Upsala Republican activist Aleta Edin, who challenged Minnesota Seventh District Congressman Collin Peterson in 1998, is completely concerned about religious freedom.
And menus.
In Where does the Christian Right go?, a letter to the Morrison County Record, Edin frets that same-sex couples will force their menu choices on Jewish delis:
. . .This may be a long battle and will require Christian people to support and vote for candidates in the next election who will support, uphold, fight and vote for religious freedom laws which protect people’s right to say “no.”
If a same sex couple entered a Jewish deli and ordered ham and cheese sandwiches for a wedding reception, would the Jewish deli be forced to provide them or risk being sued or fined?
Whatever happened to separation of church and state? Marriage is a religious institution and the Supreme Court just stepped into religion. What’s next? Polygamy?
Bluestem suspects that kosher delis (or halal markets) would probably be able to give the same answer to the same-sex couple that they've given to straight couples ordering ham: not on the menu. But refusing service on the basis of the buyer's sexual identity? That's been against the law in Minnesota since 1993.
Photo: A ham and swiss sandwich.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Education, nursing homes and rural business growth were among priorities for local legislators in the most recent session, according to Sen. Paul Gazelka, R-Nisswa, and Rep. Ron Kresha, R-Little Falls,
About 30 people showed up to hear Gazelka and Kresha summarize the most recent legislative special session, address important current events and field questions from local residents.
Among the accomplishments at the Capitol was a 2 percent funding increase for the next two years, Kresha said, and a total of more than $1 billion more in the budget for education.
Bluestem is surprised to read about Kresha touting a bigger budget, since the Republican House Caucus campaigned against funding increases in 2014--but then the reporter quotes Senator Gazelka saying something even more relative to the facts of the session:
He [Gazelka] added that the updates from the Capitol also include what was not accomplished.
“It’s also important to say what we did not do,” Gazelka said.
Among these were included the gas tax increase and universal pre-kindergarten and agricultural buffer regulations, which the legislators opposed due to lack of popular support.
“Those, I think, are some wins,” Gazelka said.
We find the final item in Gazelka's list to be peculiar because of newspaper articles like the July 8, 2015 report in the Alexandria Echo Press, New ‘buffer zone’ plan for farmers begins:
Following a series of reports highlighting a concerning decline in water quality across Minnesota, Dayton and lawmakers worked throughout the legislative session with farmers, landowners, environmental advocates, and public health experts to develop a solution aimed at reducing runoff and improving water quality.
The law will designate roughly 110,000 acres of land for buffer strips alongside Minnesota’s waterways. These new perennial vegetation buffers along rivers, streams and ditches, will help filter out phosphorus, nitrogen, and sediment before it enters the water supply.
The law will provide flexibility and financial assistance for landowners to install and maintain buffers, and boost compliance with buffer laws.
HOW IT WORKS
Here is how the new law will work. . .
It is peculiar indeed for Gazelka to claim that new buffer regulations, like an increase in the gas tax and universal pre-kindergarten education, didn't happen. The bill that Representative Paul Torkelson (R-Hanska) and Senator John Marty (DFL-Roseville) changed over the course of the session, but it's not unusual for compromise to occur when two sides stand at odds. Witness last year's medical cannabis legislation.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Remember how much new stuff was crammed into conference committee bills at the end of the session?
According to Bill Ingebrigtsen (R-Alexandria), that so didn't happen. The elimination of the MPCA Citizens Board? The bonding bill? Jobs and energy, rushed at the last minute to the House chambers? Here's that moment enshrined on YouTube by The Uptake:
Ingebrigtsen rejected concerns that bills were being passed without enough time for legislators to be aware of the content.
“With a more even government, there had to be some give and take,” he said.
What it comes down to in the final days of the session is deal making over issues that have been thoroughly discussed, he said.
Ingebrigtsen said there is a enough blame to go around for both parties.
Will the talking point for 2016 be "A pox on both our parties, but the cankers on those guys over there are a lot worse than ours?" Or will citizens demand that the process become more transparent and directed toward the needs of Minnesotans rather than special interests and hirelings?
Photo: State senator Bill Ingebrigtsen, listening to the industrial hemp discussion on April 8. Photo by Don Davis.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Desperately seeking to gain more attention than Stewart Mills' hair, First Congressional District candidate Jim Hagedorn is doing what he did before seeking office twice before.
. . . when the court decided to legalize same-sex marriage across the nation, we in Minnesota again heard an overwhelming outburst. The reactions came pouring in -- from state and federal leaders -- even though Minnesota had legalized same-sex marriage in 2013.
On that day, the statements were one-sided. "A great day," "love is love," "I could not be more proud," the statements said.
Our Republic is facing a constitutional crisis perpetrated by America’s far-left and the Democrat Party.
Increasingly, the President and Supreme Court have acted as legislative bodies, usurping the powers granted Congress to write our nation’s laws. The Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling instituting same-sex marriage – a decision applauded by “Twin Cities Tim” Walz – is the latest in a long list of extra-constitutional misconduct.
Keep in mind that leading up to the court’s sweeping gay marriage ruling, 31 states (via legislation or referendum) affirmed marriage as between one man and one woman. Yet, five lawyers acting as an oligarchy (along with other federal judges) replaced the laws of more than 3/5ths of the states and nullified the cultural values of thousands of elected state legislators and millions of referendum-voters.
As a candidate who strongly backs the 10th Amendment, which grants states the right to govern on matters not addressed in the U.S. Constitution, the court’s decree is very troubling because it moves us further from the goal of taking power from Washington, D.C. and returning it to states and American people.
Liberals will use this victory as a weapon to, first and foremost, attack Christian organizations and attempt to police the thoughts and actions of those who disagree.
The centerpiece of the Democrat Party’s agenda will be a full-frontal assault on America’s religious institutions and the church leaders who preach relevant Scripture and teach that marriage is between one man and one woman.
At this critical point in time, we must vehemently defend religious worship and stymie any attempt to use the court’s marriage decision to attack religion. We must always protect the God-given right of religious people to worship freely, without government harassment and coercion.
I support passage of an amendment to the U.S. Constitution further clarifying and expanding application of the First Amendment. A draft of my proposed amendment follows:
No religious institution or religious official shall be compelled to perform any religious service or ceremony on behalf of any person or persons; the government shall not impose a financial burden, including but not limited to a penalty, fine or discontinuance of tax-exempt status, upon any religious institution or religious official for failure to sanction or validate marital unions other than between one man and one woman.
We must protect our churches, church leaders and our right to worship. We must proactively defend our First Amendment liberties. You can count on me to fight for you and protect our freedom of religion, freedom of speech and all of the fundamental freedoms endowed to us by our Creator.
And here we thought our liberal friends were focused on stuff like upsetting money changers, feeding the hungry, caring for the sick and restoring voting rights to people who'd been to prison. Perhaps all that Gospel of Matthew-y stuff is simply there to lower Christians' guard.
Congress must cut-off federal funds to "sanctuary cities" that skirt federal law & harbor illegal aliens, including felons. But let's be real, leftist Obama-Walz policies have made the U.S. a sanctuary country! We must secure our borders and return to the rule of law.
Tim Walz embraced Obama's executive amnesty, sanctuary city policies & open borders. Walz's decade in DC has made U.S. citizens vulnerable to illegal alien felony crime, serious disease and Islamic terrorism. Unlike Walz, I will defend America and you!
Bluestem half expects Robert Erickson to return from prankster heaven to join his voice with that of Hagedorn.
Last cycle, Hagedorn beat the Ebola drum against Walz. At the Post Bulletin, Heather Carlson reported in Ebola becomes campaign issue:
It's time to elect leaders who will make national security and the safety of the American people the highest priority. At a minimum, the U.S. should immediately ban travel from West African Ebola nations," Hagedorn said.
He went on to criticize Walz and President Obama for not to doing enough to secure the nation's borders to prevent the spread of Ebola.
"The reckless Obama-Walz policies of open borders, suspended deportations and lax visa/passport standards have left America and Americans vulnerable to Islamic terrorism, Ebola and serious crime," Hagedorn said.
Thanks to Publisher Joe Steck and the Mankato Times for covering the race for Congress and filing this report on proposed policy concerning the Ebola outbreak in the United States. I believe Ebola in the U.S. is an unforced error caused by "open borders" politicians.
Fortunately, Hagedorn's fear-mongering didn't sway the voters in Southern Minnesota and Walz was re-elected.
Bluestem has to wonder whether Hagedorn's anti-immigrant screeds might alienate some conservatives in Southern Minnesota who have been working to improve life for undocumented workers. Representative Rod Hamilton (R-Mountain Lake, pictured above, left, with Hagedorn) is an outspoken proponent of driver's licenses for undocumented workers.
Supporters of the bill included Roger Pohlman, the police chief from Red Wing, and James Felt, the police chief from Willmar, who both said it would help police more easily identify both witnesses and suspects.
Krystell Escobar, an insurance agent, said passing the bill would also lead to more undocumented immigrants obtaining car insurance, thus lowering the rates for everyone. The Minnesota Agri-Growth Council registered its support, as did the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and the state ACLU.
Emotions were running high by the end of the session. “If you listen to the testimony closely, in will boil down to one thing,” bill author Rep. Rod Hamilton, R-Mountain Lake, told the committee in his closing statement. “It will boil down to the Declaration of Independence and the moral belief that we all believe is a right: that we are all created equal with a right to liberty and happiness. … This is bigger than a driver's license, and we all know that.”
Hamilton said he had decided not to bring it to a vote, as he worried he might be a single vote short. The bill is still alive, and could either be brought to committee again or be proposed as an amendment to another bill — either in the transportation committee or on the House floor. It may however, face a tough road ahead.
The proposal has been amended several times. It would grant undocumented immigrants a license that could only be used for driving, which would include text on the back, “For Driving Only,” indicating that the holder was not eligible to vote.
“It’s an education process, and we need to do just that,” Hamilton said. “The folks that were on the fence, that had questions, they can take that and think about it a little bit and then we’ll circle back with them at a later time.”
It's not a stretch to wonder whether Hamilton, the Ag Mafia and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce will be all that happy to help Hagedorn fear-mongering against the immigration reform ideas they support.
However, this is Minnesota politics, where bedfellows are as strange as anywhere.
Photo: Pro-immigrant Republican lawmaker Rod Hamilton campaigning with Jim Hagedorn in October 2014. Via Facebook.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Bluestem has been looking at the problem of regulatory capture--the control of government agencies and authorities by the industries they are supposed to watchdog--for a while now, and we think we've stumbled upon a particularly egregious example of of a regulate industry setting the agenda in agricultural policy.
On July 12-15 in Bismarck, North Dakota, the Midwestern Legislative Conference of the Council of State Governments Midwest will hold its 70th annual meeting. In the working agenda for the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, we find an interesting contrast between all of the panels, comprised of academic experts, legislators, government officials, a debate between business consultants with opposite views of the renewable energy standard, and a final public policy roundtable on Livestock Siting: Issues, Challenges and Options, led by one Eldon McAfee:
Who is Eldon L. McAfee, who will be leading a roundtable about how those pesky regulations get in the way of ginormous livestock operations?
Another topic of concern to producers is the Des Moines Water Walks notice of intent to sue 10 drainage districts in three Iowa counties under the Clean Water Act. Is discharge from field tile lines point source pollution? Farmers are not sure how this will play out.
Attorney Eldon McAfee told producers to be extra careful about manure applications this winter....
Yes, the roundtable about regulating the livestock industry will be led by a livestock industry lawyer. And not just any industry lawyer, but a master of the pork industry. Learn more about McAfee's work on behalf of the pork industry in CAFO Inspection Settlement Reached in Iowa.
The number of Iowa’s lakes, rivers and streams that are impaired due to some level of pollution has climbed 15 percent in two years, according to a new state report, prompting environmental groups to say the state’s efforts to reduce pollution aren’t working.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources plans to report 725 impaired water bodies to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency this summer; the last time a report was filed in 2012, there were 630 impaired waterways. States must compile impaired waters reports every two years under the Clean Water Act.
Two of the most frequently cited problems for rivers and streams are bacteria and fish kills, largely the result of manure spills or waste storage leaks from large-scale hog or cattle operations. For lakes, the most commonly identified impairments are excess algae, too much suspended sediment and bacteria — all of which indicate the presence of human or animal waste. Algae blooms in particular occur with large concentrations of nitrates and phosphorous from manure on farm fields or leaking septic tanks or industrial and city waste treatment plants.
Iowa’s robust agricultural economy — leading the nation in pork and egg production — presents a challenge dealing with manure generated by more than 20 million hogs and 60 million chickens, although the flock in the last month has shrunk by 40 percent from a deadly strain of bird flu. It’s also tops in corn production, a crop that needs an abundance of nitrogen fertilizer to maximize yields. Yet, the nutrient can leach into rivers, causing high nitrate levels. It also can leach into lakes, contributing to toxic algae blooms. . . .
Legislators so need a Master of Industry to lead a discussion of policy setting for livestock operations.
A copy the entire committee agenda by way of contrasting the other panels:
Who's underwriting this hot mess? Here's the list of financial contributors for the conference (BTW, every state legislator is automatically a member of the Council of State Governments, so the capture is totally bipartisan, yay!):
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
While the Ag Mafia and its allies have sought to frame the elimination of the Citizens Board of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency as a victory for "Greater Minnesota," Quam's opponent is having none of that.
Indeed, it's one of three policy areas prompting her bid. PB political correspondent Heather Carlson reports:
A retired Mantorville teacher is launching a bid to unseat Byron Republican Rep. Duane Quam in 2016.
Democrat Linda Walbruch said after having spent 40 years in the classroom, she wanted to focus her energies on advocating for children in St. Paul. . . .
he said she was disappointed lawmakers opted not to make bigger investments in education and support DFL Gov. Mark Dayton's proposal to fund universal preschool for four-year-olds.
"The last session there was a $2 billion surplus, and I think we could have put it to better use," she said.
Walbruch also opposed the elimination of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's Citizens Board.
"We need citizens to have a chance, to have a voice and appreciate their input and see what we can do to make it a better place," she said.
She is also disappointed that lawmakers failed to pass a comprehensive transportation bill with funding to upgrade railroad infrastructure in the state.
"With trains going through our community, we need to step up and make sure that our crossings are safe and our EMTs have access to those crossings," she said.
Minnesota House District 25A is the more rural and conservative side of a senate district served by state senator Dave Senjem. In 2014, all of the Republican constitutional officer candidates prevailed in HD25A, while Republican-endorsed state supreme candidate Michelle MacDonald beat David Lillehaug by just over three percent points. Statewide, Minnesotans disagreed, electing the Democrats. In the federal offices on the ballet in 2014, Congressman Tim Walz won in the state house district along with the First, while Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike McFadden won against Al Franken, who won statewide.
Will citizen power and environmental concerns be a Dodge County issue?
Despite the conservative leanings in the district, Walbruch may not be an isolated voice in her concern about the need for citizen voices in environmental reviews. Dodge County has been the site of contentious debates and packed houses for county board meetings about hog confinement barns, although the unit that is the subject to a lawsuit is in Westfield Township, which is represented by Peggy Bennett (R-Albert Lea).
Will the chance to vote for a pro-citizen power candidate make a difference? The conflict may not be enough to pull enough voters to Walbruch for a win, since a majority of voters in the district live in Olmsted County.
Indeed, Dodge County citizens likely have a complicated puzzle in having their voices heard in the legislature, as the county is split into a number of state districts--and Dodge County residents are a minority of voters in each district. The nearby presence of Rochester and regional cities like Owatonna, Faribault and Red Wing have caused the county to be carved up in order to create legislative districts of equal populations. In the Dodge County is represented not only by Quam (from Olmsted County) and Bennett, but Brian Daniels (R-Faribault), Steve Drazkowski (R-Mazeppa) and Jeanne Poppe (DFL-Austin).
With the exception of Senjem's SD25, the state senate districts (21,24,27) in Dodge County are held by Democrats. Aside from Matt Schmit, these are DFLers who have not demonstrated much other than thinly veiled contempt for citizens' environmental concerns.
Vicki Jensen (DFL-Owatonna) was part of the Senate Rural Task Force in which Senator Julie Rosen (R-Mendota) ripped a 320-acre operation in which one spouse farms full time as not being "real ag"; Jensen was far more sympathetic to Rosen's position on the Citizens Board than to citizens who contacted her with concerns for Rosen's position. We will see whether or not Rosen comes out to campaign for the Owatonna Democrat next year.
Are these anti-environment, anti-citizen power Democrats vulnerable? Their chances vary in 2016, and their environmental records are unlikely to become significant issues, though their mileage may vary if fed-up environmental voters skip donations and their races on the ballot.
After being ushered into office by a 7-vote margin in 2002, Sparks has been re-elected by comfortable margins. Moreover, the district is known as a "presidential year Democratic" one; Barack Obama won SD27 in both the 2008 and 2012 configuration. It's unlikely the Republican Party and its ideological SuperPAC allies will invest much money there--although they did salt the earth on one side of it last year with mail about the new state senate office building in the drive to defeat Shannon Savick and elect Bennett in a classic swing district in the Albert Lea side.
Jensen is the first Democrat in many years to serve in the state senate; her district is more of a crapshoot for the DFL. Like Sparks and Lyle Koenen (DFL-Clara City), Jensen voted against raising the minimum wage, so one of the party's stronger talking points is off the table for her and the two gentlemen in 2016. As in Spark's district, half of Jensen's district was carpet-bombed by attack mail against a sitting DFL legislator, Patti Fritz, who loss a close one against Daniels. Attacks based on the new senate office building, and a large fine against the DFL Senate Caucus Campaign committee may resonate as well (Koenen's campaign may also be hobbled by this potential MNGOP & allies' attack).
While fiscally moderate, Jensen is a social liberal who voted for same-sex marriage, unlike devout Catholic Fritz. The strength of same-sex marriage as a flashpoint is likely to be measure by SuperPAC's polling and focus groups on both sides. However, Jensen was quite clear about her opposition to the marriage amendment when she won in 2012. Unlike Sparks' district, the district favors Republican presidential candidates; McCain squeaked by in 2008 within the pre-districting lines, while Romney won the new district in 2012.
We suspect that the swing races in districts that include Dodge County precincts will be targeted with Republican messaging that's about DFL self-dealing and the DFL pushback about its incumbents' records. Would a message about that stresses citizens' right to speak and be heard resonate? Bluestem suspects that we won't have a chance to learns, as neither party much sees Greater Minnesota apart from what one seasoned political reporter once called Big Rural, the lobbyists and associations with "Greater Minnesota" incorporated into their names.
Photo: Screengrab of Duane Quam. Quam ran unopposed in 2014.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
How much of a windfall for Minnesota? Heckova pot of cash:
Gun owners across the U.S. continued their unprecedented spending spree in 2014, buying firearms and ammunition at a record clip and, whether they knew it or not, pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into wildlife conservation programs. . . .
This summer, all that gun and ammo tax raised in 2014 is being doled out to state wildlife agencies across the country by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, including projects to help moose, pheasants, deer and waterfowl in Minnesota.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources will get a whopping $24.9 million in 2015 based on last year’s gun and ammo sales — that’s the most ever, up from $23.3 million in 2014, more than double the state’s $11.2 million in 2012 and more than more than three times the $7 million the state got in 2006.
That money — so-called Pittman-Robertson funds — will be used to protect important wildlife habitat, count animals for population surveys, research wildlife health issues and buy and improve land to create wildlife management areas open for public hunting.
“It’s been an absolute boon for habitat programs the last few years. We’re doing more things than we ever could before,” said Tom Landwehr, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
The Obama bump
New gun and ammunition sales across the U.S. have surged since 2008, with the increase often attributed to President Barack Obama’s election. It appears that gun owners, fearing Washington might enact stronger anti-gun legislation with a Democrat in the White House, started hoarding new guns and ammo just in case.The massive increase in gun and ammo purchases, and in the federal tax revenue, has benefited wildlife, hunters, birdwatchers and others who relish nature. . . .
Who knew the dirty hippies would clean up on this? Somewhere in Minnesota, a moose-deer interaction study is ongoing, brainworm research fed by anti-Obama fever. So it goes.
Photo: A moose.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
In a Legislative Update Friday, Minnesota state representative Glenn Gruenhagen shared a passage, Men Who Paid Freedom's Price; Our nation's founding fathers knew how to count the cost of liberty, along with his best wishes for a glorious Independence Day weekend.
Bluestem plans to enjoy good food, fireworks, and the always astonishing parade in sunny Maynard; as we write, the Maynard Firemen's Street Dance is well under way.
Gruenhagen doesn't know the source of the passage he shared, but Bluestem was able to find several versions of it. An exact match turns up in Men Who Paid Freedom’s Price, the Christian Action League's (CAL) Memorial Day 2015 message; the CAL notes that the passage was "taken directly from from The Rebirth of America, 1986, Arthur S. DeMoss Foundation," although CAL didn't note which author included in the anthology wrote it.
Gruenhagen and the DeMoss Foundation want you know that the Founding Fathers were not a bunch of dirty hippies, but rich dudes:
Whatever ideas you have of the men who met that hot summer in Philadelphia, it is important that we remember certain facts about the men who made this pledge: they were not poor men, or wild-eyed pirates. They were men of means, rich men, most of them who enjoyed much ease and luxury in their personal lives. Not hungry men, but prosperous men, wealthy landowners, substantially secure in their prosperity, and respected in their communities. . . .
There seems to be agreement on this part of the statement: Ben Franklin, Tom Jefferson and the rest were not dirty hippies. Unfortunately for Glenn, some of the rest of the message is straight-to-Snopes material:
Of the fifty-six, few were long to survive. Five were captured by the British and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes, from Rhode Island to Charleston, sacked, looted, occupied by the enemy, or burned. Two lost their sons in the army. One had two sons captured. Nine of the fifty-six died in the war, from its hardships or from its bullets.
There are other, longer versions of the message that date back to Paul Harvey, but all of them include some variation on this:
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence? What fates befell them for daring to put their names to that document?
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army, another had two sons captured.
Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
Snopes debunks it here as a mixture of true and false. Bluestem is always perplexed by false accounts of the American War for Independence; we worked at Franklin's Library Company of Philadelphia (used as a reference library during the First and Second Continental Congresses, as well as for the Constitutional Convention). The real stories of the Founding Fathers should do well enough on their merits without painting them as victims.
Have a glorious Fourth!
Photo: Founding Father and original life hacker (post office, electricity, harmonium, fire departments, libraries, etc) Ben Franklin. Definitively not a dirty hippie.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
While the gentlemen smiling in the photo are lobbyists, they are not lobbyists for the pro-coal group that gave Senate Majority Leader Bakk, the second most powerful Minnesota DFL elected official in state government. That's because the Coalition for a Secure Energy Future isn't billed as a lobbying group.
Of course not--and since it's not a lobbying campaign, the smiling guys who otherwise lobby for a living aren't required to disclose what they spend in order to smile with Tom Bakk and give him a certificate for making sure a jobs and energy bill got passed that set back clean energy in Minnesota.
North Dakota's Lignite Research, Development and Marketing Program (Program) is a multi-million dollar state/industry partnership that concentrates on near term, practical research and development projects that provide the opportunity to preserve and enhance development of our state's abundant lignite resources.
The Program is funded by approximately 10 cents per ton from the North Dakota coal severance tax. With annual production at approximately 30 million tons per year, about $3 million is available each year for the Research, Development and Marketing Program.
So that's who's putting the coal in the coalition. How much of that 10 cents per ton was directed to the Coalition for a Secure Energy Future? In February we explained:
According to the June 5, 2014 Lignite Research Council Agenda of the North Dakota Industrial Commission Lignite Research, Development and Marketing Program, CSEF is funded by a grant from the commission:
Re-Submission of Regional Lignite Public Affairs Plan (Coalition for a Secure Energy Future) Submitted by: Lignite Energy Council; Request for: $600,000 annually for a total of $1,200,000; Project Duration: 2 Years.
While the discussion of the plan was closed meeting, page 35 of the minutes (pdf) of the July 1, 2014 meeting of the North Dakota Development Commission reveal:
During the closed session, it had been moved and seconded that the Industrial Commission accepts the Lignite Research Council recommendation to fund the grant application “Regional Lignite Public Affairs Plan (Coalition for a Secure Energy Future)” and to authorize Karlene Fine, Industrial Commission Executive Director, to execute an agreement with the Lignite Energy Council to provide a total of Industrial Commission Lignite Research Program funding in an amount not to exceed $1,200,000 (marketing) with annual updates presented to the Commission . On a roll call vote, Governor Dalrymple, Attorney General Stenehjem and Commissioner Goehring voted aye. The motion carried unanimously.
The item appears in the Lignite Research, Development and Marketing Program portion of the NDIC minutes.
Of course, the Coalition provided a different explanation of themselves to the Tower Timberjay:
Mr. Moe and Mr. Beard serve as co-chairs for the Coalition for a Secure Energy Future.
The coalition was founded in 2014 to “enhance, preserve, and protect our diverse set of energy resources, including coal-based electricity, to ensure a continued affordable and reliable energy supply for families and businesses in Minnesota,” according to a statement.
The coalition opposes the “Clean Power Plan” put forward by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The plan is designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent by 2030. The coal industry has lobbied heavily against the rule, claiming that the push for cleaner-burning forms of energy would significantly increase electrical rates, both for homeowners and businesses, while achieving inconsequential reductions in overall CO2 emissions.
Not directly related, but an ironic sidenote
Among the ironies of the session's energy legislation? The champions of "cheap" coal also provided a means to cut energy costs for big business, although somebody may have to make up the difference for the power companies' bottomline.
Residential customers in northern Minnesota will have to pay more in electricity rates because of a change the Legislature made last week to help big business.
Gov. Mark Dayton signed a broad jobs and energy budget bill that gives a rate break to mining companies, papers mills and steel mills.
The new law allows major industrial customers in northern Minnesota to apply for a break in their electricity rates. It aims to help lower energy costs for companies competing in a global marketplace, among them the taconite mines on the Iron Range. . . .
But to pay for the break for industrial companies, residents and smaller businesses will be forced to pay more. State Sen. John Marty, DFL-Roseville, said he didn't object to helping out steel and paper companies but worries that the way the law is written, other companies could also take advantage of it. He said that means higher rates for everyone else.
"When you're talking about utility rates, if you're bringing down one customer's rates, you're bringing it up for someone else," Marty said. "In this case, we're bringing down electric rates for the biggest customers and we're bringing it up for residents, for homeowners, for renters [and] small businesses. They're going to be paying more, perhaps significantly more." ...
Bluestem will keep an eye out for other Energy Champions in the state legislature who will be getting a certificate for helping out the North Dakota Industrial Commission. Of course, no one in the Coalition for a Secure Energy Future lobbied them at all.
Photo: The grip and grin, photo submitted by the Coalition for a Secure Energy Future to the Tower Timberjay. If you see a photo of other legislators getting a certificate from the marketing campaign sponsored by $1.2 million of the North Dakota Industrial Commission Lignite Research, Development and Marketing Program's money, please send it to us!
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
How much does Representative Tim Miller (R-Prinsburg) love DFL Governor Mark Dayton?
Apparently quite a bit, since a "2015 Legislative Update" featuring Miller and the popular second-term governor shoulder to shoulder at a free turkey burger cookout. Tim Miller's campaign committee paid for the mail piece, as is standard practice for these sorts of items.
Both men are wearing "I [Heart] MN Turkey" and who is to argue with that. Bluestem eagerly looks forward to future mailings with Miller posing with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
Here's the front of the mail piece:
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Veteran political reporter Rachel Stassen-Berger writes:
. . .when the court decided to legalize same-sex marriage across the nation, we in Minnesota again heard an overwhelming outburst. The reactions came pouring in -- from state and federal leaders -- even though Minnesota had legalized same-sex marriage in 2013.
On that day, the statements were one-sided. "A great day," "love is love," "I could not be more proud," the statements said.
Official statements from opponents were absent. . . .
Limmer had sponsored the Minnesota constitutional amendment that would have sought a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Voters rejected that move in 2012, and the next year, the Legislature approved extended marriage to those in gay relationships.
The Supreme Court's decision did not necessitate a public outpouring, he and other gay marriage opponents said, because Minnesota had already settled it in 2013.
"For us, the issue was kind of over," Limmer said. Minnesota Republicans had no need to re-open the marriage wound last week.
Gregg Peppin, a Republican activist and operative, said the Supreme Court decision called for reflection, not a call to action.
"We are still absorbing it," he said. "What does it mean to my religious faith and my religious life? " . . .
Peppin, who consulted for Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson's campaign last year, also said the GOP is sensitive to discussion of social issues. Republicans have been accused of focusing too much on what happens in people's bedrooms and appearing uncaring.
"Some of this is just sheer politics," Peppin said.
With no statewide Republicans on the ballot next year, and little legal recourse, they just stayed quiet.
Stassen-Berger's assertion that there were no "formal statements" is correct--but a number of Minnesota Republican House members were by no means silent on Facebook.
Take Eric Lucero (R-Dayton) who sought his party's endorsement over sitting state representative David FitzSimmons, who retired when he lost the Republican nod. Lucero mulled over several potential actions in response to the ruling.
Fellow freshman Joshua Heintzeman answered, "Unfortunately this could create something worse. By taking no position the door to child marriages and polygamy is wide open."
Lucero is also considering authoring "Tenther" legislation. In another post, he wrote:
Whether education, health care, energy, environment, transportation, marriage, or any of the thousands of other examples, I am sick and tired of the Federal Government blatantly ignoring the 10th Amendment and usurping States' Rights.
I am mulling the idea of authoring a bill or resolution reaffirming the 10th Amendment so Minnesota can begin a movement to push back.
The comment was above an image of the Tenth Amendment.
A number of Republican state representatives shared Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker's Facebook post, including Steve Drazkowski (R-Mazeppa):
Joshua Heintzeman shared the Walker post as well, though the response to the share included more than mere likes:
Tony Albright (R-Prior Lake) shared a fortune cookie from Scalia's scathing dissent:
And this:
On her official Facebook page, Representative Mary Franson (R-Alexandria) also posted repeatedly about the decision, first sharing a link to a Fox New article, Supreme Court disavows truth about marriage, pits faith against law, written by former state representative Doug Wardlow legal counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom. Wardlow closed the op-ed column with a call to action:
But Friday’s ruling inscribes in our Constitution an entirely new and incorrect definition of marriage that contravenes the self-evident purposes of the institution and contradicts the core convictions of countless people of faith. The Supreme Court’s grave error compels Americans to take sides in an unprecedented conflict between faith and government coercion. The People’s collective response will determine the future of religious liberty in our Nation.
Franson also shared a meme:
Franson also wondered aloud whether the United States Department of Education's response to the SCOTUS decision was a signal that there would be more discussion of same sex marriage in public schools:
Should the U.S. Department of Education be taking part in the conversation of the same sex marriage ruling? Is the conversation going to be taking place in the public school settings more so than it already is?
I also took a screen shot of the Dept of Ed's page.
However, some Republican Minnesota House members whose pages are open posted nothing about the topic (Tony Cornish was off on what seemed to be a delightful fishing trip), others were silent, and yes, some responded with religious content that wasn't particularly "message" driven. Take that of first term state rep Abigail Whelan (R-Anoka):
The song is contemporary Christian praise music that's fairly "open" in its meaning, rather than closed to a political discussion about one topic. Whelan appears to have saved up her anti-LGBT for a radio interview. Check out Andy Birkey's coverage in The Column article, MN Senator: Bathroom bill needed because Caitlyn Jenner still likes women.
As the Facebook posts show, while Republicans weren't sending official statements to the press about the SCOTUS marriage equality decision, some engaged in conversation with the public about it on social media. Bluestem thinks that this dual approach allows the caucus to have its cake and eat it too.
Photo: A rainbow flag outside the Supreme Court building.
If you appreciate Bluestem Prairie, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Recent Comments