Blueman At A Show

Blueman now with 100% more culture!

Bluewoman had a birthday a month or so ago...ok a month and 3 days ago. I got her tickets to a show she really wanted to see, Spamalot. After dinner at Axels in Plymouth, we made the trek downtown.

First the Sound of Music.

Now Spamalot!

I have noticed one thing though. Across the street from the Orpheum is Rock Bottom Brewery. Just down the street from the Ordway is Great Waters Brewery.

Coincidence?

Blueman believes there is a reason...

Oh yeah, the show was really good too, although I did not get all the Broadway references!

Walz Big Lead Over Davis and Day

Bluestem Prairie has the scoop!

It's early...but...

A 35 point margin over Dick Day and a 40 point margin over Brian Davis!

With the focus of Brian Davis being on the franking privileges and campaign finance of Congressman Walz, I suspect things will not get much easier for the dynamic duo of Day and Davis as this race gets closer to the September primary.

The Congressman polled at 57% against Day and 60% against Davis. In my humble opinion, it's because Tim Walz has done an outstanding job representing the First Congressional District in Washington. His constituent outreach has been unmatched!

I'm anxiously awaiting polling numbers from the 2nd, 3rd, and 6th!

More Calls For Franken To Drop Senate Bid

Read it yesterday while checking out the Sarvi piece over at Twin Cities Daily Planet.

I hadn't planned on posting on this story, until I started to go through the comments. Wow, people just got pretty fired up over Mr. Brodericks opinion.

Franken’s problems don’t stop at opportunism or satirical thrusts at America’s sexual mores or misogyny or the fact that his staff keeps him away from the press for fear that he will indulge in a fit of rage at some poor reporter. He is also a self-absorbed and lackluster candidate who fails to connect with voters. Polls that came out even before Porn-o-Rama showed him running seven points behind Norm Coleman – Norm Coleman, for heaven’s sakes – or just about dead even with Mike Ciresi, who ain’t even in the race anymore, and only a few points ahead of Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer, the underfunded DFL-er who happens to possess the integrity, vision, and record of public service that Franken lacks.

Yeah, I've seen the Rasmussen Poll, with Franken down 2 points right now. However, the commenter's at TCDP fail to point out that the poll only provided the person with a Franken or Coleman option. Jack Nelson Pallmeyer was not a part of the poll. Neither was Mike Ciresi, who remains out of the race.

With the DFL State Convention 1 week away, things are really heating up. From what I have heard from some delegates, Team Franken is doing a considerable amount of polling going into next weekends endorsement.

Interesting.

For months and months now, Franken has been the overwhelming favorite, in line for a first ballot endorsement.

Oh have the times changed.

Tax problems, a Playboy scandal, and a growing malaise towards Franken have left the campaign in full on defensive mode with a week left before the convention. Why else would a Franken spokesperson come out so strongly against Congresswoman McCollum?

Dave Mindeman over at mnpACT! introduces an interesting scenario.

The specter of no endorsement grows.

Al Franken is damaged goods. He will not defeat Norm Coleman in November, regardless of whether or not he trails Coleman in a Rasmussen poll 6 months before the election.

There has to be a full and complete vetting of Franken. Didn't he pay someone to do oppo research on himself? He ought to get his money back if he did.

Jack Nelson Pallmeyer is the type of candidate who would unite our party. Despite the Publius theory that JNP would be attacked for his writings on religion.

Jack Nelson Pallmeyer has a BA in Political Science from St Olaf, a Masters of Divinity from the Union Theological Seminary in New York, and has been a professor at the University of St Thomas for 15 years.

Using the Publius argument, would Franken's personal experience with Playboy have led him to his 2000 dirty rant?

Apples and oranges ladies and gentlemen, apples and oranges.

The darkhorse here in Mike Ciresi. I like Mike. He's a great guy who have given tirelessly to his party.

While a late bid for the DFL endorsement is highly improbable, what would happen if the delegates decided on "no endorsement" next weekend?

Many shudder at the thought of a US Senate DFL Primary this September.

I'm not one of them.

In 2006, John Tester was locked in a hotly contested US Senate Primary in Montana. After winning the primary, Senator Tester worked to unify the party and went on to defeat Senator Conrad Burns.

The same can happen here. We can send Norm Coleman packing to a cushy K Street lobbying gig, if we get the right candidate. I really do like Al Franken, I think he's a nice guy and a great family man. But I think his baggage makes him a lackluster US Senate candidate.

This race is much too important to have it weighed down with Franken's baggage.

Franken's Playboy Trouble Frontpage at Yahoo!

After delving into the Publius attack on Jack Nelson Pallmeyer and the happenings over at prominent liberal blogs, a headline on the frontpage of Yahoo caught my eye.

"Al Franken's old 'Playboy' article concerns Democrats"

Members of Minnesota's Congressional delegation have expressed some concern over Franken's "satire".

Rep. Betty McCollum, who supported the comedian's rival Mike Ciresi until he dropped out of the race for the party's nomination for the Senate, complained Thursday that she and other Minnesota Democrats will be on the same November ballot as a candidate "who has pornographic writings that are indefensible."

"Do they spend all of their time defending him, or do they spend their time talking about issues that are important to this election?" McCollum told The Associated Press in an interview. "The whole story was a shocking surprise."

Andy Barr takes a shot at Congresswoman McCollum.

"Al understands, and the people of Minnesota understand, the difference between what a satirist does and what a senator does," Franken campaign spokesman Andy Barr said. "It's unfortunate that she's trying to create divisions in our party rather than working with other DFLers (Minnesota Democrats) to take on the special-interest senator."

Why did Barr feel the need to take such a strong shot Congresswoman McCollum?

Obviously Franken understands satire, the people of Minnesota understand satire, but our highly respected elected officials remain clueless to what satire is?

Can Andy please explain to us how Franken's Playboy smut was satire? I tend to laugh at satire, just ask Bluewoman!

McCollum, Ellison, Walz and others disappointed in Franken's actions are right.

The longer Franken goes without an apology here, the worse it will get. With one week until the State Convention and Jack Nelson Pallmeyer inspiring more and more voters on a daily basis, it will be an interesting weekend in Rochester.

Sarvi: "The Other Iraq Veteran"

A good story over at Twin Cities Daily Planet on Steve Sarvi.

Steve Sarvi first met Rep. John Kline in 2004, at Camp Bondsteel in southern Kosovo. The staff Sergeant was serving with the Minnesota National Guard, patrolling the border with Macedonia for smugglers. The then-freshman congressman was on a fact-finding mission and stopped by to visit with troops and gauge morale.

What Kline heard from the soldiers were complaints about their inability to utilize educational benefits because they kept getting deployed overseas by the country’s over-extended military. Kline’s response, as Sarvi tells it, was a variation on former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld’s infamous military maxim: you go to war with the army you have.

“While he was sympathetic to the soldiers saying we can’t even go to school using the benefits that we have,” Sarvi recalls, “it was, ‘Well that’s just the situation we find ourselves in.’”

Congressman Kline voted against the expanded benefits of the "new GI Bill".

Demko takes a look at the changing DFL face of the Second Congressional District.

But recent trends in the district suggest that the seat might be more vulnerable than it appears. In 2006, Amy Klobuchar won the Second by a comfortable 10-point margin in the U.S. Senate race. And following the victory of Kevin Dahle in a January special election, DFL’ers now control a majority (17 to 16) of state legislative seats in the district. They’ve picked up 11 posts in just the last two election cycles. The Cook Partisan Voting Index rates the Second +3 for the GOP. By comparison the Sixth Congressional District, where Democrats have mounted vigorous campaigns in each of the last two election cycles, is assessed as +5 for Republicans.

Indeed, the 2nd CD actually has a better DFL index than the 6th!

Sarvi gets it. In my conversations with him, he's a straight shooter who is working to bring people together. Sarvi has a positive message and an opponent who has a history of being a rubber stamp for President Bush. It's going to be a tough race as incumbents in Congress are pretty tough to beat.

If we really want change, we'll unite around great candidates like Steve Sarvi and Ashwin Madia.

Sending Sergeant Sarvi some campaign funds won't hurt either!

On the New GI Bill

An interesting debate has started over at Publius over a recent GI Bill/Bachmann post over there.

Some are using the John McCain talking point that the Webb-Hagel GI Bill would decrease re-enlistment rates.

The Congressional Budget Office confirms that estimate:

CBO estimates that S. 22 (as modified) would more than double the present value
of educational benefits for servicemembers at the first reenlistment point—from
about $40,000 to over $90,000—implying a 16 percent decline in the reenlistment
rate, from about 42 percent to about 36 percent.

The CBO also states that their would be a need to increase Selective Reenlistment Bonuses in order to assist in overall force management.

However, McCain and his supporters, the clowns commenting at Publius who have never applied for GI Bill benefits, fail to tell the other side of the story.

CBO estimates that a 10 percent increase in educational benefits would result in an increase of about 1 percent in high-quality recruits. On that basis, CBO calculates that raising the educational benefits as proposed in S. 22 would result in a 16 percent increase in recruits. To maintain the same force levels and thus the same number of recruits, enlistment bonuses and other recruiting costs could be reduced. (emphasis added)

In other words, it's actually a wash!

16% decrease in reenlistment.

16% increase in enlistment.

From my perspective, I was a rare breed in the military. Most people who serve over 10 years do not leave until their retirement date.

Retention control points had a lot to do with many service members leaving up to or around the 10 year mark. This was based on my experiences in 2001 and I wouldn't doubt this has changed a bit...but...

As your rank increased, so did your time until retirement. For example, a Sergeant First Class at 11 years would be able to retire at 24 years of service. After 10 years of service you are no longer eligible to "re-up" for a 2, 3, or 4 year contract that most soldiers get. You are considered a "career soldier" and your first enlistment after your 10 year mark is "indefinite".

29 years old. Senior enlisted. Do you sign a contract that says "indefinite" up to your retirement date based on your rank? Keep in mind, it would be at least 13 years of "indefinite" status. Get promoted again? Add at least 2 years. I chose to utilize my education benefits.

Over the past 7 years, we've seen an Operational Tempo for our forces that has been unparallelled in American Military history. Fighting wars on two fronts, soldiers, sailors, and Marines, are seeing more and longer deployments.

Taking care of soldiers keeps soldiers around. That's a big reason why I stuck around for as long as I did. I loved being an Infantryman. I loved leading soldiers. I made sure the men who served with me were highly trained and ready to go on a moments notice.

The expanded benefits on the new Webb-Hagel GI Bill takes care of soldiers. It takes care of Veterans. While some will leave the service earlier to use these great benefits, those who are career soldiers, and had every intention of being a career soldier will most likely stick it out.

I'd argue that retention policies similar to what I experienced in 2001 drive more soldiers out than having a "kick ass benefit".

On a side note, Vote Vets has an interesting story on GOP Senator Ted Stevens dislike for the Webb-Hagel GI Bill and VA Secretary, who deliberately covered up Veterans suicide figures, doesn't care too much for the "PTSD label".

So for Senator McCain and his merry followers, check the facts before you work to discredit a fair increase to Veterans benefits.

Accident Near Annandale Tonight

Driving home to see my parents, I came across the scene of a horrible accident at Highway 55 and County Road 6 near Annandale.

Coming west on 55, I pulled over for an ambulance moving through Maple Lake at a high rate of speed.

5 minutes later I was near 55 and County Road 6. Sheriff's Deputies had cars driving down the paved trail south of Lampi Auctioneer's and onto CR 6 North towards my parents house on Cedar Lake.

As I passed the scene, I could not see anything other than a couple of rather large wreckers and at least 6 Minnesota State Troopers, doing what appeared to be accident reconstruction.

I've driven this intersection for decades. When the sun is rising or setting, it can be a pretty tough corner to see oncoming cars.

The Herald Journal News Blog in Cokato has an update.

Our thoughts and prayers to the families.

Ashwin Madia in the USA Today

AP Photo

The USA Today has a story up about the increase in Iraq Veterans running for Congress.

Veteran candidates "are going to have to prove they can speak on a wide variety of issues including the economy," he said. "They're going to have to run a real campaign, raise a whole lot of money and make the case why the incumbent should be fired."

At least 10 Democratic and 20 Republican Iraq veterans are running for the House, and none for the Senate.

Key races include several open seats:

•Minneapolis suburbs: Democrat Ashwin Madia, a Marine, will take on GOP state Rep. Erik Paulsen, a former aide to retiring Rep. Jim Ramstad. Madia, a lawyer, worked with Iraqi officials to develop the country's justice system.

It's great to see Ashwin getting some great press!

Voting ends May 30th

Voting for Democrats Work "Serve with the General" mission ends Friday!

Go here and vote for Ashwin Madia!

Strib LTE: Jack Nelson Pallmeyer More Than The Other Guy

A short and sweet LTE in the Startribune today.

Over the past few days, I have read with interest all the hype and hand-wringing over the U.S. Senate race. In all of this, I have failed to see the name of Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer mentioned.

We do not have to look to a humorist or to someone proven to back his party no matter what, in order to have a viable alternative candidate for the U.S. Senate. I urge you to go to Jack's website, jackforsenate.org, and see for yourself.

Jack is actually the best choice we have. Then let the media know that their ignorance is not bliss, in this case.

Now off to the parade Blueman and Bluewoman go!

Remembering Old Friends and an Unjust War Today

Over 11 years on active duty, you meet and become friends with a lot of interesting people. One of the best parts of being a soldier and a leader of soldiers is meeting such a diverse group of people.

Individuals from such different backgrounds come together to form 4-5 man teams, 9-10 man squads, 40 man platoons, 140 man companies, 800 man battalions, etc.

Having worked from a small team level all the way up to a battalion level, you get to see these backgrounds come together to form strong teams.

It's through building many of these teams that I was able to meet so many great American servicemen and women.

Memorial Day and Veterans Day are two days that we recall the memories of old soldiers like Private First Class Jason Hall, Sergeant First Class Richard Henkes (killed on my 35th Birthday), Sergeant First Class Gregory Hicks , Sergeant Glenn Allison, and many others.

Veterans remember these friends everyday.

I check Antiwar on a daily basis hoping that another one of my former soldiers has not made the ultimate sacrifice for their nation. It's tough to look at sometimes. I can't imagine what its like for family members.

I think of all my friends that served their nation so honorably. Guys I served with at Fort Benning, who served in the first Gulf War with the 1st Infantry Division, The Big Red One. They came back to parades and great displays of respect for their service.

They also struggled to get their rightfully earned VA medical benefits. Whether it was Chris, a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne, exposed to Sarin Gas in the first GW, or John, a Long Range Surveillance Operator in the 24th Infantry Division, I have seen literally hundreds of former colleagues struggle to get their benefits. Chris battled for nearly a decade to get the proper treatment at the St Cloud VA.

Some scoff at the idea of increasing GI Bill benefits. Afterall, the health problems amongst Veterans are pretty severe. I applaud the actions and I suspect it's merely the first step in a concentrated effort to strengthen the benefits that our servicemen and women have rightfully earned.

While Katherine Kersten questions benefits for Veterans by labeling them as "wards of the state" and other commenter's refer to these benefits as "welfare", people like Congressman Tim Walz are working to make things better for our Veterans.

It's one of many reasons I support candidates like Steve Sarvi and Ashwin Madia.

Welfare?

A "ward of the state"?

Unless you have served, or are close to someone who has served, you cannot fathom the sacrifices one makes while serving, on either active duty or in a reserve/National Guard role.

I can't count the number of weddings, funerals, birthdays, anniversaries, and other important events I have missed because of a deployment.

There was a soldier in my platoon, who joined us during my last month in South Korea. He served his year in Korea, moved to Fort Hood. Deployed from Fort Hood to Afghanistan. He has served 3 tours in Iraq now as well. In 8 years, he's been home for about 3.

Our leaders at the highest levels have failed us.

Our leaders refused to show the coffins coming home.

Tours were extended for our National Guard and Reserve men and women, only to have these servicemembers find out via their own families.

Veterans of this war committing suicide, at rates twice that of society. Two of those Veterans have been local, at least 15 from Minnesota.

Soldiers and Veterans alike were mistreated at VA and other government facilities across the country. To be completely fair, our Veterans have been mistreated regardless of the party in power of Congress or the President. It's just worse now than it has been in quite some time.

The privatization of our military. How groups like Blackwater, Dynacorp, Vinnel, United Defense, Halliburton and other groups are mercenary forces. They have the best equipment and get paid 3-5 times more than our foot soldiers.

I was a kid once, imagine that. I didn't listen to my mom and grandpa when they told me to bring my GI Joes or Transformers in. I left them in the sandbox and let them rot in the rain, snow, wind, cold and heat.

I threw temper tantrums when I could not get a new GI Joe, like Snake Eyes!

It's exactly what President Bush has done to our military and our Veterans.

He has abused it, broken it. But he won't pay for it.

When Congress passes something substantive for our Veterans, he throws a temper tantrum and vetoes a great bill.

Someone will have to pay for all this.

We will. Our soldiers and Veterans will continue to struggle for proper care. A cost that can never be quantified.

I am ashamed of what President Bush has done to our military, as a matter of fact, I hate what he has done to the military.

I spoke to one of my former soldiers, my Bradley driver in Korea, last summer. Gordon was telling me about how all the equipment in his active duty unit was broken. All parts and supplies were headed to Iraq to the "front" per se. Our soldiers were left back here training with deadlined and inoperative equipment.

I wonder if things would be different today if we remembered our fallen everyday.

I wonder if things would be different if we remembered all these sacrifices everyday.

The real cost of this war.

So stop with all your damn catchphrases.

Stop the "Liberate Iraq" stuff.

Stop using "Support our Troops" as a political tool. Do something to "Support our Troops". The yellow ribbon on your SUV simply does not cut it.

Stop calling people like me, "bleeding heart liberals".

I support our troops and Veterans alike, sans a yellow ribbon.

I'm a purple heart liberal and proud of it.

Brian Davis on Franking Privileges

Yesterday morning, before a round of golf, I caught CD 1 GOP Congressional Candidate Brian Davis on Between the Lines with Al Travis.

Many issues were discussed during the interview.

Travis asked Davis about the fundraising disparity between Congressman Walz and candidates Davis and Day.

9:00 into the video:

Davis: "Money doesn't buy elections. Ah, it does buy media coverage. But you know what, also, its a reflection on the fact that there is a lot of money coming outside, coming from outside of Minnesota and outside of the First District, to buy this seat.

"This seat is not for sale, they can see through a lot of this".

Take a look at Davis' FEC reports. In his 2007 Year End Report, about 25% of contributions for Davis for Congress came within the 1st CD. More than 50% of contributions came from outside of Minnesota.

In the most recent FEC report, Davis had a grand total of 3 contributors from the 1st CD, less than 19%.

The rhetoric from Davis falls short here.

The vast majority of Davis' contributions have come from outside the 1st CD and Minnesota.

10:30 into video:

Travis: I use mail envy, here...I got the Brian Davis flyer sent to my house, I'm a First District guy. But you're being outmailed my friend.

Davis: That's true, that's true you know, but you know where that mail comes from? That mail comes from the US taxpayers, its something a Congressman gets, its called a franking privilege. And that's hundreds of thousands of dollars. I think one of the first things I want to do when I get to Congress is to reevaluate that. Is that a wise use of taxpayer dollars? It comes across as though its public service but you know you see a lot of pictures of the person who is running. I'm not just saying its the current Congressman in our district, it happens all across the country. But is that a wise use of taxpayer dollars? I'm not sure about that.

Travis: So, you plan is to go up against the mailings, the million dollars, I mean, how do I put this...what's going to make you stand out? What's the thing that makes people say wow?

Davis: I'm going to work very hard, I have been working hard. We have all sorts of parades this summer...

Ok, enough! Check out the rest of the video here. We'll continue to fisk Davis' positions on oil prices, healthcare, education, immigration, etc.

Back to the "franking privilege" bit from Davis.

Karl Bremer wrote an interesting story about the franking privileges of Minnesota's Congressional delegation.

Based on those reports, the cost for Bachmann's first mass mailing last year was 46 cents apiece for printing and postage -- more than double the 22 cents apiece mailings for Walz and Ramstad cost and significantly higher than Ellison's per-piece cost of 28 cents.

The biggest difference was in the production costs of the mailings. Bachmann spent a total of $32,589 with The Franking Group for mass mailings totaling 136,465, for a production cost of 24 cents each -- far beyond what her colleagues in either party spent.

Ellison spent $31,358 with Gold Communications for mass mailings totaling 265,522 - a production cost of just 12 cents apiece.

Walz' figures show only $2,210 spent on printing production of 101,017 pieces for a meager production cost of two cents each.

Ramstad paid Catterton Printing $15,295 for mass mailings totaling 300,017 -- a production cost of only 5 cents each.

Did Davis take a shot at Congresswoman Bachmann? After she endorsed him?

Bachmann spent a lot of money on her Davis labeled "taxpayer funded" campaign lit pieces.

Walz actually returned $100,000 back to the US Treasury in unused funds for his Congressional office!

We're glad to see Davis running on issues he can win on though! Going after Congressman Walz's fundraising, when being out raised 10-1 is interesting. Attacking Walz when the majority of Davis' campaign funds come from outside of the "Fighting First" and CD 1 is desperation.

The use of franking privileges is a part of constituent outreach. For Congresswoman Bachmann, IT IS constituent outreach.

Congressman Walz has held committee meetings in the 1st, countless open forums, townhall meetings, and other visits across the 1st. He is a Congressman that is accessible to his constituents. Spending $2200 on mail back to the district, twice the amount Davis paid a liberal blogger, is far from wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars.

It's part of a comprehensive constituent outreach program.

That's not wasteful spending...

Bachmann GI Bill Video

Muse beat me to it again!

Congresswoman Bachmann's vote on the new GI Bill is disturbing for this Veteran.

I joined the Army in 1990. The education benefits were a key reason for my enlistment. Instead of leaving at the end of my first 4 year enlistment, I raised my right hand 4 times and pledged an oath of service to this country, like millions of other Americans. My oath was to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. My oath was a pledge to follow the orders of those appointed over me and the President of the United States.

When I took that oath, 4 times, I, like many other Veterans, trusted that our country would take care of us, should anything bad happen to us. We would have access to our rightfully earned benefits.

In 2001, I left active duty to seek a college education. From the time I started at St Cloud State University and the time I received my first GI Bill benefits check, was 6 months. It was a constant stress with lost paperwork in St Louis and other bureaucratic problems. While the first GI Bill deposit I received, in 2002 was a sizable deposit, working things out with the University was tough.

Working nearly full time while going to school (taking 15 credits) and waiting for my rightfully earned benefits was tough. My story is not rare.

Access to Veterans benefits is important. Enhancing the GI Bill one facet of Veterans benefits. Congresswoman Bachmann's vote against Veterans benefits and the GI Bill is disgusting, in my eyes.

Her constant lip service to Veterans is disrespectful.

Her record on higher education and Veterans issues is horrible.

Does Franken Get It?

The past several days have been pretty interesting, watching a lot of traffic come in from Minnesota Democrats Exposed and Christopher Truscott.

Some have chided Chris and I for our posts on Al Franken, asking for a scenario in which another Democrat emerges from Rochester as the DFL endorsed candidate for US Senate to run against Norm Coleman.

So we're looking for a scenario here right? With Franken's baggage, I think the delegates need to see a scenario in which Franken can overcome his self inflicted political wounds to defeat Norm Coleman.

Unfortunately, being DFL Endorsed will not be enough. He'll need to have the ability to reach out to moderate and independent voters. Having called Senator Coleman one of President Bush's "butt boys".

As unpopular as President Bush is here in Minnesota, the name calling doesn't work. Ask Rudy Boschwitz and Mark Kennedy. Minnesotans don't buy that brand of politics.

I spent a lot of time talking to a DFL friend of mine about the Playboy issue.

Blueman is not a prude. Having served 11 years in the Army, I've heard a lot of crazy stories and seen even crazier stuff during my service. Franken's story, while edgy, was not highly offensive to me. Swiftee's comment at MDE, which Brodkorb took down, was more graphic.

Satire or not, the excuse has been overused and frankly, is getting old.

Franken's Playboy mansion fundraiser this week is more problematic. Many have defended Playboy as a fairly non-offensive smut magazine. I thought so too before my friendly discussion. My friend unlocked some parental controls on their television and pulled up Playboy TV.

Apparently, there is some pretty tawdry stuff at Playboy TV, including a "reality TV show" called Foursome in which couples, um...hook up. My friend went on to describe some other explicit programming. We're naive to think that Playboy is merely a magazine now. Look at the TV show "Girls Next Door".

Playboy a pornography empire.

A Franken fundraiser at a Chicago Playboy mansion is tough to swallow for a progressive, feminist Democrat.

How did that discussion go down in the office? Surely they knew this would garner some negative attention.

I don't want to hear the argument that Obama and Clinton did this too. Three wrongs don't make a right. It's absolutely wrong.

Hell, we were up in a tizzy over Governor Pawlenty's sex-less sex scandal!

The Startribune has failed as well, putting the press back in suppression.

While the Franken Playboy story filled the Strib, an equally troubling matter, the story on Coleman's DCI bloodmoney, has died. Coleman should do the right thing, donate the contributions to a charity.

Franken's tax problems, satire, and other political missteps will impact his chances in November. Mike Ciresi, who left the US Senate race 2 months ago, trailed Franken by 1% in a recent poll?

Jack Nelson Pallmeyer is peaking at the right time. Beyond his progressive values and his work in the US Senate race, JNP has dominated in debates. He's fully capable of defeating Norm Coleman in November, if given the opportunity.

This Playboy thing really bugs me. It really makes me question whether or not Franken really "gets it"?

Democrats Work: Ashwin and Elwyn

Muse beat me to the punch!

I'm a little disappointed that Steve Sarvi did not make General Clark's list.

Here in Minnesota, we have a choice of two candidates.

Ashwin Madia in CD 3, our newest Progressive Patriot!

Elwyn Tinklenberg in CD 6, endorsed by the Blue Dog Democrats.

Go here to vote!

We have until May 30.

McCain's Straight Talk Express Derailed?

A Bravenew Films endeavor.

LTE: Kline's Blame Games Must End

The Red Wing Republican Eagle has a LTE posted on Congressman Kline's "blame game".

John Kline is finally getting around to blaming somebody for high oil prices, and not surprisingly, it isn’t himself (R-E, May 14).

Isn’t this the congressman who glorified the Iraq war as the answer to all of our problems? Isn’t this the congressman who voted for every reckless cent spent over there instead of over here? Isn’t this the congressman who approves of our military burning 400,000 barrels of oil a day in Iraq?

Whatever happened to all that oil you and your neo-con friends were supposed to get from Iraq, John Kline? Is it really Nancy Pelosi’s fault that the Iraqis won’t give us their oil? No, it is your fault for thinking that they would.

It is your fault for not developing alternative energy sooner and better. It is your fault for thinking Americans will tear up their parks and coastlines in environmentally sensitive areas because the price of gas is too high for you to get re-elected.

Kline's voting record contrasts the rhetoric he spews.

Are more oil wells and more refineries really the answer to anything? Nancy Pelosi isn’t running against you, John Kline, Steve Sarvi is. He has just come home from serving in Iraq and has a lot of good ideas about how America can go forward without being chained to an oil well. He will be one congressman who won’t forget to mention the cost of the war when complaining about high oil prices.

Indeed. It's getting out and engaging people with new ideas for our nation and the 2nd Congressional District.

Funny McCain Angry video

Bluewoman and I have been looking at these videos for about a week now.

Damn they are funny!

Truscott: "It's Time for Franken to Go"

Here is a great post over at CT's blog.

I agree.

It's time for the mainstream media to give Jack Nelson Pallmeyer a serious look.

Jack is REALLY "good enough, smart enough, and doggone it, people like him."

Al Franken and his self inflicted political wounds make him unelectable.

In just over 2 weeks, we'll see how many people are still drinking the Franken kool-aid. Delegates have an opportunity to endorse an actual viable candidate.

If Franken is endorsed, it will be interesting to see what Jesse Ventura will do. Could he beat Norm Coleman twice?

Who came after Political Muse?

Muse has a post up about an anonymous comment left at Liberal in the Land of Conservative, in response to a Dan Severson post.

The anonymous poster came from the Minnesota House, according to the traffic counter Muse uses.

We're anxiously awaiting Rep Severson's response to the inquiry by Political Muse!

Ventura not happy with Tinklenberg

From Mary Lahammer's page at TPT.

Jesse Ventura says he’s been disrespected by Minnesota and its public officials. He actually singled out his member of Congress Rep. Michele Bachmann as an exception because she sent him a hand-written note asking if she could ever be of service to him. That’s especially interesting since Ventura’s former Transportation Commissioner El Tinklenberg is running against Bachmann. Ventura won’t support Tinklenberg because he’s in the two party system.

Maybe I'll go buy his new book later...

I have a soft spot for Jesse, I voted absentee from Fort Lewis for him back in the day.

Franken's Sinking Ship

Truscott touched on this last week as well.

The Strib released some polling numbers last night and they have to be troubling for Team Franken.

Franken trails Norm Coleman 51-44.

Interestingly enough, Franken only polls 1 point higher than Mike Ciresi, who has been out of the US Senate race for about 2 months now.

Jack Nelson Pallmeyer trails 53-38.

Franken's tax problems have surely led to his disappointing polling recently. It's a major flaw for the Franken candidacy. Franken speaks regularly on the stump of holding Norm Coleman accountable, especially for his time as the Chair of the OVersight Committee.

Jesse Ventura weighs in on the Franken tax mess.

He says he won't rule out running for U.S. Senate and he repeatedly ripped Franken and Coleman with some very harsh words. He said he lives in Minnesota more than Al Franken and when he wrestled for 30 years in different states he knew he had to pay taxes where he earned the money. He wondered why a Harvard grad like Franken wouldn't know that.

Personally, I thought Franken's tax problem excuse was pretty weak. It seemed to be more passing the buck than anything else.

If delegates are smart, they will realize this tax problem would take Al Franken down in the General Election.

Heck, if Al Franken really wants to see Norm Coleman defeated and "Paul Wellstone's seat" back in the hands of a Democrat, he'll step aside and help a suitable replacement.

Jack Nelson Pallmeyer is that man.

Trailing Norm Coleman by 15 points at this point is not a serious issue. JNP simply does not have the name recognition of Franken or Ciresi. He is well spoken and passionate on the stump. He would give Norm Coleman a run for the money.

Favorable/Unfavorable rating:

Coleman: 53% fav 33% unfav 14% DK
Franken: 33% fav 39% unfav 29% DK
JNP: 8% fav 6% unfav 85% DK
Ciresi: 25% fav 15% unfav 54% UK

It's an interesting poll, but a lot of bad news for Al Franken.

Bachmann and Kline go AWOL: Amendment 1 HR 2642

Congresswoman Bachmann and Congressman Kline, while voting present on the first amendment to HR 2642, the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, would be considered derelict in their duties by this Veteran.

For two leaders who publicaly tout their "patriotism" they may have voted "present" on this vote, but they were in fact AWOL.

So what did Bachmann, Kline and 129 other Republicans vote "present" on?

Anybody remember the horrific conditions our Veterans were housed in at Walter Reed?

What about the recent Fort Bragg housing problems?

The amendment offered $500 million for Facilities Sustainment, Restoration and Modernization (FSRM).

$3.6 Billion to address the increasing price of fuel and other petroleum products. Keep in mind, a Bradley Fighting Vehicle gets just over 2 miles per gallon of JP-8 Diesel and an M1 Tank less than a mile a gallon!

$65.4 million for the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program. The Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program helps members of the National Guard and Reserve transition from combat to civilian life. With the enormous increase in Veteran suicides, programs like this save lives.

$52 million to hire more than 200 additional contract managers to prevent waste, fraud and abuse in Department of Defense contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

$102 million for "Land Warrior" equipment to equip one "next to deploy'' brigade combat team with Land Warrior equipment sets.

$6 billion for the procurement of combat aircraft.

Overall, the recommendations total $96,622,127,000 and are structured to maximize support to our men and women in uniform. They meet important force protection, equipment and personnel needs, while fully funding the operational requirements to conduct the Global War on Terror.

The Amendment also contains some rather interesting clauses:

CONTRACTING

There is concern over the numerous instances of waste, fraud, and abuse that have occurred in Department of Defense contracting activities in support of contingency operations. The Department and the military services did not properly address the necessary personnel, training, and technology requirements over the years, but are now taking steps to improve their capabilities. This recommendation includes additional funds to further many of the initiatives and increased personnel requirements identified by the Department of Defense and outside reviews such as the Gansler report. The recommendation also calls for enhanced reporting requirements to ensure improved oversight over the Iraq and Afghanistan Security Forces Funds, and the Commander's Emergency Response Program. Finally, it provides funding for the Department of Defense Inspector General to improve its antiquated tracking system for the Criminal Investigation Service.

CASE MANAGEMENT AND DISABILITY EVALUATION FOR WOUNDED WARRIORS

The recommendation includes $94,900,000 in the Operation and Maintenance, Defense-Wide; Procurement, Defense-Wide; Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Defense-Wide; and the Defense Health Program appropriation accounts to address gaps identified by the President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors. The funding will enable improvements in case management, data sharing, and the disability evaluation system (DES). Additionally, the funding will support the on-going DES Pilot program, information technology development, support for case management, and improvement of Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs data sharing gateways, and distribution of wounded warrior care and benefits informational handbooks.

DEFENSE HEALTH PROGRAM OVERVIEW

The recommendation includes a total appropriation of $1,438,864,000 for the Defense Health Program. This funding will provide medical and dental services to active forces and mobilized Reserve Components, as they support Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, and their family members. The funding also provides for costs associated with the treatment of combat-related injuries.

The recommendation also provides $293,023,000 for facilities sustainment, restoration and modernization; $1,000,000 for the Center of Excellence for Eye Injuries; $70,000,000 for the Center for Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine and $47,100,000, in various budget activities for disability evaluation system and case management.

The actual legislation found at Thomas.gov is very interesting to read through.

Why did Bachmann and Kline refuse to give the needs of our Veterans, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines an "up or down" vote?

Why did they "play politics" with the needs of these brave men and women?

I poke fun at El Tinklenberg's "On the importance of a chicken" ad. He understands the importance of this legislation.

Steve Sarvi served in Iraq. He really understands the issues discussed above. As an Infantry Platoon Sergeant, he understands them well.

Kline and Bachmann went AWOL on our military servicemen and women and our Veterans this week.

They should be ashamed of themselves.

Severson Opposes Tax Equality

We've had our share of run-in's with Rep Severson. He was a frequent visitor to SCSU Student Government meetings, especially if a GLBT issue was being discussed.

Just as Rep Severson opposes any sort of marriage equality, he also opposes equality in taxation, as discussed in a LTE in the SC Times today.

Rob Jacobs, DFL endorsed candidate for 14A offered his opinion today.

My campaign is focusing on a vision of a fair distribution of the tax burden for all Minnesotans.

Most people I have spoken with agree that Severson has failed to ensure that everyone pays their fair share of taxes.

We have seen a very unfair shifting of the tax burden. The things we value most — education, health care, transportation and public safety — have all been shifted to our local property taxes.

This shift has occurred under Severson’s watch and he has consistently supported this regressive method of taxation, all the while telling us there are “no new taxes.”

He has supported an increase in fees that will cost Minnesotans an additional $530 million this year.

Indeed. The property tax increases during Severson's legislative career are enormous.

Go check out an interview by Poitical Muse!

On Governor Pawlenty's Minimum Wage Veto

Yesterday, Governor Pawlenty vetoed an increase in the minimum wage.

His rationale for this veto leaves me perplexed.

In his veto message, Pawlenty said the minimum wage approved by the Legislature would give Minnesota the seventh-highest in the country, hurting efforts to maintain jobs during the economic slowdown and ultimately raising consumer costs.

Pawlenty had no problem raising tuition on college students making minimum wages on our campuses. In fact, tuition increases under Pawlenty are amongst the highest in the nation. In his first term, which saw tuition rise nearly 70% for our State Universities and even more for the State Colleges, which put Minnesota in the Top 15 for tuition nationwide.

My question for Governor Pawlenty is this. Which minimum wage jobs are going to leave Minnesota because we boosted them from $6.15 to $6.75 in July and $7.75 a year later?

Will a Wal-Mart close? A McDonalds?

Pawlenty's veto hurts the state's lowest paid workers. Minnesota’s current minimum wage gives workers a salary of less than $13,000 a year. In two years, when the Legislature’s proposal would be fully phased in, it would offer workers an annual wage of about $16,000. The 2008 Federal Poverty Guidelines for a family of four is $22,200.

Pawlenty also objected to the lack of a tip credit in the bill.

Pawlenty said he had made it clear he would support a reasonable increase in the minimum wage provided the bill included a tip credit, which allows employers to pay a lower wage to workers who get gratuities for their services, such as waiters.

A tip credit does not properly reflect the amount of non-tipped labor that servers perform in a bar or restaurant. Servers are often required to set-up, clean, restock, and break down their sections of the establishment. In some circumstances, this can account for a large portion of the employee’s shift. It is unfair to force workers to perform this non-tipped labor at a reduced minimum wage, especially when a non-serving co-worker may be earning more to perform the same duty.

Pawlenty continues to put his own aspirations above those of working class Minnesotans.

More on NRCC's "Change You Deserve"

As we all know by now, Ollie delivered a swift kick in the pants to the NRCC's stolen campaign slogan, "Change You Deserve".

As the fallout continues and the NRCC continues to lose elections, Republicans have drifted into full panic mode.

From CQ this morning:

“The political atmosphere facing House Republicans this November is the worst since Watergate and is far more toxic than the fall of 2006, when we lost 30 seats (and our majority),” wrote Davis, R-Va., who criticized the party’s “inarticulate and unfocused national leadership.”

Inarticulate? Well, considering they stole a trademarked slogan for an anti-depression drug, we'd have to agree with Rep Davis.

Will the McCain/Pawlenty ticket steal a slogan from Viagara? Levitra?

After blowing a couple of million on this race in Mississippi, the NRCC is in serious trouble. This bodes will for hot races in Minnesota Congressional Districts 2, 3, and 6.

Yesterday's Strib has a comment that made Ron Carey and Minnesota Republicans shudder.

Marty Wiseman, a political scientist at Mississippi State University, said if Democrats can carry districts that traditionally have been safe bets for the GOP, "Republican strategists have to be terrified."

Terrified indeed.

There will be no bail-out.

Bachmann is on her own. Will her 10-1 COH advantage be enough to fend off the Tinklenberg machine?

Madia will receive some significant help in CD 3's open seat. Paulsen will receive little help from a cash stricken NRCC and Minnesota Republican Party.

Kline will be on his own as well. For an incumbent, his fundraising numbers have to be disappointing. Sarvi has built a strong team and great message. He will be a force to be reckoned with in Minnesota's Second.

When Republican strongholds in Mississippi start turning blue, Republicans across Minnesota really ought to take notice.

Perhaps they should give up golf and send all their money into CD 4 and 5!

El Tinklenberg on the value of a chicken

H/T to Political Muse for pointing this one out!



The first few seconds of this video with the announcer voice guy saying "El Tinklenberg on the value of a chicken" makes me laugh so freakin hard!

Is it wrong for me to want that as my ringtone?

More Intimidation On The Righty Blogs

You may recall the controversy back in April over "Drew Emmer" exposing the personal information of Karl Bremer.

True North and Minnesota Majority posted this information as a tactic of intimidation for Bremer's opposition to a Veterans for Freedom program at Forest Lake High School.

Bremer served his nation honorably.

It's become standard operating procedure for right wing bloggers and their commenter's to vilify, harass and intimidate those on the left, especially those that have honorably served their nation.

Yesterday, the right wing blogs, once again failed to disappoint.

Mitch Berg tried his best yesterday. Mitch proudly boasts of his Les Nessman days as a radio show host, 20 years ago. Mitch secretly runs around the MOB and True North newsroom kicking the King and the Korb out of his fictional office.

Baghdad Blue? Really Mitch? Mitch spun Neil Sedaka vinyl. Blueman served 11 years as an active duty Infantryman. Nice try Les.

But the spat between Les and I is a back burner issue as compared to what happened over at Minnesota Democrats Exposed yesterday afternoon.

Two Putt Tommy came under attack at MDE.

TPT served his nation honorably. The right wing commenter's who have assaulted his military record are cowards, specifically Big Kahuna and Swiftee.

Talking out of both sides of your mouth is a pretty interesting skill.

While working to discredit TPT's honorable service record, Big Kahuna crossed a line yesterday. He exposed some private info on TPT's family and lied about his daughter.

Big Kahuna Says: May 13th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
Hey, lot’s of info on old puddles out there. This will be fun.
Holy cow! Looks like tommy little girl (Name redacted) is a
stripper at (Location redacted)?
What a father figure

TPT confirmed in a message to Michael Brodkorb that Big Kahuna had in fact named his daughter in his vulgar comment. To MDE's credit, he did remove the comment later.

It's a very troubling comment for a father to see. The intimidation attempts by those on the right wing blogs is unparalleled.

Is Big Kahuna stalking Two Putt Tommy's daughter? How did he get this private info?

With the venom that Big Kahuna and Swiftee have for those on the left that honorably served their nation, Two Putt Tommy should report this harassment to the authorities.

"Drew Emmer" exposing Karl Bremer's home address, phone number, email and work number to all of those at Minnesota Majority and True North.

Big Kahuna exposing the identity of Two Putt Tommy's daughter is a reprehensible act. Calling his daughter a stripper is a libelous act.

I hope TPT sues his ass.

The intimidation and harassment does not work.

In fact, it unifies us.

A New Sarvi Video!

The race to retire John Kline is on! Check out Team Sarvi's latest video and use some of your Economic Stimulus package money (which Congressman Kline voted for) to help send John Kline home packing!

Olson as an independent?

Oh the possibilities of headlines in this race...

It's been widely rumored that State Representative Mark Olson will run as an independent, having lost the GOP endorsement 2 weeks ago to former Secretary of State Mary Kiffmeyer.

Both the Startribune and St Cloud Times have picked up on this story this weekend.

A three way race in HD 16B is interesting. Kiffmeyer, in a one on one match up with DFL endorsed candidate Steve Andrews, would be considered the favorite. However, with Olson in the mix, the base of GOP votes in 16B becomes severely diluted.

It's a winnable seat for the DFL. Olson's scandal and attempt at an Independent run make those odds much better!

An interview with Andrews will be coming soon!

Why are the right wing bloggers scared of Sergeant Sarvi?

For a candidate who is "not getting a lot of attention", why are the right wing bloggers talking about him?

MDE posted about it Sunday, using himself as a source.

Mitch Berg at Shot in the Dark posted an "Open Letter to District 2 Republicans".

But you have John Kline in the House. He’s solid, He’s generally conservative.

And he’s safe. Even the Democrats realize that Steve Sarvi isn’t much more than a warm body to put on the ballot; while he has lower negatives than the insane Colleen Rowley, I also suspect he’ll garner less fundraising from outside-the-district wackjobs.

Generally conservative? Ok? Kind of like Dennis Kucinich being generally liberal?

Fundraising is essential in this race. While Sarvi has been off to a slow start, it will most certainly pick up now that he has the endorsement and has quit his full time job to run for Congress. Kline on the other hand, seems to be sleepwalking his way to the election. His $500k COH have to be disappointing to the NRCC and Minnesota GOP. An incumbent of Kline's stature should have raised well over a million dollars by now.

Berg and the right wing bloggers are underestimating Sarvi here. He's much more than a "warm body to put on the ballot". His service to his country in Kosovo and Iraq as well as his decade long record as a city administrator and 3 term Mayor of Watertown make him uniqely qualified.

Kline's voting record and lack of constituent outreach will be major issues in this race. Kline is AWOL from his constituents in Minnesota, similar to Congresswoman Bachmann.

Berg goes on to make a case for Kline.

Let’s face it, CD2 Republicans; Kline’s seat is pretty well safe. We needn’t be complacent, of course; y’all gotta work for the guy. But barring some scandal favoring the Iraq veteran Sarvi - say, someone discovers that Kline’s bio is faked and that he didn’t actually win four Legions of Merit, his Naval Commendation Medal, a Meritorious Service Medal, a Joint Service Commendation Medal, and a Defense Superior Service Award, serve in Vietnam, serve as an aide to two Presidents and as pilot for Marine One, and have a son who has served as a chopper pilot in Iraq - y’all can most likely look forward to a couple more unchallenged years of good representation in Washington.

And then makes a plea!

So when it comes time to do your political donations, how about peeling off a couple of bucks for where the party needs some help?

Where does he want Minnesota GOP money to go?

CD 4 and CD 5!

For the first time in Blueman history, I agree with Mitch, so listen up all you right leaning readers of Blueman! Send all your political donations to CD 4 and CD 5. We can look at this as a bi-partisan effort from Mitch and Hal to increase the GOP turn out in CD 4 and 5.

CD 5 has not elected a Republican to Congress in 45 years. The last 4 elections, a GOP candidate has garnered no more than 26%.

CD 4 had not gone red since 1949 and no one has come closer than 25% of Betty McCollum in years.

While fully understanding the redistricting of the CD's, CD 2 has seen DFL leadership in parts of CD 2 as recently as 2001 with David Minge.

Congressman Kline did lose to Bill Luther twice in portions of this CD.

With Amy Klobuchar dominating the area in 2006 and more than 1/2 of the state's legislative seats in DFL control, the "tide is turning" in CD 2.

So Mitch is right, Republicans should write off CD 2 and send their money up into CD 4 and 5.

On a side note, our friend Chris Truscott is back blogging! See what he has to think about Congressman Kline's energy crisis op ed!

Dave Mindeman shares his concern as well!

Go here to donate to Sarvi for Congress!

CD 1 Coverage: Davis and Day debate

I was sent some footage from some recent Brian Davis and Dick Day campaign activity down in CD 1.

South Park - Turd Sandwich vs. Giant Douche


Needless to say, I think Congressman Walz is pretty safe...

In response to the Jack Nelson Pallmeyer attack

Came across this yesterday. Apparently, the AP story passes as a "fluff piece" for some.

How many Franken "fluff pieces" has the AP and other "mainstream media" sources pushed forth over the past 18 months?

I have never drank the "Al Franken Kool-Aid" and his recent tax problems, paid or not, make him virtually unelectable now. This revelation is not unique to Blueman. Party insiders and others more politically astute than myself have shared this opinion.

It would be easy for Jack Nelson Pallmeyer to pounce in Franken's tax problem and throw a little mud in this race. I wonder why many didn't call this Strib piece a "fluff piece"?

It's not that Nelson-Pallmeyer is speaking out about his rival's troubles. Far from it. He refuses to comment about Franken, or even say much by way of contrasting himself with the former "Saturday Night Live" entertainer.

Nelson-Pallmeyer sticks religiously to describing his reasons for backing a single-payer health-care system, an immediate withdrawal of American troops from Iraq, and a full-bore strategy for cutting the nation's consumption of oil.

In fact, JNP's effort to stay on message has solidified his campaign. While Franken trades barbs with Coleman and MN GOP Chair Ron Carey, JNP is talking about the issues that matter most to Minnesotans.

The Wellstone angle

Old pols have been wrong about a professor's chances before, this campaign likes to observe. Two photos of Paul Wellstone hang prominently on the campaign office wall, in silent testimony to that earlier professor's success. It's likely no coincidence that Nelson-Pallmeyer's campaign signs are an evocative green and white.

The latter-day professor-politician lacks Wellstone's oratorical firepower, but not his hopeful spirit or passion for grassroots politics.

There's another parallel, too. Nelson-Pallmeyer also often hears something Wellstone heard in 1990: "You're too liberal" to be elected.

Indeed. JNP is playing the Wellstone card in a much better fashion than Franken. Both evoke Wellstone's aura in their speeches. JNP delivers beyond the rhetoric.

Wellstone's brand of politics was a tough, door to door, issue based approach. Wellstone didn't need to call Rudy Boschwitz a "butt boy". He disagreed with colleagues and those across the political aisle, but worked with them to get things done. He was above the name calling. JNP is much closer to Wellstone than Franken.

Too liberal to be elected? I'm not so sure about that...he may be just liberal enough!

Ron Carey meddles with GOP delegate elections

From a ticked off 6th CD GOP delegate.

So at the 3rd and 7th district conventions Ron Carey, state party chairman stepped in front of the conventions to call Ron Paul supporters a bunch of libertarian infiltrators who are going to destroy the party, neglecting to mention that many are long time party members. He then denounced us for running slates, which he waved around, and proceeded to order the delegates to vote for HIS slate if they didn't want to lose in November.

I wonder if Ron Baert knows Meeker County didn't even count their votes during precinct caucuses because...GASP...Ron Paul won Meeker County!

I questioned what was going on in Meeker County. When I checked the Secretary of State site this morning, the only precinct that reported numbers was Cedar Mills, where Ron Paul beat Mike Huckabee 83-67. Romney finished with 55 votes, McCain 43, and Alan Keyes 7.

It remains the only precinct in Meeker County to have results posted at the SOS site.

Interesting. Ron Paul won Meeker County and the "Republican Leadership" in Meeker County decided to not send in the proper election results? They reported zero's to their party and to the Secretary of State!

It's been said that "the revolution will not be televised". The "Ron Paul Revolution" swept through Meeker County Tuesday night yet the votes weren't even reported properly.

Granted, we know Ron Carey addressed these delegates long before the "Ron Carey Gag Order" was issued, the one where he cannot talk about the sorry state of the Minnesota Republican Party's finances.

It's been 4 days since the "Ron Carey Gag Order" was exposed. When will Carey actually talk to Minnesotans about the waste, fraud, and abuse with GOP finances?

We already know they cannot count votes, at least in Meeker County.

More on Bachmann's hypocrisy: Mother's Day Edition

We've all seen the reports of Congresswoman Bachmann being anti-earmark before she supported (or at least took credit for) an earmark for St Cloud Metro Bus.

Keep in mind, Bachmann actually voted against the bill on Congress, but takes credit for the earmark anyway.

Yesterday the Washington Post had a column with the headline of the year!

"Republicans Vote Against Moms; No Word Yet on Puppies, Kittens"

On Wednesday afternoon, the House had just voted, 412 to 0, to pass H. Res. 1113, "Celebrating the role of mothers in the United States and supporting the goals and ideals of Mother's Day," when Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.), rose in protest.

"Mr. Speaker, I move to reconsider the vote," he announced.

Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), who has two young daughters, moved to table Tiahrt's request, setting up a revote. This time, 178 Republicans cast their votes against mothers.

It has long been the custom to compare a popular piece of legislation to motherhood and apple pie. Evidently, that is no longer the standard. Worse, Republicans are now confronted with a John Kerry-esque predicament: They actually voted for motherhood before they voted against it.

This is the actual language of the bill.

H. Res. 1113
In the House of Representatives, U. S.,
May 7, 2008.

Whereas Mother's Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of each May;

Whereas the first official Mother's Day was observed on May 10, 1908, in Grafton, West Virginia, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;

Whereas 2008 is the 100th anniversary of the first official Mother's Day observation;

Whereas in 1908, Elmer Burkett, a U.S. senator from Nebraska, proposed making Mother's Day a national holiday;

Whereas in 1914, Congress passed a resolution designating the second Sunday of May as Mother's Day;

Whereas it is estimated that there are more than 82,000,000 mothers in the United States;

Whereas mothers have made immeasurable contributions toward building strong families, thriving communities, and ultimately a strong Nation;

Whereas the services rendered to the children of the United States by their mothers have strengthened and inspired the Nation throughout its history;

Whereas we honor ourselves and mothers in the United States when we revere and emphasize the importance of the role of the home and family as the true foundation of the Nation;

Whereas mothers continue to rise to the challenge of raising their families with love, understanding, and compassion, while overcoming the challenges of modern society; and

Whereas May 11, 2008 is recognized as Mother's Day: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives celebrates the role of mothers in the United States and supports the goals and ideals of Mother's Day.

Bachmann, Kline, and every other member of Congress voted for this bill originally.

In continuing their trivial slowing of the political process, a Republican Congressman from Kansas moved to reconsider the vote. In another glowing question of "What's the matter with Kansas", Congress proceeded to reconsider a vote on celebrating Mother's Day.

A motion to table the "reconsider motion" passed 237-178. Bachmann and Kline voted against the motion.

So, either they were just going along with their GOP colleagues (minus Ramstad) and trying to impede progress in Congress, again.

or

They don't support Mother's Day.

So, Happy Mother's Day...even if Bachmann or Kline don't want you to recognize this special day.

Ollie at Bluestem has great coverage on this as well!

Support Ashwin at Progressive Patriots!

H/T to Eric Z for pointing this out!

Together we've built a strong national progressive organization that provides vital support to campaigns nationwide. Many of the decisions we make on which candidates to support are made by you, the Progressive Patriots online community. It is essential that we build upon our victories in 2006 and support all of these candidates.

Please take a moment to vote for your favorite candidate. Whoever receives the most votes by next Wednesday at 5 PM CDT will receive a $5,000 contribution. These 10 candidates are all facing tough challengers and all are worthy of your support.

Go to the link and vote for Ashwin!

A slice of life in McLeod County

Though Governor Pawlenty vetoed the Central Corridor project in St. Paul, other transportation related projects remained in the bonding bill. Take the $500,000 for the Stagecoach trail near Mantorville.

The Luce Line Trail meanders through the southern half of my senate district and while Senator Dille supports upgrading it, it's unlikely to receive any funding for improvements so long as Ron Shimanski remains in office. There is a glimmer of hope, however.

Not only is Ron an uber-conservative, he also owns an apple orchard that abuts the Luce Line Trail as it wind its way past his home west of Silver Lake. Ron has fretted publicly the upgrading the trail surface from loose gravel and gopher holes would bring more traffic, and with more traffic, apple thieves.

Now, there's not much worse than stealing a man's apples. Or any farmer's crop, wrestled from the soil. Those wishing fresh Minnesota produce should buy it from roadside stands and farmers' markets.

But there's new hope that Representative Shimanski's dreams of earning the fruits of his labors and the aspirations of cyclists can be reconciled, thanks to exciting new developments in biotech. A friend tells me that a new natural security system has been developed for apple growers by the University of Minnesota ag school, and Ron's orchard was first to obtain this new genetically engineered technology for field testing.

My friend obtained the video below, taped early last fall, of the new biotechnology in action, protecting the apples from a small party of larceny-bent hikers. She vouched for the tape's authenticity:



It's GMO breakthroughs like this that make me hopeful for the future! I'm a little worried about the Arboretum's new line of Dog-toothed Violets, however much the DNR says our woodlands need protection from wildflower rustlers.

Ron Carey: The Hypocrite Edition

Ron Carey, Chair of the Minnesota Republican Party, has called on Al Franken to "lift the gag order on his CPA".

Today's Startribune featured a story on the financial miscues of the Minnesota Republican Party, under the leadership of Ron Carey.

A left-leaning blogger tried to ask Carey about the party’s FEC reports at a news conference the GOP called last week to highlight Franken’s problems. Carey dismissed him, saying the press briefing “is something for our credentialed media here.”

Carey did not respond this week to Star Tribune requests for an interview about the FEC filings.

When will the Ron Carey "gag order" be lifted?

This seems to be the status quo for the Minnesota GOP right now. Bachmann refused to comment post CD 6 endorsement. Kline refused comment after CD 2.

For the sake of fairness, we call on the Minnesota Republican Party to lift the "gag order" on Ron Carey.

On the Congressional races

Ollie at Bluestem posts Roll Call stories on key races in the Midwest, focusing on Minnesota.

CD 3: Toss-up

CD1: Likely DFL

CD 6: Likely GOP

On the heels of Ollie posting this, it seems the race in the 1st just got a lot tougher for Brian Davis and Dick Day. It was already going to be tough enough to unseat Walz, without some significant help from the NRCC, it will be exponentially more difficult for them.

And in a closed-door session at the Capitol, National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) told members that the NRCC doesn’t have enough cash to “save them” in November if they don’t raise enough money or run strong campaigns themselves.

Bachmann, holding a 10-1 COH advantage on Tinklenberg as of the latest FEC reports, would have to be at the top of the NRCC list, if they were able to gain enough cash.

Regardless, this is not good news for Minnesota Republicans. Recall the 06 election cycle. While the party put a lot of money into Bachmann's race, many local House races suffered as a result. With the NRCC short of funds, it will stretch an already troubled Minnesota Republican Party's finances.

A left-leaning blogger tried to ask Carey about the party’s FEC reports at a news conference the GOP called last week to highlight Franken’s problems. Carey dismissed him, saying the press briefing “is something for our credentialed media here.”

Carey did not respond this week to Star Tribune requests for an interview about the FEC filings.

The "left-leaning blogger" was Two Putt Tommy!

Koch doesn't care if you lose your home

Larry Schumacher reported this a few days ago.

Koch noted that she represents much of Wright County, which has seen up to 3 percent of its homes go into foreclosure this year, leading the state.

Nevertheless, the bill is not good for the state as a whole, she said.

"We need to focus on the 97 percent who are still paying their mortgages," she said. "This bill introduces risk for all lenders. It will either tighten credit or increase costs."

Koch said she believes passing the bill will make it more difficult to sell many houses that are up for sale.

How many of Senator Koch's bills benefit the state as a whole? How many only a small portion of the population?

Perhaps the Senator doesn't really read any Wright County newspapers. 9 full pages of foreclosures, 152 total.

One year to "right the ship" does not seem to be overly generous. If it saves a significant portion of foreclosures, it's a good deal.

The housing industry in Wright County has been severely impacted by the "mortgage crisis". Senator Koch wants to do nothing about it...

Another glowing example of leadership.