Tag: MN GOP

Could 2018 be another big year for constitutional amendments in Minnesota?

The following article by Briana Bierschbach was posted on the MinnPost site July 12, 2017:

Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune

It’s a simple formula: One-party controlled of the Minnesota Legislature + a governor of the opposing party = constitutional amendments on the ballot.

That’s been the case over the last two decades in Minnesota, where gridlock between the legislative and executive branches has prompted lawmakers to take issues directly to voters time and time again — on everything from increasing taxes for arts and conservation to imposing more restrictive voter identification laws.

As lawmakers look to the next election, all the ingredients are in place to see more of the same: Republicans in control the House and Senate have been butting heads all year with DFL Gov. Mark Dayton, and legislators of both parties have already teed up a handful of issues that could be on the ballot as constitutional amendments in 2018. Continue reading “Could 2018 be another big year for constitutional amendments in Minnesota?”

Reality Check: The Cost Of Subsidized Transit

The following article by Pat Kessler was posted on the WCCO TV website April 12, 2017:

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The Minnesota Legislature is preparing deep budget cuts to Twin Cities transit systems, especially light rail.

Critics say taxpayers pay millions of dollars a year to subsidize every passenger.

While it’s true that taxpayers subsidize every passenger on the light rail, it’s less than you think and less than other common transit systems, like suburban buses.

The Met Council crunched the numbers at the request of the House Transportation Policy Committee. It figured in the operating expenses, passenger fares, the number of passengers, and the hours of service. The results might stop you in your tracks. Continue reading “Reality Check: The Cost Of Subsidized Transit”

Minnesota Republican health plan: Lower costs, but really bad insurance

Rep. Steve Drazkowski (R-Mazeppa) has never been a fan of health care for the masses. Or at least not Obamacare. Drazkowski has long promised a better way.

You may be able to save money. You just won’t be covered for everything from cancer to Lyme’s disease.

“We need to stop the march toward government takeover and turn directly to supporting individual health care, freedom, and choice,” he wrote in the Rochester Post Bulletin in 2014. “Start by allowing insurance companies… to compete for business. More competition will increase health-care quality and decrease your health insurance expenses.”

But it’s one thing to sit on the sidelines and talk aboput how you could do better. It’s entirely another thing to actually come up with your own plan. Now we know what Drazkowski’s definition of better health care really is. Continue reading “Minnesota Republican health plan: Lower costs, but really bad insurance”

DFL Chair Ken Martin on Donald Trump’s Hold on Minnesota’s Republican Party

“On Thursday morning, Speaker Kurt Daudt said that Donald Trump is great for the Minnesota Republican Party. I am constantly astounded by the Party’s acceptance and support of a candidate whose campaign is built on bigotry and discrimination.

“On the heels of Trump’s racist comments about a federal judge, and the prejudicial statements made by Rep. Tony Cornish and candidate Ali Jimenez-Hopper, the Party’s embrace of this toxic rhetoric is a troubling trend that has no place in Minnesota.

“These tone-deaf statements minimize the very real issues that many Minnesotans face. It’s time for Speaker Daudt and Minnesota’s Republicans to stop blindly following Donald Trump’s divisive lead and prioritize the needs of Minnesotans they are running to represent.”

GOP Racist Messaging

Screen Shot 2015-11-23 at 9.27.43 PM“Yesterday the Minnesota 7th Congressional District Republican Party posted the following statement on their Facebook page: “MN #‎DFL now propose a “special session” to deal with their self-created “#‎Negroproblem”.

 You don’t have to look far to find ignorant hate speech masquerading as acceptable party messaging.  However, this is not the first time the Minnesota Republican Party and their affiliates have posted racially insensitive material.

“The GOP is clearly out of touch on issues of race here in Minnesota and around the country.  Regrettably these comments have become commonplace in the Republican Party  and it should be no surprise that they are now an accepted and normal part of their conversation.

 While our community is still struggling with the death of a young man and trying to find answers for his family, the Republican Party of Minnesota decided to chime in with racist and bigoted comments. There is absolutely no place for this kind of ugly language in our state and we call on Chairman Downey to apologize to the people of Minnesota for the racist and bigoted comment from the Minnesota 7th Congressional District Republican Party.”