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Taxpayers League of Minnesota eUpdate
1. The David Strom Show sponsored by the Minnesota Free Market Institute.
2. Hold tight, folks. Here comes the next round of school levy referenda.
3. Your last chance to hear from some of America’s leading conservatives.
4. Government is too important to leave to the politicians.
5. What’s worse: Government largesse to dead people or to New Yorkers?
1. The David Strom Showsponsored by the Minnesota Free Market Institute.
Tune in this Saturday to AM 1280 The Patriot from 9 – 11 am when David will be joined by State Representatives Paul Kohls and Tom Hackbarth live from the Minnesota State Fair. If you haven’t been to the Fair yet this year, Saturday morning is definitely the time to make the trip. Most of the “youts” won’t be out of bed yet, parking isn’t much of a problem (except for the cost) and the Summit Beer tent (conveniently near the Patriot booth on Judson across from the Horticultural building) is the perfect place to wash down a steaming pile of deep fried Spam curds.
Also, make sure to catch David tonight on Almanac on TPT at 7pm.
2. Don’t be surprised when November 6th rolls around, educate yourself now.
According to the Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA), “the second-highest number of school districts ever are going out for an operating levy referendum this fall. MSBA’s 2007 Referendum Survey of 341 districts across the state show 91 districts considering a ballot request this year. That’s the highest number of districts since 188 districts went out for a referendum in 2001. It is the second-highest number since MSBA began tracking referenda in 1980. An additional 26 districts are trying for bond referendums this fall.”
To see if your district is on the list, click the MSBA link above and follow the links near the top of the page. If you see your school on the list, contact the district office and find out exactly what they intend to use the money for. After that, reply to this email and request a copy of the Minnesota Education League Foundation’s “Getting Results” brochure that aims to answer the question, “Does a more expensive education system buy you better results?” Don’t be left in the dark this November. Get the information you need, because voting stupid isn’t ok.
3. …and to hear them on the Taxpayers League’s dime.
This is your last chance to travel on the Taxpayers League’s dime to attend the Defending the American Dream Summit in Washington, DC. And because Americans for Prosperity and the Taxpayers League think this opportunity is so important, there are a number of scholarships available that can cut down the cost of the trip by as much as half. If you are interested (and you can commit to the trip by Tuesday, September 5), reply to this email and I’ll get you all the information you need. For a full list of confirmed speakers and the Summit schedule for October 4th and 5th, visit the Defending the Dream website, here.
4. Don’t like the results of a poll? Then call the respondents “stupid.”
That’s what State Rep. Melissa Hortman did in hercommentary piece in last Thursday’s Star Tribune. Taking exception to the fact the 57% of Minnesotans oppose a gas tax increase, Rep. Hortman came to conclusion that we must not be educated enough. Though she padded her piece with calls for more “leadership” and declarations of “truth” (meaningless rhetoric being the second-to-last refugee of the scoundrel) it’s pretty clear that Rep. Hortman doesn’t think much of our opinion. Why is it that every time a politician talks about “leadership” it involves foisting some maternalistic basket of good intentions on unsuspecting taxpayers? Why can’t leadership simply be doing your job during the legislative session then leaving us alone when you’ve adjourned for the year? Perhaps if Rep. Hortman and her legislative colleagues weren’t so busy last session likening their Transportation bill to a modern day Crusade to the Holy Land, we would have seen some increased funding for roads and bridges – it’s no secret that Governor Pawlenty would have supported (and still does support) a moderate gas tax increase. Admittedly, advocating for modest proposals that most Minnesotans can accept isn’t any fun and won’t get your name in the paper. But then we know what kind of leadership Rep. Hortman prefers.
Of course, this is also the same person that blamed the I-35 bridge collapse on “the massive heat we have had this summer.” Massive, of course, being the technical term you use when you have no idea what you’re talking about.
“Better to remain silent and thought the fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.”
5. From last Tuesday’s edition of OpinionJournal’s Political Diary.
Ghost of Hawley and Smoot by Taylor Buley:
“Remember Ross Perot's joke from the 1992 presidential campaign about a USDA staffer found weeping at his desk because, he said, ‘my farmer died?’ Cut to Washington today: According to a new GAO report, the USDA paid $1.1 billion in farm subsidies to 172,801 deceased individuals from 1999 through 2005. ‘Of this total, 40% went to those who had been dead for three or more years, and 19% to those dead for seven or more years,’ the report reads.
“But the USDA gamely offers a defense, claming that even if payments technically are supposed to be dished out to individuals (no doubt in the name of ‘saving the family farm’), the beneficiaries are business operations and ‘it would be unfairly disruptive to have one unfortunate event create an even bigger problem for a farming operation.’”
Granted, sending government farm subsidy checks to the dead doesn’t look good. But what about farm subsidy checks being sent to Central Park West in Manhattan? Bet you didn’t know that so much farming goes on right outside the front door of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
If you’re really curious as to who gets what from the Feds, click here and zoom your way all over the country. In fact, check out some of Minnesota’s most prosperous farming communities like Edina and Lake of the Isles.
At least Congressman Peterson is enjoying fleecing taxpayers in this year’s Farm bill.
The Taxpayers League of Minnesota's E Update is written by Mark Giga
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