Not for the first time have I experienced a sense of Republican cognitive dissonance as I write about Minnesota and South Dakota politics.
Take campaign pitches about sales taxes by Republican gubernatorial candidates in the North Star and Rushmore States.
Buried in Jessie Van Berkel's excellent profile for the Star Tribune, Scott Jensen runs on ‘core convictions’ in turbulent bid for Minnesota governor, there's this:
. . . And, over eight years, he'd eliminate the state income tax.
That tax generates about $15 billion a year for state government, about half of the state's annual general fund revenue. After Jensen spoke in Hibbing, Markus Hoche, a state IT specialist, asked him something Hoche's colleagues worry about: Would they have a job?
"You're going to get a raise. You're going to have a job," Jensen said.
Minnesota can do both by using the state's surplus, freezing state hiring, cutting "waste, fraud and abuse" in government and creating a "sizzling" economy, Jensen said. And he said he would look into adding sales tax for some food or clothing [emphasis added].
Jensen's tax proposal "would do real damage to Minnesotans' quality of life," said Nan Madden, director of the nonpartisan Minnesota Budget Project. She added, "He hasn't done the work to identify and be honest with people about where he'd cut."
Cross the border into sunny South Dakota, where Governor Kristi Noem suddenly sprang the oppose pitch last week.
On Friday at the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, Annie Todd reported in "A desperate poltical stunt': Lawmakers slam Noem's proposed grocery tax cut:
Lawmakers across the aisle are slamming Gov. Kristi Noem's proposed cut on the state's sales tax of food items, saying there had been broad support months ago to provide relief to South Dakotan families hit by the tax at the supermarket during a rise in prices with ongoing inflation.
"My first reaction is that this is a desperate political stunt on the part of a political campaign who sees it's about ready to lose what many thought was a slam dunk race," Sen. Reynold Nesiba (D-Sioux Falls) said.
Nesiba had authored legislation in January to repeal the sales tax on food and has been a consistent advocate for the tax cut. That legislation did not pass.
Noem's Wednesday announcement at Dakota Butcher in Rapid City comes less than six weeks before South Dakotans head to the polls to vote for a number of races, including whether Noem should return for a second term. Noem faces Democratic challenger Jamie Smith, who has served six years in the state House of Representatives.
Smith has supported the repeal of the sales tax on food for the entire time he's been in the legislature, he said over the phone Wednesday.
"We were able to work in the house in a bipartisan fashion to get this passed, but it was killed promptly upon its receipt in the Senate," Smith said. "Our governor has not supported this nor did she support tax cuts in general throughout the last session.
"I think our governor's afraid of losing an election, and she's going to do anything she can to ensure that election," Smith added. . . .
Read both articles at the Star Tribune and the Argus Leader.
As I noted in SD lawmakers (like Dem gubernatorial contender Smith) tried cutting grocery sales tax before, I'd welcome the elimination of the food sales tax. In the local shopper, a grocery store in Ortonville advertises the lack of sales tax on food over in Minnesota.
But there's no reason to vote for Noem because of this campaign pitch, when unlike the sitting governor, Smith has long supported the repeal of the sales tax on food.
We're not sure what our Minnesota friends will think of taxes on food and clothing, but they are now surprised to learn we pay them.
Whatevre the case: what is Republican tax policy?
Related posts
- SD lawmakers (like Dem gubernatorial contender Smith) tried cutting grocery sales tax before
- What the hell was that? Governor Kristi Noem butt of Saturday Night Live cold opening schtick
- Was the family wedding cancelled? After bailing on Alexandria anti-vaxxfest, Jensen attended Gophers' homecoming
- South Dakota man wants his image taken out of Governor Noem's latest divisive attack ad
- Jamie Smith will focus on South Dakota and shake hands with your dog while he's at it
- SD Dem gubernatorial candidate Smith picks Eden lawmaker Jennifer Keintz as running mate
- While South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem looks for a job, Minnesota unemployment rate drops
- Fake state economy news: Noem for Governor digital ad marketed in Iowa, NH, & SC:
- Pants on fire at CPAC: Governor Kristi Noem claims "We kept kids in the classroom
- South Dakota ethics: Will lawmakers resolve Governor Noem's closed-door meeting with daughter violated public trust?
- SD Gov Noem blames Soros' money for pipeline protests; cuts tribes out of anti-protest bills talk
Photo: Noem's announcement was made during a stop shown above in an image from South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Via The South Dakota Standard. Funny how she was against cutting or eliminating sales taxes on food until her second term--when she could have worked with the legislature to cut these taxes before.
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