Republicans still infuriated about gas tax

Since the end of the session, I've heard pretty much one thing from Republicans: gas tax, gas tax, gas tax. Comments on blogs and newspapers' websites are full of denunciations of the gas tax, and GOP Ron Carey spouts off on it in an article by Doug Grow. Man is this thing making them mad. But let's get one thing straight: this gas tax is not the reason why gas prices are so high! In fact, by refusing to ignore the problem or just put it on the credit card, the DFL is saving money in the long run.

According to minnesotagasprices.com, the average retail price of gasoline right now is $3.70/gallon. The new gas tax currently is an additional 2 cents, or one-half of one percent of what we're paying at the pump. By the time it's up to five cents, the price of gasoline will be at well over $4.00/gallon. That will make the new gas tax 1.25 percent of what we're paying at the pump.

In the end, it's more expensive to do nothing. The Texas Transportation Institute [PDF] estimates that congestion cost our region $1.1 billion a year, or $790 per person, in 2005 (the most recent data available). That's up from $653 in 2000. If we don't act, congestion will go up by the same amount or more over the next five years. At five cents a gallon, and 20 miles to the gallon, the gas tax is a bargain if you drive less than 55,000 miles a year.

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Budget compromise: thank the DFL for not playing "chicken."

From a policy perspective, the legislature's budget compromise wasn't too bad. In the end, the Central Corridor got its funding, education was given a boost, and healthcare reform (or at least a version of it) was passed. The Governor got his way on a property-tax cap that will move him closer to his apparent goal of crippling our cities, but the DFL linked the caps to increases in LGA that should help soften the blow and make it more like real property-tax relief.

In a lot of ways, this is a welcome relief from the partisan logjam of the past few years. Each side got some of the things they wanted, the budget was balanced (at least for now), and the legislature adjourned on time without the need for a special session.

On the other hand, some got their way more than others...

Once again, the governor got pretty much everything he wanted and gave up nothing. MinnPost quotes Dave Senjem, minority leader: "I'm trying to think of a thing the governor lost, and I can't think of anything." Like I wrote a few days ago, Pawlenty has refused to compromise during his tenure as governor.

So if Pawlenty won't compromise, how was the impasse resolved? Thank DFL legislators for refusing to play games with the state budget. It reminds me of the Old Testament story where Solomon suggests that two mothers cut a baby in half, to solve a feud over whom the child belongs to. The DFL, by refusing to sacrifice the well-being of the state, showed that it's the party that truly cares about our state. Pawlenty is happy to tear it apart, so long as he gets to be the winner.

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Tim Pawlenty: Bully

Tim Pawlenty has a curious style of negotiation: he doesn't. He just keeps repeating his demands in a louder and louder voice until he gets what he wants. As Speaker of the House Margaret Anderson-Kelliher said, "the finish line is in sight and it seems like it keeps moving." It's always been this way. Tim Pawlenty has never given an inch. He's not interested in governing for the common good; he's interested in being a bully.

And yet, the Democrats always seem to give him what he wants. He had some huge wins last year, and this year looks like more of the same. Rachel Stassen-Berger reports that the final deal is likely to include a 3.9 percent property tax cap -- but funding for the Central Corridor somehow seems to have faded from the picture. A great Pawlenty compromise: cities lose money, and in return they get nothing.

I'm sure this plea is too late, but Ms. Speaker, please stand up to the Governor. Bullies don't listen to reason -- they only back down once you fight back.

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Pawlenty unable to understand local government finance

Tim Pawlenty seems unable to grasp how local governments work. Still pushing for his irresponsible cap on property taxes, he seems to think that somehow, our cities will reduce taxes and still be able to keep the lights on or keep cops on the street.

Pawlenty turned down a DFL offer for a 5.5% cap on increases, saying it ""does not go nearly far enough in providing real property tax relief."

This isn't "property tax relief"! This shows how little Pawlenty understands how government works. This is the equivalent of limiting your family to $100 a month for groceries, and saying you got a raise.

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MOA execs beg for money from state

Mall of America executives, planning a $2 billion expansion of the mall, are continuing to press for nearly $400 million in state subsidies. Mall officials warn that the mall has "no chance of being built" if the subsidies are not given. If they have such a crummy business plan, maybe they just shouldn't bother.

The mall is a business, not a public service. Here's the way business works: you invest your own money, and then you expect that revenues will allow you to make that money back, plus a profit. Is the mall not making big enough profits? If not, why expand at all?

There's simply no good reason for them to be getting public funding. This is not like subsidizing some non-profit to rehabilitate a blighted area or clean up the environment. Heck, the new stores in the mall won't even provide living-wage jobs! I don't understand what possible argument there could be for diverting nearly $400 million from our schools, our lakes, and our infrastructure to build an even bigger megamall.

What really kills me is that MOA fatcats seem to have already won this debate. The legislature is not debating over whether the mall should be subsidized; they're debating over whether it should be subsidized by the State or by the city of Bloomington. Well, I've got a different perspective: if you can't do it on your own, try a different business plan!

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Norm Coleman: Pot calling the kettle black

Norm Coleman's irrationality amazes me. Once again, he has accused a politician--this time, Al Franken, of "flip-flopping." Is he out of his mind? Was he, or was he not, formerly a Democrat?? That hardly puts him in a position to criticize others for changing their positions. Amazingly, this is not even the first time he's tried that approach. In 2004, as an attack dog for President Bush, he took on John Kerry. His line of attack, once again, was "flip flopping."

It gets even stupider than that, though. Coleman is not even accusing Franken of changing his stance on the issues. He's saying that Franken has changed his demeanor:

...his extremely liberal viewpoints are couched in softer, more acceptable terms

What an outrage!

What's difficult to understand is why Coleman persists in using this attack. Surely there are other aspects of Franken's candidacy Coleman could find to attack? Ultimately, I think there's a simple answer here: Coleman cannot think for himself. He used the "flip-flopping" line in 2004 because it was fed to him by the Bush administration, just like he has voted with Bush 86% of the time. Now he's going to keep using it, until some other high-ranking Republican tells him to think something else.

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Pawlenty's Bad Deal

A key component of Tim Pawlenty's "compromise" to revive funding for the Central Corridor involves crippling the ability of our cities to deliver services. Pawlenty wants to impose a cap on local government property taxes, thereby forcing them to cut services.

The irony here is that it was Pawlenty himself who raised our property taxes by slashing Local Government Aid last time he needed funding to cover a deficit without raising taxes. The chart below shows things pretty clearly, I think:



This is such a typical move for Pawlenty and other conservative crazies just like him. First, you raid a source of funding that should never be used to balance a budget. Then, you blame the former recipient of that source for being "fiscally irresponsible." Then, to cover up your own irresponsibility, you punish the people you screwed in the first place.

Now, he wants to raid the Health Access Fund. Maybe in a few years, he'll be punishing people who needed that funding. I can imagine it now: "They should have exercised more."

--

[Chart data source: MN State Auditor]

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Desperate Clinton plays the race card -- big time.

In a desperate move to find some momentum, Hillary Clinton played up racial divisions in comments that were incredibly offensive. CNN reports:

Hillary Clinton suggested Wednesday that "White Americans" are increasingly turning away from Barack Obama’s candidacy.

"I have a much broader base to build a winning coalition on," Clinton said in an interview with USA TODAY.

Wait, it gets worse.

Clinton cited an Associated Press poll "that found how Senator Obama's support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans, is weakening again, and how whites in both states who had not completed college were supporting me."

Is Hillary implying that only whites are hard working Americans? Maybe she's not speaking that clearly, but that's how I read that quote. She sounds like Jesse Helms, for crying out loud. Not only will this not help her campaign, but it may alienate a large portion of the democratic base.

Now that this campaign has hit a new low, Clinton should salvage what respect she has left and bow out of the race.

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Shame on you, Wolf Blitzer

As I was heading to bed last night, I turned on CNN for just a minute, to see if the final results from Indiana were in. I tuned in just in time to watch Wolf Blitzer scolding the mayor of Gary, Indiana. "Why is this taking so long?" he demanded. He acknowledged that there had been an unprecedented number of absentee ballots, "but why couldn't you have posted partial results?"

I want to clue you in on something, Wolf. This is the electoral process we're talking about here -- perhaps the most important institution in our country. We're not going to undermine its integrity by speeding through the vote-counting so you can get your talking heads on the air.

Our "news" media have turned this election into one giant circus, full of gaffes, gotchas, and manufactured controversies. They have long since abandoned discussion of the issues in favor of attacks on the candidates. I realized something as I watched Blitzer hounding a public official to get all the votes counted so he could have his drama: our media used to be responsible for reporting the news. During this election, they have devoted their energies to trying to create news -- they have searched for that perfect "gotcha" moment, and replayed it over and over until the next one happened. Our media is no longer helping to inform the American public; instead, they are filling our airwaves with vapid political sniping.

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