Congressman John Kline had an Op-Ed in yesterdays Star Tribune that speaks to many of the struggles that Minnesotans are facing in the current economy and what the House Leadership promised to do to address these issues...

Congressman Kline has long been a voice of reason and fiscal responsibility in the House.  His recent Club for Growth ranking of nineteen (3 behind Congresswoman Michele Bachman and 82 ahead of that paragon of fiscal conservatism, Congressman Ron Paul) is just one more reason why his constituents have sent him back to DC as often as they have.  

Congressman Kline understands how tight the voters budgets are right now and is working to provide ways to ease the crunch.  We need a dozen more like him.

The Republican loss in the special election for Louisiana's Sixth Congressional District last Saturday should be a sharp wake up call for Republicans: Either Congressional Republicans are going to chart a bold course of real change or they are going to suffer decisive losses this November.

The facts are clear and compelling.

Saturday's loss was in a district that President Bush carried by 19 percentage points in 2004 and that the Republicans have held since 1975.

This defeat follows on the loss of Speaker Hastert's seat in Illinois. That seat had been held by a Republican for 76 years with the single exception of the 1974 Watergate election when the Democrats held it for one term. That same seat had been carried by President Bush 55-44% in 2004.

The Republican brand has been so badly damaged that if Republicans try to run an anti-Obama, anti- Reverend Wright, or (if Senator Clinton wins), anti-Clinton campaign, they are simply going to fail.

This model has already been tested with disastrous results.

A February Washington Post poll shows that Republicans have lost the advantage to the Democrats on which party can handle an issue better -- on every single topic.

Americans now believe that Democrats can handle the deficit better (52 to 31), taxes better (48 to 40) and even terrorism better (44 to 37).

This is a catastrophic collapse of trust in Republicans built up over three generations on the deficit, two generations on taxes, and two generations on national security.

The Democrats have done a better job of telling the voters where they stand on the issues.  What have the Republicans done?  Don't vote for X....she/he is a _____.  That's it!  The voting public have no clue where we stand on issues anymore!

So what does this mean for the Minnesota GOP?  It means that our leadership has to get off of the "Fright" train and develop a message that shows Minnesota that the GOP shares their values and their concerns.  The House Leadership has shown flashes that they get it.....however, there is only so much that they can do.  As long as Ron Carey is the public "face" of the MNGOP, he has got to be on the same page as the HRCC.  What the voters think about the top of the ticket (Norm Coleman, John McCain) trickles down ticket to the state house races.  If there is a disconnect between the voters and the message that Ron Carey puts in the press day in and day out, we could end up losing a Senate seat, at least two of our three Congressional seats and enough state house seats to give the DFL a veto proof majority in BOTH THE HOUSE AND THE SENATE!!!!

As we head toward the Convention and subsequent state central meeting, we need to decide what we as a party need to do to prevent what has the potential to be a slaughter of epic proportions.  All options should be on the table as this election is quite simply going to be the difference between having an overwhelming DFL majority for the next generation or a viable competitive Republican Party.  It really is do or die time.

Please Chairman Carey...for the sake of the state party...if you will not listen to me for God's sake listen to former Representative Gingrich!  The time has come to change course....please do not let it leave you behind.

But the plain truth is, when Anna said she doesn't find this country to be especially free, it was Anna talking. Granted, her complaint is hardly new. People often grouse about the lack of freedom in the land of the free.

But you see, Anna is from Estonia, a former republic of the old Soviet Union. As in the Evil Empire, world's leading exporter of communism.

So when Anna says she feels less free in the United States where she now lives than in the once-totalitarian regime where she was born, well ... it gets your attention. And when she says Americans sometimes remind her of the gray, fatalistic men and women who shuffled along under communism, unwilling to think too deeply, say too much or laugh too loudly for fear of offending the State, it is striking, to say the least...Americans, she said, love to trumpet their freedom. But it's hard to square that with political correctness that straitjackets communication for fear of giving unintended offense, hair-trigger litigiousness that requires major corporations to treat customers ("Caution: Coffee is hot") like idiots for fear of being sued, zero-tolerance policies and mandatory sentencing guidelines that remove human judgment from human encounters for fear of rendering unequal justice.

In June 2007, I was fired by Independent School District 719 after five years of service. At the time, I was employed as a campus supervisor. My duties included security, truancy and emergency-procedure drills. Over time, I developed a rapport with the students, many of whom solicited my advice on various school-related and personal matters.

In time, my role expanded because of the positive relationships I built with students and the administration. I was asked to participate in events outside of my specific job description, including monitoring student sections at games, dances and other events. I monitored and advised various clubs, including the Prior Lake Bible Club and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. The administration encouraged and rewarded my participation in these endeavors. In June of 2006, I was nominated for high school paraprofessional of the year.

In August 2006, I was advised that a “parent” had complained about a discussion I had with a Prior Lake High School “student.” It was alleged that the “student’s” parents were uncomfortable because our discussion involved decisions regarding sexual abstinence and orientation. In fact, I simply reinforced his values and decisions he made on his own. But more importantly, the “student” was not a student. The young man was a 19-year-old former student who had graduated from PLHS. As a result of this alleged incident I received a written reprimand containing many directives.

In December 2006, a student approached me to ask advice about his bisexual girlfriend. I addressed his questions for about two minutes. There were no other conversations. A janitor was present. He reported the conversation to administration. I received a written reprimand, stating that I could not discuss “… your position on premarital relationships and abstinence.” The administration attempted to control my behavior outside school. The written reprimand of Jan. 3, 2007 included the following statement: “These conversations include conversations on and off School District property as well as conversations both during and outside of your work hours.” I was then suspended for three days.

In addition, I was reprimanded for a humorous statement made to a lesbian student and an off-campus discussion with a group of students. The student was not offended. In fact, she defended me to the administration and at my attorney’s request provided a statement supporting me.

I was terminated on June 18, 2007. This, despite the fact that no student or parent has ever complained of my conduct involving any Prior Lake High School student, either on or off campus (other than the parent of the adult former student).

In November 2007 the citizens of Prior Lake and Savage elected me to the School Board. My campaign focused on fiscal responsibility.

Although my attorney, David Thompson, has advised me to move forward with a lawsuit, I have decided not to do so. I choose to forgive those who have wronged me and move on. My family and the community have been through enough.

Eight Belles was attempting to become the fourth filly to win the Derby. However, as the horses galloped out around the first turn, the filly fell to the ground and jockey Gabriel Saez jumped off.

An equine ambulance came onto the track, but the filly could not be saved, said Dr. Larry Bramlage, the Derby’s on-call veterinarian.

“When we passed the wire I stood up. She started galloping funny. I tried to pull her up. That’s when she went down,” a distraught Saez said.

A giant playbill greets patrons at the door to one of the two neighboring bars dotting Main Street in the former town of Elko.

Inside, the bouncer — excuse me, usher — checks a visitor’s ID and makes sure she is aware of tonight’s performance.

For just $2, this visitor can also get a badge and become an actor if she cares to smoke as part of the performance at the Bullseye Saloon in Elko New Market.

The production this evening (or rather, early morning)? A theatrical performance and satire called "An Unconstitutional Ban," in which bar patrons typically act as themselves.

The owners of the Bullseye Saloon do have their work cut out for them as this MinnPost story points out.

While the Minnesota "actors" who smoke in bars have drawn attention from across the country, they aren't the only ones to dream up ways to skirt smoking bans. Some have declared themselves exempt private clubs, other have said they don't understand the "no" in "no smoking." They've lost in the courts. Benjamin's odds of winning are probably about the same.

Sales dropped drastically when the ban took effect in October and were down an average 20 percent for five months, he said. They came back when theater performances began in March.

"I had employees upset that their tips had gone away and they were really having trouble making ends meet. I said, ‘I’m going to do everything in my power to keep all of your jobs,’ " he said.

Like the other employees at Bullseye, Braun is a smoker. (Owner Robert) Ripley, the owner, is not.

Ripley opposes the ban because he thinks it violates personal freedom. He also says it’s harming establishments in an already down economic time.

Ripley, who took out a home-equity loan about five years ago to buy Bullseye, said he reviewed the law carefully before turning Bullseye into a theater.

Mr. Ripley took a big risk buying a business and employing Minnesotans.  He should be rewarded by the state, not punished for it!  Unfortunately, the Minnesota State Legislature doesn't see it that way.  Maybe that is why so many businesses are leaving Minnesota....like Northwest Airlines.

Allen Chanzis
Responsible for Business Management and has a unique expertise in all aspects of Tour Accounting and reporting.  He also has extensive experience in our tax practice as well as royalty audit, computer and administration areas.  Mr. Chanzis has the main responsibility for the Administration of our firms affairs.

"We paid taxes on every cent of income we ever had," Franken told AP. "What happened is our accountant made a mistake, and all of these are repercussions of that same mistake. His mistake was not understanding the law, the obligation to pay these state taxes." Following his accountant's advice, he said, he and his wife, Franni, paid their entire income tax bill to the city and state where they were living at the time.

"I've been told to say, 'No comment,'" Chanzis said, without saying who had instructed him to do so. Refusing to discuss any mistakes, he added: "I've been told you have the information you need."

Revelations concerning DFL U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken’s taxes has not shaken the support of local lawmakers who have endorsed the comedian.

Indeed, several lawmakers point to a perceived quickness on Franken’s part in dealing with the tax flap as evidence of a take-the-bull-by-the-horns mentality desirable in a public official.

It’s always a big deal politically when the unpaid taxes issue crops up for a candidate., said Rep. Shelley Madore, DFL-Apple Valley. “It’s unfortunate that this wasn’t vetted out before (by his campaign),” said Madore.

“But now that it’s been vetted out — he took responsibility quickly, didn’t hide behind the, ‘I didn’t understand,’” she said. “I still believe that he’s a truthful, honest person and that was an oversight,” she said.

The divvying up of tax payments based on where you've worked is called apportionment, and while accountant Michael Shaffer says it can be complex to calculate, it's not exactly an obscure accounting principle.

"I learned it in my first tax class in college" he says.

Sen. Don Betzold, DFL-Fridley, isn’t mulling over his endorsement of Franken. “No. I think he’s a good candidate,” said Betzold.

If Franken’s accountant made mistakes — Franken signed-off on the taxes, true — but then Franken shouldn’t be held completely responsible, he opined.

Rep. Tom Tillberry, DFL-Fridley, also opined Franken reacted quickly to the tax issue.

Tillberry views Franken as moving ahead politically undamaged. “I mean, if he is — if people think that — I can’t agree with them,” he said. “What it points out to me is how well someone can take care of problems when they come up,” said Tillberry.

“If a person steps up and says, ‘This is my fault this is happening and I’m going to take care of it,’ isn’t that the type of integrity we want,” he rhetorically asked.

"The bridge in Minneapolis didn't collapse because there wasn't enough money. The bridge in Minneapolis collapsed because so much money was spent on wasteful, unnecessary pork-barrel projects."

State Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, said McCain "owes the state of Minnesota an apology" for exploiting the bridge  collapse for political purposes

Obama opposes it because federal gas taxes go into a highway fund for building roads and bridges.

"Remember that bridge in Minneapolis?" Obama said in Indiana last week. "We're already short on money in terms of investing."

If Al Franken REALLY wants to take responsibility ….he will, along with his lawyers, accountants, financial advisers, et al, hold a press conference and answer the many lingering questions about this mess.  I’m sure the press corps, both local and national, would welcome the opportunity, as should Franken if he really wants to get out  from under the cloud hovering over his campaign and put it behind him.

Some questions that quickly come to mind include:

How did Team Franken decide on $70,000 and 17 states?

Does the $70,000 include penalties and interest?

Who told him he had no tax liability in the first place?

Who signed off on the termination process for Al Franken, Inc. in California?

How come the stories out of the Franken Campaign kept changing?

Does this settle all outstanding legal and financial issues for Al Franken, Inc?