteered to serve with his unit in Iraq. The military recognized his civilian experience by appointing him Civil Military Affairs Officer for Task Force Wild, which supervised reconstruction effrots in Iraq.

That positive news from Iraq about rebuilt schools, roads and water systems? Steve was part of it.

Another piece of Sarvi's work in the military was rebuilding civil engagement in Kosovo.  His bio says:

One of Steve's most rewarding experiences was using his mayor and city administrator expertise to teach villagers about local government. Steve worked with Kosovar and United Nations leaders to hold an election in a multi-ethnic village. Following the election, Steve mentored the new village council on democratic governance, showing them how to overcome differences in order to rebuild their village and come together as a community.

Now, Kosovo is an extreme case, part of the Balkans region that has lent its name to the coining of a term for political fragmentation. Nonetheless, the story illustrates Sarvi's understanding of the bedrock of democracy: the engagement of ordinary citizens in their own government.

Although his voting record and positions on issues are out of step with Minnesota, we find John Kline to be most troubling because he has been a pioneer in establishing absentee governance in the state. He's the one who introduced Rep. Michele Bachmann to the idea of substituting tightly controlled teleforums for real town hall forums and open public meetings like Tim Walz holds across the First.

And (to borrow one of Walz's favorite expressions) "make no mistake about it,"  Walz and the people he represents are the better for being able to openly debate their concerns from the Iraq War, Iran, the Farm Bill, veterans concerns, renewable energy, healthcare, small business needs, seniors' issues and the host of things on the ordinary citizen's mind.

Sarvi already held 14 town hall meetings to find out what's on people's minds. He'll be a face-to-face leader like Tim Walz. 

Like people in the First, voters in the Second deserve a Congressman who'll meet with them face-to-face. Sarvi has demonstrated that he can bring people together to work on rebuilding civil society in Kosovo and Iraq.  We doubt he'll shy away from the people he'll represent in the Second.

Finally, for readers living in the First: Tim Walz represents a couple of townships in LeSueur County, and we'd like to see him be able to work with a more congenial representative than John Kline.According to the Rochester Bulletin, Kline has acted as a mentor to the GOP-endorsed candidate in the First. Give now and help Steve Sarvi keep John Kline campaigning at home. Given the trends, grassroots support, and some money, Sarvi can win in November.

Please contribute via Act Blue.

Friday mid-day news digest: bridges and trains edition

It's extraordinarily windy today on the prairies. Birds are having a difficult time keeping their perches on our bird feeder, and we tremble when we think just what this wind may do to the bean trellis.

The Washington Post reports Congress Passes $3 Trillion Budget:

Congress yesterday gave final approval to a $3 trillion spending plan that proposes modest increases for domestic programs such as education, energy and veterans benefits -- and marks the first time in eight years that lawmakers have managed to adopt a budget in an election year.

It's not clear what the fate of the Highway 43 Bridge linking Winona to Wisconsin will be. Fox 9 News reports that House Transportation Committee Chair and member Oberstar, Walz Visit Highway 43 Bridge in Winona. New Talk radio WIZM reports Minnesota Congressmen Tim Walz And Jim Oberstar Will Check Out Bridge. 

The Star Tribune notes Ferry boats come to rescue of Winona commuters. The Winona Daily News explains how the system will work. The paper's editorial board notes Bridge closing reveals rampant problems at MnDOT.

Speaking of transportation, the Midwest Shippers Associationweb site reports that  Ag shippers hail study -- Proponents expect government scrutiny to shed light on damage caused by poor rail service. The Walz connection:

Many agricultural shippers expect a government-mandated study on "rural transportation issues" to tell them what they already know: poor rail service is hurting their business.

"The rate increases have just been horrendous," said Bruce Abbe, executive director of the Midwest Shippers Association. "A lot of ag shippers feel like they have been blind-sided repeatedly almost every week."

The study, contained in a provision in the $289 billion farm bill approved by Congress earlier this month, directs the Department of Agriculture along with the Department of Transportation to study the "movement of agricultural products" among other issues.

Its inclusion in the farm bill came by way of a provision authored by Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., who said the study would determine "whether additional competition is needed...to protect agricultural shippers from abusive rail rates."

Advocates of the study say it will quantify the need for antitrust and rail competition legislation currently pending before Congress.

"We are pleased that a congressional authorized study will now shed some light on this situation," said Bob Szabo, executive director of Consumers United for Rail Equity, a lobbying group assembled by rail shippers.

"The railroads fought that study tooth and nail," Szabo said, and successfully watered it down with wording that mandates the study include other modes of transportation.  "People in rural America don't have the same problem with trucks or barges," he said

Congressman Walz and Oberstar will be greeting DFL convention delegate in Rochester tomorrow, according to the PiPress. KAAL-TV reports Democratic Convention Hits  Rochester.

At the PiPress's Political Animal blog, Dennis Lien reports New polls bolster Walz and Sarvi candidacies.

Minnesota Central asks How long have Republicans opposed funding PTSD ? in a backward glance to 2005.It's not pretty.  He notes that veterans' concerns have been one of Congressman Walz's signature issues in his first term.

We learned a lot at the “New Pamphleteers/New Reporters” this week, though we must admit we're happy to be home. One of the people we met, Dante Chinni at the Christian Science Monitor's Patchwork Nation blog, takes A pause before the general election as bloggers meet in Minneapolis.

 

If Blog House pays attention now, we're quitting

Some of our friends in the Cities tease us about how Bluestem doesn't seem to attract the attention of the metro MSM. One acquaintance of twelve years tells us that she can't imagine why anyone would read this blog. Indeed, she's never visited our sylvan posts.

We suspect the friendship is stronger for that.

Thus, we were startled to see this in a Politics in Minnesota Weekly Report, just now posted to the PIM site:

Memetics 101: Bluestem Prairie Conquers The Media Echo Chamber

PIM staff observed an interesting media effect this week, which should interest anyone who's into 'memetics' (the trendy study area of how ideas are propagated). The CD1 blog Bluestem Prairie noticed that the new national GOP slogan "The change you deserve" is the same marketing tagline as the antidepressant drug Effexor. What's more, Effexor is produced as a red pill bearing a large 'W' (the symbol of drugmaker Wyeth Pharmaceuticals). Bluestem Prairie posted about it, and it got picked up by the Huffington Post, the New York Times''The Caucus' blog, Comedy Central's Indecision 2008 blog, and over the aisle to Michelle Malkin's site and even Rush Limbaugh. Soon enough, it was cropping up in blogs in Mississippi newspapers, and finally ascending to the tart peak of the liberal echo chamber, MSNBC host Keith Olbermann's nightly "Worst Persons in the World" rankings.

It was a good example of meme propagation (memes are reproducible ideas, understood as something like intellectual genes). Who could resist such a funny conclusion? Thus, did one discreet blog post travel through the national media.

Fortunately, since we are blessed by a face God never intended for television and a voice that cracks speakers,  the rest of our methods should go undetected.

MinMonn: Walz signs on to net neutrality bill

Andy Birkey at the Minnesota Monitor reports that Ellison, Walz sign on to Net neutrality bill. The Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2008 enjoys support ranging from the Teamsters to the Gun Owners of America. Go read the whole article at the Minnesota Monitor.

Birkey  posts a YouTube from the Daily Show explaining the concept, and we'll follow his excellent judgment:

Tuesday morning netroots digest: new G.I. Bill edition

Overcome by yesterday's blog traffic, we headed out to do some birding and catch Ironman at the local theater. Enormous fun, though we all shuddered during the attack on the Humvee convoy in Afghanistan: one of the young men in the theater is in the reserves, who (like the rest of us) has been listening to vets returned from the real thing.

The real stories and the need to revisit veterans' programs is driving legislation aimed at paying back their sacrifice and commitment to our country.  In the First, the netroots have engaged that conversation. In yesterday's Corner House Comments,  we read that 21st Century GI Bill Will Come To A Vote Soon!.

The southwestern Minnesota blogger, father of an Iraq war vet, promotes a comment from Minnesota Central about the roadblocks Blue Dog Democrats are putting up.  CHC follows with an appeal from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) for support for the legislation:

Last week, despite enormous momentum, a vote on the GI Bill was delayed by a small group of Democrats in the House. Believe it or not, they’re concerned about the cost of the bill, which amounts to less than 0.5% of war funding for the year. This is Washington ineffectiveness at its worst.

We’ve been pounding the pavement here in DC every day, meeting with all the key players in the fight for a new GI Bill, and today we need your support.

Please take a minute now to call your Representative, and urge them to show their support for a new GI Bill by voting to fund it this week. We’ve included some talking points at the bottom of this email that you can use during your call.

Despite deep bi-partisan support, the endorsement of every major veterans’ organization, and studies showing that a new GI Bill is a fiscally sound investment in our nation’s future, a few members of the House are standing in its way at this late, critical stage.

If you haven’t already, please take a minute now to call your Representative and tell them that you support education benefits for the men and women coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The new GI Bill (HR 5740) has broad bi-partisan support, and leading Democrats and Republicans have been fighting for it since day one. But thanks to this small group that is mounting an ill-advised opposition, the vote is going to be close, and we need your help to make sure Congress does the right thing.

In our view, the GI Bill is a cost of war, and a smart investment in one of the most motivated, deserving groups of people our country has to offer.

So please take a minute now to tell your Representative to show real support for our troops and veterans by supporting the new GI Bill.

After your call, please take a minute to tell us about it here.

Over at Minnesota Campaign Report, First District diarist Jacob Grippen looks at the GI Bill, beginning with  a discussion of the Senate version of the bill, which John McCain objects to as too generous. Grippen concludes:

Too generous?  We are denying our Veterans the truth about their comrades' suicides, we're treating them to horrible conditions at VA hospitals, yes, I suppose passing Senator Webb's new GI Bill would be a change in policy.   I'm just glad that many Republicans are co-sponsoring this bill.  The total number of co-sponsors (bi-partisan) so far is up to 57.

Our soldiers deserve every benefit our government and its citizens can give them.

Tim Walz had this to say back in April about revamping the GI Bill:

"To enhance the ability of not only of the soldier but of their family members to get an education and get them back in training for a new profession"

What say you Minnesota?

We say that our young friends in the Navy, Marines, Army and Air Force deserve the best for what they're willing to put on the line for the rest of us.  Go over to CHC and MNCR to share your thoughts.

In other netroots news, The Hill's Blog Briefing Room » Daily Kos looks at Mcjoan's post about the Frontiers of Freedom robocalls campaign.

Photo: Airmen in a Humvee rollover training exercise at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan.

Sunday afternoon news digest: bread and circuses edition

A chilly but lovely morning took us away from home. Yesterday's quickly-melting snow prompted the counter-intuitive reaction of making the grass greener. Right now the sun is shining while snow is falling. A very odd and very beautiful sight.

Jacob Grippen, diarist at MnCR, and Dale at Cornerhouse Comments were  both delegates to the First Congressional  DFL convention  yesterday. In the CHC post, Congressman Walz-Representing The People Of The 1st CD, Dale wrote:

The best part of the day of course was the nomination of Tim Walz to represent the people of the 1st Congressional District. The congressman has done an outstanding job in his first term and has worked very hard to restore trust in the people we send to Washington D.C. I have been cynical and often disillusioned with our elected officials. Not so with Tim Walz. I am proud to claim him as my representative. His work ethic, openness, intelligence, values, and manner of speaking are just some of his attributes. He understands the challenges that I face. He understands my wants and my needs. He understands my dreams.

After several nominating speeches from delegates, Gwen Walz, the Congressman’s wife, gave a rousing introduction for her husband which really got the crowd pumped up. Prior to taking the stage, I was lucky enough to capture this moment with the Congressman getting last minute advice on his acceptance speech from his son, Gus.

Go over to the blog to see an amazing picture of a father and son.

KAAL-TV reported in DFL Convention:

Delegates from across southern Minnesota gathered to "officially" endorse Representative Tim Walz for a second term.

"This time it's very gratifying to come back and say this is what the difference is," said Walz. . . .

. . ."I'm pleased with it, obviously it's humbling," said Walz. . . .

The Albert Lea Tribune's Sarah Kirchner notes:

. . .More than 250 people were at the convention Saturday, most of which were southern Minnesota county delegates vying to attend the national convention, said Lori Sellner, chair of the 1st Congressional District DFL.

But the day seemed to be focused on Walz, with nearly half the crowd wearing yellow and blue Walz T-shirts, his campaign signs hung across the room, in the hallway and outside the school building.

“I’m just thrilled with the whole thing,” said Blue Earth delegate Colleen Jackson. “I’m just very excited, especially this year.” . . .

The Star Tribune mentions the endorsement in Second attempt pays off for DFLer Tinklenberg:

. . .Also Saturday, DFLers in the First Congressional District endorsed Rep. Tim Walz's reelection bid. The former high school teacher and longtime National Guard member "is a breath of fresh air in Minnesota politics," district chairwoman Lori Sellner said in a news release. Much of southern Minnesota makes up the district.

Walz has amassed a formidable campaign arsenal, raising far more money than his two Republican challengers -- GOP-endorsed Brian Davis of Rochester and Sen. Dick Day of Owatonna -- and harnessing up to 2,000 volunteers. . . .

On Friday, we linked to the Rochester Post Bulletin story about Sam Hagedorn,  the Mayo High School student campaigning to become a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in Denver. According to a comment after the article, he achieved his goal. Congratulations!

Finally, a shout-out to Waseca's Jon Lucca of indie-alt trio The Schmoejoes who stopped to check out the Prairie. Jon and his wife were a first-time delegate-alternate combo in Albert Lea; they're excited about the state convention in Rochester.

In other news, the Mankato Free Press editorial board believes Medicaid shouldn’t be shifted to counties. It wrote:

The U.S. House of Representatives served local taxpayers well last week when it voted overwhelmingly to block a Bush Administration plan to shift federal spending on Medicaid to counties and the state.

hat so many Republicans — almost two-thirds — voted to block implementation of the plan shows how unfair the plan is. A Free Press in-depth report a few weeks ago showed how counties and the state would have to take over costs on a number of child protection cases, shifting hundreds of thousands of dollars of federal spending onto local taxpayers. The shift came about through rules the administration can implement without the consent of Congress.

The plan the House passed may stave off that shifting.

The Bush plan was touted as a way to save $13 billion in what the administration considers wasteful Medicaid spending. But the policy reality was that, for example, child protection workers in counties in Minnesota would no longer be paid through Medicaid, a healthcare program for the poor. Instead, counties and the state would have to take over paying for what has always been a federal responsibility.

All 50 governors have tried to stop the implementation of the rule, including Gov. Tim Pawlenty, head of the National Governors Association. . . .

. . .Sens. Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar have written the administration opposing implementation of the new rule. Congressman Tim Walz was co-author of the legislation that passed the House. The entire Minnesota congressional delegation voted in favor of the bill.

Bush has threatened to veto the measure, but the House and likely the Senate have enough votes to override a veto. The two-thirds of Republicans in the House joined every voting Democrat to pass, by a vote of 349-62, a one-year moratorium on implementing the rules. . . .

Read the whole thing at the MFP.  Much of the Free Press's news coverage today was about rising food prices. The Star Tribune's board opined about the spiking costs in Local meets global on world food crisis. Walz is mentioned:

Minnesota politicians from both parties can play a crucial role. U.S. Sens. Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar, as well as Reps. Tim Walz and Colin Peterson, serve on the agriculture committees in Congress. Tim Pawlenty is not only governor of a major farm state, but also has the ear (and maybe a spot on the ticket) of Sen. John McCain, who may inherit the food crisis. Each of them should closely consider the role agriculture and energy policy play in the crisis and be willing to reconsider the fundamental food/feed/fuel debate regarding crop use. They should also help lead the shift to the next generation of biofuels that depend less on food crops.

The food crisis indicates just how interconnected Minnesota is with the world. As a well-worn slogan suggests, it's time to think globally and act locally.

Walz is indeed trying to steer fund toward research into new, non-food, cellulostic fuelstocks for use as biofuels. 

Southern Minnesota's food growers are increasingly offering the chance to buy locally grown produce, fruit,  dairy, eggs and meat.  Today's Owatonna People's Press reports how area residents can buy a share of this year's vegetable production from Clinton Falls Farm, a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture ) operation started up by John Ostgarden and Lowell Gordon, according to A family farm: Organic farm sells shares of produce locally.

A companion article notes that the two men, who were raised on farms in Minnesota and South Dakota, are getting assistance in getting back to farming from the Land Stewardship Project's Farm Beginnings program.

The Land Stewardship Project and other farm organizations advised Congressman Walz about the importance of making sure younger people become involved in farming. Along with South Dakota's Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, Walz, was instrumental in getting new farmer programs written in the Farm Bill that passed in the House. We're hoping that it has remained in the version the conference committee has tentatively agreed on.

Oh, and nice chickens. Who doesn't appreciate a Buff Orpington?

Friday evening netroots and news digest

The Cornerhouse Comments notes that QPP In Austin Will Pay Compensation Claims of Sickened Workers.  Congressman Walz had taken an interest on behalf of the workers, and researchers at the Mayo Clinic were closing in on the link between the ailment and working conditions in the pock processing facility.  Sadly, denial of workers compensation is too often nearly routine by insurance companies.

In the Sixth, Andy at Residual Forces notes that ultra-conservative Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has joined ultra-conservative Congressman John Kline in supporting their party's endorsed candidate. Dump Bachmann implicitly reminds everybody that Dick Day is running as a challenger in the Republican primary in Well Michele Bachmann Would Never Endorse Dick Day.

Also in the Sixth, the Political Muse from Liberal in the Land of Conservative is working on videos of Tim Walz's passionate speech on energy and the economy for his MnMuseTube Channel. We will post them as they become available.

The Marshall Independent notes that Transportation committee discusses local road issues in Washington
with congressional staffers and Rep. Peterson.  The Redwood Falls Gazette earlier reported that  Congressmen Walz and Peterson, along with Senators Klobuchar and Coleman, were seeking federal funding for the Minnesota Prairie line, a short-line railroad operated by the Minnesota Valley Regional Railroad Authority.

The NUWire Investor looks at the Wind Energy Promotion Act.

The Albert Lea Tribune reports DFL Party to hold 1st District convention Saturday in Albert Lea.

MFP editorial: support the Political Bloggers Protection Act

In Our View: Do not regulate political bloggers, the Mankato Free Press stands up for political free speech in the blogosphere:

Congress, regulators and the courts still aren’t sure how to treat the Internet and those who use it. From protecting kids from pornography to deciding if Internet sales should be taxed, the complexities, rapid changes and sheer size of the Web create complexities for government.

Such is the case before Congress relating to whether government can oversee some of what political bloggers can do.

The Federal Elections Commission — which ensures political campaigns are run within the law — has so far ruled that Internet users are protected from the strictures of campaign laws, the same way newspapers, broadcasters and other more traditional media outlets are exempted.

But many worry that future FEC boards, or judges, will remove that protection.

The problem grows from campaign laws that authorize the FEC to regulate “anything of value used to influence an election,” including “public communications.”

That language has led some judges to ponder whether a blogger who links to a politician’s Web site or writes things in support or in opposition to a candidate, should fall under FEC regulation.

The Blogger Protection Act now before Congress would ensure that political speech from bloggers has the same First Amendment protection as the writer of this newspaper editorial.

The Act should be passed.

When political bloggers — or any other Internet users — want to write about candidates’ issues, make fun of them, support them or deride them, they deserve protection from federal campaign laws. (Those compensated by a political party or candidate would — and should — still fall under campaign law oversight under the Act.)

While the Internet provides a different vehicle for public discourse, it should not bring new restrictions on people’s ability to voice their opinions. Whether someone starts a newspaper, a blog, or speaks in the town square, they have the right to espouse their political ideals without interference from the government.

This editorial hits the central issue right on the head: independent political bloggers should enjoy the same rights as the rest of the free press.  We bloggers can be as demure or as insolent as we wish, but so long as we're not compensated for our writing by candidates or political parties, the FEC and state-level regulators should just butt out.   

Things get a bit murkier when a blogger gets paid by a campaign or political party to do work other than posting on one's personal blog, but self-disclosure, combined with exposure by other bloggers when disclosure isn't forthcoming, prompts most bloggers to be open about compensation, whether for blogging or for other work. 

The author (and despite our annoying use of the editorial first person plural, there's only one of us) at Bluestem Prairie doesn't get compensated by a candidate or party for anything, much less the opinions on this blog. Should that change, we'll let you know.

Early evening digest: no news item left behind edition

Education Week reporter David Hoff notes Walz's letter in NCLB: Act II: Lawmakers on Left and Right Criticize Pilot Project:

The response to the "differentiated accountability" project shows one truth about NCLB: It's hard to please everybody. Looking at reaction from the left and the right on Capitol Hill, you see tepid endorsements for the plan, followed by criticism of the law itself. . . .

. . .From the left, Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., calls the plan a "long overdue step" in a letter to Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, who announced the plan last week. But Walz indicates that the announcement won't change his stance on the law: "NCLB is a deeply flawed mandate that is badly in need of significant reform and overhaul," he writes. . . .

These reactions will mean little in the implementation of the latest pilot project. But they show how difficult it will be to gather the votes for NCLB reauthorization—whether it happens this year or next.

P.S. A letter to the editor of The New York Times gave a headline writer the chance to create the latest word play on the NCLB name: No Cynic Left Behind

WIZM Radio reports Minnesota Congressman Tim Walz Discusses Future US Role In Iraq.

In the netroots, Minnesota Central looks at franking privileges in How much is that Prebate Check Worth ? and contrasts between two Minnesota freshman representatives in NBL Walz –vs- OOS Bachmann on Freedom.  Bachmann's in favor of the Light Bulb Freedom of Choice Act, while Walz is meeting with veterans and other constituents.

Down in Southwestern Minnesota, the Corner House Comments tells an ICE tale:

In a recent conversation with a friend and coworker of mine I found out that “targeting specific individuals” must mean that if you don’t look like you just came off the farm and are not saying ” you betcha” a lot, it must mean that you are undocumented. He had went to pick up some items from a local retail store and was leaving the store when two men approached him and asked for his identification. Being a good union brother that respects but likes to challenge authority, he asked them who the hell they were and did not produce any ID. They replied that they were with Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE) and again asked for his identification. He asked for identification from them and they finally produced it. After verifying their id’s my friend offered them his driver’s license. The ICE agents apparently were not satisfied with that and asked to see his Green Card. Well, after telling them that he did not have a Green Card because he is a citizen, they took his drivers license to a van where they have all their secret Homeland Security electronic gizmo’s and checked it out. Returning a few minutes later they told him he was free to go. Before leaving he asked why he was stopped and was told ” he didn’t need to know”.

I often hear people say that if you are here legally that you do not have anything to fear from the government. Fortunately for my coworker, the verification process worked this time. If their data was inaccurate or incomplete what would have happened? What is disturbing is that he was chosen at random because he did not fit the profile of a SW Minnesota native. ICE officials say they do not randomly pick up people. Apparently the agents in the field did not get the memo.

In the Albert Lea Tribune, editor Tim Engstrom writes about how Economic policies only making things worse. Definitely worth a click and a read.

 

Monday early evening news digest: snowy Monday edition

The Navy Times says Vets still struggle with medical systems.  Here's a taste of one of the stories:

At the start of a House Veterans’ Affairs Committee hearing Thursday, the witnesses were asked to stand and raise their right hands to be sworn in.

But former Marine Cpl. Casey Owens lost both legs when he ran over two anti-tank mines in a Humvee on Sept. 20, 2004.

He didn’t stand. . .

. . .Owens has yet to be fitted with a prosthesis for his right leg after enduring three surgeries to re-attach his femur muscle to the bone because it kept tearing.

The fourth time it tore — after having an additional three inches of thigh bone, nerve and muscle amputated in the third surgery — his VA doctor suggested the same surgery again.

When another doctor suggested a different surgery might work better for him, it took six months to get VA approval in Houston, compared with 72-hour approval for his previous surgery.

“It was very painful,” Owens said of the wait. “But I don’t have any more leg to give.”

He lost six months’ worth of rehabilitation, as well as time at school or work. He had to go back on pain medication, from which he had weaned himself. As he waited, his Tricare insurance was canceled as a result of a clerical error.

He was finally approved, Owens said, and the fourth surgery seems to have been successful. When he was ready to go off his medication again, he asked for a doctor’s supervision to help him through the withdrawal.

But the VA doctor was too busy, Owens said, and sent him to the substance abuse clinic — which sent him to a methadone clinic.

“I said I wanted to get off the drugs,” not go on methadone, Owens said. So he went to a different doctor with the help of a nonprofit agency and was off his meds within a week.

“Most of my care is from outside doctors,” he said. “I rarely see the VA.”

In fact, he’ll head to Oklahoma with the Wounded Warrior Program to be fitted with a prosthesis because VA scheduled him for only an hour of rehab per week and, when he complained, sent him to a civilian prosthetics specialist who said he didn’t have time to fit Owens with a device because he was swamped.

It took 18 months to finalize his VA claims, and he still doesn’t have copies of his military medical records.

Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., said Owens’ story made him ashamed.

“I’m not even sure what to say,” he said. “Would it surprise you that VA officials have sat before us and said they don’t need any more resources?”

We're betting that Walz listens very carefully to the vets who talk at his district forums in Waseca and New Ulm today and Wednesday. Walz sits on the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

Walz is also on the Transportation Committee.  We read in the Faribault County Registers that $2.8M airport runway extension planned in Blue Earth. Only  five percent of the cost will come from Blue Earth city coffers; the rest will be paid via state and federal grants set aside for airport improvement.

Bob Skillings throws hat in ring as a DFL candidate for the open seat in MN House 21B, according to the New Ulm Journal. He received 45.7 percent of the vote in 2006 when he ran against retiring incumbent Brad Finstad.

The Post Bulletin's Politics Notebook reports Panel discussion will focus on workforce. From the GOP side there's also news in the column that Fairmont state representative Bob Gunther has endorsed Randy Demmer, joining state reps Tony Cornish and Rod Hamilton, and retired reps Elaine Harder and Fran Bradley in supporting Demmer.

The Worthington Daily Globe reports St. Patty’s Day revelry abounds in Adrian.  Being one of those respectable Irish towns settled by Archbishop Ireland in the 19th century, Adrian behaved itself and held its parade on Saturday so as to respect Holy Week.

The paper also reports Minnesota 60 expansion a go. The project, anticipated to take four years to complete, has been green lighted because of the transportation bill veto override.

More lists about competitive races are out; the Swing State Project reports DCCC Releases Targeted Races List. CQ Politics reports that Republicans Face Limited Opportunities To Win Open Seats.

Minnesota Central notes that FISA Vote Proves Republicans Protecting the President -- NOT Us from Terrorists. He cites Michele Bachmann's column in the Strib.

From Newsweek to CubeZoo: Scare Tactics

Just like the annoying "Defense of Democracies" fear-mongering ad that had played in heavy rotation on the First's television stations, the story of its sponsor and its motives keep going and going.  About an hour ago, Newsweek's weekly Terror Watch column wrote up the story in Scare Tactics? Are White House allies playing election-year hardball on eavesdropping?  A piece of the column:

. . .The group, run by Clifford May, a former communications director of the Republican National Committee, has not disclosed the names of its donors. May told NEWSWEEK that he launched the campaign for the express purpose of ratcheting up pressure on House Democrats. (The ads call on voters to contact specific Democratic members and demand that they vote "to keep us all safe.") "I think it's important for Democrats to hear from their constituents on this issue," May said. "This is a national security issue."

Democrats complain that the administration is trying to politicize the electronic surveillance issue and use it for partisan advantage this fall. "If you look at these ads, they are not too different from the ads they ran against Max Cleland in 2002," said Meredith Salsbery, press secretary to Minnesota Democratic Rep. Tim Walz, whose district has been targeted in the advertising campaign. (Those notorious ads impugned the patriotism and national security credentials of the Democratic senator from Georgia, a Vietnam veteran and triple amputee who wound up losing his re-election bid.) "To a lot of our constituents, these ads look like fear-mongering and scare tactics designed to persuade the public that the Democrats are soft on national security."

While we don't quite see so close a comparison with the old ad, the new one does utilize an unjustified appeal to emotion, with fear being the sole emotion played upon.  We hearing that our reaction of disgust is pretty widespread.

Take GeistX's response in Rochester at CubeZoo:

. . .In politics, last night KTTC ran a commercial, and I really wish I could remember the name of the organization that paid for this, it had one of those innocent sounding names, yet the organization is pure evil type things like Americans for a Democratic Society.

UPDATE:  Found it, the group is 'Defense of Democracies'. Here is the FUD ad. WARNING, this ad contains Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt as well as unhealthy amounts of Jingoism with no facts. . . .

. . .The commercial is a FUD piece saying the Senate had shown true leadership and concern for the safety of this country by voting FOR the new FISA bill (which is the bill the Bush Administration wants that include Telecom immunity), while the House ducked its responsibility and went on vacation. It showed a whole bunch of scary images and pro-American jingoism, terrorist bad bullshit common in these times thanks to the Bush Adminisration. The end put up Tim Walz's picture and contact information (which isn't on the YouTube version, and must have been added regionally for each member of Congress targeted) and urged people to call him and tell him to vote YES for security! Vote FOR the FISA bill (now with new and improved Telecom Immunity!). I won't go into why this ad is wrong on so many levels, as it makes me so enraged I get even more incoherent. But sufficed to say, the new FISA bill will not make us safer, the old FISA legislation (which had been updated) protects us and our civil liberties by requiring judicial oversight and review (even after the fact if time of the essence) and the new bill weakens civil liberties and expands the power of the Administrative Branch by weakening the checks and balances. The fact this ad could give no facts and only provide push-button emotional rhetoric should illustrate why everyone when they see something like this should, in the words of Buffalo Springfield, 'there's something happening here, what it is ain't exactly clear...stop children, what's the sound? Everybody look whats goin down...'

Go over to CubeZoo, watch the ad, and let GeistX know your response while the Buffalo Springfield classic plays. Then, if you're one of Walz's constituents, call his office and tell him what you think about the ad, too.

We did catch an error of fact in the Newsweek column. It noted that Democratic board member "resignations were first reported by Spencer Ackerman in the Washington Independent."  That article--which is very fine--was posted today.

Not quite first place. On Monday, Bluestem reported a tip from the ACLU about Eliot Engle's resignation, and moments later, Matt Stoller at Open Left was first to report Charles Shumer's departure from the board and to post Donna Brazile's statement condemning the ad and removing herself from the board.

 

Brian Davis: is there a rat in the GOP's kitchen?

Update: Demmer tells his side of the story in today's Rochester Post Bulletin. He's not pointing any fingers, but we are speculating.  Demmer does suggest a general direction for the source of the attacks:

"Demmer said he suspects the effort originates in Republican circles, because he's not even the endorsed candidate to oppose Democrat Walz yet. He said he received a call from a Republican in Washington, an apparent ally, who had received a package...."[end update]

One of our favorite songs by the 1980s UK reggae band UB40 is "Rat in Mi Kitchen." For a few weeks, we've been thinking of GOP candidate Brian Davis whenever we hear these lyrics shuffled up by our iPod:

There`s a rat in me kitchen what am I gonna do?
There`s a rat in me kitchen what am I gonna go?
I`m gonna fix that rat thats what i`m gonna do,
I`m gonna fix that rat.

When you open your mouth you don`t talk, you shout
And you give every body the blame,
But when they catch you up,
They will shut you up
And you got no one to blame

We had noticed that Davis tended to send us disparaging things about his rivals for the GOP endorsement--most recently calling our attention to Day's coming absence at the candidate debate at Rochester Mayo High. As it turned out, Senator Day was with his family welcoming an adopted grandchild to this country.

Now, like several of Minnesota's lefty bloggers, most noticeably the Wege, we were raised in Republican households. And one vestige of that upbringing in Southern Minnesota is to look askance at those Republicans who run to the other side with reports of ill doing on behalf of members of their own party. It's rather the way we feel about Democrats who pass information on to MDE.

Thus was that we were not surprised to read the post today at MnPublius, Exclusive: Randy Demmer Sued.  We had known about the lawsuits--a federal case filed in 1995 but dismissed before it was re-refiled in the Dodge County Courts in 1996.  It's old stuff and not material that makes Demmer look like a monster. He isn't.

And in our educated judgement, it's likely  being spread now by none other than Brian Davis or his allies in his attempt to gain the nomination to run against Tim Walz. [Update:] perhaps Day could be doing this, but it doesn't strike us as his M.O. As one commenter posts at MNPublius:

This is the type of crap you get when a candidate hires a guy like Brad Biers to be his campaign manager. To me, this type of politics says more about the judgement of one of Demmer’s opponents than it does about Demmer. [end update]

It strikes us as the latest effort to twist a situation to Davis' advantage--a twisting that repeatedly happens with a certain recklessness toward the facts.  Thus we have seen Davis exploit an important milestone in the Day family and--perhaps--a decade old lawsuit against Demmer.

Against Walz?  Davis continues to claim that Walz was silent about the MoveOn ad attacking General Petraeus, despite the fact that Walz was one of the first members of Congress to criticize MoveOn's actions--on Fox Radio on September 10, no less.

Why these sleaze tactics would make anyone inclined to support Dr. Davis--especially his fellow Republicans--is somewhat beyond our understanding. Why their use would impress any voter of any party to cast a ballot for Davis is equally baffling.

We don't know if Demmer or Davis tipped off a lefty blogger about the lawsuits. But the story isn't the lawsuits: it's the  strong possibility of Davis' dirty campaigning--while publicly claiming victimization at the county convention last weekend.

PDf of the federal docket here: FederalDocket-95-0092.pdf 

Update: another Post Bulletin article about the lawsuit: Demmer: Dredged up lawsuit is simply dirty politics.

Washington Independent: your tax dollars at work at FDD?

The Minnesota Monitor's Beltway affiliate, The Washington Independent, picks up on the unfolding story behind the Defense of Democracies ad in 'Bipartisan' Think Tank Attacks Democrats. Spencer Ackerman writes:

A neo-conservative but ostensibly bipartisan counterterrorism think tank has lost all its Democratic board members by running an attack ad in Democratic congressional districts through an affiliated enterprise.

The think tank, called the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, is a 501(c )3 -- meaning it was incorporated as a non-profit and non-partisan organization, barred from political activity. Last week, it established Defense of Democracies, a 501(c )4 "non-profit, non-partisan advocacy organization," that ran an advertisement urging the House of Representatives to pass the Senate's version of a bill providing retroactive legal immunity to telecommunications companies that collaborated with the Bush administration's constellation of warrantless surveillance programs. The arrangement is probably legal, experts say, but the parent think tank receives several grants from the State Department -- at least one is worth $487,000 -- for democracy-promotion programs, making its political activities questionable.

On Friday, Defense of Democracies ran an ad in 15 congressional districts that erroneously stated, "the law that lets intelligence agencies intercept Al Qaeda communications expire[d]." In fact, the intelligence community has the authority to intercept Al Qaeda communications under other laws; the expired Protect America Act allowed the National Security Agency to intercept communications between any two persons of interest to a foreign intelligence investigation, even including U.S. citizens, without a warrant. Featuring ominous music, it showed a picture of Osama bin Laden before saying -- again erroneously, according to members of the intelligence community -- "new surveillance is crippled." In the 15 districts, Defense of Democracies got specific about what it wanted. In one of them, for instance: "Tell Tim Walz that Congress must do its job and pass the Senate's terrorist surveillance bill."

The citizens of Minnesota's First Congressional district already have a means to promote democracy. It is called an election.  We hope that the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies--and the taxpayer-funded grants it receives--butts out.  Go read the details at MinMon.

We at BSP have had to watch the attack ad on Walz air repeatedly on KEYC-TV 12. To the station's credit, it ran Congressman Walz Strikes Back, a news story about Walz's pushback.  Our more ambitious readers might consider contacting Defense of Democracies to share a piece of the District's views about the ad.

Tuesday morning news digest: Exile from GOPville edition

The Rochester Post Bulletin editorial board opines Republican disunity can only help Walz. Not true: bloggers are rejoicing over the promise of great material from the GOP wannabe candidates. We have a lot to look forward to. The board writes:

"The end result is that, instead of a GOP candidate setting his sights on Walz on March 30, the 1st District will get to watch two Republicans spend the next five months vying against each other until the Sept. 9 primary."

And speaking for ourselves at BSP, we're grateful for the month remaining until the First Congressional District convention.  We'll miss either Demmer or Davis.

The Owatonna People's Press reports Day exiled from GOP for skipping endorsement.  The article repeats in its sister paper, the Waseca County News. Rumors elsewhere that state GOP chair Ron Carey has called the tip line at ICE to see if Day can be deported are entirely false.

The Spring Grove Herald reports Minnesota Guard troops working to keep peace in Kosovo. Around 400 Minnesota Guard members are deployed to Kosovo.

From the looks of this stub of an article in the Hanska Herald, Ruthie Hendrycks has stopped mentioning her degree from diploma mill LaCrosse University. We also understand that she never did send her "thesis" to the Wege, as promised in the comments here, either.

Pity. We wanted to read Hendrycks' “Domestic Violence and The Mediation Process - Pros and Cons."  We had thought that domestic violence was a crime, not a private matter, since the 1970s at the very least. Looks like we'll never be enlightened now. She has, however, found time to post an article from the John Birch Society's magazine to an online group.

We have discovered that Ruthie might be as confused about Bluestem Prairie as she was about the accreditation of colleges.  She believes that we are Tim Walz's website:

Please note: Mark Meyer has dropped out of Cong District 1 race - this leaves four candidates. MINNSIR supports Brian Davis or Dick Day for this seat. A clarification of one candidate is forthcoming early next year following an upcoming survey to find out exactly where they stand and to allow you to make your choice.  However, note Tim Walz has this trash posted on his website.

(see links directly below)

Please

http://www.bluestemprairie.com/a_bluestem_prairie/2007/12/morillo-alicea.html 

http://www.bluestemprairie.com/a_bluestem_prairie/2007/12/pb-editorial-do.html 

Bluestem Prairie is an independent blog that is not part of Congressman Walz's campaign or congressional office. She can find Tim Walz's congressional site here and his campaign site here.  We hope she will share the facts of her confusion with her membership.

Her confusion is only matched by California Minuteman Ron Branstner's belief that more that one person writes our posts, given our annoying use of the editorial first person "we."  Our readers can sleep soundly at night knowing that all posts over the blog de plume "Ollie Ox" are written by one person.

Hendrycks might also share this news with the Brown County GOP Convention on Saturday, where she will be promoting her candidacy for the State House. GOP Congressional contenders Davis, Day, and Demmer will be there, as well as State Senator Dennis Frederickson, who had the decency to vote for the transportation bill. Should be a lively gathering.

Those scolding Denny won't get any help from the New Ulm Journal editorial board which believes Legislature did the right thing for state roads.

Meanwhile, down in Worthington, the Globe reports Farmers await new Farm Bill.  And many of the very small towns with straight pipe sewer problems are in Southern Minnesota, the Star Tribune reports in Archaic sewage lines tainting lakes, rivers.

Discussion of the Defense of Democracy ad was all over the netroots. Phoenix Woman took a look in Pounding The Table. Open Left looks at Democratic board members' resignations in The Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. The Muckraker at TPM examined the FDD's press release in   Group Launches Ads Pressuring Dems on Surveillance Bill.

The Blue Mass Group looked at the New England version of the ad in Tag Team: Right Wing & Telecomms Take on Congress?

Sure enough, we found that the National Association of Manufacturers had blogged about Today's Surveillance Developments... and over at the conservative National Review Corner, the FDD's ace debater mocked Tim Walz for serving 24 years in the Coast Guard in More Palaver from House Obstructionists on Intelligence Reform. Perhaps First District national security maven Tom Maertens will take on this tool.

 Our friend McPherson Hall at Minnesota Central asks  A Question for John Kline :Are Comic Books Pork Barrel Spending ? He finds a Bush earmark for comic books about Iraqi security forces. 

If only Captain America were still alive! The private sector could underwrite the expense, and NRO shills for the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies could go back to scolding Marvel Comics for endangering America's national security.

The Senate, FISA, and Congressman Walz

Congressman Walz took a lot of justified heat last August for his FISA vote and its defense--from his constituents, the press, national security experts, and the left blogosphere--and it looks like the lesson has taken, if the experience of two bloggers in Rochester is an accurate measure.

Walz critics GeistX and Nerdwife at CubeZoo write about confronting their Congressman Tuesday night in Rochester's  Congressional District 1, Ward 2 Caucus.  Go read the post about their experience at Cubezoo. Nerdwife concludes:

To those who have written/called/emailed: he is very aware of your feelings! Walz was really on point about this vote, and had answers ready for this frowning constituent.

Last summer's bad FISA bill continues as the law of the land under a 15-day extension that expires February 15. The Senate is debating a new bill this week; Firedoglake's Empty Wheel is doing yeoman's work live-blogging the debate. Constitutional lawyer Glenn Greenwald also does a greet job on this issue at Salon.

The House passed its own new bill back on November 15, the RESTORE Act. Minnesota's congressional delegation voted along party lines, with Jim Oberstar not voting. 

At DailyKos, McJoan stresses that the GOP high jinks in the Senate:

highlight the importance of keeping the House strong on holding the line to keep their FISA legislation, the RESTORE Act, the base bill as they go to conference.

The action recommended by the frontpage diarist:

In addition, there are some key House members to contact to make sure they hold tough on the already passed RESTORE Act. It's critical that they don't fold under pressure from the Senate to weaken their bill. Here's the list of targets, either because of their committee assignments or their previous votes, in the House to call and to tell to fight for the RESTORE Act.

In Minnesota, Walz and Fifth district congressman Keith Ellison are on the list. 

Those who want to join GeistX and Nerdwife in urging Tim Walz to do the right thing--as he told them he would do--should call, email, or fax their concern. According to the district bloggers, he's listening, and hearing from constituents now would help him follow mcjoan's advice to "hold tough."

Late morning news digest: Iraq visit and everything after

We listened to Representatives Walz and Bachmann on Mid-Morning with Kerri Miller. It was a great contrast.  Walz talked about how tenuous and simplistic an assumption it was that one could make snap judgments assessing a situation after a few hours in a country, then talked about various measurements for considering the Iraq effort.  Walz reiterated his belief that the administration had rushed into this war without properly exhausting other options.

He stressed the need to get on with reconstruction projects (less than 5 percent of the money set aside for such projects has been spent) and criticized the the Bush administration's priorities. He also repeated his view that the Administration rushed into the Iraq War without exhausting other avenues.

Bachmann gushed on about her feelings and the facial expressions of those she met on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, throwing in an anecdote or two. She talked at length about her idea that Iran is a major player in the Iraq War.

Her ideas about Iran are, well, we'll let our friends in the Sixth's blogosphere take them apart.  But they do illustrate the sharp contrast between those members of congress who are stoking the notion of going to war with Iran, and those of someone like Walz, who was critical on the show of the war we already have, but did not babble one word of hysteria about Iran.

Both were asked about dealing with the recession. Walz favored getting money into the hands of those who will spend--an approached favored by the Federal Reserve chair, while Bachmann said she wanted to cut  corporate tax rates to 25 percent. She did say she'd be open to proposals for stimulus packages.

But I had to laugh aloud at her response to a question about the coming campaign season, when she talked about being out in her district talking to people.  When was that? 

And here's another sharp contrast between Bachmann and Walz.  It's not just Bachmann's paranoid fantasies about Iran that would make Richard Hofstadter sit up in his grave and salute her style, versus
Walz's focus on the fact at hand. The representatives' differing notions of what constitutes meeting with the public contrast as deeply as the ying and yang of the Taoist tradition.

It's a frequent complaint of friends and bloggers in the Sixth that Bachmann has not held a single town hall meeting or forum since entering Congress.  They look with envy to the First, where Walz has held dozens and dozens of public meeting, most well publicized, to listen to what his constituents thinks about policy issues ranging for the Iraq War to the Farm Bill.

In the netroots, our friend in Southwestern Minnesota's Corner House Comments asks Good Lord! Does Bachmann have a clue?:

Over at Think Progress they have a story featuring comments made by Minnesota’s Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN). Apparently she made this comment:

I am so proud to be from the state of Minnesota. We’re the workingest state in the country, and the reason why we are, we have more people that are working longer hours, we have people that are working two jobs.

What can I say? According to her standards I must be a slacker.

Walz mentioned this remark in his interview with Kerri Miller, noting that he thought that was a peculiar measure of economic health. Walz thought a sign of a healthy economy would be a person having one good job that allowed him or her to spend more time at home with the family.

Lots of coverage of the trip to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Star Tribune reports Rep. Tim Walz visits war zones to study veterans' care system  The Post Bulletin reports Walz's Iraq trip reveals deficient medical records for troops and MPR Walz calls for better access to soldier's medical records.

Young and old join campaign to oppose 'toxic trade'. In December, Walz expressed this support of another consumer safety proposal, the SAFE Consumer Product Act.  Walz's news chief of staff, who is based in the Rochester, formerly worked for the Steelworkers. The protest must have made for an interesting reunion.

Vox Verax looks at Walz returning his pay raise to the Treasury in  What's this? A congressman who actually practices what he preaches?. An investment blogger notes that

Tonight on C-Span, six democratic members of the House of Representatives, including Minnesota congressman Tim Walz and Keith Ellison, took the podium for an hour to discuss an economic stimulus package for middle income Americans that would pump $100 billion into the economy and target subsidies for health insurance, small businesses, employment, housing crunch victims, and more. Several of the congressmen mentioned that although Americans continue to increase productivity, wage increases have not moved forward

We happened to be channel surfing and caught some of that. However, when Iowa Rep. Steve King got on and started carrying on about categorizing legislation into whether or not the efforts would define the nation or not (with health care insurance, economic recovery and so forth getting assigned to the no column) we found a far more exciting re-run of Law & Order somewhere.

Saturday, Congressman Walz will be visiting National Pheasant Fest 2008 in St. Paul.  There will be a discussion of the Farm Bill:

Farm Bill Forum - Pheasants Forever's Farm Bill Forum on Saturday, January 19th, at 10:30 AM will include the three most important people shaping the Federal Farm Bill: Acting U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Chuck Conner; U.S. Senate Agriculture Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA); and U.S. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-MN). The Forum will be held in the upper ballroom level of the Saint Paul RiverCentre Seminar rooms 10 and 11. The Forum will be preceded by a press conference at 10 AM with a special wildlife conservation announcement from the United States Department of Agriculture.

Admission is $10.  Tomorrow, however, there will be a parade:

National Pheasant Fest 2008 will kick off on Friday with a Bird Dog Parade led by Ron Schara and Raven. Over 25 different sporting dog breeds and their owners will march in the parade that begins at 12:30 PM at Roy Wilkins Auditorium, site of the Bird Dog Stage presented by Purina. The parade route will then make its way outdoors around the Xcel Energy Center, starting at 5th Street West, then 7th Street West, and finally onto Kellogg Blvd West. The parade will conclude at the Saint Paul RiverCentre entrance prior to the ribbon cutting and opening of National Pheasant Fest at 1 PM.

Let's hope their owners bring the dogs' sweaters for that jaunt. It's cold out there!

Sunday afternoon news digest: molasses in January edition

District news is still a bit slow with the recess and news about the rest of Representative Walz's Middle Eastern trip under a security blanket. We evoke the old cliche about molasses this time of year, but are prepared to move quickly, since molasses can be rather fickle (and deadly). We'll try to post news ASAP.

The Winona Daily News picks up the AP wire story in Walz concerned about conditions in Afghanistan, Pakistan.

The Owatonna People's Press reports that representatives of the Divided We Fail makes campaign stop. The Divided We Fall campaign was created by AARP, the Business Roundtable, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the National Federation of Independent Business a year ago to push elect officials to find a bi-partisan solution to health care insurance issues. If that peculiar coalition doesn't get lawmakers' attention on this issue, what will?

Members of the Legislative Commission to End Poverty by 2020 visited Worthington, St. Peter, Mankato, St. James, Windom, Mountain Lake, Jackson and Marshall, according to the Worthington Globe's report, Group aims to put end to poverty.

The Globe editorial board asks that Congress Keep encouraging wind investment. Apparently the free market alone isn't enough to keep Southern Minnesota's turbines turning. A tax credit is needed:

Washington legislators have allowed the credit to expire three different times in the last decade, and the effect on the wind energy industry shouldn’t be surprising. In fact, construction of new wind farms reportedly dropped by 75 percent one year after Congress’ 2003 decision to let the credit lapse.

In the netroots, DB's Political Muse looks at Michele's "Coming Out" Party, contrasting Walzs' service on three committees and multiple town hall forums with Bachmann's lackadaisical approach to serving her constituents.

Wednesday morning news digest: Budget bill boogie edition

The Mankato Free Press reports in Pending vote has Walz uneasy:

It’s looking increasingly likely Congressman Tim Walz is going to have to decide between budget discipline and 40,000 of his constituents sometime later this week, and the freshman Democrat said Tuesday he’s struggling with the decision.

Senate Republicans, backed by President Bush, are blocking efforts by Walz and other House Democrats to generate $50 billion of new revenue to offset $50 billion in tax relief for people who are otherwise going to get hit by the Alternative Minimum Tax next year. The Senate on Tuesday efectively voted to allow the cost to be added to the national debt.

After winning control of Congress a year ago, Democrats imposed “pay as you go” rules, known as pay-go for short, that attempt to force the fiscal discipline required to keep budget deficits and the national debt from growing. The rules require spending increases and tax cuts in one area to be offset by spending cuts or tax hikes in other parts of the budget. The Senate proposal would be a clear violation of the rules. . . .

“I’m talking to a lot of people and struggling with this,” Walz said Tuesday, referring to extensive discussion with his congressional staff and opinion leaders in southern Minnesota.

Walz said the politically expedient choice would be to support the Senate bill, whcih was expected to be voted on today in the House.

“The easy thing is to go that way,” Walz said. . . .

. . .There could be political fall-out, however, if Walz votes to violate the pay-go rules. During last year’s successful campaign to knock off longtime GOP Congressman Gil Gutknecht, Walz was critical of the budgets and massive deficits piled up by the then-Republican-controlled federal government.

And he was vocal in his enthusiasm for pay-go.

The Democratic-controlled House passed an AMT fix earlier this month that offsets the tax relief with $50 billion in new taxes, mainly by shutting down loopholes on offshore tax havens. Republicans in Congress and the White House balked at that idea, setting up the vote on an AMT fix that simply allows the deficit to grow.

“I’m as disappointed as I’ve been with the Senate,” Walz said. “And that’s saying
something.". . .

We don't think he'll be especially happy with the choice presented to the House by the Senate today, if we're reading an article in CQ Politics correctly Spending Fight Set to End in House:

Congress is poised to finish its spending work for the year Wednesday, although for most Democrats it comes at the price of continuing to fund a war they oppose.House Sought Less for Military

The House is expected to clear a bill Wednesday for President Bush’s signature that encompasses 11 of the 12 annual spending bills, providing $473.5 billion in discretionary spending for fiscal 2008. The measure (HR 2764) includes an additional $70 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, plus $11.2 billion in “emergency” spending.

Democrats took over Congress this year aiming to bring an end to the war in Iraq. But without 60 votes in the Senate needed to overcome Republican filibusters, they were unable to set a timetable for a withdrawal or a drawdown of troops. . . .

The Senate voted, 76-17, late Tuesday night to send the omnibus appropriations package back to the House for a final vote Wednesday. . . .

. . .The House version of the spending package included $31 billion for operations in Afghanistan, troop protection equipment and some military base programs. Yet Republicans insisted on funding for Iraq.       

As part of a procedural maneuver set up by Democrats, the House Wednesday will be voting on whether to accept the additional war money added by the Senate. . . .

The Post Bulletin's Ed Felker reports in Federal spending bills includes regional projects:

Rep. Tim Walz, D-Mankato, saw his local and regional project requests survive mostly unscathed in the year-end appropriations bill moving through Congress this week, with some notable increases over amounts approved by the House earlier this year. . . .

. . .In Walz's case, the 20 projects he requested, alone and with other lawmakers, totaled $35.6 million, up $7.3 million over House-passed levels. The largest earmark, $27 million for the Lewis & Clark Rural Water System, which benefits southwestern Minnesota communities, was increased by $4.7 million in the final version.

Other notable increases were the $900,000 added to the House amount for the Veterans Re-Entry Education Program at Minnesota colleges and universities, to nearly $1.2 million, and $650,000 added to the National Child Protection Center at Winona State University, to $1.2 million.

The bill also included $850,000 in money for U.S. 14, up $150,000 over the House-approved level.

Three projects were added in the final bill that were not considered by the House, including two worth $100,000 each for flood protection measures in St. Charles and Winona County, and $410,000 for the Tallgrass Prairie National Wildlife Refuge in western Minnesota and northwest Iowa. . . .

. . . Walz on Tuesday defended the projects as important and said the earmark process, which has been criticized by watchdog groups as pork barrel politics, has been improved by Democrats through better disclosure. He said he publicized his support for the projects throughout the year. "We think they are very, very responsible and investments in the future," he said.

He plans to vote for the bill when it returns from the Senate with additional funding for the war in Iraq. The House bill required two votes Monday night, one for the bill that covered 11 appropriations bills for the 2008 fiscal year, and one granting $31 billion in nonbudgeted money for the Afghanistan war but not Iraq. Both were passed with minimal Republican support. . . .

And how will Walz vote? The PB reports:

. . .Walz has been outspoken about what he said has been the president's unwillingness to negotiate with congressional Democrats over spending and the Iraq war. He said he was willing to agree to unrestricted war spending and Bush's budget target rather than force a government shutdown.

The last major shutdown came in 1995 during a budget battle between congressional Republicans and President Bill Clinton. "The bottom line on this one was this president was very obviously willing to go to the brink and shut this government down," Walz said.

Netroots
Update 1:15: At Minnesota Monitor, Joe Bodell asks Congressional Earmarks:  Pork or Proper?. His answer for Walz's district:

Ellison's fellow freshman Tim Walz hit on considerable success in the spending bill, securing more than $1 million in funding for transportation projects in his southern Minnesota district; $1.3 million for a National Guard training facility in Mankato; and a total of $35.6 million for labor, energy and water, agriculture and environmental projects. Reading the descriptions of these projects, it is again difficult to identify any obvious examples of so-called "pork-barrel" spending. One might quibble with calling a storm water management upgrade for St. Charles a Homeland Security project, but the merits of such a project are clear to those who were hit hard by the 2007 floods across southeast Minnesota.

So, to address Congressman Kline's critique of the earmark system -- that it is based on seniority -- how did the freshmen do? Leaving out the Northstar Rail project, which was co-sponsored by more senior members, Keith Ellison secured around $16 million for his district. Tim Walz secured more than $35 million. Again leaving out the Northstar Rail project, 30-year veteran Oberstar secured between $35 million and $40 million for Eighth District-focused projects.

Doesn't sound like a huge disparity to me.

 

Over at IDHA, DJ Danielson muses about rocking Congressmen, and expresses his disappointment that we have yet to post video of Hall performing last Friday, as opposed to Hall talking about veterans issues. We're working on it (excuse us if we put veterans first); meanwhile, go check out DJ suggestion for the official Dick Day for Congress theme song.

Monday morning digest: girls with guns edition

Along with the effervescent DJ Danielson, we attended the Becky Lourey Roast yesterday in St. Paul, which was probably the huggiest roast in Minnesota political history. Speakers kept saying that roasting Lourey was like trying to roast Mother Teresa. Dane Smith of Growth and Justice got off some good shots, though, riffing off Lourey's exhaustive energy and dead aim at hundreds of yards with a .30-06 rifle.  Jim Robins, an old college chum, caught Lourey's hug for former Rochester state senator Sheila Kiscaden, who had just shared some entertaining tales about Lourey's advice on raising teenagers. Lourey and her husband Gene raised 12 children.

The Grand Forks Herald's Minnesota Politics Notebook shares information about Congressman Walz's internet safety toolkit for parents. 

In the Winona Daily News'  letters section, Southeast Minnesota Central Labor Council president Russell Hess writes in about Workers rights and human rights.  The beginning:

It’s International Human Rights week, the 59th anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights.

This year, the U.S. must face a hard fact: America’s workers rank lower on measure after measure than workers in many other industrialized nations, according to a new study by the London School of Economics.

We have less paid leave, less vacation and we work even more hours than workers in Japan. Instead of setting the standards, we are falling behind. . . .

Such close scrutiny of our lives as working Americans might be what causes the GOP to search for fear-driven distractions. There's a good example in today's WDN opinion section.