Many of our contributors are in St. Cloud today and Saturday covering the MNGOP State Convention. Mitch Berg and Ed Morrissey will be broadcasting live on AM1280, and you can follow updates on Twitter with the #MNGOP12 hashtag. Rachel Stassen-Berger of the StarTribune has a list of us live-tweeting. Gary Gross will be live-blogging and interviewing at Examiner.com and Let Freedom Ring. On the slate today is endorsing the candidate for U.S. Senate to run against Amy Klobuchar: sources say it's a tight race.

This weekend in addition to endorsing a US Senate candidate we will decide what to do with the MN GOP platform. And this year, it may well take a very different direction. There are many new people in the process, and many of us who have been around for a while who have said for some time that we need a document that better communicates that the party stands for, and against.

Well, we got that. Through processes of conventions we passed what is now known as the statement of Guiding Principles and Values as an official document of the MNGOP. Hopefully the Chair will market the heck out of it at the State Fair and elsewhere. That was one of the goals—to have a short simple summary of what the party stands for despite how some in the legistature may vote. Have a quick read of it here to see what it is and is not.

Earlier this week, Gov. Dayton joined DFL lawmakers in Duluth to pretend that building a new Vikings stadium was all that was needed for a great Minnesota economy:

“Thousands of people are going to be working on that stadium, and on the transit center in Duluth. Those aren’t just words, those are real jobs,” Dayton said, referring to $6 million included in the state bonding construction bill for the $27 million downtown transit hub supporters say will link bus, taxi and train passengers with hikers and bikers.

Things aren't going so well on that recall election thingy. At least for the recallers:

A new Marquette Law School Poll shows that with three weeks to go until the recall election Governor Scott Walker has taken a six-percentage point lead over Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, 50-44 percent, among likely voters. Just three percent say they are undecided. In the previous poll, taken April 26-29, Walker held a one-percentage point lead among likely voters, 48-47. Lt. Governor Rebecca Kleefisch holds a 47 to 41-percentage point lead over Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin president Mahlon Mitchell in that recall election, with 10 percent undecided.

Meanwhile, there's this:

 If you are a MNGOP activist, and you live in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th or 8th Congressional Districts, I have  a question for you.

What involvement does your district have with your district's congressional andn legislative races?    How does your Congressional district assist your various campaigns at all levels?

Just looking for info, here.

Just leave me an answer in the comment section at this post at Shot In The Dark.

Thanks in advance!

I wrote a letter to the lawmakers who sponsored a great idea that was included in the tax omnibus bill vetoed by Governor Dayton on Monday. Here’s the idea: Require cities (and I hope all units of government, including school boards, eventually) to post four years of budgets by expenditure type on their website.

Continue Reading

Since he took over the top position in MnSCU, Chancellor Rosenstone has said the right things. This is a perfect example of that:

“By listening to Minnesota employers, we can obtain a greater, much more precise understanding of the state’s workforce needs. Armed with this data, we can ensure that higher education is delivering the right academic programs and preparing graduates with the skills necessary for the success of Minnesota’s businesses and communities.” – Chancellor Steven Rosenstone

The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system is committed to supporting economic growth throughout the state. The system’s state universities and community and technical colleges provide career preparation and continuing career education for more Minnesotans than any other organization in the state.

Co-hosts Timothy McShane and Walter Hudson start off with a tribute to The Late Debate (briefly cancelled and now picked up by Newstalk AM 1130), then dive into a therapy session to untangle the confusing priorities of hardcore Ron Paul supporters. Also, a rant on how party routinely trumps principle as evidenced by the attempt late this session to override the fireworks bill veto.

Check out the show and subscribe to our RSS feed through iTunes or your favorite podcatcher. 'Like' us on Facebook and join the conversation.

You want bipartisan action that actually benefits the taxpayer?

Here’s your chance.

There is one more chance to stop the Vikings Stadium and send the bill back to the Legislature; convince the Minneapolis City Council to vote against the larceny of their Convention Center budget.

There are two votes that are considered swing-y on this issue:

If there was any doubt that Wisconsin Democrats were thugs, this video shows who they are:

One of the few things that I’ve ever agreed with Chris Matthews about was his questioning GOP presidential candidates in 2000 what type of America they wanted to live in. It’s a great question which is scalable to state and local levels, too.

The DFL’s special interest allies started their barrage of lies against the GOP legislature by accusing the GOP legislature of being a do-nothing legislature. Those attacks took another hit thanks to Mark Sommerhauser’s article:

Rep. King Banaian, R-St. Cloud, sponsored a provision included in a broader colleges and universities act, which he says should help students shop for textbooks. The provision requires the price of textbooks and other key information be posted online with a college or university course schedule, and requires that information be available to students longer before the start of an academic term.

I am afraid it is time I admit that all of these "new people in the Party" are not there because they want to become Republicans like the rest of us, and to admit that a lot of them are simply Ron Paul libertarians, NOT necessarily interested in helping elect Republican candidates.  We can certainly still admire their enthusiasm and organization without calling them names, and I wouldn't even be too concerned about their heavy-handed tactics and occasional shouting sprees if they could just answer one question: to what purpose?

Why are these folks organizing so thoroughly, fighting for rules favorable to themselves alone, being paranoid about balloting and pushing hard their "slates" of delegates?  I have heard a couple of reasons, but they don't make sense to me. 

Here are some things you might ask opponents of Voter ID legislation the next time they tell you that Minnesota has the best election system in the nation and there is no evidence of ineligible voting.

Ask them if it is a good thing that on election day in 2008, more than 500,000 persons walked into polling places, filled out pieces of paper called Voter Registration Applications, and then voted. The State treated these individuals differently than your registration if you are one who registered prior to the election. Specifically, your registration information was compared to the Department of Public Safety records indicating you are a citizen and are not a felon with unrestored voting rights. Additionally, your information was checked against court records to confirm that you are not under a guardianship order that has revoked your right to vote. Other checks were also done including confirming your residence in the precinct by sending a post card via the U.S. Post Office to see if it could be delivered to you.

Minnesota’s Political Post-Game Show will be getting a new home!  The Late Debate with will be moving to its new home on Twin Cities News Talk, AM 1130 KTCN beginning Saturday, May 26th.

Conservative co-hosts Jack Tomczak and Benjamin Kruse will be live from 2-4pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

For more information on KTCN, visit http://www.TwinCitiesNewsTalk.com.