Polinaut: June 29, 2009 Archive

The Daily Digest

Posted at 6:48 AM on June 29, 2009 by Tom Scheck (0 Comments)
Filed under: Daily Digest

Gov. Pawlenty can officially start balancing the budget on his own on Wednesday. The Legislative Advisory Commission will meet again on Tuesday to discuss the cuts.

White Bear Lake copes with Pawlenty's unallotment.

So does Washington County.

Religious groups are ready to rally against the budget cuts but don't think it will make a difference.

The MN Supreme Court considers cameras in the courtroom.

The cost of court business is also going up.

Gov. Pawlenty may need a new talking point. Wisconsin overtakes Minnesota at tops in health care quality rankings.

The Minnesota Bar says unmarried and married couples deserve equal treatment.

AP looks at the sales tax for the outdoors and arts.

Police are dealing with the problems at the Metro Gang Strike Force.

D.C.

U.S. troops begin to pull back from Iraqi cities.

The stimulus cash isn't a magic bullet yet.

The House passed the Climate Change bill giving President Obama a victory. Minnesota's delegation voted along party lines.

The Hill says DFL Rep. Collin Peterson's support of the bill was critical.

President Obama pressures the Senate on the climate bill.

President Obama's political adviser won't rule out a tax increase on health insurance.

DFL Rep. Betty McCollum and DFL Rep. Keith Ellison will hold separate health care forums this week.

The Pi Press says Minnesota's low Medicare reimbursement rate could be an angle for national reform.

The Wall Street Journal picks up on GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann's criticism of ACORN.

Politifact gives Bachmann two more "pants on fire" ratings.

The highway/transit bill is put in limbo. DFL Rep. Jim Oberstar is mentioned.

Congress may also impose new standards for the nation's fishing fleets. Oberstar is mentioned.

2008 Race for U.S. Senate

Gov. Pawlenty says he's ready to sign the election certificate as soon as he gets the green light from the court. He didn't say what he'd do if there were no instruction from the court. MPR and the Pi Press have stories.

2010

Former GOP Rep. Jim Ramstad says he met with folks about a possible run for governor. MPR and AP have stories.

2012

Gov. Pawlenty appeared on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday. You can watch it here.

Pawlenty criticizes the climate change bill in Congress.

Pawlenty also tells President Obama to quit spending.

Pawlenty also spoke Friday to a fundraiser for the Arkansas GOP. He emphasized limited government and touched on South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford's affair.

Pawlenty also said he's easier to find than Sanford.

DFL Rep. Tom Rukavina suggests a campaign slogan for Pawlenty's presidential bid.

Finally

I'm taking an extended break on July first. But don't worry Digest readers. MPR's Tim Pugmire will do an abbreviated Digest in my absence.

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Kline encourages Coleman to fight on

Posted at 10:09 AM on June 29, 2009 by Tom Scheck (1 Comments)
Filed under: U.S. MN CD2

Republican Congressman John Kline told reporters this morning that he wants Republican Norm Coleman to continue his legal fight in Minnesota's long-running U.S. Senate race "until we can get as much confidence in Minnesota and in the nation that the results are accurate."

Kline also said he'd like to see the MN Supreme Court say "There isn't a winner here. We cannot declare a winner" and said he'd like to see Minnesota have runoff elections.

You can listen to the audio here:

Listen

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NGA to honor Blatz

Posted at 10:54 AM on June 29, 2009 by Tom Scheck (0 Comments)

The National Governor's Association will honor former MN Supreme Court Justice Kathleen Blatz in July. She is one of eight individuals who are being recognized for her service to states. Here's a portion of the release:

Kathleen Blatz, Former Chief Justice, MN Supreme Court, Former Legislator and Children's Rights Advocate, Minnesota

A former legislator and children's rights advocate, Justice Kathleen Blatz became the first woman to lead the state's highest court in 1998. Under her leadership, Minnesota overhauled its child protection system. She also spearheaded the Children's Justice Initiative, designed to get abused and neglected kids out of foster care faster, and led improvements in public trust and confidence, access to justice and court technology. Prior to being appointed to the state Supreme Court in 1996, Justice Blatz served eight terms in the Minnesota House of representatives, representing Bloomington from 1979 to 1994. There she chaired the Crime and Family Law committee and sponsored legislation to help pregnant, drug addicted women. "The state of Minnesota is a better place because of her contributions," said Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty. "We are proud to call her our own."

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What if the court doesn't direct Pawlenty to sign the election certificate?

Posted at 12:33 PM on June 29, 2009 by Tom Scheck (0 Comments)

There has been plenty of ink spilled about Gov. Pawlenty's statement yesterday that he was prepared to sign an election certificate declaring the winner in Minnesota's long-running U.S. Senate race provided he gets direction from the court. During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union, Pawlenty said he would sign the certificate if the court required it:

"I'm not going to defy an order of the Minnesota Supreme Court. That would be a dereliction of my duty," Pawlenty said.

Pawlenty was careful to use the "direction of the court" caveat every time he said he would sign the certificate. I followed up with Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung today to find out what Pawlenty would do if the court didn't direct him to sign the certificate. Here's McClung's response:

"That's a decision that would be made at that time. Governor Pawlenty has said that he would follow the determinations of the courts, including the federal courts if an appeal was made and a stay was issued."

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Tea Party = Votes?

Posted at 2:55 PM on June 29, 2009 by Tom Scheck (0 Comments)

The Tea Party organizers have announced that there will be another event at the State Capitol on July 4th. Several GOP candidates for governor and their consultants say there's a big effort to court the Ron Paul/Libert crowd. How many candidates for governor do you think will appear at the event?

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State finance officials predict $4.427 billion budget deficit in '12-'13

Posted at 4:07 PM on June 29, 2009 by Tom Scheck (0 Comments)

Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Tom Hanson released a letter to DFL legislative leaders today regarding Governor Pawlenty's unallotment plan. The letter confirms that Governor Pawlenty's decision to balance the budget on his own will only be a short-term fix and that Minnesota's budget problems will continue even after he leaves office.

In the letter, Hanson wrote that "the projected budgetary shortfall FY 2012-13 under the proposed unallotment plan would be $4.427 billion." He also wrote the estimate does not include restoring General Assistance Medical Care. If the subsidized health insurance program for the poor was restored, it would cost an additional $888.7 million.

I'll post the full letter once I create the link. Here's the letter.

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