Capitol View: April 16, 2012 Archive
The Daily Digest (Lawmakers return from break, Hearing tonight on Vikings stadium bill, Fundraising reports are in)
Posted at 6:17 AM on April 16, 2012
by Tom Scheck
(1 Comments)
Filed under: Daily Digest
State lawmakers return to the Capitol today. They have a big agenda facing them. MPR and AP have looks at what's left to do.
Forum Communications says some lawmakers are ready to adjourn while others say they need more time.
The Pi Press reports that a tax bill is a priority.
The PoliGraph says DFL Rep. Paul Thissen's claim on the GOP tax plans is correct.
Businesses and Democrats continue to push for Southwest light rail corridor funding in the bonding bill.
The House Government Operations Committee has a hearing tonight on the Vikings stadium. The Pi Press says the Vikings stadium is still up in the air. The Star Tribune says it's likely to get a voice vote in committee.
The Senate Environment Committee will debate an earlier fishing opener at a hearing this morning.
After complaints, the Minnesota Security Hospital has been inspected.
The Senate Ethics Committee rescheduled the hearing on a complaint against GOP Sen. Geoff Michel from Monday morning until Tuesday morning.
Fired Senate staffer Michael Brodkorb is going to add a claim of invasion of privacy to his pending lawsuit against the Minnesota Senate. He made the claim after MPR News reported that his unemployment application was rejected.
AP says there's a new tool to standardize teacher evaluations in Minnesota.
The Pi Press reports that Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley has failed to provide all requested information about HMO payments.
Voter ID
Secretary of State Mark Ritchie steps into the Voter ID battle.
Congress
The World Bank president will be named today.
The Senate is scheduled to vote on the Buffett Rule today. MPR talks to some members of the delegation about the proposal.
A hearing on the lavish spending at the General Services Administration will be held today.
The Taliban hits several Afghanistan cities in a coordinated attack.
President Obama concluded the Summit of the Americas on the defensive about inviting Cuba.
Mr. Obama called for a thorough investigation into a prostitution scandal in the secret service.
Tea Partiers rallied in Duluth.
Race for U.S. Senate
DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar raised another $1 million and has $5.2 million on hand.
Race for Congress
Hotel owner Jim Graves won the DFL endorsement to challenge GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann.
Bachmann won her party's endorsement. She raised $550k in the 1st Quarter.
GOP Rep. Erik Paulsen won the GOP endorsement in the 3rd District. Democrat Brian Barnes won the endorsement in the 3rd District.
Republican Chris Fields won the GOP endorsement in Minnesota's 5th District.
MPR reports that DFL Rep. Keith Ellison raised $232k and DFL Rep. Tim Walz raised $217k. Republican Mike Parry raised $17k in the 1st Quarter. Allen Quist raised $37k.
The New Ulm Journal also reports that the fundraising by Quist and Parry is relatively weak compared to past GOP candidates in Minnesota's 1st District.
Republicans in the 1st District will meet next week to endorse a candidate to challenge DFL Rep. Tim Walz. The Rochester Post-Bulletin has a preview of the endorsement battle.
DFL Rep. Betty McCollum raised $123k in the 1st Quarter.
GOP Rep. Chip Cravaack raised $246k in the 1st Quarter.
Race for Legislature
GOP Sen. Claire Robling is the latest incumbent to announce she's retiring.
MPR has a list of the retirements.
DFL Gov. Mark Dayton announced that he raised $82k in the first 3 months of the year.
Race for President
President Obama raised a a combined $53 million for his campaign and the DNC in March.
President Obama is urging Mitt Romney to release his past tax returns.
President Obama earned $790k in 2011.
Mitt Romney discussed some of his key policy provisions in a speech to high dollar donors. The Wall St. Journal says it includes deductions that he'd cut.
He is also selling Inauguration access.
Romney won some votes but not all hearts at the NRA convention.
Both President Obama and Romney will spend the week raising money.
GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann praised Mitt Romney on NBC's Meet the Press.
Paulsen brings in $337,000 in first quarter
Posted at 9:08 AM on April 16, 2012
by Brett Neely
Filed under: Campaign 2012: U.S. House, Campaign 2012: U.S. MN CD3, U.S. House
WASHINGTON - Erik Paulsen's re-election campaign reported Sunday that it raised more than $337,000 in the past three months, bringing its haul in this election cycle to $1.7 million. The 3rd District Republican congressman has just under $1.3 million in cash on hand for his campaign.
Over the weekend, the 3rd District DFL endorsed businessman Brian Barnes to take on Paulsen in November. Barnes raised almost $30,000 in the first quarter, $83,000 since he started campaigning, and has just shy of $31,000 in his coffers.
Paulsen, who's in his second term in Congress, raised about $205,000 from individual donors, the vast majority from individuals giving more $200 apiece. Political action committees contributed about $130,000 to Paulsen.
Coleman-backed super PAC gets $5 million from casino owner
Posted at 9:45 AM on April 16, 2012
by Brett Neely
(2 Comments)
Filed under: Campaign 2012, Campaign 2012: U.S. House, U.S. House
WASHINGTON - A super PAC founded by former Minnesota U.S. Senator Norm Coleman has received a $5 million donation from billionaire casino titan Sheldon Adelson, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
Coleman founded the Congressional Leadership Fund last fall to take advantage of the unlimited fundraising and spending potential of super PACs, a less regulated form of political action committee. The Fund's goal is to back Republican House candidates and is closely allied with House Speaker John Boehner. Former Minnesota U.S. Rep. Vin Weber is also involved with the group.
Adelson, who runs the Sands Casino in Las Vegas and Macau, has become a prominent Republican donor this election cycle, contributing more than $16 million to a super PAC that backed the primary campaign of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich for the GOP presidential nomination.
The $5 million donation by Adelson represents almost the entirety of the Congressional Leadership Fund's fundraising in the first three months of the year. The Fund reported bringing in almost $5.1 million between January and March. In the previous quarter, the super PAC raised just $131,000.
Severson raises $53,000 in first three months of 2012
Posted at 1:11 PM on April 16, 2012
by Mark Zdechlik
Filed under: Campaign 2012: U.S. Senate
Republican Dan Severson's U.S. Senate campaign is reporting first quarter fundraising of $53,884 and says it ended March with a little more than $40,000 in campaign cash on hand.
Severson, a former state representative from Sauk Rapids, has been running for Senate since May 2011.
Another candidate, Pete Hegseth, got into the race in March and reported much stronger fundraising of $160,000 for the first quarter and $130,000 cash on hand as of March 31.
And state Rep. Kurt Bills, R-Rosemount, the latest entrant in the race to take on Democrat Amy Klobuchar, has not yet reported his first quarter fundraising numbers. Klobuchar's campaign told reporters it ended the quarter with more than $5.2 million in campaign cash.
Bills reports raising $50,000 for Senate race
Posted at 10:45 PM on April 16, 2012
by Tom Scheck
Filed under: Campaign 2012, Campaign 2012: Minn. Senate Races
The campaign for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Kurt Bills reports raising "more than $50,000" in the "first three weeks of fundraising." The campaign said he raised the money from more than 500 donors.
"The number of motivated, regular people contributing to our campaign is so encouraging because that is ultimately the key over the long haul," Bills' campaign chair Rep. Keith Downey, R-Edina, said in a statement.
Since Bills report hasn't yet been published on the FEC site, it isn't clear whether the fundraising totals released by the campaign include money raised in the 2nd quarter of the year. Federal candidates are required to report their fundraising activities from January 1 through April 1. Bills announced his candidacy on March 8 of this year.
Update: Mike Osskopp, the campaign manager for Bills, says the FEC report will show BIlls raised $47k from 470 donors during the 1st Quarter of the year.
The Bills campaign also announced in a press release that Bills has the support of 34 legislators. His campaign has not yet provided specifics on which members are backing the Rosemount Republican.
Bills is the last Republican U.S. Senate candidate to release his fundraising reports. Army veteran Pete Hegseth reported raising $160,000 in the first quarter. Former state Rep. Dan Severson reported raising $53,000 in the same time period.
Whoever wins the GOP nomination will challenge DFL Sen. Amy Klobuchar in November.
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