If Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) needs to check up on his son, he now needs only to descend the stairs of Cannon House Office Building.
Jack Emmer, one of the congressman's seven children, joined freshman Rep. Francis Rooney (R-Fla.) as a staff assistant this month.
Jack, who attributes his love of the sport to his hockey-loving family, spent two years playing junior hockey in Canada before graduating from Florida Gulf Coast University last spring.
Recently, Emmer returned from Washington D.C. where his family attended the inauguration into Congress for his father, Tom Emmer. Emmer has watched his fatherinvolved in politics since he was about 12 years old.
“He was a state representative in Minnesota,” Emmer said. “After about three years, he ran for governor. He lost by 9,000 votes. There was a fiasco with a recount, and he ended up conceding. I think that my dad still had the urge to be a public servant, and it worked out for him.”
Emmer is a political science major intending on going to law school when he finishes at FGCU. He doesn’t believe that a career in politics is something that he can plan for.
“I think politics are very intriguing,” Emmer said. “I have to establish myself in other things first.”
He also said that it’s something he hopes to be on the table for himself in the future. He’s starting here at FGCU, where he’ll be running for Student Government in the upcoming FGCU elections.
“I’ve always looked up to my dad and he has been an inspiration in my life and my future,” Emmer said. “Being in Washington D.C. for inauguration for my father was really special. It was great having my entire family together. It was my first time there, and I really enjoyed the history aspect. Also, seeing my dad sworn in was a very proud moment.”
It's heartwarming that a random young man from Wright County, Minnesota, can play college hockey in Florida and end up working for Congress at the drop of a puck.
Photo: Jack Emmer in his nano-second as a Bethel University player.
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At the Star Tribune Tuesday, Stephen Montemayor reported in After Trump election, GOP committee will vet candidates for two federal judgeships that Erik Paulsen, the senior Republican serving in Minnesota's congressional delegation, will have increased influence in guiding the Trump administration's choices for federal judges.
While US senators ordinarily take the lead in these matters, Minnesota's two senators are Democrats; thus, the vetting process will fall on Paulsen's shoulders.
This influence won't stop with the judicial branch. A source in Minnesota's agriculture lobby reminded us this week that political appointees also must be vetted for the state offices of two important USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) agencies: the Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Rural Development.
FSA administers farm bill programs ranging from Conservation Compliance to Agricultural Risk Coverage / Price Loss Coverage as well as farm loans to farmers and ranchers. Rural Development offers "loans, grants and loan guarantees to support essential services such as housing, economic development, health care, first responder services and equipment, and water, electric and communications infrastructure."
After an election cycle during which Minnesota's rural voters were buried in Republican legislative campaign messages about how the evil metro shouldn't be making decisions about Greater Minnesota, it's ironic to see these important choices in the hands of a congressman who represents suburban areas of Anoka, Hennepin and Carver counties.
We're told that Sixth District Congressman Tom Emmer, who lives just over the Hennepin County line and whose district is somewhat more rural, will be helping Representative Paulsen out. Thank heavens for small favors: while neither Paulsen nor Emmer served on ag committees during their time in the Minnesota House, Emmer did serve on the US House Ag Committee during his first five months in office. In late May 2015, he was appointed to the House Financial Services Committee; though he tried for a waiver in order to remain on on both of his former committees—Agriculture and Foreign Affairs—it was not to be.
Bluestem suspects that both congressmen will lean heavily on the advice of Emmer's Chief of Staff, former state representative David FitzSimmons. While most political observers in Minnesota recall him as one of four Republicans who voted for marriage equality, those of us in farm country (and people who check his LinkedIn profile and old state EIS) also know he's a managing partner in FitzSimmons Family Farms, LLC.
Former DFL legislator Steve Wenzel, who served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for almost 30 years, is running for election to be a delegate to the Republican National Convention from Minnesota's Eight Congressional District Convention in the delegate slot allocated for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
In an interview this afternoon, Wenzel said while he is running to be a Trump delegate, he is actually a supporter of the presidential candidacies of both Ted Cruz and John Kasich.
If elected, Wenzel would be required to vote for Trump on the first ballot, but he is hoping that mulitiple ballots will be needed to elect the Republican nominee for president at the Republican National Convention.
"I am not for Donald Trump and I would not be voting for him on the second or third ballot," said Wenzel.
Wenzel was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1972 and served until 2001, when he was appointed by President George W. Bush as the U.S. Department of Agriculture State Director in Minnesota, where he served until 2009. . . .
Would that mischievous recent history with the President-elect Trump cause Wenzel to be excluded from the vetting process? We'll learn soon enough--first we'll need an ag secretary.
Calls to Paulsen and Emmer's offices for this story were not returned.
Photo: Eric Paulsen and a corn dog at the state fair. Close enough to farming, right?
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In other action, the FEC voted unanimously to dismiss a case (MUR 6794) involving appearance by Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) in a television and internet ad for a home remodeling company. In the video, Emmer stated that he was a candidate for Congress and stood in front of an “Emmer for Congress” sign.
Emmer’s campaign committee acknowledge that Emmer filmed a testimonial for the company at its request but claimed the company was not authorized to broadcast it, and upon learning that the ad was being aired, the campaign committee directed the company to stop.
Those who filed the dismissed complaint were on their own with that piece of heel work.
Photo: Stephen Colbert, America's greatest patriot, in a screenshot memefied by Dan Feidt. Bluestem was sent a tote bag and ink pen that lit up for sharing an mp4 of the clip. We've never had to figure out many pennies fit in it.
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Jim Hagedorn, the endorsed Republican candidate in Minnesota's First Congressional district, is doubling down on his notion that rudeness is the ticket to win the hearts, minds and votes of Southern Minnesotans.
The Uptake reports that he agrees with Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump's attacks on Gold Star parents who are Muslim because ...Muslim extremism!
Writing about now-Sen. John Thune's race against Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson, Hagedorn turned his razor-sharp wit on America's most coddled demographic—Native Americans. "The race has been highlighted by a Democrat drive to register voters in several of several of South Dakota's expansive redistribution of wealth centers…err…casino parlors…err…Indian reservations. Remarkably, many of the voters registered for absentee ballots were found to be chiefs and squaws who had returned to the spirit world many moons ago." Alleging that fake votes from Indians would provide the margin of victory, he echoed "John Wayne's wisdom of the only good Indian being a dead Indian."
Hagedorn may have been joking. (The quip's real author, General Philip Sheridan, wasn't.) But American Indians were a favorite punching bag over at Mr. Conservative. . .
Hagedorn was among Republican hopefuls interviewed by The Uptake Tuesday at Farmfest for the article, MN GOP Congressional Candidates Back Trump Despite His Statements. While "Despite His Statements" is accurate for Sixth District Congressman Tom Emmer, and Seventh District Republican primary challenger Amanda Hinson, Hagedorn is totally on board with Trump's flame war against Khizr and Ghazala Khan:
Emmer’s support comes with some caveats. He thinks Trump needs to be a little more careful about what he’s saying.
“I understand that he feels as though he was attacked, but when you’re dealing with Gold Star parents — people who have made the ultimate sacrifice — I think you just…they get a free pass on all of that. You know what, that’s something he’ll have to learn.”
Jim Hagedorn, the Republican candidate for Minnesota’s first congressional district, has no such misgivings about what Trump is saying. When asked about Trump’s criticism of the military parents, Hagedorn immediately zeroed in on the fact that they were Muslim.
“Here’s the underlying issue, we have to secure our borders and we have to protect the American people from Muslim extremism, supremacists who want to come here. I have a refugee program time out that I’ve called for and I also don’t believe that at this point in time, given what’s going on in the world, it makes sense to bring people to America from countries that hate America. It’s time to step up and put our country first.” . . .
“What we should do with refugees, is we should try to have ‘safe zones’ and make sure that they can be repatriated to their home country. But I would try to create safe zones near their home country rather than bring them into our culture and change our culture.”
We are at war with Islamic supremacists devoted to the ideology of radical Islam. Given the state of the world, what good comes from transferring more people to America from nations that hate America?
It's time to take a refugee program timeout and discontinue migration from hostile nations. That's only commonsense.
As for refugees, we should work to create safe zones in or near war torn nations, with the goal of repatriating them to their home countries.
My politically correct opponent, Tim Walz, thinks my ideas are Islamophobic and unMinnesotan. Fortunately, the vast majority of Southern Minnesotans agree with me and do not favor additional Islamic migration from hostile nations.
In fact, First District voters do not understand why Walz supported Obama's program to flood America with almost 1 million Muslims from nations that hate Christians and abhor Western values.
The result: Minnesota has a terrorist recruiting problem from existing East African refugees.
It's time to elect a new Republican President and new First District Congressman who will defend the United States and protect the American people from Islamic supremacists.
Short skinny: Hagedorn can just pretend Trump hasn't insulted the Khan family because terrorism! The same day Hagedorn posted the Breitbart.com article, Congressman Tim Walz, the high-ranking enlisted man to have served in the House, issued this statement about the flap:
Washington, DC [8/1/16] – Today, Rep. Walz released the following statement:
The Khan Family has earned our respect and gratitude. As someone who wore this nation’s uniform for 24 years, I served alongside soldiers of every race, religion and background. That’s what makes us strong. We must always unite in support of Gold Star families who made the ultimate sacrifice and continue our work to ensure that sacrifice is honored and remembered.
Photo: Jackson Proskow tweeted the photo with this cutline: "At Arlington National Cemetery, there's a growing memorial at the grave of Capt. Humayun Khan" (top); Hagedorn's Facebook post (bottom).
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The first inter-party congressional debates of the political season happen Tuesday morning at Farmfest near Redwood Falls, Minnesota. The forum, which is focused on rural issues is scheduled to start at 10:30 A.M. and go until noon.
The UpTake has provided the live embeddable video feed below.
State lawmakers will be addressing timely issues affecting agriculture in Greater Minnesota during FarmFest.
Forum coordinator Kent Thiesse says a state legislative forum is replacing the Second Congressional District candidate debate scheduled Wednesday morning at 10:30. . . .
Senators Gary Dahms, Vicki Jensen and Bill Weber will join representatives Jeanne Poppe, Rod Hamilton, Clark Johnson and Chris Swedzinski as panelists during the legislative forum.
Thiesse says the congressional debate was canceled after three of the five confirmed candidates withdrew late last week.
Photo: CD7's Collin Peterson and 2014 challenger Torrey Westrom at Farmfest.
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After losing the Republican endorsement in Minnesota's Sixth Congressional District to sitting Representative Tom Emmer, rabid anti-refugee ranter AJ Kern continues to fight toward the primary.
Sixth District residents should probably be happy that she's running for Congress, rather than running a travel agency.
Minneapolis to Somalia flights. Book cheap flights to Somalia from Minneapolis. Search multiple flight deals from various travel sources with one click.
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This is followed by sharing a 2013 post, Mogadishu's Best Popular Beach: Lido Beach, from Visit Mogadishu:
Kern would like to serve in Congress, but substitutes cheap shots for due diligence on her campaign page.
We'll help her out, since she doesn't seem able to help herself.
US State Department Travel Warning
Vacation in Somalia? Not recommended by the United States State Department, which issued this Somalia Travel Warning back in late May:
The U.S. Department of State warns U.S. citizens to avoid travel to Somalia because of continuous threats by the al-Qaida affiliated terrorist group, al-Shabaab. U.S. citizens should also be aware of the risks of kidnappings in all parts of Somalia, including Somaliland and Puntland. There is no U.S. embassy presence in Somalia. This replaces the Travel Warning dated October 1, 2015.
The security situation in Somalia remains unstable and dangerous. Terrorist operatives and armed groups in Somalia continue to attack Somali authorities, the troops from the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), and other non-military targets. Kidnapping, bombings, murder, illegal roadblocks, banditry, and other violent incidents are common throughout Somalia, including Somaliland and Puntland. Al-Shabaab remains intent on conducting attacks against popular restaurants, hotels, locations known to be popular with Westerners, and convoys carrying Somali and other government officials. Last year, there were at least eight prominent hotel attacks located in the heart of Mogadishu, the Somali capital. One U.S. citizen was killed during one of these attacks. Munitions caches and unexploded ordnance exist in various parts of the country and remain a danger to civilians.
In addition, al-Shabaab has demonstrated the capability to carry out attacks in government-controlled territories, with particular emphasis on targeting government facilities, foreign delegations' facilities and movements, and commercial establishments frequented by government officials, foreign nationals, and the Somali diaspora. There is a particular threat to foreigners in places where large crowds gather and Westerners frequent, including airports, government buildings, and shopping areas. Inter-clan and inter-factional fighting can flare up with little or no warning.
There are continuing threats of attacks against airports and civil aviation, especially in Mogadishu. Al-Shabaab continues to conduct attacks against the Mogadishu Aden Adde International Airport (MGQ) using mortars and other standoff weapons. The group also has conducted attacks from within the airport’s secure perimeter and successfully detonated an explosive device concealed in a laptop on an airplane shortly after take-off.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) containing information on the U.S. prohibition against U.S. civil aviation operations in airspace over Somalia due to security risks toward civil aviation. For further background information regarding FAA flight prohibitions and advisories for U.S. civil aviation, U.S. citizens should consult the Federal Aviation Administration’s Prohibitions, Restrictions and Notices.
U.S. citizens are urged to avoid sailing near the coast of Somalia. Merchant vessels, fishing boats, and recreational craft all risk seizure and detention by pirates in the waters off the Horn of Africa, especially in the international waters near Somalia. Pirates and other criminals have specifically targeted and kidnapped foreigners working in Somalia, including two U.S. citizens in the past several years. Consult the Maritime Administration's Horn of Africa Piracy page for information on maritime advisories, self-protection measures, and naval forces in the region.
. . . Looking at the Facebook photos of Omar and Abdirahman together, I thought about the wave of violence eliminating my country’s young brains. I remembered my friend, engineer Abdullahi Barre, who was shot in front of his house in Mogadishu in April 2015. I thought about another school friend, Omar Afrah, who narrowly survived a car bomb. I counted the number of journalists, businessmen, aid workers, teachers and lawmakers who I knew and who had been targeted in attacks over the last few years.
The violence that dominates Somalia is as physical and emotional as it is gruesome and ghastly. Those who have the will and the way are either hiding behind barriers or leaving the country. However, through an unyielding veneer of persistence, people in Mogadishu wake up and go to work every morning. They defy the violence and try to have normal lives – until they don’t. . . .
Bluestem can't discern whether Kern is ignorant, cruel, or sadistically stupid. One thing the post clearly demonstrates--with its indifference to the brutal facts of the Somali Diaspora and current situation--is that she's not congressional.
Photo: People carry away a body away from the Lido beach (top, AFP via the Independent); Kern's Facebook post (middle); Lido Beach (via the Guardian, top).
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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.
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Now it seems that Darlene’s past supporters are turning their backs as fast as they can: even Tea Party favorite Tom Emmer – who once touted Darlene as a model businesswoman before she ruined his 2010 press conference by lying about accepting stimulus money and then trying to physically hide behind him at the podium – has now whole-heartedly embraced the GOP-endorsed candidate, Jason Lewis.
Kern, who exhibits all the signs of a classic Tea Party darling, frequently blames Muslim immigrants for federal deficits as well as economic difficulties and crime in St. Cloud. According to the St. Cloud Times, Kern criticized the formerly fire-spitting, mud-slinging Emmer for chilling out on conservative values when he entered Congress.
Dear Facebook Friends and Frenemies: the Castro Brothers and their Junta are throw back thugs of the twentieth century and do not belong in the Caribbean/western hemisphere. Why does Congressman Tom Emmer want to prop up the communist regime in Cuba? Doing business with thugs is not why the good citizens Minnesota's 6th District sent Tom Emmer to congress.
Will Kern and Munro be able to get earned media before August? Stay tuned!
Photo: Patrick Munro. Photo via Facebook.
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As the screenshot above demonstrates, Kern doesn't have much up now on her campaign website's "Issues" page, but readers can visit the AJ Kern for Congress Facebook page if they wish to learn about Kern's issues.
Looks like the St Cloud Times was wrong about CAIR... According to the current list, Emmer hasn't signed on to support this bill. I would support this bill immediately.
"The legislation explicitly identifies the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) and the North American Islamic Trust (NAIT) as U.S. Muslim Brotherhood entities and includes evidence tying them to a Hamas support network."
Here's a screenshot:
In the note, Kern presumably alludes to a November 2015 fact-checking article in the St. Cloud Times, Fact Check: CAIR not on US terror watch list. The bill is HR 3892, the Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act of 2015. Neither Second District Republican Congressman John Kline nor Third District Republican Erik Paulsen, or even Blue Dog Democrat, Seventh Congressional District Congressman Collin Peterson have signed on to this hot mess.
In 2014, former Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) spearheaded a similar effort to label the group a terrorist organization, though it ultimately failed to reach President Obama’s desk. Bachmann had previously alleged that longtime Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin had links to the organization — an allegation that was widely condemned by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
As part of a last ditch effort before she retires, Rep. Michele Bachmann introduced HR 5194, which seeks to label the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist entity and impose sanctions on anyone in the U.S. who provides material support to the group. As is usually the case with these types of efforts, the bill seems to be more about fueling anti-Muslim hysteria rather than addressing any actual problem.
As Kern noted in her campaign website post, the bill defines CAIR as a U.S. Muslim Brotherhood entity. The Imagine 2050 report continues:
For starters, World Net Daily (WND) recently revealed that former FBI agent John Guandolo helped draft the bill. After resigning in disgrace from the FBI, Guandolo now operates as a full-time anti-Muslim conspiracy theorist who travels the country providing law enforcement and civilian trainings. His his trainings are steeped with anti-Muslim bias and geared more toward perpetuating fear that Muslims are bent on taking over America.
It’s no surprise that Bachmann’s bill also appears to be a slight against the civil rights organization Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), who she and Guandolo have repeatedly claimed to be a Muslim Brotherhood front group. CAIR, who is mentioned in the body of the bill and has repeatedly rejected accusations of terrorist activity or support, has been known to get Guandolo’s events canceled or discredited. However, members of the far-Right who uphold this claim were recently emboldened after the United Arab Emirates bizarrely labeled CAIR as a Muslim Brotherhood front group, although the U.S. officials haven’t made any similar designations and are still awaiting evidence from the UAE substantiating this claim.
It should also be noted that Bachmann, as well as the bill’s co-sponsor Rep. Louie Gohmert, seem to see the Muslim Brotherhood everywhere they go. In 2012, the two members of Congress embarked on a smear campaign accusing Hillary Clinton’s former aide Huma Abedin of being a Muslim Brotherhood operative, an attack that even drew criticism from their fellow Republicans.
Kern gained recent notoriety during her brief stint as an unpaid volunteer monthly columnist who frequently sounded alarms about refuges at the St. Cloud Times; under the paper's policy, she had to relinquish her bully pulpit when she decided to run for office.
Kern raised strong concerns yesterday about refugees and immigrants running for political office and said a person seeking elected office in the US should not be able to have dual citizenship.
Specifically, Kern objected to Muslims serving in elected office and she echoed previous statements made by presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson, who expressed concerns with a Muslim serving as president.
Kern apparently believes that that Clarion Fund's published content is worth sharing with potential voters in Minnesota's Sixth Congressional District. What is the Clarion Fund?
The Institute for Policy Studies' Right Web reports in its entry for the Clarion Project:
The Clarion Project (previously the "Clarion Fund") is a nonprofit organization led by U.S. neoconservatives and rightwing Israelis that produces alarmist films and publications aimed at hyping the threat of "Radical Islam."
Clarion's first three films—Obsession, Iranium, and The Third Jihad—received rave reviews from rightwing activists like Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer. However, many observers argue that the films employ anti-Islamic rhetoric and make misleading claims.[1] In 2013, Clarion released another film called Honor Diaries, which it describes as depicting the allegedly "cruel and often violent oppression of Muslim women."[2]
Arguably Clarion's principal public face is its National Security Analyst Ryan Mauro. He often appears on Fox News making sensationalist claims about "Muslim enclaves" in the United States and has argued that Iraq's purported stockpile of "weapons of mass destruction" were moved to Syria prior to the Iraq War.
Shortly after the 2013 Boston marathon bombings, Clarion's public relations firm, M. Sliwa Public Relations, issued a press release capitalizing on the attacks to promote the group's political agenda and films. Claiming that "jihadist ideology continues to motivate a sophisticated worldwide terror network and that America remains a target," the press release promoted Clarion's 2008 film, The Third Jihad, and offered up veteran neoconservative activists Richard Perle and Clare Lopez for interviews.[3]
In its 2011 report Fear, Inc., the Center for American Progress identified Clarion as an important member of the "Islamophobia network," an informal grouping of prominent foundations, scholars, and opinion-makers that spreads negative impressions about Islam and Muslims in the United States. Indeed, the group's funding is replete with large contributions from major foundations identified in the report.[4]
Clarion contests claims that it intends to promote negative views of Muslims generally; rather, it claims to focus only on those it deems "radical." A statement on the Clarion website makes a distinction between "Radical Islam and the majority of the Muslim population worldwide,"[5] and the film Obsession opens with the statement, "It's important to remember most Muslims are peaceful and do not support terror. This is not a film about them."
However, the group seems to treat any "moderate" behavior by Muslims as an example of taqiyya, a medieval Islamic doctrine that Clarion and other Islamophobic groups interpret to mean "deceit" in the interest of furthering "sharia Islam." Articles posted on the Clarion Project have claimed that violent jihad "is obligatory for Muslims everywhere"[6] and that "Islam not only permits its believers to lie but actually commands it in some circumstances."[7]. . .
As of 2014, Clarion no longer provided information about its leadership and advisors on its website. . . .
Read the entire post at Right Web.
For a more detailed look at the organized effort to make Americans afraid of all of their Muslim neighbors and co-workers, the Center for American Progress's Fear, Inc 2.0, published in February 2015, is definitely worth a read:
For an interactive journey through the findings in 2011's Fear Inc, click here.
Apparently, freshman RepublicanRepresentative Emmer isn't sufficiently willing to violate the civil rights and liberties of Muslims living in his district and he must be punished. Perhaps after November, Kern and her pals can Adopt a Highway and do some good for the St. Cloud area.
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For a full buffet of Loudon's fear-mongering (including commendation of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for being all about the Benjamins and speculation that Senator Amy Klobuchar may be under the sway of secret foreign agents), we recommend a Youtube of Loudon's first visit to Minnesota, when he spoke to the Minnesota Tea Party Alliance Quarterly Event on June 17, 2015:
“Everything Obama does in foreign policy and domestic policy fits the communist playbook,” Loudon said.
He added that the only reason Republicans haven’t exposed Obama is because the GOP is also “complicit” in the progressive movement’s push for communism.
That must explain Tom Emmer's recent interest in normalizing trade with Cuba, not the opportunities for Minnesota's farmers to find new markets for all that corn and beans they're growing.
In April 2010, Loudon launched "KeyWiki," which profiles over 64,000 politicians and political activists from the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, South Africa and other countries. KeyWiki accepts submissions from approved contributors only.
"We've got congressmen in there, 'peace' activists, labor unionists, black radicals, 'religious' socialists, 'greenies', left wing academics, Obama appointees and thousands of card-carrying socialists and communists," Loudon said in announcing the project. "In short, all the people who are dragging America down."
Of course, that guest list made Bluestem quiver with anticipation, since it sounded like every Facebook event we've been invited to since moving to the sylvan prairies of the Upper Minnesota River Valley.
Bluestem finds this to be a travesty--and hope our readers will rat out these dirty hippies. Send Javier's secret playbills from The Moth and the Fringe, as well as Wrong About Everything podcasts to KeyWiki.org (instructions here). While you're at it, create profiles for RINO fellow travelers Brian McDaniel and Mike Franklin.
The world needs to know what's been said. Meanwhile, on the off chance there's something in the water in Browerville and all of MN7, we're hoping people have had their wells tested.
Photo: Congressman Tom Emmer, communist dupe, via Facebook. Hold on to your pennies, capitalist tools!
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Bluestem has been cross about the breathless reporting and tweeting about how Minnesota Nice Sixth District freshman Congressman Tom Emmer has been, because those fawning articles and posts mention surface niceties, not policy.
We don't care how much a congressman--or a commoner--makes us cry with his or her storytelling; indeed, the debasement of the storytelling form by marketing and issue campaigns now cause the mere delivery of a personal witness Youtube to our mailboxes fire up our fact checking.
The first quarter of the first year of U.S. 6th District Rep. Tom Emmer's first term is drawing to a close. If you, as a constituent, had to grade him, how's he doing?
Based on the articles and opinion pieces in the St. Cloud Times and the Star Tribune concerning Emmer's efforts to assimilate in Washington, work with both "sides," and listen to people, plus his town hall meetings and email newsletters, under "Conduct" we'd certainly have to award him a "+" and a smiley face in the category "Plays well with others."
That's nice, but how's he voting? That is how he represents us.
There's been little or no reporting on this subject. I've pulled the information on a few of the key votes taken in the U.S. House so far this session. This is how our Republican representative voted:
•In favor of HR 161, which allows only 90 days for environmental reviews of gas pipeline permit applications after the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has evaluated the application.
•Against a motion to amend HR 161 to make gas companies responsible for cleanup in case of explosions and hold pipeline owners responsible for loss of life and other damages.
Did you see a headline "Emmer OKs rushing pipeline studies. If shoddy workmanship results in explosion, taxpayers will pay for cleanup"? Me neither. . . .
•Against a motion to require Keystone's owners to pay into a Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund.
I guess I missed the oil pipeline one, too. "Emmer votes to OK Keystone; owners excited that spills won't be their worry."
•Against a motion to deny tax benefits, as part of HR 644, to any business that reincorporates overseas to avoid U.S. taxes.
I never saw "Emmer votes to allow businesses to skip the country and skip paying taxes. . . .
And my personal favorite:
•In favor of HR 1029 to reshape the Environmental Protection Agency's Advisory Board, reducing the number of academic scientists on the board and filling those seats with members of the industries being regulated. How could this go wrong?
But wait. There's more.
Emmer also voted against an amendment that would have required those captains of polluting industries to not have been convicted of pollution crimes.
The net effect is the scientists who actually study pollution and its effects will be replaced on the regulatory board by industry insiders who may actually have been convicted of crimes related to environmental pollution.
This isn't legislation. It's an environmental atrocity. . . .
Read the entire article in the Times, then make sure each time a good progressive friend starts rattling on about What A Nice Guy Tom Emmer Has Become, you rescue your friend from the walking dead by asking: which votes?
Photo: Tom Emmer, Mr. Nice Guy, back when he was doing infomercials for Renters Warehouse. Pay no attention to the votes behind the CSPAN screen.
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While freshman congressman Tom Emmer (MN06) is winning the hearts of those impressed by his charm offensive in Selma, Bluestem hopes that they remember his importance in the grand scheme of things isn't in being their nice friend, but as a lawmaker.
However nice Emmer has become as an individual, we remain skeptical when we read passages like the one below from Tom Emmer fields questions at town hall meeting by Eric Hagen in the ECM Press and News:
Emmer said when he and Blaine Mayor Tom Ryan had a discussion about the northern long-eared bat, they wondered, “Who is making the decisions that these animals or plants are endangered and suddenly stop us from doing anything?”
“It’s regulation reform ultimately, but in the meantime we’ve just got to keep fighting every step of the way because our quality of life depends on efficient, affordable and abundant energy and coal is a big part of the answer,” Emmer said.
Rod, a Ramsey resident, took exception to Emmer’s comments about the long-eared bat.
“Those regulations are being put out by biologists, by people who study long-eared bats, and I don’t think that politics has a role in that,” Rod said.
Emmer said this should be a more transparent discussion so people have time to raise objections.
“When it comes to this, I’m sorry sir, but I firmly disagree that a biologist who is un-elected, no matter how great an expert he or she is, gets to make the rules,” Emmer said. “That’s not the way this constitutional republic was created and by abdicating that responsibility, Congress has literally given away that authority and looks what happens. There has to be a balance and I don’t think there is a balance at all. That’s what the elected officials are there for.”
Emmer's flighty facts
We find Emmer's remarks to be disturbing for a number of reasons. First, the long-eared bat has not been determined to be an endangered species. In Protection of bats has minimal effect on area project,s an article published Wednesday, Pines and Lakes Echo Journal reporter Dan Determan writes:
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced Thursday, April 2, that the northern long-eared bat would be protected as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act, effective May 4.
According to the FWS, the long-eared bat can be found in nearly every state east of Montana, and is found through most of Minnesota. The discussion to list the animal as a threatened species has been ongoing since October 2013.
Determan goes on to report that with the long discussion of the bats' status, roadbuilders and other could plan for the listing of the creature, which is experiencing pressure because of white-nose syndrome, a fungal infection.
Why worry about a bat species? Richard Baker, endangered species coordinator with the Minnesota DNR, explained the benefits humans receive from the flying rodents:
To see its Minnesota population dwindle to zero would have devastating repercussions in the state, as the bats provide an invaluable service simply by eating mosquitoes and other insects.
"Northern long-eared bats eat roughly their weight in insects every night," Baker said. "To put that in terms of dollars for pest control, the estimate is a $5 billion or $6 billion service that bats provide in the United States."
Secondly, Emmer misrepresents the process as somehow closed away from the public. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service originally proposed listing the creature as endangered, but after a long period of review that included three periods of public comment (timeline here), the agency changed the proposed status to threatened.
The agency received over 100,000 comments, so the process doesn't appear to have been conducted in secret.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Wednesday said it will protect the northern long-eared bat as a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act.
Their populations have already plummeted in several eastern states because of a killer fungus called white-nose syndrome, and the bats face peril across the continent as the disease moves north and west.
The threatened status will help the federal agency develop plans to protect the species, not just through research to find a cure for the disease but also by protecting habitat and reducing other threats that might reduce bat numbers.
But the threatened status also is a nod to the U.S. forest products industry that had balked on full-blown endangered status because the bats raise their young in trees in northern forests in June and July. Loggers and foresters argued that preventing logging to save bats could instead endanger an already economically challenged industry.
Under the federal threatened status it won’t be illegal to accidentally “take” bats when logging or other legal activity occurs. Logging and clearing of trees and brush for activities such as utility lines are specifically allowed under the federal rule.
Wayne Brandt, executive vice president of the Duluth-based Minnesota Forest Industries and the Minnesota Timber Producers Association, said the organizations appreciate that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service opted for the threatened listing instead of endangered status, but concerns remain.
“Today's announcement does nothing to address the reality that these bats are in deep trouble only because of white-nose syndrome,” Brandt said in an e-mailed statement. “They are not in any way threatened by ongoing forest management activities in Minnesota or anywhere else. …
Myers notes that the petroleum industry isn't happy about the ruling. Since logging isn't prohibited, Emmer's contention that the bats' protected status will "suddenly stop us from doing anything" must relate to protecting that special interest. The bats are beneficial to another part of Emmer's constituency, Minnesota's farmers. According to one of Myers' sources:
“Bats are a critical component of our nation’s ecology and economy, maintaining a fragile insect predator-prey balance; we lose them at our peril,” said Dan Ashe, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in a statement announcing the bat protections. “Without bats, insect populations can rise dramatically, with the potential for devastating losses for our crop farmers and foresters.”
Emmer sits on the House Ag Committee.
Founding fathers and science
Finally, Emmer trashes the role of science in the rule-making process, a common conservative talking point against regulation. Apparently, he would want Congress voting on each stressed species, rather than allowing the mechanisms established by the Congressionally-approved Endangered Species Act play out.
Bluestem has to wonder whether Thomas Jefferson, long-serving president of the American Philosophical Society (in 18th-century usage, the "Philosophical" included geology, biology and botany under "Natual Philosophy), would have such hostility toward science. The founding-est father of Founding Fathers, Ben Franklin, founded the American Philosophical Society along with his enlightened friends in the Junto.
As I. Bernard Cohen argued in Science and the Founding Fathers,many of the founding fathers drew from their natural philosophy for analogies for their political philosophy. It's Newtonian, as might be excepted, but certainly not the bluster of an Emmerian.
Bonus Emmer: At National Review, Maggie Gallagher writes in The ‘Party of CEOs’ and Religious Liberty:
To understand that, you have to go back and look at what happened to Target in Minnesota, which gave substantial amounts of money to a political organization that supported Governor Tom Emmer, purely for business-related reasons.
Governor Dayton, who defeated Emmer in the race for the open Minnesota Governor's office, in 2010, might have double-take of his opponent as "Governor Tom Emmer."
Photo: A long-eared bat, friend to farmers but a foe to our constitutional republic in Congressman Emmer's eyes. Other than that, Emmer is totally Minnesota nice.
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Rep. Tom Emmer, R, Sixth Congressional District will bring Brenton Hayden, who was named "Young Entrepreneur of the Year" and started his own business at 20 years-old. He is from central Minnesota.
Where had we seen that name before in connection with Tom Emmer?
While Tom Emmer's celebrity endorsement infomercial for Renter's Warehouse doesn't include mention of his congressional campaign, the half-hour piece did air after he declared his candidacy for the open seat in Minnesota's Sixth Congressional District.
The infomercial was uploaded on January 30, 2013, before Congresswoman Bachmann announced her retirement, but has aired since Emmer declared for office.
Emmer announced on June 5, 2013. According to KSTP's traffic department, the infomercial aired at least several times after Emmer jumped in the race. According to station traffic records, the segment aired twice on June 16 at 5:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m, on June 18 and June 22 (no time requested), and last aired on June 23 5:00 a.m.
As the disclaimer aired by stations before infomercials notes, Hubbard Broadcasting was not responsible for the content of the ad.
Brenton Hayden 500 Kristin Ln Maple Plain, Minnesota 553599590
Renters Warehouse
06/30/2013
2400.00
Owner
5000.00
Brenton Hayden 500 Kristin Ln Maple Plain, Minnesota 553599590
Renters Warehouse
06/30/2013
2600.00
Owner
5000.00
Ashley Hayden, same town but different address on Kristin Lane, also contributed to the Emmer campaign, as did another Hayden from Edina. It's unclear whether these are family members or simply people who share the same last name.
Photo: Still from one of the Renters Warehouse spots. What a place to find a date to the State of the Union address.
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While Tom Emmer is busy in Washington trying to established a reputation for his office's constituent services (his staff's chatter about "customer service" makes us want to head up to the Sixth for new siding or a rental agent), others are remembering his record.
Today, HRC shined a bright spotlight on six of the new members of the 114th Congress with some of the most shameful and extreme anti-equality rhetoric, record and positions on LGBT issues. Sworn in on January 6, these new members are some of the worst who have gone out of their way to stop equality, inspiring and propagating lies and hatred toward LGBT people across the country.
Here's the entry for Emmer:
Representative Tom Emmer (R-MN): This former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives is headed to Washington, DC, to replace former Representative Michele Bachmann.
Emmer donated to the ministry of the radical anti-LGBT Bradlee Dean who believes Muslim countries that execute LGBT people are “more moral than even the American Christians.”
Emmer said he would not sign anti-bullying legislation to promote safe schools because “I don’t want the government doing that for us.”
Emmer was named the Minnesota chairman for the anti-equality Faith and Freedom Coalition and headed up efforts in the state on a constitutional amendment banning marriage equality.
Emmer compared marriage equality to incest and bestiality.
Photo: Tom Emmer and You Can Run/Sons of Liberty Radio Show staffers, via The Awl and Dump Bachmann. The man to the right of Tom Emmer is Jake "McMillen" McAulay, who now works for the Institute on the Constitution.
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It's the final weekend of freedom for the 74 men and women who will make up the freshman class of the 114th Congress. They're about to dive into Washington politics, an arena many of them declared a cesspool during their campaigns. Some may be unrecognizable the next time they come up for air.
So how to spend these final pre-lawmaking days? . . .
Representative-elect Tom Emmer, a Minnesota Republican, has spent the past few days working the phones—not dialing for dollars or votes but coordinating itineraries for his sprawling family's journey to watch him take his oath on Tuesday. “As my wife likes to say, it's organized chaos,” he said. They have six sons, a daughter, and a bounty of extended family. He'll arrive Friday in Washington and spend the weekend giving family members Capitol tours. . . .
The newcomers won't be totally on their own. The freshmen have already had a chance to mix and mingle at orientation, and, of course, they know the other lawmakers from their home states. Emmer said he's been friendly with fellow Minnesota Representative Collin Peterson, a Democrat who has served since 1991. In a bipartisan gesture, Peterson offered Emmer his own ticket to the Tuesday swearing-in ceremony, so that the rookie could include more of his large family.
Emmer took it. “It was very kind of him to do that. You know, he loses nothing by being nice,” the freshman from Minnesota said. “It's a good lesson for all of us.”
That's a charming story, and one that illustrates how quickly the formerly feisty freshman from the Sixth is turning into the constituent-service oriented statesman, at least for his own family.
After all, Emmer spent November 3 out on the road campaigning with Peterson's opponent, Torrey Westrom. Fellow traveler Mike McFadden tweeted:
A GOP outside group is accusing Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) of not being "Minnesota nice" in a new television ad.
The ad from the American Future Fund accuses Peterson of ignoring his constituents. . . .
His constituents disagreed and elected Peterson.
Say what one might about Collin Peterson, he's not one to hold grudges.
Photo: Tom Emmer (rear, right hand corner) was so confident of winning in the heavily Republican Sixth Congressional District that he campaigned for Torrey Westrom (right, in front of Emmer) in Minnesota's Seventh Congressional District. McFadden for Senate photo, cropped.
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Minnesota has but one new member of Congress, former Bluestem fodder provider Tom Emmer.
Fuller gathered sentences for each newbie, with Emmer's drawn from the Star Tribune:
Tom Emmer (R-Minn.): "Republican Tom Emmer, who failed in his bid to be Minnesota’s governor four years ago, won the seat being vacated by Rep. Michele Bachmann in the conservative Sixth Congressional District, ushering in an era that Emmer vows will be marked with civility and service to constituents."
We already miss the old school Emmer and will be keeping our eye out for any rebirth of his former persona.
Photo: The old Tom Emmer on rollerblades. Via the Awl.
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Republican Illinois Congressman and Morris, Minnesota, native Aaron Schock was in his home town last night for a fundraiser, as Torrey Westrom tweeted in this fabulous photo:
Minnesotans who missed Schock's visit to Morris will have another chance to burn their teal belts and party with the Illinois congressman at Tom Emmer's Happy Hour on Monday.
Photo: Illinois Congressman Aaron Schock (right) at the White House wearing his famous teal belt, which he claimed later via twitter to have burned. We'd have settled simply not to wear it with a hot pink checked shirt, while making sure those white pants didn't see the light of day after Labor Day.
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In Complaint filed against GOP about MacDonald, PoliticsMN has posted lawyer and LeftMn blogger Steve Timmer's complaint filed with the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board.
While he is no supporter of endorsed Republican Supreme Court candidate Michelle MacDonald, Timmer's complaint is a response to an attempt to coerce MacDonald into dropping out from the race. Read the embedded document, where Timmer outlines his case, at PoliticsMN.
The document includes one claim MacDonald made on Ron Rosenbaum's Holding Court Podcast on August 26, 2014:
As the media began reporting about Ms. MacDonald, her party endorsement became more unsettling to the party’s executive committee and to the party’s chair, Keith Downey. That expressed itself in a number of ways by the party distancing itself from its endorsed candidate; for example, Ms. MacDonald’s photo did not appear with those of other endorsed candidates on the party’s website. She was excluded from a post-convention fly around, and she was denied access to the party’s major donor list.
We listened to the podcast, coming away with a reaction similar to that Timmer expresses: we wouldn't vote for her in any configuration of the universe, but the Republican Party should treat her fairly.
However, we didn't recall reading that endorsed supreme court judicial candidates on the plane with the endorsed candidates for constitutional officers in 2006 and 2010 (there were no endorsements in 2012, a year with no constitutional officer candidates on the ballot). It's not surprising for 2006, since Justice Barry Anderson declined his party's endorsement.
Following their state convention, Republican plan to fly around the state to let Minnesota's voters get to know them
"Republicans are unified and energized for November," party chairman Tony Sutton said.
Here are the details of their tour of Minnesota's outstate airports and the state capitol:
Who: Republican Party of Minnesota Gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer, Lieutenant Governor candidate Annette Meeks, Attorney General candidate Chris Barden, State Auditor candidate Pat Anderson, Secretary of State candidate Dan Severson
What: Endorsed Republican Party of Minnesota candidates will kick off statewide unity tour with stops in St. Paul, Rochester, Mankato, Alexandria, Moorhead and Duluth on Monday, May 3.
Where & When: St. Paul 9:00 A.M.
South Capitol Steps
Neither Supreme Court candidate was on the 2010 fly-around, so the absence of the 2014 does not in itself speak to a plan to exclude her specifically.
As the old cliche goes, just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they're not out to get you.
Timmer's complaint and Brodkorb's posts about the MNGOP's offer that MacDonald couldn't refuse suggest that the Republican Party was out to get MacDonald, but the passenger manifest from the plane in 2010 makes us suspect that her absence on the 2014 fly-around wasn't part of the later plot to erase her from the ticket.
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Anoka County Board chair Rhonda Sivarajah will take her campaign to a GOP primary election, she confirmed Wednesday in an interview with the Times. . . .
Sivarajah still intends to seek the Republican endorsement Saturday, but said she expects Emmer to garner delegates' support on the first ballot. Emmer, the 2010 Republican nominee for governor and a former state representative from Delano, boasts a commanding lead in campaign funds raised and widespread name ID from his statewide run four years ago.
And the Krinkie bombshell:
The other 6th District GOP candidate, former state Rep. Phil Krinkie, said Wednesday that he won't attend Saturday's convention or seek the party's endorsement. Krinkie also said for the first time that he's mulling a third-party run for Congress, but said he still sees a Republican primary run as his most likely path forward. . . .
Krinkie, explaining his decision to forego Saturday's endorsing convention, cited poor participation in this year's Republican caucuses and what he described as a "top-down process" among Republicans in picking a congressional nominee. Krinkie also said he feels it would be hypocritical to seek the party endorsement, then ignore it by running in a primary.
In floating the possibility of a third-party run for the first time Wednesday, Krinkie said he has been asked if he would consider running as a Constitution Party candidate. He also said he has spoken to Tom Horner, the Independence Party's candidate in 2010. The Independence Party last week endorsed a Forest Lake man, John Denney, for the 6th District seat.
Since the Independence Party has meager resources, it's possible that the fiscally and socially conservative Krinkie could win the day on name recognition.
Would a split conservative vote in November create a pick-up opportunity for the DFL? November is a long way away but the prospect of a brutal primary and conservative alternative may cause Tom Emmer to experience a 2010-esque defeat all over again.
Emmer lost to Governor Mark Dayton by under 9000 votes, in part because Horner drew moderate Republicans from the Emmer ticket. Is Krinkie spoiling for another Emmer defeat?
Photo: Phil Krinkie. Why is this man laughing?
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Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has come a long way since her first State of the Union address as a House member in 2007, when she reached out and touched President George W. Bush. And didn't let go.
Tonight was a bittersweet farewell, with a guest who pounded on and on about the ACA before the speech, USAToday reports (via KARE 11) in Bachmann sends message with St. Cloud doctor. Michele leaves with a sense of awe:
"It really is a sacred moment and a privilege, and so for me, I want to say thank you to the people of the 6th district who allowed me to be in that chamber all eight years," she said.
As for those vying to replace her, the Dolcinea of District Six has yet to draw a name out of a hat, KARE reports:
As for the race to succeed her, Bachmann said she is not ready to endorse a successor, except to say she is rooting for a Republican. Candidates currently seeking the GOP nod for the seat include former state Rep. Tom Emmer, former state Rep. Phil Krinkie, and Anoka County Commissioner Rhonda Sivarajah.
"I know them all," Bachmann said. "They're all very well qualified."
One pair of arms is like another, like the book says.
Photo: Bush and Bachmann in 2007.
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All of the statements, opinions, and views expressed on this site by Sally Jo Sorensen are solely her own, save when she attributes them to other sources.
The opinions, statements, and views of contributing writers are their own.
Sorensen, editor and proprietor of Bluestem Prairie, serves clients in the business and nonprofit sectors. While progressive in outlook, she does not caucus with any political party.
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