By Ken Martin, DFL Chairman

“The same Republican Party that brought Minnesota into a government shutdown in 2011 is already preparing itself for another destructive shutdown.

“On Wednesday afternoon, with several weeks left before a shutdown would be triggered, state Sen. Sean Nienow (R- Cambridge) attempted to advance a bill he calls ‘Plan B,’ even while negotiations between legislative leaders and Gov. Mark Dayton are still in progress. Every single Senate Republican voted for Nienow’s motion.

“Make no mistake: this Plan B is just a desperate attempt to deflect accountability from their Party, which has refused to move from their negotiating position for weeks. Minnesotans don’t want to eliminate MinnesotaCare for 100,000 of our neighbors. We don’t want an education budget that would force cuts in our school districts. We don’t want to end up with a budget that sacrifices long-term fiscal stability for a temporary tax cut. Minnesotans will see through their cynical politics if Tea Party Republicans continue to propose such destructive policies and try to dodge responsibility for the results.

“While Republicans are busy preparing Plan B, Senate DFLers are still working hard on Plan A: negotiating a compromise with the House, passing a responsible budget and keeping the government from shutting down in the first place. If Senate Republicans are truly concerned about Minnesota’s future, they should work to avoid a shutdown instead of spending the last days of session avoiding the blame.”

government shutdown · Minnesota Senate Republicans · Tea Party

In the fourth gubernatorial debate at Hamline University, Jeff Johnson continued his personal and desperate attacks in an effort to hide the fact that he has no positive solutions to improve Minnesota

Johnson also continued to reiterate misleading claims regarding the economy and job creation that have been debunked

With only 16 days left until Election Day, Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson today made clear that he still has no plan to lead Minnesota. At today’s fourth gubernatorial debate at Hamline University, Johnson continued his personal and desperate attacks in an effort to hide the fact that he has no positive solutions to improve the state. Johnson also continued to reiterate misleading claims regarding the economy and job creation that have been debunked.

Economy

At today’s debate, Jeff Johnson again claimed that Minnesota’s economy is faltering and our state’s private sector is not strong.

Yet Johnson’s claims have already been labeled as ‘misleading’ by Minnesota Public Radio and the most recent data shows continued economic growth for Minnesota.

• “For painting an overly dismal picture of the state’s business climate, Johnson earns a misleading.” [MPR, 10/17/14]
• The most recent jobs report for Minnesota shows that the state has added 16,000 jobs in the last two months alone, and more than 170,000 jobs since Governor Dayton took office. At 4.1 percent, our unemployment rate is the lowest it’s been in eight years, and we are more than 50,000 jobs above our pre-recessionary peak. [WCCO, 10/16/14]
• Minnesota is one of only five states where unemployment is lower than it was when the recession started. [Washington Post, 10/10/14]

Johnson also continued to claim that 53 percent of Minnesotans are underemployed, but this number has also been called out for its limitations: (more…)

2014 economy · 2014 Minnesota Gubernatorial Debate · 24-7 Governor · Jeff Johnson · Minnesota Sex Offender Program · MNsure · Support the Middle Class · Tea Party

Candidate needs to be truthful with Minnesotans on this record

Jeff Johnson, MPR Capitol View

Today DFL Chairman Ken Martin called on Jeff Johnson to stop lying about his record and be truthful with Minnesotans about his relationship with the Tea Party and his plans for Minnesota.

After assiduously courting the Tea Party for months by speaking at more than a dozen Tea Party meetings and events, promising to actively push their agenda and ‘go all Scott Walker’ on Minnesota, Johnson has been backpedaling for the last month on his relationship with the group.

Yesterday that backtracking turned into outright lying. When asked by a reporter about his Tea Party support Johnson said:

“I don’t know that… well I’m not a member, but I don’t know that you have membership, nor do they endorse by the way, I’ve been told that, nor have I asked for their endorsement.” [Tom Horner endorsement press conference, 9/9/14]

But the truth is that Johnson did ask for their endorsement back in April:

“I just ask that you give me a close look, because I think that I may be your guy, and I would be truly honored to earn your support and endorsement in this race.” [South Metro Tea Party, 4/22/14]

And in fact he did receive the endorsement of the president of the Minnesota Tea Party Alliance, Jack Rodgers.

“Whether one supports a particular group or not is a matter of personal preference,” Martin said. “But telling the truth and being honest with Minnesotans isn’t a matter of preference, it’s matter of whether or not you’re trustworthy and people can believe the things you tell them, and right now frankly Jeff Johnson has proven that he can’t be trusted. If he’s lying about this, what else is he lying about? Is he lying about not rolling back all day kindergarten? Is he lying about not cutting education funding?

Martin added:

“There are less than two months left in this campaign and Minnesotans still don’t know much about Jeff Johnson, and what they do know is very troubling.”

Neither is his denial about asking for an endorsement from the Tea Party his only offense against the truth. Last month when asked he denied being a Tea Party member, even though he showed that he clearly considers himself one of them when he said:

“There is this perception that the media has created that Tea Parties are kind of wacko, and we are not. And I say ‘we’, and I proudly say ‘we’.” [South Metro Tea Party, 4/22/14]

Until Jeff Johnson comes clean with voters and treats Minnesotans with the candor they expect in their public officials, everything he says should be considered suspect.

Jeff Johnson · Minnesota Governor · Minnesota Tea Party Alliance · Tea Party

Investment banker Mike McFadden’s trouble with the truth continues.

Two fact check organizations, PolitiFact and MPR’s PoliGraph, called McFadden out for lying to Minnesotans in his first TV ad.

PolitiFact: The Truth-O-Meter Says: FALSE: McFadden Says Al Franken “voted to exempt himself and Congress from enrolling in (the Affordable Care Act marketplaces).” 

MPR: PoliGraph: McFadden ad doesn’t tell whole story

Rarely does McFadden level with Minnesotans on the issues and, even more disturbing, when he does speak up it’s not the truth that’s coming from his mouth. He’s been caught distorting the facts on:

• The Affordable Care Act

“Months ago, the Star Tribune asked McFadden campaign for any back up of its claim about Franken but it has offered no back up.”

• The medical device tax

“[McFadden] says that Sen. Al Franken opposes repealing the tax, but that is somewhere between an oversimplification and a falsehood, and closer to the latter.”

• The IRS Scandal

“That makes these claims misleading to the point of being false.”

• The Affordable Care Act (again)

“The five-second sound bite Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike McFadden is using to try tying Sen. Al Franken to the latest health-care reform rollout controversy is taken out of context.”

• Trying to con grassroots conservatives into donating to his campaign, which drew criticism from local Tea Party leaders for his blatant deception.

“Tea Party leaders again took aim at GOP Senate candidate Mike McFadden calling him a ‘phony’ and a ‘fraud’…”

Affordable Care Act · first ad fact check · IRS · medical device tax · Mike McFadden · Tea Party

In Tea Partyland, common sense is usually in short supply, but we had a severe “huh?” moment this weekend when Sen. Ted Cruz, he of the shutdown the government filibuster who’s still getting paid, and everyone’s favorite half-term governor of Alaska who can’t resist a media op incited a group of Tea Partiers to near violence in Washington, DC.

The source of their extreme ire? National monuments being closed. Hello!!! The National Park systems employees are furloughed because of the government shutdown brought on by Democrats not caving to the whim of a group of Congresspeople (mostly white males) who represent less than 20% of the population.

Could it be that they believe if you’re not part of the 1%, you should work whether your paid or not?  Or, are they attempting to exploit veterans?  Don’t believe us?  Read more here.

government shutdown · national monument · Sarah Palin · Tea Party · Ted Cruz