Norm Won't Run For Gov

January 17, 2009
State Capitol - Saint Paul, Minnesota
By Marty Owings

Former US Senator Norm Coleman announced tonight on his Facebook page that he will not be entering the race for Governor. Coleman stated on his Facebook announcement that, "I love Minnesota and I love public service, but this is not the right time for me and my family to conduct a campaign for Governor."

Coleman fueled speculation about his future in the Governors race at a press conference in June after the Senate contest against Al Franken was ended in the courts. At his press conference Coleman said he would make an announcement about his political future in the coming weeks or months. There was further speculation about Coleman last week when Pat Anderson announced she was dropping out of the gubernatorial race and would be running for state Auditor. A few pundits thought her announcement came because she had an indication that Coleman would be entering the race. Many in the Minnesota GOP, and especially those currently running, have been concerned about what the race would look like if Coleman did throw his name in the hat as he would almost have certainly been the front runner for the party nomination.

In the Facebook announcement Coleman says the timing to pursue a gubernatorial campaign just wasn't right, "Timing is everything. The timing on this race is both a bit too soon and a bit too late. It is too soon after my last race and too late to do a proper job of seeking the support of delegates who will decide in which direction our party should go." What Coleman doesn't mention is that a good number of those delegates were probably eager to know if he was going to get into the race before committing to a candidate.

Coleman's announcement will no doubt bring a renewed focus on those still in the race and provide a potentially cleaner primary process. While supporters and some in the party will be disappointed with Coleman's announcement, it is likely that more than a few in the GOP leadership and the other Republican candidates are breathing a sigh of relief.

Here is a link to Coleman's complete Facebook announcement:
Coleman_Governor_Announcement

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No Crumbs For Seifert

Saint Paul, Minnesota
April 6, 2009
By Marty Owings

Last week on the House floor, the GOP put forth several Amendments they say deal with accountability for the budget. Once such Amendment offered by Rep. Steve Drazkowski would have removed the leaders in both the House and Senate if a budget wasn't completed by the end of the session.

The Amendment drew sharp response from Rep. Tom Rukavina, who called it "Boneheaded" and questioned Drazkowski on why another state leader, Governor Pawlenty, wasn't included in the Amendment. Rukavina said that the Democratic majority was still working on the bill. At one point Rukavina said "If you want to become a eunuch for the Governor go ahead, I got some farmers I know that can help you."

Rep. Dan Severson suggested that Members may want support the Amendment to remove Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller, who he said wasn't as good a leader as Speaker Margaret Anderson-Kelliher. In the end, Drazkowski withdrew the Amendment.

Here is audio of the debate:


After seeing several GOP Amendments fail on the floor, Minority Leader Marty Seifert implored his deomocratic colleagues to throw him a "Crumb" or a "Crouton". After the floor session Seifert said the GOP had three measures on the floor that he thought were good. The first would require at least one Republican on a committee, the second would have changed the Session start date to March 1st and the last measure was Drazkowski's which he withdrew as mentioned.

Seifert says that it might take the public to rise up and let Democrats know they've become a little too comfortable and need to work more closely with House Republicans. Seifert suggested that too many deals were being cut without the light of day and without Republican input.

All of the measures purposed on the floor by the GOP minority failed.

Here are Minority Leader Seifert's comments:

Minnesota Republicans Announce Pay Cut Proposal

Saint Paul, Minnesota (RFN)
by Marty Owings

Calling for State Government to get their own house in order amid an economic crisis, Senator Geoff Michel (R-Edina) stated "The legislative branch must be part of the budget solution and before we go through the entire state budget, line by line, we should find savings in our own budget." Minnesota Republican's are responding to a budget deficit that is anticipated to be close to $7 billion.

Republican Dan Severson (Sauk Rapids) said "If we're not willing to put ourselves and our salaries up for debate, then we won't have a lot of credibility among the people we hear from during these meetings." Minnesota law establishes a 16 member Compensation Council to provide salary recommendations for the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Sectretary of State, State Auditor, Attorney General and legislators. The Legislature can, if they wish, adopt what the Council recommends, modify recommendations or establish their own pay.

In comparison to other States, Minnesota ranks 16th, paying its Legislators an annual salary of $31,140. California Legislators are paid the most at $113,000 a year. At the low end, South Dakota pays just $6,000. The Republican proposal would reduce pay accross the board by 5%, saving the state roughly $676,441.20 each biennium.

Critics say this looks like its a mostly symbolic gesture since reducing the budget deficit by $670K when it is currently estimated to be north of $7 billion dollars amounts to a drop in the bucket. Furthermore, it would reduce pay by only about $29.96 a week for Legislators. Others say that Law Makers should be spending their time looking at ways to save more critical Government services instead of proposing largely symbolic measures.

The proposal will likely resonate with Minnesotan's who've been forced to tighten their own belts and who are fearful about their jobs and the economy in general. No doubt this will play well on talk radio, its likely to gain any serious support in the DFL controlled Legislature, Lawmakers are struggling with how to reduce the budget in more meaningful ways and still be able to preserve essential services. Sen. Linda Berglin who chairs the Health & Human Services Budget Committee stated flatly "some of the areas he's held harmless are going to have to be on the table." refering to Gov. Pawlenty's budget proposal cuts of $370 million dollars.

In the end, Minnesotan's are not going to be greatly interested in proposals that make good soundbites, but instead solutions to the massive shortfall facing the state and more importantly, how that will impact them directly.

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