Under the iron fist of the DFL Legislature freedom, privacy, and your baby’s DNA are now at risk. SF3138 passed the MInnesota Senate and is headed to the House. It will easily pass there and the State will begin building a genetic census of the state’s youngest citizens unless Gov. Pawlenty vetoes the bill.

Citizens Council on Health Care is leading the way on that notion. 

May 5, 2007  

Governor Tim Pawlenty 
Office of the Governor 
130 State Capitol 
Saint Paul, MN 55155 

Dear Governor Pawlenty, 

Please pick up your veto pen. You have a critical decision to make. 

The future of human rights, privacy rights, and the rights of human subjects in genetic research will be determined by your decision to sign or veto S.F. 3138. 

S.F. 3138 eliminates current legal informed written parent consent protections for the Minnesota Department of Health’s genetic research program. 

Today, parents must give their consent before the health department can store, use, or share their newborn baby’s DNA for the department’s genetic research program. 

If you do not veto S.F. 3138, the bill will take away today’s informed consent requirements and make Minnesota citizens available for involuntary genetic research.  

 

You can the rest of their letter here. Please send Pawlenty a message to veto SF3138 and protect the DNA of newborns. 

To contact Governor Tim Pawlenty on S.F. 3138:  
Metro: 651-296-3391; Toll free: 1-800-657-3717; Email:  tim.pawlenty@state.mn.us

Here’s the press conference from the CCHC from last week. 

Gov. Tim Pawlenty who made serious gains in the good will department with the fiscally responsible people in the state when he line item vetoed the Bonding bill, has just erased all those gains. 

The Central Corridor light-rail line, which has become a pawn in back-and-forth negotiations at the Capitol, is back in a budget proposal made by Gov. Tim Pawlenty on Wednesday.

There will be a voter revolt this November. (Barring major mishandling by the Party leadership, fingers crossed) Republicans will pick up seats in the Minnesota House. Pawlenty and Legislators are mortgaging the future of Minnesota’s children on all these pork barrel pet projects. 

Central Corridor is a boondoggle waiting to happen. Pawlenty did the right thing when he put it back on the wish list shelf. He made up for his betrayal of the taxpayer when he allowed Hennepin County to raise taxes with out a vote on the Twins tax in 2005. The rumors of him not fighting hard to sustain his veto during that Friday afternoon meeting with Republican House members still irks many fiscal conservatives. 

But his rekindled sense of fiscal sanity in cutting out the Corridor was a breathe of fresh air for many of us who see Minnesota headed toward unsustainable Government spending. But it was short lived and now I’m left to wonder if Pawlenty does have another job he will make his legacy out of. 

When in DC I was asked about Pawlenty in terms of Vice President. Of course I answered honestly and said that it would be a terrible idea. I said both McCain and Pawlenty are Big Government Republicans. Pretty solid on taxes, but terrible on spending. They are cut from the same mold. McCain needs a rock solid limited Government Conservative to balance the ticket, not pick a ticket mate that is just like him. 

I don’t think Tim pawlenty wants to be the guy who is remembered as destroying the Midway of St. Paul. I don’t think he wants to be remembered as the guy who allowed state spending to increase exponentially at a time of recession. I don’t think he wants to be remembered as the guy who has committed the state to programs, projects, and policies that will have lasting negative ramifications and huge costs hurting the state economy and forcing Minnesota citizens to sacrifice freedom, choice, and treasure. 

Pawlenty has been a decent Governor, but he has been a terrible fiscal, limited Government conservative. Like Bush has stumbled and ruined what could have been a good legacy. Bush’s, and Republicans in Congress along with him, blew it in the first half of his second term. 

Pawlenty has to have plans for the future. I don’t think being a former Governor is enough for him. I think the time spent on the campaign trail with McCain has gone to his head and rekindled the self-serving Republican in him. He is supporting flat out liberal energy and environmental problems. He is expanding the burden of Government on citizens and taxpayers. Now he is not all bad, but neither is the soon to be former President. But what they have done wrong (and those things are mostly when they worked with the Democrats on liberal agenda items) will leave lasting headaches and painful, costly policies for future generations to deal with. 

Does he really want to be another Arne Carlson? As in a former Republican Governor who left behind a legacy chalk full of liberal agenda items and policies all marked accomplished. That guy was on local morning news this AM, and he still puts a bad taste in my mouth when they introduce him as a Republican. He’s a liberal. Just look at his tenure and listen to what he says. 

So what will Tim Pawlenty’s legacy look like if his last public service act is Governor of Minnesota? What will Minnesota, and more importantly Republicans, think of his time as Governor? Unfortunately I am not too happy with his tenure so far. Central Corridor just happens to be the perfect example of how he is not acting in the best interest of all Minnesotans, let alone limited government conservatives. 

The DFL is testing him beyond, what I fear are, his limits. They are hitting where it hurts and trying to drive the final wedge between him and his base to destroy his aspirations for calling DC his home. 

Will he be known as the Republican Governor who signed into law policies that hand over control to bureaucrats  in California who get to make every single thing in Minnesota cost more, ban the sale and purchase of certain necessities deemed as tabu by feel good environmentalists, and force us all to drive Specs that have room for your arse and a bag of organic groceries? 

(long rant I know)Back to get back to the point. If the DFL will build a state park and Vet’s hospital, he’ll sign on to the billion dollar boondoggle that will destroy a historic park of our city, create added congestion rather then reduce it, and add millions in annual operating costs to already over taxed citizens at multiple levels. 

Pawlenty can save his legacy from being just another Arne, but he has to act sooner rather than tomorrow. The clock is not just ticking, the alarm already went off, Pawlenty hit the snooze button with his veto-palooza. But can he sustain the courage and backbone he had when he did that? It seems to come and go far to often to keep him from being just another Arne kinda of former Republican Governor. 

He must be trying to create an image and personality that will serve him in the recruitment to another position. Secretary Pawlenty? But of what?

Saudi Arabia of renewable energy…… how’s that working out for us?

I had another letter to the editor published in the Strib. It is the first one in the online version. 

MORE ECONOMIC UNKNOWNS

Jobs going to green

Just what is a “green collar job”?

I hear the term being thrown around a lot lately by DFL (and squishy Republican) policy- and lawmakers. The Minnesota House last week passed a preliminary cap-and-trade system bill. Freshman Rep. Kate Knuth, DFL-New Brighton, who never met a tree she didn’t hug, said she wants to change current Minnesota jobs into “green jobs.” Gov. Tim Pawlenty is working on a cap-and-trade regional system.

So I ask, what is a green job, and how do I tell if I have one?

I think all Minnesotans have the right to know if new legislation will target our jobs for elimination. Or are we not ready to talk about the dirty dark side of the “green movement” at a time of such economic uncertainty?

ANDY APLIKOWSKI, BLAINE

Speed Gibson has a great post about how the Ethanol scam is finally being exposed. EVERYTHING WE KNOW IS WRONG

It is a must read, especially for elected Republicans (Norm, Tim) who think Ethanol votes are more important than cheap food, 3rd world hunger, and the environment. It is doubly worthy reading if you were at all a fan of the 80’s sci-fi show “V”. I loved that show!

h/t Leo

Mark my words, if Minnesota is stupid enough to implement a cap and trade system on emmissions it will put an end to our economy. Every single business that can leave the state WILL. The only ones left will be companies who don’t create emmissions, and they will simply be raking in the dough from companies who do that are FORCED to buy ‘credits’.

This cap and trade system that moronic Republicans also support is economic suicide. The Minnesota House passed a preliminary bill that opens the door to cap and trade. 

Honest to God, if we do not get a handle on this anti-freedom, liberty, and economic activity environutter crap, we will destroy our country faster than 1,000 airliners piloted by terrorists. Seriously, just what the heck are politicians who support taking away your job thinking? Oh, you think I am making it up? Check again, they do want to do away with certain jobs in this state.

“Cap-and-trade will change the jobs that we have in Minnesota - I think it will change the jobs for the better,” said Knuth, DFL-New Brighton. “It will bring clean energy jobs.”

Remember that if you get that pink slip, lay off notice while your company goes under or moves out of the state/country. They just passed a bill that will cause you to lose your job. 

We have to get a handle on these lunacrats before they destroy our country and state. And that includes Pawlenty who is mentioned in the story as working with neighboring states and Canadian provinces on a regional cap and trade system. 

Notice to all business owners out there: DO NOT COME TO MINNESOTA!!!!!!!! 

James Lileks has a great column about the bonding bill written in a way that only Lileks could. The number of one-liners may top what even Seifert is capable of. Go check it out.

Why does the state have to pay for Central Corridor when they just gave the Metro Counties the ability to raise taxes for the sole purpose of building (Light rail) transit ways?

The DFL is a bunch of sore losers and the Governor had better not cave. The Legislature allowed the Counties to raise taxes with OUT public input specifically for choo choos and Central Corridor was on their list of talking points.

Tell the new Metro Transit Joint Powers Authority to go fund it themselves!

Don’t waiver Timmie. You said no, you did the right thing, now get off the ice.

The Governor took some fat out of the binding bill with his veto pen. And he may have finally awoken to the reality that we can’t fritter money away on worthless feel good billion dollar boondoggles.

he Central Corridor light rail line is the highest profile veto casualty, but it’s not the only one involving transit.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty also vetoed design money for light rail along Interstate 494 in Bloomington, the Southwest Corridor in Eden Prairie, and light rail or bus rapid transit along the Robert Street Corridor.

He also vetoed money for passenger rail between the Twin Cities and Duluth and high-speed rail between St. Paul and Chicago.

A response to the Other People’s Money Spends Like Buhda #1 & #2 posts.

Andy:

Don’t worry about TPaw vetoing the entire bonding bill. He won’t. It’s a battle he can’t win. The battle he can win is to line-item veto a lot of pork and force the DFL to try to override ridiculous individual items. I’d love to see a fight over gorilla cages with the DFL.

However, the real story in the vote is not the Republicans that voted for it…but the one’s who didn’t including Abeler, Hamilton and Heidgerken…who, by the way, have voted with the House Republican caucus on every bill since the Transportation override. We’re finally seeing the local delegates realizing that the Party can only work with the people they send to them. After these members of the ‘gang of six’ faced their BPOU conventions….I think the message was not only sent…but delivered as well.

Of course the emailer is forgetting about Jim ‘I feel free of the Caucus’ Abler.

Pawlenty will announce his next MNSCOTUS choice today.

ST. PAUL (AP) - Governor Tim Pawlenty plans to announce a new chief justice for the Minnesota Supreme Court.

The Monday morning announcement comes a week after current Chief Justice Russell Anderson said he would step down in June because of his age and concerns about his wife’s health. Anderson is 65.

I hope Governor Pawlenty seeks someone outside the Legislature this time. No more special elections please!