Politics in Minnesota: Frontpage News

The Declaration of Independence or the Stanley Cup?

Sarah Janecek — Wed, 07 May 2008 07:49:39 -0600

As noted in the video posted yesterday, the Declaration of Independence can only fly first class. That got everyone at Politics in Minnesota thinking.

The Declaration or the Stanley Cup...which is the bigger rock star?

Below, we compare the two.

It's an election year, so you decide.

	Declaration of Independence	Stanley Cup

Age	232 years old	120 years old
Weight	45 pounds (in traveling case)	35 pounds
Copies	25 remaining out of 200 printed in 1776	2 (one original, one stand-in replica)
Morale-boosting Moment	George Washington read to his troops	Came under missile attack in Kandahar, Afghanistan
Suitable Vessel for Champagne-drinking?	No	Yes, oh yes.
Effect on Yankees	Started a 1776 war with the Redcoats	Inspired a 2003 win against the Redbirds
Relation to Royalty	Created because of British Lords	Created by a British Lord
Consequences for signing your name on it	High treason against British Empire	Black eyes, missing teeth
Birthplace	Philadelphia, PA	Sheffield, England
Number of Signers	56	2056
First Signees	John Hancock	Montreal Wanderers
Inspiring Quotes	"We must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly, we will all hang separately". --Ben Franklin	"His bottom fit right in." --Chris Nilan, on photographing his infant son in the Cup.
Stands...	For justice and freedom from colonial rule	For winning hockey games
Home when not traveling	Highly secure bunker in Norman Lear's LA home	Highly secure location in Toronto
Penalty for submersion in swimming pool	Destruction of a National Treasure	None, apparently. (Revelers have frequently gone swimming with the Cup)

The Declaration Arrives in Minnesota [video]

Staff — Tue, 06 May 2008 08:05:59 -0600

Politics in Minnesota greeted the Declaration of Independence at the Minneapolis St. Paul Airport, yesterday. Check out our video, where we learn that Declaration handler Christie Manning found the job on Craigslist.

[Download the video - QuickTime - 81 MB.]

The Declaration is on public display -- for free, thanks to PIM's parent company and Declaration Presenting Sponsor Dolan Media Company. Here's more information about how to see the Declaration at the Minnesota History Center. In the coming days, PIM will have much more on the Declaration, as will our sister publications, Finance & Commerce, Minnesota Lawyer and the newly named Capitol Report (formerly the St. Paul Legal Ledger).

New Weekly Reports up!

Staff — Fri, 02 May 2008 15:27:31 -0600

We've got a couple more Weekly Reports up for free. Check it out:

Politics in Minnesota: The Weekly Report - Vol. 3, Issue 39 - 4/11/2008: In this issue: 52 Painful Lashes; Paul And Our Politics; The O' Douglas Factor And Franken; Save The Sheet Music: Moisture & Mildew Menace Marching Melodies In Metastasizing Museum; Romero Retirement Rout; Property Taxes? No More!; REAL ID: Real Expensive, Real Big, Legislators: Really Not Going To Pay For It; Bit & Pieces; Credit Crunch Crashing Corporate Cash; Venture Capital Vending Funds For Very Voluminous Opportunities; Lobbyist Watch.
Politics in Minnesota: The Weekly Report - Vol. 3, Issue 38 - 4/4/08: In this issue: The Dorfman Rules Rule; Cuban Trade Travel Time: Reps Find Ag Opportunities Abound In Changing Communist Climate; Bits & Pieces: From The Capitol; 8th District Convention Excitement: Who Wants To Be A State Delegate?; You Can't Handle The Truth In Music; Bits & Pieces; Lobbyist Watch.

PIM

No More Moe...For Now

Sarah Janecek — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 07:25:30 -0600

Rare is the two-term legislator who is well-liked, well-respected--and thus assumed safe in future elections in a swing district--who decides to call it quits.

Rare is Rep. Frank Moe (DFL-Bemidji).

Moe shocked both his district and the Capitol crowd by announcing to DFL endorsing delegates last week that he's done. Moe was candidly cool about the major reason he's retiring to the Park Rapids Enterprise's Lou Ann Hurd-Lof, "Moe said the reason for his decision was to keep his marriage strong. 'My parents were divorced four times,' Moe said, talking about how difficult it has been to leave his wife, Sherri, every week and drive to St. Paul."

I enjoyed a wide-ranging conversation with Moe in his office this week. When Moe was first elected, he and his wife, Sherri Moe, had eight sled dogs (a wide mix of breeds from a shelter where they were abandoned). Now they have 22 sled dogs, along with eight acres to keep both the couple and the dogs happy. The Moes also bought a floral shop in Walker, Grey's Floral Shop, where business is much better than they expected. Moe concluded that it simply wasn't fair to Sherri to be down in St. Paul so much, along with running around the district he loves so much when he is home.

Typically, legislators announce their retirements on the floor in the waning days of the legislative session. That was Moe's plan, as well (he had made the decision to retire months ago). But then, after the nominating speeches were given, when Moe was expected to accept the nomination, he got to the podium and looked out at all the faces who worked so hard to elect him. "I simply had to come clean," he says.

Asked what the worst part is about serving in the Legislature, Moe quickly answered, "Long floor debates and amendment after amendment." But when Moe is feeling cynical about the process, he checks himself by remembering Winston Churchill's words, "Democracy is the worst form of government except all others." Moe adds, "You can't stop the debate...People have the right to be as stupid or as brilliant as they want, and you never know when stupid or brilliant will happen."

The worst vote he ever took? In 2005, post-Dru Sjodin's abduction and murder, there were many amendments on legislation increasing penalties for sex offenders. One amendment would have required sex offender identification on license plates. Moe voted for it, for political reasons (who wanted to be known as being easy on sex offenders?). "I felt gross, like I had to take a shower." Moe says that vote taught him to vote on an issue thinking how it will play, politically.

That conversation sidetracked into the difference in prevailing political winds in the northern part of the state, "People where I live just want to be left alone," notes Moe, and that has driven a lot of his thinking on issues where he's not toeing the DFL party line.

The legislator who has been most important to him in his four-year career? Moe declined to single out any one legislator, but the question did flag a moment Moe found particularly gratifying. Tiny Cass Lake (population 860 in the 2000 U.S. Census) was having a crime problem. Moe brought the city's crime blotter to then-House Tax Chair Republican Ron Abrams, who said the blotter looked like it was from Minneapolis. Abrams made sure that $100,000 in a local government aid cut was restored to Cass Lake in that year's tax bill.

Moe's retirement highlights a serious problem Politics in Minnesota has a long history of flagging: Serving in the Legislature is extremely difficult for younger legislators with families. How to solve the problem? Moe thinks the interim hearing schedule was "too aggressive," and that the Legislature should conduct its business Monday through Thursday, which would build in one full day to be with constituents and at least one full day for family only.

Moe, 42, and Sherri don't have any children "yet........but that was simply out of the question serving in the Legislature and trying to run our businesses." Congrats to Moe on being awarded a Bush Fellowship. He's completed all the coursework required for a PhD in Education at the U of M and now will have the time and means to focus on the written exam and his dissertation.

"I'm Tired Of Being A Criminal": Can Cannabis Break Crushing Cop Countermeasures In Coup For Cooped Up Cancer Crusaders?

Staff — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:05:39 -0600

[This story was originally published in the 4/25/08 issue of The Weekly Report.]
The medical marijuana bill (SF 345/HF 655) has been generating a great deal of public debate. With television ads, editorials and opinion pieces, gravely dissimilar claims about the legislation are being circulated. PIM has checked into the language of the bill, examined claims in the debate, and studied the public relations strategies employed by both sides. A House vote on the bill is expected next week, and the result on the board promises to be surprising.

The Minnesota bill is quite restricted and specific, compared to the 12 other states that have legalized the use of medical marijuana. It regulates every stage of usage: Patients would be required to hold a unique registration card for a fee of $100, which would exempt them from arrest and prosecution for possession or use; the card is valid for one year; patients are limited to 2.5 ounces of cannabis per two-week period. The marijuana would come exclusively from registered, vetted organizations. Patients would need to have defined debilitating diseases, which are named in the bill (including multiple sclerosis, cancers, and certain severe injuries) as well as conditions the Commissioner of Health deems acceptable.

Letters published in major papers that oppose the movement for medical marijuana, often authored by law enforcement officers and county attorneys, predict dire consequences that seem unrelated to the actual bill. For example, Nicholas O'Hara, a Ramsey County inspector, framed the legislation as a part of "the fight against drug abuse," implying that medical legalization would increase violent crimes, child abuse and, of course, the traditional "gateway" bridge-to-other-drugs claim. He also claimed that teen pot smoking has increased in the medical marijuana states, while the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) says this is provably false.

James Backstrom, Dakota County attorney, writes to the Star Tribune with similar concerns. He claims that medical marijuana would "clearly lead to the perception that marijuana is harmless" and the same old doom and gloom about violent crime. Neal Levine, MPP's state campaign director, shot back that the Minnesota Nurses Association, the Minnesota Public Health Association and the Minnesota AIDS Project all support the bill, and nearly 3,000 medical professionals have signed a statement in its favor.

Arguably, these letters miss the point of the legislation and only address vague hypothetical scenarios, while ignoring the bill's language and experiences in the other states. The only way opponents can frame the debate is by deliberately ignoring when marijuana entered the medical lexicon in ancient Greece and China: for them, reality begins in 1937, and everything outside the last century is strictly out-of-bounds. [Consult the 1972 report of the National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse for more background. The report concluded: "Marihuana should be accorded the medical status it once had in this country as a legitimate prescription item."]

In a PR coup for bill proponents, the Strib and Pioneer Press editorialized in favor of it, focusing on strong bipartisan support and the paramount importance of providing effective medical care to Minnesotans. Hoping to seal the deal, MPP has made a six-figure ad buy on local TV, with stories from real Minnesotans. The first featuring chronic pain sufferer Lynn Rubenstein Nicholson of Minneapolis, is also on YouTube. She concludes, "I'm tired of being a criminal."

Battling rebellious state legislatures, the federal government is intervening via advertising in Michigan. With cash from the Department of Justice, the Drug Free America Foundation produced an ad campaign promoting TrueCompassion.org, which falsely claims that "every major health organization rejects smoked marijuana," while in fact national groups like the American College of Physicians, the American Nurses Association and many others actually support medical marijuana reform.

On Almanac at the Capitol [video], Rep. Chris DeLaForest (R-Andover) said the MN bill puts licensed doctors and patients in control, which is in agreement with his Republican principles. He squared off with Police Officer Association chief Bill Gillespie, who claimed erroneously that it has "narcotic" chemical components. Mainly it's a "terrible message" to send to the public, Gillespie said. Reducing the numbers of harmless, sick people among the 700,000+ annual marijuana arrests nationwide was another benefit for DeLaForest. Gillespie said that "marijuana cures nothing," and people should take the less effective THC-laden Marinol pills anyway. Gillespie said that "funny scrips" empower people to grow and sell marijuana in other states, even though nothing in the Minnesota bill allows anyone besides registered growers to grow. "This thing is an idea... The hardest thing in law enforcement is to fight an idea, anywhere in the world. We cannot, will not, agree to this idea," he said. DeLaForest added that it permits the smallest amount nationwide, and explicitly requires upholding the federal policies of the FDA and DEA.

While Gillespie assured Almanac viewers that GOP Gov. Tim Pawlenty intends to veto the bill, the governor might want to take note of his friend U.S. Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) hedged statements. When McCain launched his presidential campaign on April 25, 2007, he said that "I will let states decide that issue," though he has also provided the usual Republican anti-drug hawk messages, as well.

The reality is that marijuana has been known for well over a thousand years to relieve certain types of pain, and the Legislature has crafted a tight, bipartisan bill that is congruent with federal law. If we can create jobs by generating biodiesel and ethanol from industrial hemp, then Minnesota will once more be making proper use of this versatile plant.

Bully for Bob McFarlin

Sarah Janecek — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 07:34:22 -0600

Tom Sorel officially becomes Commissioner of Transportation, today, making it time to reflect on former Acting Commissioner Bob McFarlin.

Long ago I concluded that the true measure of a politician's character can be measured by the content and delivery of a concession speech after losing an election. Now there's a new measure for public servants. How they handle "losing" a job. Last week Acting MnDOT Commissioner Bob McFarlin set the gold standard for that measure.

When GOP Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced that Sorel was his pick to be Commissioner, McFarlin stood behind Pawlenty at the press conference and during the somewhat personal and grueling Q&A from reporters about why Sorel, and not McFarlin (or the third candidate, Robert Johns from the U of M's Center for Transportation Studies), got the job. McFarlin endured all with grace and dignity. Pawlenty and Senate Transportation Chair Steve Murphy (DFL-Red Wing) singled out McFarlin for his fine service to the Department both as Acting Commissioner and as an assistant to now deposed former Commissioner Carol Molnau. As well they should.

As an assistant commissioner, McFarlin rose to the challenge of providing stable, steady information when the state was in a crisis mode after the bridge fell. [Arguably, Molnau's repeated deference to McFarlin because of his knowledge before television cameras was part of her undoing.] McFarlin accomplished much in his two-month stint as acting commissioner. He met with dozens of legislators to try to restore trust, and continually reminded people about the fine work that MnDOT employees do beyond the purview of the political spot light. He oversaw the closing of the bridge in St. Cloud.

But the most important thing McFarlin did, without anyone yet actually recognizing it, is that McFarlin took the animosity out of the debate.

I'm betting McFarlin didn't get the permanent job in large part because of his public relations/public affairs practice resume. Outsiders were clamoring for a "transportation professional." In McFarlin's case, that's a shame. He would have been a good commissioner. Best wishes to McFarlin whether he stays at the department (Sorel should definitely try to keep McFarlin) or if he decides to move on. If McFarlin leaves, let no one forget he moved the Department on.

"Busing, Flushing And Planning": Met Council At A Crossroads

Dan Feidt — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:16:15 -0600

[This story was originally published in the 4/21/08 issue of The Weekly Report.]
Once again, there's a perennial proposal (HF 2662/SF 2605) to create staggered Met Council terms (retaining some Council members after the Governor who appointed them leaves office), and all the functions of the Council seemed to be on the table at the House floor last Wednesday. Should its members be elected? Is it a villain, an unelected bureaucracy with unchecked taxing powers? Is it an instrument of socialized planning, or a pawn of a right-wing governor? For DFLers, whether or not Pawlenty's Council can advocate a regional transit system has become the key question; the Senate still has to confirm some members this session. The GOP's Council view seems to divide along regional lines.

PIM talked with several legislators looking critically at the Met Council, especially since what chairman Peter Bell called his "number one" priority, the St. Paul light rail line, got vetoed. Sen. Kathy Saltzman (DFL-Woodbury), Reps. Neil Peterson (R-Bloomington), Sandra Peterson (DFL-New Hope), Mark Buesgens (R-Jordan) and Frank Hornstein (DFL-Minneapolis) each gave PIM quite a different view about the generally overlooked metro super-agency. Saltzman and Sandra Peterson are carrying different versions of the staggered terms bill.

Who supports staggering? We heard support came from metro cities and counties, but mainly the cities. Saltzman said staggering would provide "a little independence" to work with local communities and the region. With more continuity between governorships, the Council could better focus on developing good regional policy. Saltzman's proposal enters effect in 2009, while the current House version starts after re-apportionment in 2013.

The Central Corridor "is too important to pawn," and everyone wants to be partners in getting it on track again, she said.

Her Council proposal has strong bipartisan support (GOP Sens. Chris Gerlach (R-Apple Valley) and Geoff Michel (R-Edina) have signed on), and it feels like a modest and responsible reform, she said. [Update 4/23: To clarify the above paragraph, Sen. Gerlach let PIM know that he is on board with Saltzman's Council proposal, but wanted to add that if anyone got the impression he's advocating the Central Corridor, that's "not the case."]

Those Who Help The Most, Pay the Most?

Pam Steinle — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 13:12:44 -0600

The Governor, Senate and House are all proposing cuts to Medical Assistance in an effort to fix the state's budget problems. Medical Assistance is Minnesota’s Medicaid program that serves roughly 480,000 low-income families with children, senior citizens and the disabled. Termed "a one-year delay in Medicaid rebasing," it basically means that the $77 million that was scheduled to be paid to hospitals this year will not be paid out afterall.

At first glance, the proposal seems fiscally sound: hospitals that serve individuals on Medical Assistance will simply need to wait a year before they are paid for services rendered. But most capitol insiders agree the state's financial position will not look much better next year, an outlook that doesn't bode well for hospitals hoping to be reimbursed.

A more personal look at the proposal reveals the negative impact that minimal and delayed reimbursements have on those who depend on Medical Assistance to obtain quality healthcare. A fear of those on assistance is that hospitals might begin rejecting Medical Assistance; while the idea seems almost immoral, it is already prevalent in the field of dentistry.

Families on assistance are hard-pressed to find dentists that will accept Medical Assistance; a problem exacerbated for rural families who have even fewer choices near their home. If one is lucky, they might be seen by a reputable dentist who has an opening (by law, dentists cannot reject patients on assistance until they meet a 10% threshold); but often, families are subjected to professionals with little experience, or who graduated in the bottom of their class, or who otherwise are "forced" to accept Medical Assistance to pay their bills.

Those on assistance experience a significant amount of embarrassment, sometimes at the hand of dentists and receptionists who know they aren't going to make much on this particular patient, as well as frustration that they have little choice but to return to these offices. And while some cynics out there shrug and say, "Who Cares?" keep in mind that many of these clients are children, and these children are rejected by the best dentists because medical assistance doesn't pay nearly enough in the eyes of practitioners to warrant service.

The Omnibus Supplemental Budget Bill (SF 3813, see article 20, sections 10-11) impacts hospitals that serve large numbers of clients on assistance. Of the estimated 140 hospitals in the state, only a handful of hospitals shoulder a vast majority of the proposed $77 million cut. For example, Children's Hospitals and Clinics treat patients from across the state without question, and as a result 35-40% of their patients are on assistance. This delay in payments will cost Children's Hospitals $13.6 million, or approximately 20% of the total proposed cut. Other hospitals that serve high numbers on assistance are Gillette, Regions and HCMC.

Providers will need to take steps to recoup their losses, perhaps in the area of salaries (translation: they can't afford the best doctors), or when negotiating health plan contracts (translation: higher costs passed on to those with private insurance. Although there hasn't been any of talk of it at the capitol, those on Medical Asssitance are concerned that doctors, like dentists, might begin rejecting them as well.

But to date, hospitals are commited to helping all who come through their doors, regardless of the 20% benchmark statute. The Omnibus Supplemental Budget Bill Conference Committee has to make cuts somewhere, but it doesn't seem right to start by punishing hospitals financially for helping the highest numbers of patients on assistance.

Omnibus Supplemental Budget Bill Conference Committee

House: Chair Carlson, M. Murphy, Wagenius, Rukavina, Ozment
Senate: Chair Cohen, Tomassoni, Frederickson, Betzold, Higgins

Congressional Fundraising Numbers: Q1

Staff — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0600

The first quarter fundraising numbers are in for Minnesota's eight Congressional races, with U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN6), U.S. Rep. Tim Walz (DFL-MN1), and newcomer Erik Paulsen (R) emerging as the big winners. Bachmann's and Walz' success comes as no surprise as their respective parties seem ready to pull out all the stops in securing the freshman incumbents' return for a second term. Paulsen seems to have caught fire in a Republican race where he is the lone name; his nearly $400,000 raised has surely caught the attention of the Democrats.

Candidate	1st Quarter Raised	On Hand	FEC Link
Tim Walz DFL CD1	$352,044	$1,503,236	Link
Randy Demmer R CD1	$13,803	$83,979	Link
Dick Day R CD1	$16,233	$203,387	Link
Brian Davis R CD1	$34,491	$198,592	Link
John Kline R CD2	$194,106	$833,985	Link
Steve Sarvi D CD2	$61,108	$104,843	Link
Erik Paulsen R CD3	$382,819	$429,494	Link
Terri Bonoff D CD3	$167,387	$472,137	Link
Ashwin Madia D CD3	$196,079	$357,245	Link
Betty McCollum DFL CD4	$105,472	$372,362	Link
Keith Ellison DFL CD5	$198,535	$715,747	Link
Michele Bachmann R CD6	$345,644	$1,554,988	Link
Bob Olson D CD6	$21,834	$79,350	Link
Elwyn Tinklenberg D CD6	$126,925	$260,077	Link
Collin Peterson DFL CD7	$50,050	$723,328	Link
Jim Oberstar DFL CD8	$164,707	$1,178,489	Link

Paul and Our Politics

Sarah Janecek — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 08:10:35 -0600

[Note: This story first appeared in the April 11, 2008, edition of The Weekly Report.]

While some reporters assigned to cover Minnesota politics achieve -- without aspiring to -- cult-like status among Minnesota politicos, rare is the local media celebrity beyond the purview of covering Minnesota politics who actually matters in Minnesota politics.

Former WCCO TV weatherman Paul Douglas is one of those people. [To repeat what all our readers know: Douglas was unceremoniously dumped from the station in a national wave of lay-offs by WCCO owner CBS.]

Why?

First, his subject matter. Nationally, Barack Obama can talk about an America where there are not red states or blue states, but a United States. In Minnesota, nothing crosses the red precinct-blue precinct divide faster than talk about the weather. Weather talk is in our DNA and with good reason ... witness the last 24 hours in what is supposed to be spring. Confession: Your publisher watches very little television news. However, every morning, she scans the headlines on the front page and then immediately turns to Douglas' weather commentary on the back of the Star Tribune's second section. Those paragraphs Douglas cranks out every day are witty and fun and always full of new material. The kind of weather factoid material that feeds our Minnesota DNA. Keeping that a must-read, year after year, is no small feat. Douglas does it, and does it well.

Second, Douglas' professional life story epitomizes the other great subject matter that crosses the red-blue divide: Minnesota's quality of life.

Twenty-two years ago, Douglas started in this market at KARE 11. Then he did what Minnesotans expect local media celebrities to do, he bailed on our state for Chicago, a larger media market, in the mid-1990s. Three years later, Douglas moved his family back to the Twin Cities. And, what most people don't remember, is that he did that without a local weatherman job in his pocket. Dumping a larger city to return to Minnesota?! That made Douglas a poster boy for Minnesota's much touted, particularly by Minnesota pols, "quality of life."

The Star Tribune's Neil Justin captured this quote from Douglas, "We are dedicated to Minnesota," he said. "Our Chicago experience proved to us that bigger is not necessarily better. Minnesota is an extraordinary place, and we are here for life."

Finally, Douglas has been a fixture in another Minnesota political institution, TPT's Almanac, longer than most people realize. Douglas' first appearance on the show was back in 1985 (Almanac had been on the air for less than a year at the time). When Douglas moved back here from Chicago, he actually reached a deal with Almanac to do monthly weather gigs before he reached a deal with WCCO. The first few times Douglas appeared on the show, it wasn't at the table with Eric Eskola and Cathy Wurzer. Former Almanac monologue guy/reporter/funny guy J.G. Preston would interview Douglas on a strange looking set that had a map of the world and an old wooden desk. That changed when some TPT staffer was clearing out scene storage and threw out the set. So, Almanac producers had to change plans, and that's why Douglas ended up at the table with Eskola and Wurzer.

Wonderfully, Almanac plans to continue Douglas' monthly weather chats (you can catch him on the show, tonight). Whether Douglas remains at the Star Tribune is unclear. When queried about same via email, the paper's editor, Nancy Barnes, responded, "Paul and I are getting together soon to talk about his role at the Star Tribune. I'll be able to tell readers more about whether there will be any changes there or not later."

We cannot imagine a scenario where Douglas does not have a future at the paper, and a seriously expanded one at that. As MinnPost's David Brauer wrote in his story about the paper's plans for "Strib TV," and with anti-competitive online issues with WCCO on the web no longer an issue, "hello, Paul Douglas!"