On June 14, 2016, all political committees, political funds, independent expenditure committees and independent expenditure funds are required to file a Report of Receipts and Expenditures for the period covering January 1 through May 31, 2016.
We're eager to learn where and with whom our friends at the MN Jobs Coalition are doing their getting and spending. The group was instrumental in flipping the Minnesota House from DFL to Republican hands in 2014, and its biggest 2014 bagmen, the Republican State Leadership Committee, has put control of the upper chamber on its hit list, as we reported last year in MN Jobs Coalition Legislative Fund's biggest donor in flipping House vows to take Senate.
Now the reports appear to be quarterly. We embed the latest report, covering the first three month of 2016, below.
What's in it for Minnesota? On page 9, the "Minnesota Senate Republican Caucus" gave $100 in January, while page 11 lists a $100 contribution by the same in February. (Since the CFB server is down, we can't check to see if this is from the Senate Victory Fund ). [Update: this expenditure not listed in the SVF's Q1 and Q2 reports].
We'll look at the national money in another post. The usual suspects (Koch Brothers and WalMart with $100,000 each, Big Pharma and the like) are contributing--as are the owners of the Appleton Prison, CCA (page 24), $25,000. Heaven knows what other bonbons we might unwrap.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
The events are the results of a dialogue Syeed and Scott Prouty, pastor at the 1st Presbyterian Church in Redwood Falls, began when Prouty was serving on the search committee for the stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, according to the Redwood Falls Gazette.
Is it a religion of hatred and terror as is represented in factions like ISIS?
Scott Prouty, pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Redwood Falls had the opportunity to learn firsthand that the Islamic faith is not, at its heart, anything like that.
His understanding of Islam actually grew while he was serving on the search committee for the stated clerk of the Presbyterian Church in the United States.
During his service on that committee, Prouty was conducting some reference checks regarding one of the prospective candidates relating to interfaith interaction, as that is an important element of the role of state clerk for the Presbyterian Church.
That led to his first conversation with Dr. Sayyid M. Syeed, national director for the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA).
Subsequently, Prouty was invited to Washington, D.C. to be part of an interfaith and government outreach event in Washington, D.C. . . .
Read the details in the article. The relationship not only educated the southwestern Minnesota pastor, but moved him to ask the American Muslim leader to speak in Redwood Falls, Krause reports:
Prouty said there is a significant amount if misinformation being offered, especially on the Internet, and part of what Prouty is hoping to accomplish as a result of his visit is to help raise awareness of Islam. With that in mind, Prouty invited Dr. Syeed to come to Redwood Falls to talk about Islam.
“He speaks all over, and I wondered if he would come to a small town,” said Prouty.
Syeed agreed, and so this coming October he is going to pay a visit to the community.
Prouty brought up the idea of having Syeed talk with local students, and during its recent board meeting the local school board approved that request.
Prouty said a community meeting will also be held during Syeed’s visit.
“The level of hate of Muslims is on the rise,” said Prouty, adding this is one way he can help set the record straight.
This is an outstanding opportunity for people in the Upper Minnesota River Valley to educate themselves about Islam. We'll post more details as they are available. Read the whole article at the Gazette.
Photo: "Scott Prouty, pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Redwood Falls, met with Dr. Sayyid M. Syeed, the national director of the Islamic Society of North America during a visit to Washington, D.C. during a visit earlier this year" Via the Redwood Falls Gazette.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
One reform that's been suggested is the 24-hour deadline for bills. The final draft of a bill or conference committee report would have to be written 24 hours before lawmakers take it up on the floor. This would give state representatives and senators--and citizens--time to read each bill.
The aim to avoid tweets like this:
This time last night trying to read a 599 page bill. GOP House Epic fail in managing time & public input. pic.twitter.com/UrBrdMXLPR
After a session with several key bills not becoming laws, state Senator Paul Gazelka, R-East Gull Lake and state Representative Ron Kresha, R-Little Falls, appeared at a legislative update in the council chambers of Little Falls City Hall Wednesday.
Constituents were unhappy with how the sessionended. Roman Witucki, chair of the Morrison County DFL, talked about how there should have been more time for the bills to be reviewed, and said he didn’t like the back room deals he said the legislation went through,
“I think back room stuff,last minute stuff can be eliminated with a simple procedure of ending your session a day early and 24 hours later you get to vote on it,” said Witucki.
Gazelka agreed with Witucki and said while he didn’t know how to get there, he would like to see a deadline for major bills before they are voted on.
Kresha also said he supports a 24-hour waiting period for bills.However, he sees a problem, leverage.
“Every side knows this, if you want to get what you want in a bill, you hold off until the very last second when you have the most leverage,” Kresha said. He added that whatever they do to change the system, people will work to find ways to gain leverage.
Some constituents said they didn’t care about the deals in politics; they just wanted stuff to get done.
“You people have got to find a way to expedite this process, not to wait till that last hour and I don’t care what you think about leverage,” said Peter Larsen, adding after he watched the house session one night, he went to bed angry with how they did business, calling it disgusting.
We keep reading articles in the metro dailies that tell us that voters don't care about process. Someone forgot to inculcate this cynical and conventional wisdom in the rest of us.
Screengrab: Kresha (right) tells constituents that he's for a 24-hour deadline for bills to be finished before being taken up on the floor of the legislature, except maybe when it gets in the way of cutting a back-room deal.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Calling for the elimination of the IRS, the Department of Education, the Department of Energy, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development didn't help Ted Cruz slowdown the relentless Donald Trump.
While meeting with potential voters at Beltrami Electric Cooperative, Hughes described his background as a U.S. Air Force veteran, his political stance as a constitutional conservative and outlined his plan to reduce the size of the federal government
"My No. 1 theme is to make the U.S. government smaller and send much of what's done at the federal level back to the states," said Hughes, a Karlstad resident.
To do so, Hughes said if elected to Congress, he would want to eliminate five of the 15 federal government departments including education, energy, commerce, labor and housing and urban development. Despite his ideas, though, Hughes said he isn't telling voters that he will get everything accomplished on Capitol Hill.
With roots in the 1880s, the DOL was created when President William Howard Taft signed the Organic Act of the Department of Labor on March 4, 1913, having been bullied into it. A DOL timeline notes:
After much opposition, President William Howard Taft signs the Organic Act creating the U.S. Department of Labor. Signed during Taft's last hours in office, it is followed shortly thereafter by President Woodrow Wilson's appointment of William B. Wilson (no relation) as the first secretary of labor.
Hughes will undo this Progressive Era betrayal and put the Bureau of Labor Statistics et. al back into state governments' hands, whether or not they want it.
"I feel I'm much more conservative than Hinson," Hughes said. "I want to eliminate entire departments, make government much smaller and taxes much lower, whereas she will talk about streamlining and making efficiencies."
Photo: Woodrow Wilson (left) and William Howard Taft (right) on the day the Organic Bill of the Department of Labor was signed and government balloon to proportions that mirrored Taft's awesome Progressive Era stache.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
A House candidate in Apple Valley used race and sexual orientation to criticize her opponent at a recent GOP convention. . . .
In a speech at the Republican endorsing convention in mid-May — which has since been posted to Youtube — Jimenez-Hopper took a shot at Quade’s family and ancestral background...
One would think that Jimenez-Hopper might need some help with crisis communications given these nittering nabobs of negativity nipping at her nascent campaign. Unfortunately, her choice of media maven only opens up additional ethics questions.
The SPJ Ethics Committee gets a significant number of questions about whether journalists should engage in political activity. The simplest answer is “No.” Don’t do it. Don’t get involved. Don’t contribute money, don’t work in a campaign, don’t lobby, and especially, don’t run for office yourself.. . .
For political reporters, yard signs, bumper stickers and even campaign buttons should be considered off-limits. For a broader range of journalists — whether they’re covering politics or not — political activism should be avoided. The editor/publisher of a Denver newspaper once told his employees not to attend a concert whose proceeds were being donated by the band to a candidate for the U.S. Senate. That applied to all employees, from newsroom to mailroom.
Many employers’ codes of ethics are much more specific than SPJ’s code about their employees’ involvement in politics. The SPJ code is merely advisory, but a journalist can be fired for violating an employer’s ethical rules. NPR’s code, for instance, says quite bluntly that “NPR journalists may not participate in marches and rallies” concerning issues that NPR covers — which is pretty much everything.
Alpha News uses advanced social media and online technology platforms to deliver important news programming to audiences everywhere in Minnesota. Alpha News reports on issues relating to local, state and federal government, as well as the people and personalities involved. Unlike traditional media, our programming goes beyond the headlines and focuses on issues of local interest that consistently go unreported.
Can a news outlet staff member also serve as the communications director for a political campaign? Not in any universe that we know of, but we don't get out much.
Erynn said Alpha News will be receiving press credentials, which are issued by non-partisan staff of the Minnesota House of Representatives and Minnesota Senate.
Erynn referred to Alpha News as a "news organization" and said it will generate revenue from advertising, but added "a number of private donors" are also providing financial support.
We're not sure that those credentials were ever issued, but with a staff writer and researcher now actively working on a Minnesota House campaign, perhaps the wisdom of Alpha News possessing legislative press passes needs to be examined.
Alpha News MN - Alphanewsmn.com is now listed as a Capitol News Coverage Organization in the Minnesota Senate News Directory. [end update]
Photo: Preya Samsunder, via twitter.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
The trouble with playing chicken is that every now and then, your car really does fly off the cliff.
That's not quite the situation Minnesota Republicans are in. Their "car" isn't sailing out over the void.
But it is teetering on the cliff's lip. And the drop to the next ledge is long.
Meanwhile, the guy with the tow-truck and the rescue rope—Gov. Mark Dayton—is parked nearby. He's whistling as he sits in the driver's seat, clearly in no hurry to pull the Republicans back onto solid ground.
Now, if you were the GOP, and you found yourself on the brink and in that situation, what would you do?
Read the editor's suggestions at the Grand Forks Herald.
Image: Maybe this sign should be posted in the office of Minnesota House Republican Executive Director Ben Golnik. With Golnik in the driver's seat, we don't think posting it in current Speaker and former used car salesman Kurt Daudt would be particularly efficacious.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Hackbarth lost the endorsement to Cal Bahr, who had sought the endorsement in 2014 and 2012, but didn't primary the incumbent after the sitting representative secured the endorsement.
The text of the press release:
Local Republicans Censure Representative Tom Hackbarth
Oak Grove, Minnesota (June 5, 2016) - On April 2nd, the Senate District 31 Republicans held an endorsing convention for House District 31B. Both candidates, Repre sentative Tom Hackbarth and Mr. Cal Bahr, agreed to abide by the endorsement process, stating so to the nominations committee at the c onvention and publicly at a candidate forum mere weeks prior. Their pledge to abide was consistent with their positions in the previous two election cycles, where Representative Hackbarth and Mr. Bahr both campaigned for the endorsement of the House District 31B Republicans. In both the previous cycles, Representative Hackbarth won the endorsement and Mr. Bahr acted with honor, integrity, and dignity by following through with his commitment to abide by the will of the delegates.
At the April convention this year, Mr. Bahr won the Republican endorsement. We expected Representative Hackbarth to respect his commitment to abide by the endorsement and support the endorsed candidate , as we have supported him in the past. In direct contrast to Mr. Bahr’s example from previous cycles , Representative Hackbarth has filed to run in the primary this year. While legally acceptable, Representative Hackbarth’s action is particularly treacherous and dishonorable. We are not surprised by long - time politicians acting in an “ethically - challenged” fashion and their belief that they “own” their seat. But , Representative Hackbarth’s action is especially egregious in that it directly defies the trust Representative Hackbarth traded upon with the organization’s most dedicated and active participants, affecting not only his individual race, but those of other Republicans up and down the ballot.
Therefore, the executive board of the Senate District 31 Republicans has unanimously agreed upon a vote of no confidence in Representative Hackbarth. Additionally, since the candidates in the upcoming primary are the same as the endorsing convention and the delegates of that convention made their decision, the board sees no need to call for any other endorsing convention for House District 31B this year, no matter the outcome of the primary.
We call on all Minnesota Republicans of good conscience to join us in condemning Representative Hackbarth’s less than honorable action.
In short, even if Hackbarth wins the primary on the force of name-recognition alone, the BPOU is done with him.
Meme: That escalated fast.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Yet another newspaper's editorial board passed judgment on Minnesota's fractured lawmaking. Just across the Red River in Grand Forks, ND, editor Tom Dennis writes in a signed editorial, How Minnesota can end last-minute lawmaking, for the Herald:
Will Gov. Mark Dayton reconvene the Minnesota Legislature in special session? Will Republican lawmakers agree to the Democratic governor's conditions?
As of this writing, the answers to those questions still are not clear.
But here's what the recent session did make clear—as clear as the water from the most sparkling of the 10,000 lakes:
Minnesota's legislative process needs reform.
Delaying negotiations for weeks, then running major bills back and forth just before the session's close is a shameful way of doing business. It makes Minnesotans cynical and pollutes their view of lawmakers and the legislative process.
It's got to be changed—and sooner rather than later, given Minnesota's severe highway and other stubborn problems. Streamlining the legislative process would both force lawmakers to get their work done sooner and boost congeniality by encouraging compromise and discouraging last-minute, partisan theatrics.
The paper's editorials are always signed, and Dennis goes on to recommend reforms promoted by the self-named "Purple Caucus:"
The bipartisan group of state senators—a group that includes state Sen. LeRoy Stumpf, DFL-Plummer, plus another Democrat and four Republicans—"wants to end last minute lawmaking,' the Minnesota Senate Republican Caucus noted last month.
"They have proposed adding a new legislative deadline for conference committee reports to be released one week prior to adjournment."
Here's how State Sen. Kevin Dahle, DFL-Northfield, explained the reform in a statement of his own.
"The Minnesota Constitution is very clear on when the Legislature must finish its work," Dahle wrote.
"We have no excuse for not having bills ready in time. High-level, secret negotiations in the last hours of session do an injustice to the constitutional democracy I teach high school students about in my role as a civics teacher.
"(So) I am a strong supporter of what has become known as the 'Fourth Deadline' idea, sponsored by the bipartisan Purple Caucus, which would put a bright clear line on the calendar. It would force elected officials to give their colleagues, the press and the public enough time to read the bills thoughtfully and come to a responsible conclusion before session ends. . . .
Read the rest at the Grand Fork Herald. While Grand Forks isn't in Minnesota, the border city newpaper carries a lot of Minnesota local and state news.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
What seems to be the problem, since support for the freedom of speech for someone who completely disagrees with you, while pursuing one's own freedom of religion, seems pretty gosh-darned respectful of the Constitution and the American way of life?
What is it that's giving poor Mrs. Kern the hopping fantods now in her insurgent campaign against the sitting Congressman? We see two parts: mythic prayer rooms in schools and Somali men creating voluntary associations and non-profits that might possibly access federal funds. That's some of heckova idea upon which to run for Congress, but we can't say we weren't warned that Alt-White folks might be a few Lego blocks short of a platform.
Living on the American tax dollar.... creating nonprofits for a living, while demanding prayer rooms in the schools and work place. Yes. The St Cloud school district is accommodating Muslim prayer time. And you wonder why there is growing conflict. Here's a clue: It's not because of speakers on Islam.
We'll get to the part about "creating nonprofits for a living" in a moment, after dispatching Kern's assertion about prayer in school. In Lying Carpet, Snopes' Kim LaCapria writes:
On 29 March 2016 the web site US Herald published an article reporting that Muslim students in St. Cloud, Minnesota were receiving accommodations (namely, prayer rugs) at taxpayer expense deemed "impermissible" for pupils of other religions . . .
US Herald included a "source" link at the bottom of the page. That led to a 23 March 2016 PBS Newshourarticle, which made absolutely no mention of prayer rugs bought at taxpayer expense and contradicted the claim that Muslim students receive accommodations that are denied students of other faiths. In keeping with federal laws regarding religious accommodation, St. Cloud's middle and high schools maintain rooms for prayer (and other purposes) that are open to students of all religions, and the school cafeteria offers pork-free lunch options but has not removed pork from their menu.
Somali students, and all other students of any religion, will be allowed to practice their religion on school property, but there will not be any rooms dedicated for the use of any one religion group, [St. Cloud's superintendent of schools Willie] Jett said.
He said the district will follow state and federal guidelines that don't allow spending tax dollars for specific accommodations for any one religion. Students have been allowed to practice their religion as a group on school property, and that will continue to be allowed.
He cited examples of student groups that do Bible study or prayer groups around a flag pole.
"That's ongoing in schools for years," Jett said. "And there are Bible studies within schools in different classrooms, if it's during a time when (the classroom) is not being used for a specific course. . . .
As for the "And you wonder why there is growing conflict" crack, we recommend John F. Carlsted's letter to the editor reflecting on his granddaughter's recent graduation from St. Cloud Tech, Optimism shines bright at graduation:
. . . My intent is to briefly describe my reaction to some events at the Tech graduation exercises as a contrast to the event at the Granite City Baptist Church as reported May 28 in the Times. (“Anti-Islam preacher draws crowd, protest.")
My motivation comes from the joy my wife and I experienced while witnessing our granddaughter receive her diploma, along with others sharing that same pride for their graduates.
The event took on added meaning for me as I witnessed the diversity within the class, along with the diversity represented within the program itself, the presenters, and the makeup of the multi-cultural audience.
By casually studying the names of the 300 graduates, I estimated at least 75 of them were Somali, with still others representing other minority groups. The diversity was everywhere, on stage and in the audience. The program included interpreters for two groups.
The young lady selected by the graduates to speak for them was Somali. She did a great job to the delight of all, both graduates and those of us in the audience. You could also not miss the diverse relationships shown by the snippets of fun times in the video presentation shown prior to the beginning of the formal program.
My final reaction was the feeling of pride and joy felt by all as we gathered together at this important event. Full inclusion was in the air, not fear and separation.
For me, it was diversity at its best – a diverse group coming together for a common purpose – celebrating the accomplishments of all of our special young people as they move on into lives of challenge, hope, service and fulfillment, within a more interconnected and diverse nation and world. . . .
Growing conflict? St. Cloud Tech had been the site of some true ugliness in March 2015, but the school responded by adding staff and forming a Student Advocacy Team to address the issues troubling the student body, Minnesota Public Radio reported in August.
Kern can denounce Somali students and their parents from her crabby tower in Sauk Rapids, but that's not to say that she's either accurate or fit to serve in Congress. She does seem to want to grow the conflict, regardless of what else other people are experiencing or doing to create a more inclusive community.
Perish the thought that people might be able to get along while still nurturing their distinct cultures and faiths--and be stronger for those differences.
These three men are Muslim/Somali leaders in the St Cloud area. All three are 'Directors'... 'Executive Directors' of nonprofits. All three are living on federal grants/hard earned taxpayer dollars.
In the last decade, our federal government began bringing greater numbers of refugees who are eligible to create nonprofits on the American taxpayers backs simply because they are refugees. Then, year after year, they continue to live on the taxpayer dime by serving other refugees... directing new refugees where to sign up for government assistance, interpretation services....
They're not "executive directors" of non-profits they formed to get federal grants. But what if they were?
Kern seems to have fallen asleep during the study of "freedom of association." American citizens and refugees can form organizations to promote anything from ATV trails to art fairs to ethnic empowerment groups,Tea Party Patriot chapters, anti-refugee/immigration reduction groups and refugee relief organizations. Some of these may gain nonprofit status. Some may secure federal grants.
Not everyone who disagreed with Dakdok wanted to protest. A group of Somali community members released a statement late Thursday saying the best way to deal with him was not to respond in that manner.
Still, the statement sharply criticized his message. "Although we understand this individual's right to free speech, we strongly disagree with his attempt to cause disharmony and to sow division in our community," the statement read.
The statement also noted that someone set fire to a Muslim-owned business in Grand Forks, where Dakdok has spoken.
"We understand that this individual does not speak for Christians and Jews or other peoples of faith because faith by its very nature inspires love, trust, sharing, caring and uplifting human beings," it said.
The statement was signed by Abdullahi Kulane, executive director of Central Minnesota Community Empowerment Community, Ahmed Ali Said, executive director of the Somali American Relations Council, and Farhan Mohamud, community outreach director for the St. Cloud Area Somali Salvation Organization.
Jama Alimad, an elder member of the St. Cloud Somali community who met with others who didn't want to protest, said Dakdok didn't deserve any response and that his speech is protected under the Constitution.
"We don't care about whatever he says, we don't care," he said. "This is our town. This is our place. This is our community."
Kern appears to be making things up about these individuals in particular. We contacted Kulane, a St. John's University graduate, businessman and St. Cloud school district employee who unsuccessfully ran for St. Cloud City Council in 2014. Kulane, who was traveling, wrote:
"I work full time for the school district and I have a business. I volunteered part time to lead this organization and I am not getting paid for it." He added, "We are all volunteers."
The organization he heads is an informal, unincorporated association, similar to many community or interest membership groups with a small annual budget and no paid staff.
The St. Cloud Area Somali Salvation Organization (SASSO) has received government grants off and on, and the organization's 2014 990 filing with the IRS (the latest available via Guidestar) reflects the contract that SASSO obtained through MNSure in that year. While this partnership didn't end well, the scale of the grant was also not typical for the established but still relatively small non-profit.
MNsure ended its contract with the St. Cloud Area Somali Salvation Organization in May over concerns about SASSO's ability to account for how it spent its grant dollars. Last month, MNsure's decision became final, and the agency is trying to collect the $91,867 it paid to SASSO. . . .
Farhan Mohamud said MNsure officials acknowledged they were satisfied with SASSO's performance in outreach and enrollment. The nonprofit enrolled close to 1,000 people in MNsure, he said. . . .
The MNsure dispute could be costing SASSO other funding. The state Department of Human Services' Resettlement Programs Office had a contract with SASSO until Sept. 30 to help refugees find stable housing and community services.
DHS did not renew its contract with SASSO because of concerns about its fiscal management, the agency wrote in an emailed statement. DHS said it is conducting an audit of SASSO and expects to have a final report soon.
Read the whole story for the details. It does not appear that the MNSURE contract ended well--or that the organization simply exists to live in high clover at taxpayers' expense.
Outreach Director Farhan Mohumad was paid received $26,641 as an employee, when SASSO was managing the MNSure grant in 2014. Because of the grant, the organization recorded $203,789 in gross receipts. A 2013 990 report kept in the ProPublic non-profit 990 database shows that the organization received $80,398 in contributions including grants of all sorts in 2013, though no government fees and contracts are declared. Working under contractor arrangement, Farhan Mohumad received $17,115 (page 7), while another contractor received $15,774. By way of contrast, a full-time, 40-hour a week job at Minnesota's current minimum wage of $9 per hour is $18,720 before taxes and social security and insurance; these contractors had to pay that on their own.
Kern can fantasize all she wants about the three leaders being kingpins in a nonprofit industrial refugee complex, but her insinuations don't mesh with the numbers. Moreover, Kern's allergic reaction to the right of refugees to create associations and non-profits to better their communities is peculiar. The Refugee Act of 1980 standardized the arrangement bringing refugees to the United States. It's unclear why Kern singles out her Somali neighbors as being unique in wanting to help their fellow refugees.
The funding mechanism for refugee relief has been changed--but the impulse isn't any different than that which started the Russian United Benevolent Association in our old neighborhood in Philadelphia. Or that which gave rise among immigrants to create the Independent Order of the Sons of Norway, at first a secret society that helped with insurance. Of course, Kern the anti-refugee candidate can run on the notion that the law needs to be changed because she doesn't like the religion of some of those coming in--if she can find enough primary voters foolish enough to agree with her.
Nonetheless, she probably should check the facts before she makes accusations about the livelihoods and motives of individual Somali-American leaders in the district she wants to lead. As we noted at the beginning of the post, it's peculiar to attack people in St. Cloud who are advocating for freedom of speech and religion. From those odd jabs to her butthurt urban legend about prayer rooms in St. Cloud public school, Kern isn't one to let facts stop her in her dogged pursuit of fear and loathing.
It takes a mighty imagination to make Congressman Tom Emmer seem to be the sweet voice of reason, but Kern has pulled it off on her campaign Facebook page.
Photo: AJ Kern For Congress graphic, via the Red Herring Alert blog. When Dede Evavold,who is charged with helping to hide the Rucki girls, is one of your bids' most vocal exponents, maybe your own thinking could be a little fishy.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Rick Goodeman, the executive director of the Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership, appreciates the support he's received from local representatives in St. Paul when it comes to affordable housing. . . .
Goodeman said lawmakers this year passed up an opportunity to fulfill their promise of addressing the shortage of affordable, workforce housing during the legislative session.
"Rural legislators get the preservation issue, and they get the workforce housing issue, but it's not being converted into meaningful action," Goodeman said. "I don't know if there is some kind of disconnect? When I talk to our legislators, regardless of if they're DFL or Republican, they are very supportive of affordable housing, so I don't know what's happening between rural legislators and leadership of the Republican Party. Is it a rural-urban thing?". . .
Gov. Mark Dayton and the Senate included $90 million for housing in their bonding proposals. The House has a $45 million request for housing.
Goodeman said part of the reason there is such a need for bonding for housing is the sheer need across the state to address the situation.
"What is happening is there's so much demand, so many applications, that few will be funded; they have to cover both metro and Greater Minnesota," Goodeman said. "We've got requests coming out of our ears. We can't address them all."
Goodeman said without immediate action and significant investments aimed at preserving the state's housing portfolio, Greater Minnesota communities could lose much of their affordable rental housing stock.
The bonding bill failed to pass after Majority Leader Joyce Peppin moved to adjourn with time still left on the clock. While there may be a special session, we have to wonder why Republican House leaders are so bent on nickel-and-diming rural housing needs.
Photo: An abandoned farmhouse.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
[Tom] Hackbarth [R-Cedar} said his only motivation for cutting some projects from the LCCMR bill and adding others was to improve the overall package. Both he and McNamara emphasized that LCCMR recommendations are subject to legislative scrutiny. The projects they added to the bill without LCCMR review were meant to address “emerging issues,’’ Hackbarth said.
“I didn’t just whack things out because I didn’t like them,’’ Hackbarth said.
According to state records, Hackbarth was absent for 12 of 13 LCCMR meetings last year, including the all-important selection of appropriations. The package passed on a vote that included no audible dissent, with McNamara in attendance.
Hackbarth said he attended last year’s first meeting of the commission, when co-chairs were selected. He was nominated as a co-chair, but House DFLer John Persell of Bemidji received more votes.
Hackbarth said he stopped going to the meetings because he thought it was wrong for the commission’s House co-chair seat to be filled by a DFLer.
This is astonishing copy. The man who would be co-chair quits attending meetings after losing the co-chair gig to a colleague who spend his career working as a water quality specialist and environmental policy analyst.
The outdoors and environment commission that vets the use of more than $40 million a year in Minnesota lottery proceeds remains unsettled after a highly contentious wrap-up to its most recent funding cycle.
When the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR) meets Tuesday in St. Paul, members will review discord in the legislative session that unraveled 18 percent of the commission’s recommended
Normally the Legislature embraces all but a thin margin of projects sanctioned by the commission. But this year, House Republicans authored a combination of cuts and replacement projects that were met by a resounding batch of line-item vetoes from Gov. Mark Dayton.
In the end, the LCCMR’s $46.3 million natural resources bill was reduced to $37.9 million, and key participants are still feuding.
“I think it’s irresponsible behavior,’’ LCCMR co-chair Nancy Gibson said Friday in her assessment of major changes penned by Republican Rep. Tom Hackbarth of Cedar in a committee chaired by Rep. Denny McNamara, R-Hastings. The two legislators also are voting members of LCCMR.
Gibson commended Dayton for nixing the replacement projects favored by Hackbarth and McNamara, saying some were unconstitutional and none were reviewed by the commission. “He [Dayton] closed the door on abuse, which I think is great,’’ said Gibson, who originally was appointed to LCCMR by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
Read the entire article at the Star Tribune to get the full picture of Tom Hackbarth's big pout.
Photo: Tom Hackbarth, who pushed another unvetted idea in a different bill: blaze pink for firearm season deer hunters.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Ten years ago in July 2006, Bluestem Prairie began publishing a daily digest of news about Minnesota's First Congressional District. Since that time, we've expanded coverage to other parts of Greater Minnesota. Over time, we've engaged in distinctive enterprise and investigative blogging, often spotting trends and newsmakers long before the mainstream media picks up the narrative.
From uncovering Minnesota's rural anti-Islamic speaker circuit months before the Star Tribune to exploring the plan to re-open the private prison in Appleton, Bluestem delved into these areas long before the rest caught up with the larger picture.
Can you help Bluestem continue our work in this crucial election year? If you enjoy our take on the news as well as our investigative blogging, please consider a donation.
If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post.
Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email sally.jo.sorensen at gmail.com as recipient.
Donations are not tax deductible.
Photo: We live a humble lifestyle, but are able to see viceroy butterflies as well as the politics that mimic their favorite manure menu.
Two Republicans will face off in a primary election to see who will face Rep. Collin Peterson (DFL) in the general election in November.
The two candidates are Dave Hughes of Karlstad, Minnesota and Amanda Lynn Hinson of Long Prairie. Hughes was endorsed by Republicans in Minnesota's Seventh Congressional District at their convention in Alexandria in April. He was selected by delegates of the 38 counties that comprise the district by a majority of 60 percent or more in the first round of balloting.
Hughes said he brings a message of "prosperity, security and integrity." He describes himself as a strict constitutional conservative who supports small government and low taxes. He also supports a "zero-for-zero" policy for agricultural trade and said foreign agriculture programs should not put U.S. farmers at a disadvantage.
Despite not earning the Republican endorsement, Hinson said she plans to continue her campaign as part of her commitment to supporters, donors and citizens of the district. Issue that are important to Hinson include balancing the budget and addressing the national debt, and cutting back on federal overreach into areas like the federal school lunch program. . . .
One woman in history who helped form school lunch policy on the Ag Committee is Coya Knutson. She was not endorsed by the DFL party but ran in a primary and went on to become Minnesota’s first Congresswoman, serving from 1951-1955. She is remembered for the letter to the editor her then estranged husband wrote at the behest of party officials. Entitled “Coya, Come Home”, the letter is largely considered a historical example of sexism in politics.
“Everywhere I go, people ask me how I could raise my kids and run for office or serve in Washington,” Hinson said. "I have met women serving in Congress today who are effectively serving and being engaged with their families. If that question is fair game for me, it's fair to ask that of my opponent as well who has seven children of his own.”
Hinson has a point in raising the example of Coya Knutson, though a 2014 National Public Radio feature by Liz Halloran, The Congresswoman Whose Husband Called Her Home, suggests that dirty tricks, as well as sexism, played heavily in the 1958 election, in which Knutson was defeated by a Republican whose slogan was "A Big Man for A Man-Sized Job."
Uffda.
However, Bluestem loses sympathy for Hinson when she relates the story of securing a Russian visa for a son who was born in while she and her husband were serving as missionaries in that country. On the website and in the Alexandra Echo Press article, Hinson files for U.House 7th District:
Hinson said that similarities to her present run with her past experiences.
“My son was born in a foreign country and essentially was born an illegal alien,” Hinson recalled. “Unlike America, there are no anchor babies in Russia. Legal experts advised my family that we should leave and start over with a lengthy and costly visa process we had already achieved.”
Working with a tight budget of donor money, the Hinson family needed a solution that wouldn’t require the expense of leaving and starting over. She advocated her son’s case for several months until officials appealed to Moscow. Her son was eventually granted the necessary legal status while keeping positive relations with Russian officials and without having to leave the country.
"Anchor baby"? Really? Would it have challenged her identity as a wordsmith to describe her son's situation with the proper term, "birthright citizenship?" The word choice suggests self-righteousness blended with self-pity approaching butthurt. We begin to understand, maybe, why the Republicans selected the equally self-righteous drone commander and pilot educator on the Southern Border.
Photos: The Republican primary contenders.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Thumbs Up: If a candidate refuses to appear at a debate or candidate forum, that shouldn’t stop voters from hearing the views of his or her opponent. That’s why we fully support the Minnesota League of Women Voters’ (LWV) announcement that this year, all League candidate forums statewide will now take place as scheduled, even if one of the candidates in a two-candidate race is unwilling or unable to attend. In the past, the League canceled a forum if a candidate didn’t confirm attendance or didn’t arrive at the scheduled start time. This was done to avoid creating the appearance of a conflict of interest. However, according to LWV Minnesota executive director Susan Sheridan Tucker, it appears that some candidates and/or their political party attempted to manipulate LWV and its events by not appearing or not responding. “We feel this policy change respects the time and interests of voters and candidates in attendance, and we will conduct the forum in a manner that is neutral to the absent candidate,” Tucker said.
League of Women Voters members all across Minnesota are focused on working with other community organizations to build broad coalitions together in hosting candidate forums before both the primary and general elections.
Nonpartisan organizations interested in learning more about bringing a candidate forum to their community should contact Liz Haan, community organizer, at [email protected] or a member of the local League. Information on local Leagues can be found at lwvmn.org under the "Local Leagues" tab.
We hope that nonpartisan organizations across the state work with the League to set up debates, especially for seats with primaries.
An illustration of forum flight? Check out the 2012 Star Tribune report by Tom Meersman, Carver County candidates shun debates for an extreme example.
Photo: Minnesota House candidates participated in a 2014 forum sponsored by the Alexandria League of Women Voters and the Echo Press. They included (left to right) Mary Franson, R-incumbent in District 8B, Jay Seiling, DFL-challenger in District 8B, Jeff Backer, R-challenger in District 12A, Jay McNamar, DFL-incumbent in District 12A, Paul Anderson, R-incumbent in District 12B and Gordy Wagner, DFL-challenger in District 12B. (Echo Press photo by Al Edenloff).
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Wednesday's big plot twist in the ongoing Minnesota soap opera that goes by hashtag #mnleg is the sudden retirement of Minnesota House Environment and Natural Resources Policy and Finance committee chair, Denny McNamara, R-Hastings.
He promises to spend more time with his family, the South Washington County Bulletin reported in McNamara to retire; Cottage Grove's Tony Jurgens files for GOP in 54B. (Don Slaten is the endorsed DFL candidate). The quality family time remark prompts two observations: one about the sudden retirement, the other about the circumvention of the Republican endorsement process.
What prompted this?
Other than the hackneyed "spend-more-time-with-the-family" line, there's no explanation about why McNamara might suddenly retire, as he had seemed to relish the skirmishes over policy in committees as well as enjoy rude good health.
Sources suggest two scenarios, neither of which is exclusive of the other. First, internal squabbling among Speaker Daudt's children in the Republican Majority Caucus (the Peppin-Dean faction, the Kelly-Mack-Hackbarth wing, and the other folks) simply made him want to go back to Hastings and think about nursery stock planted on his real estate LLC.
Second, several of the items in the LCCMR spending bill that McNamara cherished most were line-item vetoed by Governor Dayton. Forum Communications political reporter Don Davis wrote in Dayton Issues Vetoes, Signs Other Bills:
Dayton used his line-item veto power — allowed only on spending measures — to strip some money from the LCCMR bill. He said he wished that he could have restored funding to programs the commission recommended, but he does not have that authority.
Dayton erased $1.5 million to map counties for aggregate (rock) resources, $1.5 million to study changes from forest land to cropland along the Crow Wing River, $1.1 million for the University of Minnesota to study ecological issues including reducing sulfate, $2.2 million to develop pollinator (including bee) habitat along interstate highways, $2.2 million to enhance parks and trails and $400,000 for the Douglas County Regional Park.
For more on reasons why the many of the items that Governor Dayton line-item vetoed from the LCCMR bill deserved to be vetoed, we recommend the letter to the governor from Environment Committee minority lead Rick Hansen, DFL-S. St. Paul. He writes:
I am writing regarding the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota’s Resources (LCCMR) appropriations bill (SF 2963). I strongly encourage you to line-item veto the following three appropriations below. The following appropriations are earmarks for specific special interests and weren’t thoroughly vetted through the LCCMR review process.
Aggregate Mapping ($1.5 million-DNR)
Douglas County Park ($400,000-Douglas County)
Ambassador Wild Animals Environmental Education Program ($500,000-Wildlife
Science Center)
I also wanted to bring to your attention four other additional projects that replaced the unanimous LCCMR recommendations. The projects below should also be line-item vetoed. These are projects that should not be funded through the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, but could be pursued in the future from other sources of funding like the state’s General Fund.
Pineland Sands Aquifer Study ($1.5 million-DNR)
Natural Resources Research Institute ($1.1 million-U of M-NRRI)
State Park and Trail Enhancement ($1.228 million-DNR)
I ask you to line-item veto the seven appropriations added by the House GOP. Whenever the GOP has been in control of the House they have manipulated the LCCMR. This has not received as much attention as the LSOHC, but has been more significant.
The House GOP’s continued manipulation of these Constitutional funds should not go unchallenged. Line-item vetoes may help prevent future mischief to the LCCMR and its proven processes.
It didn't take long for the people of twitter to notice that by withdrawing the day after the 2015 Cottage Grove Volunteer of the Year filed for office on the very last day of the filing, McNamara had secured the Republican nod for nice guy Tony Jurgens.
McNamara had initially filed to run for reelection, and announced his change of heart a day after filings for office closed. On the last day of filings Republican Tony Jurgens of Cottage Grove submitted paperwork to run for the House 54B seat.
It’s unclear whether McNamara knew of Jurgens’ plans, but the South Washington County Bulletin reported that McNamara described Jurgens as a “great guy.”
Jurgens said in an interview he had dinner last Thursday with McNamara and they talked about the possibility of him running, but no decision was made.
“Honestly, when I left the house (Tuesday) morning, I did not know I was going to file,” Jurgens said. He said he was asked to meet with McNamara at 4 p.m. Tuesday at the State Office Building. At 4:50 p.m. McNamara decided he’d retire, Jurgens said.
“Then,” Jurgens said, “somebody else in the room said to me, ‘Get downstairs now’” to file before the deadline. Jurgens said he and McNamara were joined by House Republican Campaign Committee representatives in the meeting.
The filing gambit might not encourage transparency or participation, but it sure will keep the potty-mouth kids off the GOP grass. They might as well write in Lizard People at this point.
Photo: Denny McNamara performing on the House floor.
Bluestem Prairie is conducting its summer fundraising drive. If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen P.O. Box 108, Maynard MN 56260) or use the paypal button below:
Recent Comments