Today was a milestone in my life. Today, gas prices hit four dollars a gallon. I had hoped that this day was not coming in the near future. In fact, it shouldn’t have.
If gas prices kept even with inflation, we should see a four percent growth in prices from year to year. Instead, we have seen 36% increases in single years.
What makes this so infuriating is that it was preventable. Most of us are on a shoestring budget after the latest round of energy price increases. The sad part is that idiots like John McCain and Barack Obama still don’t get it. They are pushing for more legislation that breaks the backs of normal Americans. I guess that’s easy to do when the feds give senators a blank check for their gas expenditures.
For my house, gas prices have been cutting into our savings in a major way. Its getting to the point where we are seriously having to cut back on driving.
It should have been different. We are sitting on more energy than most countries can imagine. Yet we do nothing. Nancy Pelosi is playing the fiddle while our economy tanks. Are there any good politicians out there?
This is no longer a political issue. It is a moral issue. I don’t say this lightly, but forget about your stupid tree hugger legislation. Tree hugging is not something we can afford right now. People are losing their lives, their liberty, and their ability to pursue happiness.
Our congress has failed us. It is time to elect new ones. Lets begin to ask for their resignations! Many republicans and democrats alike should be fired for their gross negligence. If they were running a business, they would be thrown in jail for their misuse of funds. Perhaps we should give congress a taste of their own medicine. They hold “trials” on the house floor, maybe we should put them on trial as well.
The Hill is reporting that the Lieberman-Warner act could cost far more than Democrats are willing to let on.
In fact, even after most of the up front expenses are taken care of, the EPA predicts that the bill would cost the U.S. economy $983,000,000,000 in a singe year (estimate for 2030).
All this for a contrived global warming sham. What this does, it is permanently cripples the U.S. economy and puts our hometown companies at a disadvantage to foreign competition. Where is the outrage from the unions?
One of the largest local newspaper chains in the Twin Cities seems to be engaged in a little bit of biased censorship. Many times newspaper outfits think of themselves as gatekeepers to all the important information within a specific community.
The bias of editors sometimes gets in the way of free and open thought. These editors will hand pick letters that portray their specific political views more prominently than others.
Terry Pearson has a good post on his site about the tax increases. He sent a letter to the editor, but they refused to publish it. He is trying to get his letter out anyway, through the alternative media. He has given permission for anyone to copy his post and use it however they feel appropriate.
The text of his post is below:
I sent the following letter to the editor of my local newspaper (MN Sun Newspaper - South St. Paul, West St. Paul, Inver Grove Heights, and Mendota Heights). Unfortunately, they chose not to publish it. They never actually gave a reason why they refused to publish it, but it was interesting that the only opinion on the Minnesota Tax Increases was published by a Democrat from the Minnesota House of Representatives.
Fortunately, I can go around MNSun’s censorship and publish this on my blog. Feel free to copy any or all of this letter and get the word out on this.
Dear Editor,
I do not think that I have ever been as disappointed in our state government as I am today. Today, our representative, Joe Atkins, along with many others in the Minnesota House and Senate voted to impose one of the largest tax increases in Minnesota history.
While nobody likes to have their money taken from them, it especially hurts when you know that just one year ago the state of Minnesota had a multi billion dollar surplus. Instead of being frugal in the good years, our state representatives squandered that surplus on various pork projects throughout the state in order to give favors to supporters.
Due to the tremendous growth in spending last year, along with a stuttering economy, we find ourselves in a major deficit. This is a problem that could have been avoided if our leadership had planned for the long run. Even the week before the vote on the tax increase, Democrats were not trying to find ways responsibly cut spending. Instead, they were giving away money to every earmark project they could think of. I suppose this was to ensure the need for a tax increase.
Today, we are faced with higher fuel prices, increased unemployment, and a weak dollar. With our economy running on fumes, the DFL proposed the worst solution to the problem. They thought that the best course of action would be to take more money from the working middle class families of Minnesota.
The tax increases that were passed by the Senate and House include a gas tax, a sales tax, and a vehicle registration fee increase. It’s funny, because I thought that the DFL said that they were going to go after the rich. Instead, they proposed increasing taxes where it would hurt the middle class the most. Contractors, couriers, even commuters will be hurt by these increases.
I know that Representative Atkins followed the lead of his party when he voted for the tax increases, but it would have been nice if he chose to do what is best for his community instead. I think that it is time that we push for a change in leadership in the Minnesota House and Senate. It is time that we elect people who put our community, and its families, before the DFL party platform.
Jason Lewis of 100.3 KTLK has been an outspoken and justified critic agaist Kare11’s ruthless attack on capitalism and complete disregard for the facts on the 2008 Minnesota tax increases. Here is Jason Lewis’s latest post about Rick Cupchella.
(Note: all quotes are from news stories posted on KARE11 website or Mr. Kupchella’s postings and/or emails. Relevant links are displayed parenthetically next to appropriate passages.)
Well, good for Rick. He and the KARE 11 staff up against lowly me. At least that makes it fair.
While of course “taking no position on whether a gas tax is or is not a good idea,” Rick and the gang at we-KARE-oh-so-much-11 found it necessary to take a knee-jerk position questioning not the gas tax proponents facts and figures, but those of us who are critical of this latest Minnesota tax grab. That is an operating premise worth considering when you’re watching the 10PM news around here.
Unfortunately, Mr. Kupchella’s other premise, the main one
For the casual Minnesota politics observer, the Minnesota House of Representatives is a boring topic. Most people are too busy working, raising a family, or collecting welfare checks.
However, the issues developing internally inside the Minnesota House Republican Caucus should catch everyone’s attention. The leader of the House Republicans, Marty Seifert, has done a great job of holding their minority of Representatives together. Last year, they stopped a tax increase due to his leadership ability.
While Seifert’s leadership has been stronger than ever, some Republicans in Name Only decided it was time to make their move. Fueled by special interest money and political self serving motives, Ron Erhardt and a handful of others who tainted the Republican name, decided to come out of the closet and begin their internal takeover of the Grand Old Party.
Fortunately, we have another option. Representative Ron Erhardt, can be fired by his constituents by him not getting the nomination at his local Republican Convention. Fortunately, there is already someone who is willing to take his place.
Keith Downey has announced that he will be taking on Ron Erhardt in the crucial battle for the Edina 41-A Republican nomination for the House of Representatives.
Blogger and Minnesota Senate candidate, Bill Jungbauer, has posted a brief writeup on Mr. Downey. He should be a good candidate according to Jungbauer.
Also included on Jungbauer’s post is a podcast link for the Chris Baker show. Baker had interviewed Ron Erhardt on Friday morning. Erhardt appeared to be unconvincing and awkward. You can also read the entire interview of Ron Erhardt here.
In 2006, the Minnesota Democrats ran on fiscal responsibility, and even rejected the idea of raising taxes.
It’s funny how people change when they actually get to office. We now have almost every democrat, and some foolish Republicans, clamoring for more taxes. If there ever were a case that shows that “power corrupts” we have found it in Minnesota’s 2008 House of Representatives.
So called “good boys” like Joe Atkins (Democrat - Inver Grove Heights/South St. Paul) have gone on a spending spree like nothing ever seen in Minnesota. Then, they complain to the tax payers that money is running short.
The Minnesota House Republicans have been standing in the way of a flood of new taxes, and now barely have enough votes to sustain a veto by governor Pawlenty.
It should have never been this way, liars like Rod Hamilton(Republican - Cottonwood and Jackson Counties), stood on the Republican platform, telling his constituents that he would uphold the ideas that they wrote into their party platform. Instead, he has become a sellout for special interests.
To see all members of the Minnesota House of Representatives who voted for the largest tax increase in Minnesota History, see Bill Jungbauer’s post on the tax increase.
The DFL has blindsided the Minnesotan populace with several monster tax increases today. There were 89 yes votes and 44 no votes. Along with the DFL, we also had 5 Republicans abandon the conservative base and vote for the bill. Their names were Rod Hamilton, Niel Peterson, Bud Heidgerken and two others [names will be provided when the votes are published on the house website].
The tax increases include a 1/4% sales tax increase, a raise in the gas tax, and a raise in the overall vehicle registration fees that will be paid over the life of a car.
This tax increase is a tax on working middle class members. It’s a tax on contractors, who are required to drive extensively to get their jobs done. It’s a tax on taxi drivers, who will receive less wages as their company pays more to the State in gas taxes. It’s a tax on farmers, who are greatly affected by gas prices. Delivery truck drivers, commuters, people who can’t afford a high gas mileage vehicle, parents who drive their kids to school, etc… etc…. etc.
Marty Seifert had proposed an alternative. He proposed a bill that would fund the roads, but remove some of the pork projects that the Democrats have already added to the budget. It would also use state bonds to pay for major projects.
Unfortunately, the DFL did not let this bill leave the committee. If they really cared about the people of Minnesota, the DFL would have encouraged an open debate on the bills. Instead, they limited debate, blindsided the public, and went after the tax burden increase on the people they were elected to represent.
Sadly, this tax hurts almost everyone. Republicans like Rod Hamilton, and DFL members like Joe Atkins should be ashamed of the way they have voted on this bill. Today, Minnesota is hurt because our legislature has failed us.
A handful of Minnesota House Republicans stand in the way of the Minnesota Tax Juggernaut in 2008.
Unfortunately, some representatives do not feel as strongly about keeping the tax burden low. In fact, one such Republican has said that he may change sides and vote with the Democrats for one of the most oppressive tax increases in recent history. They will override the veto of this horrible tax increase and will only do it to redistribute the money to their districts.
Bud Heidgerken said that his “hands are not tied like Pawlenty’s.” What he meant to say is that he is willing to enslave Minnesotans if he can bring home some pork for his district. It is comments like this that make conservatives hate Republicans.
We will wait and see Bud Heidgerken’s vote. If he and a few other special interest Republicans give up their roots, their values, and their base, we will have the worst tax burden in the United States, and Benedict Arnolds like him will be largely responsible.
Some other Republicans who are considering going against the public and increasing the gas and sales tax include Dean Urdahl, Rod Hamilton, and Neil Peterson.
Bud Heidgerken (R) 13A
* 237 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
(651) 296-4317
(800) 339-6071 E-mail:rep.bud.heidgerken@house.mn
Dean Urdahl (R) 18B
239 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
(651) 296-4344
(800) 920-5861
Rod Hamilton (R) 22B
* 215 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
(651) 296-5373
(800) 735-2463 E-mail:rep.rod.hamilton@house.mn
Assistant Minority Whip
Neil W. Peterson (R) 41B
213 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
(651) 296-7803 E-mail:rep.neil.peterson@house.mn
In the latest MPR poll, there are some unexpected results. First of all, Minnesotans are very concerned about the economy. About 30 percent of those surveyed, found the economy to be their number one issue. The economy received twice as many votes as any other item.
Among Minnesotan’s other top concerns were The war in Iraq, Health care, Terrorism and national security, and Illegal immigration.
Lower items included Social Security and Medicare, Taxes and spending, Energy and gas prices, and Moral values.
President Bush signed historic legislation today banning a practice that congress has made common. The practice of adding additional non-binding requirements onto bills has been used for many years.
Congress usually attaches an addendum to major spending bills that federal agencies have generally followed. With President Bush’s executive order, this practice will be all but banished. All Federal Agencies will be banned from honoring future “Earmark Addendums.”
This order will force Congress to be more up front with proposed spending bills. After the Democrat Congress took power in 2006, many had hoped for a decrease in earmarks. Unfortunately, the opposite took place.
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