Politics
Psst! Corporations Are Not People!
This Friday, my dad (and uncle, I think) will accompany 2004 presidential candidate, David Cobb, on the Twin Ports leg of his national speaking tour for Move to Amend. Mr. Cobb will speak about the perils (i.e. 2010 WI governor’s race) of corporate personhood and what is happening, nationally, to abolish it. For those who don’t remember or weren’t aware, “The Monahan brothers” walked across the U.S. last May-October to raise awareness about this issue. So, come have a pint and/or some noms and get informed about an issue that is sure to foul up our lives for generations to come!
I want more return on my investment.
State Finances: Federal Taxes Collected vs. Federal Funding by State
According to this, Minnesota ranks #50, meaning we get about $0.50 back in federal funding for every dollar in taxes we pay (using 2007-2009 figures).
This does not make me want to take former Senators Dayton and Coleman out for dinner in downtown Duluth.
It also brings this question to my mind: how much influence do governors have over federal funding? Are governors involved in the discussion of federal funding in any concrete way?
What’s Obamacare? It sounds icky.
Another from our Rep.’s crack staff:
Cravaack Statement on Anniversary of Obamacare
(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Congressman Chip Cravaack (MN-8) released the following statement on the one year anniversary of Obamacare being signed into law:
“Today marks the one year anniversary of Obamacare being signed into law. Obamacare puts government between doctors and patients; is harmful to our job creating entrepreneurs and small business owners; and has been ruled unconstitutional in federal court. Despite broad opposition from the American people, the Obama Administration and their allies on Capitol Hill used every procedural trick in the book to ram through their nearly 3,000 page partisan health care takeover.
“Since then, report after report has shown Obamacare will cost significantly more than we were told, kill jobs, raise taxes, expand government control, and increase the cost of health care for northeast Minnesotans. In response, my colleagues and I in the House passed a simple, two-page bill to repeal this legislation and begin the process of replacing it with true reforms that will expand coverage while at the same time cutting costs to consumers. I will continue to fight against the folly of Obamacare and for common sense solutions to issues within our health care system.”
Pawlenty’s latest commercial not quite as funny as previous ones; still good for laughs
[This post originally contained a video embed that has since been removed from YouTube.]
This time it isn’t a book trailer; he’s announcing that he’s exploring a bid for the presidency.
Cravaack announces new staffer to lead district offices
From the Rep’s D.C. office:
(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Congressman Chip Cravaack (MN-8) announced the hiring of Sheldon Anderson as his new District Director. The District Director position manages all staff and activities in the Congressman’s district offices.
“Sheldon Anderson is a great addition to my staff and I am pleased he’ll be assisting me as I strive to provide excellent constituent services to the people of the Eighth District,” said Cravaack. “Sheldon knows northeastern Minnesota well. His father worked as a pipe-fitter in mines on the Iron Range, and he has served as Mayor of Wyoming and as a private sector appointee to Governor Pawlenty’s ‘Corrections Strategic Management Operations Advisory Task Force.’ Sheldon has also been a small business owner for the past 20 years so he understands how important they are to the economic health of Minnesota.”
Currently, Mr. Anderson is President of Capital Investigations, a company that provides security and investigative services. He will be based out of Congressman Cravaack’s North Branch office, serving as the Congressman’s chief representative in the Eighth District.
Colbert takes on Pawlenty’s dramatic ads
At PDD, we compared Pawlenty to Superman, among other things, for his chest-puffed image on his book cover. Stephen Colbert one ups us by comparing him to Brawny Man.
At PDD, we called Pawlenty President of the United States of Apocalypse after viewing his book trailer. Colbert says Pawlenty is “running for President of the next Transformers movie.” That one could probably go either way.
Blue Laws are Stupid, Post #4
The bill to allow retail sales of alcohol on Sundays in Minnesota is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday, March 16, at 10:30 a.m.
Quoth Sen. Roger Reinert of Duluth:
“Sunday liquor sale laws are remnants of a bygone era that no longer make sense in a 21st Century world.”
Saturday, March 12
WI Governor Scott Walker will be in Washburn WI around 4pm this Saturday, for a Lincoln Day diner. The fine folks of the town plan to give him a “warm” welcome, especially in light of the WI Senate passing the so called Budget Fix bill on Wednesday, despite three weeks of constant protest against it.
Washburn is a lot closer than Madison.
Rep. Milroy tackled at the Capitol
Rep. Nick Milroy of Superior was tackled to the ground as he entered the Capitol building in Madison to retrieve some clothing from his office. Apparently he showed his ID to an officer, but the officer didn’t give him clearance to get in.
(This post originally contained an embedded video that was later removed from YouTube.)
Our man in Washington
I note that the first piece of legislation that Raymond Cravaack saw fit to propose involved defunding the U.S. Institute of Peace, a $46.5 million budgetary rounding error responsible for useless projects like the Iraq Study Group.
[The USIP is currently raising money to complete a relatively fancy headquarters on the Mall, but has for years been located on the second floor of the National Restaurant Association’s palatial headquarters in DC.]
This concludes today’s object lesson in the fact that Elections Matter.
How many U.S. presidents visited Duluth?
Do any history buffs out in cyberland know which U.S. presidents visited Duluth and when? Does anyone have some old photos?
Superior 2011 Primary Election Results
Superior Mayor
Bruce Hagen — 2,099 | 69%
Kevin Peterson — 710 | 23%
Don Raihala — 120 | 4%
Gilbert Davidson — 113 | 4%
Bruce Hagen and Kevin Peterson advance to the General Election on April 5.
Really? And I had my hopes up …
I found out someone in my neighborhood is looking to run for mayor of Superior. I was excited! The mayor living so close to my house? He’s just a regular dude wanting to better this town? That sounds awesome! But then I got this flier in my door over the weekend. There are just so many issues — spelling, grammar, weirdness … I’ll let you judge for yourself:
Town Hall in Duluth
Duluth area legislators: Sen. Roger Reinert, Rep. Mary Murphy, Rep. Tom Huntley, and Rep. Kerry Gauthier are holding the first of three Town Halls, on Saturday, Feb. 12, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Asbury United Methodist Church at 6822 Grand Ave.
The Town Hall will focus on the state budget deficit. All are welcome to attend.
Michele Bachmann’s Tea Party response to the State of the Union Address, take two
Congresswoman Michele Bachmann gives the Tea Party’s State of the Union response another try.
25 Influential Minnesotans in Washington
I just heard an interesting interview on MPR with Michael S. Berman, the UMD graduate who founded the Duberstein Group, a DC campaign consulting organization.
Let’s Discuss Social Security
Someone recently wondered why there had not been a PDD post regarding Social Security being “bankrupt.” Here goes:
Social Security currently has a 2.5 trillion dollar surplus. This is partly due to Ronald Reagan raising SS taxes on working people. Then he started to raid the fund to make it look like he could cut taxes on the rich and corporations, bloat the military, and still “balance” the budget. Well, he still wound up turning a surplus into a massive deficit, but I digress.
(more…)
Tim Pawlenty on The Daily Show
[This post originally contained an embedded video that is no longer available at its source.]
The complete, unedited interview from last night.
Who’s running for mayor in Superior?
Dave Ross is out after two terms as Superior mayor. He’s taking a job as secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Regulation and Licensing.
Candidates must file the required number of signatures by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 4 to get on the ballot for mayor in Superior. (more…)
Respect Your Elders. Namely Mark Dayton.
At age 63, Mark Dayton is the oldest person to be elected governor of Minnesota. A few weeks after he’s sworn in, he’ll be 64.
From the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library:
Challenged Ballots in the Minnesota Governor’s Race — Duluth Edition
Now that the challenged ballots from St. Louis County are available online, here’s a look at the nine from Duluth.
The first one is from precinct 3 (Lakeside) and the next two are from precinct 7 (Hunters Park).
In the next set, the first is from precinct 11 (Kenwood) and the next two are from precinct 19 (Downtown).
In the last set, the first is from precinct 24 (Duluth Heights), the second is from precinct 27 (Piedmont Heights) and the third is from precinct 34 (West Duluth).
Someone explain why this is so fun.
Oberstar/Cravaack, Chapter 17
I still have one nagging question that came up during the campaign: “Can you get good Malaysian food anywhere near Duluth?”
Anyone have an answer?