Bachmann’s History Lesson Off By A Decade

Click picture to watch Video of Representative Michele Bachmann's speech

Representative Bachmann, who is running for President, was speaking to the same US war Veterans President Obama spoke to earlier this week. She was at the national American Legion convention in Minneapolis.

Photo Voter ID Author Flunks Fact Check: Law Has Been Vetoed Six Times Elsewhere

Senator Scott Newman (R- Hutchinson) is an author of a bill to amend Minnesota’s constitution to require voters to have a state issued photo ID. At a news conference about the bill today he said:

“There are a number of states that have voter ID laws already in place. To the best of my knowledge this is the first time a Governor has vetoed a voter ID bill.

“To Mr. Kessler’s question about why do we need this, to be real honest I’m not buying into this notion that there isn’t any voter fraud out there. I’m buying into the notion that we don’t know and this is certainly gonna be something that will help us find out whether or not it occurs or at least be a deterrent. ”

Newman’s claim about no prior vetoes on this issue is not even remotely true. It’s happened at least six times. The latest was just last month.

In May, Montana Governor Jim Schweitzer vetoed voter photo ID legislation. Just like Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton, Governor Schweitzer said the bill would have placed an unnecessary burden on low-income, elderly, disabled and student voters.

While governor of Kansas, Kathleen Sebelius vetoed a Voter ID bill on May 19, 2008.

Think Progress reported at the time: Today, Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) vetoed a bill that would require voters starting in 2010 to show identification at the polls. In her veto message, she said, “[N]o elected official should support enacting new laws discouraging or disenfranchising any American who has been legally voting for years.” Sebelius added that the bill “seeks to solve a problem of voter fraud which does not exist in our state.”

You need not look any further than Wisconsin to find a Governor who has vetoed a voter photo ID bill. Not once, but twice. Governor Jim Doyle (D) vetoed voter photo ID in 2004 and 2005.

Oklahoma’s Governor Brad Henry (D) vetoed voter photo ID legislation in 2009.

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell vetoed voter photo ID legislation in 2006.

New Hampshire Governor John Lynch made voter photo ID his first veto of 2006.

Thank you to BlueStem Prairie for alerting us to the story. See a legislative video clip you think should be posted? email or send us a twitter message @uptakemn .

Press Catches MN GOP Using Debunked Ballots In Trunk Story

Minnesota State Republican Senator Warren Limmer says Minnesota needs a photo ID voting law. As evidence, Limmer referred to a story from the 2008 election that has been debunked by politicians of both parties as well as the press.

Senator Limmer claimed that two days after the very close 2008 US Senate election between Al Franken and Norm Coleman that a box of ballots was found in someone’s trunk. The story has been repeated by other Minnesota Republican politicians, including former Governor Tim Pawlenty. But now after numerous stories showing the story was false, even Pawlenty admits the story isn’t true.

The press called Limmer on that during the news conference. Limmer did not say if he knew the story was false before he repeated it.

Fact Check: Do Low Taxes = Low Unemployment?

How you connect the dots depends on the picture you want to see. Speaking with GOP state leadership at a December 29 press conference, Minnesota Senate Deputy Majority Leader Geoff Michel saw it this way: “And Don, we just got the census numbers back and the high tax states have the least amount of employment and are losing members of Congress. So people are leaving the Illinois and the New Yorks and they’re going to places where they feel better about taking a risk, about growing something, about expanding a business. So we want to put Minnesota in that league of states. And raising taxes is not going to do it.”

But when you consider that Nevada has the nation’s second-lowest overall tax burden and the nation’s highest unemployment rate (14.3%)—even higher than beleaguered Michigan’s (12.4%)— the solution isn’t as simple as Senator Michel suggests. No evidence to support low taxes and high employment

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Fact Check: Cravaack Makes Multiple False Statements In Debate With Oberstar (CC)

The research for these fact checks was prepared by students and graduates of the Masters of Advocacy and Political Leadership program at the University of Minnesota Duluth. They picked what statements of the candidates to check and did the research.  The debate took place on October 22, 2010 in Grand Rapids, Minnesota

First fact check a statement from Chip Cravaack about 9/11.

Cravaack : “In regard to Afghanistan, you have to remember that the bi-partisan 9/11 Commission stated we are at war with Islamic fundamentalists. And right now that war is in Afghanistan.”

False. The phrase “at war with Islamic fundamentalists” never appears in the official published 9/11 Commission Report.

Oberstar: “That meltdown of the economy was devastating.   It (The Recession) started in December 2007. The recession accelerated with great pace throughout 2008…”

This is true. According to the National Bureau of Economic Research started in December of 2007.

Next: Federal health care reform.

Captioned video of this story

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Horner Distorts Emmer’s Immigration Statement

During Friday’s debate at the University of Minnesota the candidates for Minnesota Governor are asked if they would support the adoption of a law similar to Arizona’s controversial immigration law.  Democrat Mark Dayton and Independence Party candidate said they thought Arizona had a bad law didn’t want it in Minnesota. Republican Tom Emmer in the past has said he thought the Arizona law was a “good start” but infers he has been mis-quoted on saying Minnesota needs an Arizona type law. He says Minnesota has enough laws on immigration and we just need to enforce them.

Horner shoots back that not only Emmer say he thought the Arizona law was a “good start”, but that Emmer also said he wanted that law in Minnesota. Horner referenced a Fact Check done on Emmer’s claim.

The fact checked showed Emmer had called Arizona’s law “wonderful”, but unlike what Horner claimed in the debate, Emmer did not say on an MPR debate that he supported an Arizona-style law for Minnesota. That statement was made by Emmer’s then Republican opponent Marty Seifert.
(Immigration discussion is about 18 minutes into the debate)

The debate moderator pressed Emmer and asked if the Minnesota legislature passed the law, would he sign it as Governor.  Emmer said “I don’t think you’re going to see that” and then changed the subject.

Related Links:
Debating At The U: MN Candidates For Governor- Full debate video

Video Shows Walz Correct: Demmer Wants To Partially Privatize Social Security.

Does Republican candidate for Congress Randy Demmer want to partially privatize Social Security as Congressman Tim Walz claimed in a recent debate? During the debate Demmer disputed that notion

Walz tells The UpTake’s Mike McIntee that Demmer made the privatization statement earlier this year while he was courting conservative votes to win the Republican nomination and that statement was captured on video. We asked to see that video.

The Walz campaign provided video of Demmer’s call for social security privatization. In it Demmer says

“And I do believe, when you call privatization of health c..social security .. I got a… it’s kind of more simple as far as I’m concerned. It’s having control of the dollars I’m investing someplace. And yes I would, I would favor the option of me being able to do that. Of you being able to do that. In other words when you’re putting your money into your social security account, I would support you having the option if you so choose to have a say in how those monies are invested and what kind of return you might get and have some choices to where you put it.”

Demmer made it clear that he was not talking about changing social security for older Americans because that would be “pulling the rug out from underneath them.”

Continue reading to see the video and read the full transcript of what Demmer said in a Republican debate.

Related Links
Complete Demmer, Walz, Wilson debate on video
Demmer Walz Wilson debate highlights
Demmer makes a strange claim about Israel … Continue Reading

To Emmer, $1.8 Billion In Education Cuts Are “Harmless”

During Friday’s Minnesota gubernatorial debate on education, Republican candidate Tom Emmer released the second phase of his proposed budget. In it, he pledged to “hold K-12 funding harmless in the next biennium.” In other words, Emmer wouldn’t cut education spending.

In the press release, he committed to not cut the $13.3 billion in funding for K-12 education allocated for the FY2010-11 fiscal year (Emmer’s website has upped the number to $13.8 billion since yesterday morning — the initial $13.3 billion was a typo, according to an aid).

But the Minnesota Department of Management and Budget’s General Fund Balance Analysis, End of 2010 Legislative Sessions on June 11 stipulates that current law requires the state general fund to provide $15,621,575,000 in funding for K-12 education in the next biennium (2011-12). That’s more than $15.6 billion, mandated by state law — versus $13.8 billion ($13.3 billion in the initial press release) proposed by Emmer. Far from holding funding “harmless,” the GOP candidate would actually undercut mandatory education spending by $1.8 billion, or a whopping 11.5%. … Continue Reading

Did Emmer Shake Hands On Releasing His Budget Cuts By Friday?

Did Representative Tom Emmer shake hands with Mark Dayton on releasing his budget cuts at the debate in Duluth?

Yes, and a complicated long long yes…

“Over the next several weeks, and we already have”, is his later answer to an audience member.

Yes, it appears Mark Dayton agrees to submit his plan to the Department of Revenue, which is the one true test of a Budget Plan according to Emmer, Dayton says he will if Emmer will explain by Friday exactly what he’ll cut from a six billion dollar deficit budget projected, and then it looks like they shake hands.

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Emmer’s Budget Plan Wasn’t Officially Vetted, Says State Revenue Commissioner

Republican Candidate for Minnesota Governor Tom Emmer says the MN Department of Revenue reviewed his budget. Monday and Tuesday He challenged his DFL opponent Mark Dayton to do the same.

“Take it to the Department of Revenue, they do have the computer modeling. They can do it for you. And then show Minnesota that your plan works.” said Emmer. “Our numbers are backed up and they’re checked.”

However, according to the Star Tribune, the Department of Revenue never officially reviewed Emmer’s numbers. State Revenue Commissioner Ward Einess told the Star Tribune that Emmer’s proposal never got vetted by number-crunching computers.

Einess says he spent a couple hours over the Labor Day weekend reviewing Emmer’s plan against existing information, calling it an “on-the-fly” review, but not anything official.

(Video: Emmer challenges Dayton and IP candidate Tom Horner to send their budgets to the Minnesota Department of Revenue for computer modeling, something he himself has not done)