Jason Flohrs, State Director for the Minnesota Chapter of Americans for Prosperity, was the featured speaker at Senate District 49 Republicans’ April dinner program. He painted a sobering picture of the obstacles that Gov. Walz and the Minnesota legislature must overcome to reach a budget agreement before the start of the state’s next fiscal year in July. The differences between the DFL-controlled House and the Senate Republican majority will require significant compromises if a state government shutdown is to be avoided.

Flohrs stated that it is the role of the Minnesota legislature to prioritize the needs of Minnesotans within a reasonable budget. This task has been complicated by the view of the DFL governor and DFL House of what constitutes a reasonable budget.

In February, one month into the 2019 legislative session, the Minnesota Office of Management and Budget forecast a $1B surplus for FY 20-21. Gov. Walz’ proposed budget consumed that surplus and demanded more. At $49.5B, it represents a 10% increase over the FY 18-19 budget. The built-in growth in planned spending goes well beyond FY 20-21. Much of the increased spending is not mentioned because it will occur beyond the planning window.

When your appetite for spending exceeds the $1B surplus, what do you do? You simply push for tax increases, without regard to their impacts. A 70% increase in the gas tax, for example. Flohrs pointed out that Walz never campaigned full-out for a 20-cent-a-gallon gas tax increase. He mentioned it, backed off, argued that it should be looked at, but never made it a key point of his candidacy. Now, Walz claims he has a mandate to raise the gas tax, to the point that Minnesotans will be paying the fourth highest gas tax in the nation.

Last Monday, while many of us technological Neanderthals who still can’t bring ourselves to E-File were standing in line at the Post Office, the Minnesota Court of Appeals in Saint Paul handed down the latest decision in the seemingly endless saga of Cilek v. Office of Minnesota Secretary of State. To the amazement of just about nobody, the three judge panel unanimously “Affirmed” the decision of the Ramsey County District Court in July 2018, ordering the Secretary of State to comply with the request from the Minnesota Voters Alliance, for the public records from the election of 2016.

In a sharp rebuke to the Secretary of State, the Court said that the law he was citing to refuse the request, didn’t classify the information as non-public and didn’t allow him the discretion to keep it from the public!

Immediately, the Secretary of State’s office blurted out a press release full of vacuous and sanctimonious rationalizations about “protecting the privacy rights of voters” and opposing those who “seek to suppress the votes of thousands of eligible voters”, although no one has ever bothered to explain just exactly how anyone might be “suppressed” by the Secretary of State’s office being compelled to obey the law.

Ok, so let’s get this straight. Secretary of State Steve Simon isn’t ignorant about the law, and he most certainly isn’t without competent legal advice. And yet he insists on pushing this totally groundless effort, to deny the MVA the data that everybody knows is public, all the way to the Minnesota Supreme Court….Really????

The Bloomington City Council has a number of significant decisions coming in the near future that will involve substantial cash expenditures.  Last October, the city identified eleven properties that are in “unsatisfactory” condition.  These include Creekside Community Center and five of Bloomington’s six fire stations.

While we are certainly dismayed that the city has let critical infrastructure like fire stations deteriorate to such an extent, we certainly support the repair or replacement of any fire station that is in unsatisfactory condition. The Creekside Community Center occupies a sixty-year-old elementary school building that appears to no longer be suitable as a recreational and social facility for seniors. The city claims that upgrades would cost far more than the building is worth. We are willing to concede this point as well.

We are skeptical, however, about the recent decisions that the Bloomington City Council has taken. Faced with eleven properties that are in need of repair or replacement, half of which are clearly high priority, the city leaders appear ready to embark on two major capital projects.

The first is the building of an expensive community center for people of all ages. Earlier this month the Council directed city staff to develop plans for a new community center at the Valley View complex on 90th Street between Nicollet and Portland Avenues, destroying the recently (2012) renovated and highly popular outdoor Family Aquatic Center at the Valley View complex.

Bloomington’s community center has been under study since 2015. It quickly became more than a replacement for the aging center for seniors. Bloomington needed its own community center to rival ones in Eden Prairie and Minnetonka. Existing recreational facilities and meeting rooms in Bloomington schools; the YMCA in Edina; and commercial exercise and training facilities in Bloomington were not fit for the vision.

Minnesota House Rep. Heather Edelson (DFL, Edina) has had the chance to weigh in on critical issues facing our state in her first term in office. As a member of the Health and Human Services Policy committee, one would think that Edelson would be in the forefront of addressing child care fraud and the effort to grant more independence to the Inspector General from the House and Human Services Department. Sadly, this has not been true.

Instead, we are disappointed to learn that Edelson is co-sponsoring House File 2752, which would require U.S. Presidential Candidates to publicly release their federal tax returns for the last 5 years. Should any Presidential Candidate choose not to publicly release their federal tax returns, the proposed legislation would ban placing the name of that candidate on primary ballots and general election ballots.

So, rather than working hard to stop the illegal use of taxpayer dollars, Rep. Edelson appears focused on national politics. She wants to make public how Presidential candidates, who legally pay their taxes, earn and spend their dollars. And she would ban from the ballot anyone who considers this a blatant invasion of privacy. Guess who she is really targeting!

Yes, elections have consequences. Tell Rep. Heather Edelson where you stand on this issue.

As the Legislature took a break, one of our readers asked Rep. Steve Elkins (DFL, Bloomington) about the bill (HF1783) he co-sponsored enabling yet again another study of the Dan Patch freight rail line for mass transit.

As pointed out by Russ Burnison, co-chair of Senate District 49 Republicans, “We have had 2 studies already about putting commuter rail on the freight line from Savage [through Bloomington and Edina] to St Louis Park. Both times it did not go over, so why spend more tax dollars to do it again?”

Elkins’ response? “We are not talking about commuter rail, we are talking about something like this [picture at right], which is far less expensive and intrusive than commuter rail”.

If it walks like a duck, and talks like a duck, and quacks like a duck… It sure looks like commuter rail to us!

If it is far less expensive than commuter rail, then why didn’t Elkins, when he was on the Metropolitan Council, push for “something like this” instead of the Southwest Light Rail line?

As you may know Representative Sondra Erickson is the Republican Lead of the House Education Policy Committee. According to Representative Erickson’s legislative aide, the status of HF 1414-“Comprehensive Sex Education.” is that the bill has been rolled into HF 2400-Education Finance Omnibus Bill, to be voted on and sent on to the Senate. The legislative aide said that no further action is planned for the Omnibus Bill, but she also added that the House could bring it up for a vote at any time after April 9.

The problem that each of us needs to address as soon as possible is twofold:

First, the bill advances the DFL’s campaign to completely strip away the right of local communities to control their own Public Schools, by centralizing both funding and curriculum in the hands of the State of Minnesota Department of Education.

And secondly, the bill redefines “Sex Education” to include not just how the human body works to reproduce itself, but a comprehensive and Progressive code of conduct and behavior, almost entirely written by Planned Parenthood and radical LBGTQ groups.

Please look at these links and respond as you think proper:

CLICK HERE to read the text of the bill, HF1414 

CLICK HERE to read and view more from the Child Protection League regarding the bill’s origination, authors and content

CLICK HERE to review additional information on the Child Protection League’s website

We’ve included a list of relevant State Legislators below (Updated May 7 with Conference Committee) should you wish to write or call one or more legislators to voice your opposition to HF 1414 and HF 2400.

In closing, if you decide to express your opinion to these legislators, you don’t need to compose a different email for each representative or senator. We’ve found that sending out an email to all of the members of one committee as a kind of email blitz works just as well. However, each member of the committee should receive a copy of the email; don’t just send an email to the Committee Chair or Republican Lead.

Thank you very much.

By Zavier Bicott, Chair, MN Republican Liberty Caucus

State Representative Andrew Carlson (DFL, Bloomington) does not seem to get that his first responsibility is to defend his constituents' constitutional rights including due process and property rights.

A Minnesotan who has not been convicted or even been charged with a crime should not lose his property through civil asset forfeiture.

But more than 7,000 times a year, Minnesotans are forfeiting property in civil court regardless of whether any criminal prosecution takes place in criminal court.

Sadly, Rep. Carlson supports the continued use of civil forfeiture.

He voted against the forfeiture reform bill, HF 1971, on March 11 in the House Judiciary Finance and Civil Law Committee.

Why would the DFL Governor push a more expensive insurance subsidy plan that supports fewer people?

Rep Steve Elkins (DFL, Bloomington) recently gave a hint in his newsletter to constituents. He claimed that Walz’s plan “includes a temporary funding extension to ensure low-cost coverage to those effected.” (sic)

Elkins was alluding to the DFL plan to extend the provider tax. This tax would be passed on to every patient, adding $1 billion to the cost of health care over the next two years.

Again, why would the DFL want to make private health care even more expensive? Rep Elkins claims that “the Governor is also working on a long-term solution that would deliver an additional, affordable and sustainable public health care option.”

Republicans do not believe that the only option for affordable health care is state-run health care. House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt told The Associated Press that the state can squeeze enough money out of other sources to fund health care programs for people who really need help paying their medical bills. "Everybody in the state campaigned on lowering health care costs, and you can't lower health care costs by raising health care costs." Rep Daudt (R, Crown) said. He went on to say that the state could free up money by making public programs more efficient, eliminating fraud in the state's troubled Child Care Assistance Program and kicking people off public programs who don't qualify.

While Governor Walz grandstands with the DFL’s seasonal Spring lies about pothole repairs funding by gas taxes, voices of reason from all sides of the Republican party and our communities point out the facts. Supported by the MN Dept of Transportation’s charts and the non-partisan League of Minnesota Cities, maybe this will be the year that Minnesotans demand truth and accountability from the DFL Legislators and Governor.

In her recent newsletter article “WILL A HIGHER GAS TAX FIX OUR POT HOLES?”  Annette Meeks, Freedom Foundation of Minnesota, noted that Walz’s proposed tax increase “would give Minnesotans the dubious honor of paying the fourth highest gas tax in the nation.” And yet the reality is “Most city, county and township roads are paid for via local property tax. Some communities receive other forms of state aid that help pay for repaving county roads and highways. But keep in mind: 705 Minnesota cities receive 0% of the gas tax.” (* Source: 705 Minnesota cities receive 0% of the gas tax - page 98 of the budget book here )

Before this 2019 session even convened, last December MN Senator David Osmek highlighted the massive transportation increases funded by the 2018 legislative session, and concluded : “We can provide transportation funding in Minnesota without raising taxes. We just need to focus the resources we take from your pocketbook on solutions, not boondoggles.”

The funding facts: “In Minnesota, funding for our roads and bridges does not come exclusively from the gas tax. Our revenue comes from the Highway User Distribution Fund (HUDF), which includes not only gas tax revenue, but also tab fees and sales taxes on your vehicle. For Budget Year 2019, over 60 percent of the revenue will come from outside the gas tax.”

As the Minnesota Legislature continues its work in the current session, the consequences of the catastrophic election of 2018 become clearer for all to see. Senate District 49 is now represented by three “Progressive” DFLers whose hard left “all government, all the time” agenda is revealing itself in grotesque detail.

Take the recent introduction by Senator Franzen of a bill to make Minnesota a “sanctuary state” that forbids cooperation and information sharing by local law enforcement with Federal Immigration authorities. This is a major step down the road to the complete corruption of our electoral system. As more illegal aliens, or “undocumented immigrants” if you will, take fuller advantage of the open door that Senator Franzen intends to provide them, the voter fraud machine that DFL Secretary of State Steve Simon is desperately trying to hide from the courts, will soon have them registered and voting for more DFLers. Not to mention the drastic increases in narcotics trafficking, street crime and social spending that California and other sanctuaries have already come to regret.

And in the Minnesota House, not to be outdone, on March 7th Representative Heather Edelson from 49A introduced a bill to provide for “End-of-Life” options, or Assisted Suicide for the rest of us unwashed rabble. Almost immediately Representative Steve Elkins from 49B jumped aboard as a co-sponsor. This nasty little intrusion into the privacy of your relationship with your doctor commands him or her to inform you of the opportunity you have to commit suicide, when faced with a prognosis that they estimate will leave you 6 months or less to live. Your doctor must offer you the service of writing you a prescription for a lethal dose of something, and leaving it up to you to either take it or not. And, if your doctor has any qualms about obeying this commandment, he must refer you to another practitioner, who may be any medical professional from a surgeon to a licensed practical nurse, who has no such scruples.

Watching all of this, it’s hard not to put it all together with events on the wider screen of developments in the battles at the other end of human life, in places like New York and Virginia. The unspeakable horror of watching the New York State Senate burst into cheers and wild celebrations at the passage of a law to authorize the murder of a born child rings in our ears like a scream in the night. The ghastly tone of arid detachment that the Governor of the State of Virginia used, standing before the news media, to describe how he would deliver a living baby and then calmly confer with the parents to consider its cold-blooded murder, with all of the emotional feeling of a discussion about treating a sprained ankle.

Make no mistake about it, when “Progressives” get into the issues of immigration and the beginning and ending of human life, they are truly playing God! There are real human lives at stake, with real possible futures to be lived or thrown away. And "DFL Progressives" do it with a level of intellectual detachment and banal routine that should send a chill down the spine of anyone with even a passing acquaintance with history.