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America's Small City Mayor

All of our posts are located at the link above.

America's Small City Mayor gets new address & look!!

America's Small City Mayor is getting a new look and another address. In the meantime I will be posting to both sites until my new page is fully operational and ready to go.

Please take the time to update the RSS feeds if you use them to the smallcitymayor.com/ address as we begin to make the transition. Part of the remaining project is to get the older posts categorized, reassembled, and user friendly.

Special thanks to Derek Brigham & Brian Mason for their great design and work on the new site.

A Special Note to Lt. Governor Carol Molnau

Dear Lt. Governor Molnau:

As you know the focus is on Governor Pawlenty being selected as the Republican Vice-Presidential candidate. I will be the first to admit I got this possible outcome completely wrong earlier in the year. However, that is clearly unimportant now.

What is important is understanding that you need to prepare to be the next Governor of Minnesota.

Honestly, I am excited about the possibility because I think you are a solid conservative. Anyone who can tame Jesse Ventura on a couch, and withstand a media barrage of unimagined scale tells me your are the right person for Minnesota.

I have a few suggestions for you as you prepare:

• First, surround yourself with some good public relations people. A solid strategy on rebuilding your image is important. I have been disturbed at the lack of defense you have received from our party, so this is vital. Two years until the election is an eternity in politics, and you can comeback with a new reputation and a solid conservative message that Minnesotans can believe in.

• Second, the 35W Bridge collapse was a tragedy. The Democrats want to lay everything at your feet. However, I think the average Minnesotan wants someone to simply take responsibility it happened, and assure them our bridges are safe and our transportation system will be transformed without scare tactics and excuses to raise taxes.

• Third, you will need to select a new Lieutenant Governor. It will need to be someone that is not a lightening rod that can be confirmed by a hostile Poggy & Company. It should likely be someone who can bring a perspective from outside St. Paul that average Minnesotans can relate too. It might be a common sense small city mayor? Just something to consider.

This would just be the first set of ideas that should be considered soon as we wait to see the outcome on Pawlenty. All kidding aside (specifically.....point number three) I hope you are moving ahead as we do not need a state with all three branches of Government under DFL control. You could be the new face of Minnesota's Republican Party and we are here to support you.

Sincerely,

Mayor Nathan P. McLaughlin

America's Small City Mayor

Liberal Keith Ellison gets higher Conservative rating than Blue Dog Collin Peterson

Representative Collin Peterson received a rating of ZERO from The Club for Growth in spite of all his talk on how "Conservative" he is. The issues are listed here and many are bread and butter issues for 7th District Minnesotans.

Rep. Keith Ellison scored 2% and he comes from the most liberal areas of Minnesota. Amy Klobuchar scored 7% and Senator Norm Coleman scored 33%.

Source: The Club for Growth

KSTP: Franken refuses Lord Faris debate

KSTP NEWS
Updated at: 08/13/2008 09:27:13 PM
By: Nicole Muehlhausen, Web Producer

Priscilla Lord Faris wants to be taken seriously as a DFL candidate for the U.S. Senate seat.

While she’s running television ads and traveling the state, there's one traditional campaign event she hasn't been able to do so far—debate her opponent.

DFL-endorsed Al Franken won the party’s backing in June. As far as he's concerned, Republican Norm Coleman is his opponent.

So he won't agree to any pre-primary debates with Lord Faris or anyone else.

"I'm the endorsed candidate of this party. We went through a long process and I was very proud to receive the endorsement on the first ballot and receive it by acclamation," said Franken.

Franken said he debated his DFL opponents for the party endorsement multiple times, and doesn’t plan to Lord Faris or any other DFL candidate running in the primary.

"I did 17 debates during the primary, caucus season up to the convention. I’m not going to debate her. I’m not going to debate Dick Franzen. I’m not going to debate Ole Saviour," Franken explained.

Lord Faris said she assumes Franken is being advised by campaign strategists not to debate her. But that won't stop her from conducting a "mock" debate.

"That's fine. He can follow their advice. But I’ll use some other unique ways to debate him and they'll be fun and I’m going to have fun at this," Lord Faris said.

Political science professor Larry Jacobs said denying Lord Faris a publicity opportunity is smart strategy.

"It might well irritate Minnesota voters who would like to see them match up. But from a political strategy point of view, it's the only way for Franken to go," Jacobs said.

Comment: Al Franken has to address the concerns of women within his own party and around Minnesota. The half hearted endorsement well after the nomination was secured from Rep. McCollum and those expressed by his challenger Attorney Lord Faris make you wonder how bad his campaign can continue to stumble with the election a few months away.

One Step Forward and then Two Steps Back!!

I think MDE really does a great job on expressing the dismay many of us have watching the events over in MN Senate District 16.

I had started to write a rather lengthy post with my thoughts, but I think it is worth every one's time to read the links listed below. MDE elaborates on many of the same points, but with greater experience given his past work experience.

It is frustrating to many of us when we see the GOP leadership showing questionable leadership in a time that clear direction is required.

Minnesota Democrats Exposed

ON REPRESENTATIVE MARK OLSON’S ENDORSEMENT BY THE REPUBLICAN PARTY

PRT is Bogus-Dump Mark Olson

Complaint: Page 1

Complaint: Page 2

Complaint: Page 3

A Liberal View of Obama's Energy Policy from a Conservative

Democrat Lord Faris takes on Democrat Angry Al Franken

While on vacation I did not get to attend FARMFEST which was unfortunate.

However, the farmers I have heard from around here say Al Franken is just not familiar with Minnesota politics and his attacks were an embarrassment. One farmer out here says he's calling him Angry Al from now on.

Here is the Lord Faris commercial the new Democrat challenging Angry Al in the primary this September.

Minnesota Democrats: Please consider the fate of the poor Gorilla!!

I believe 10 million dollars was enough money to house the Gorilla's at a new zoo exhibit in Minnesota. I think Representative Seifert needs to frame his comments in a way that apparently captured the hearts of Democrats during the last legislative session.

Just a suggestion from a humble Small City Mayor.

Republicans wave 'red flag' over use of welfare benefit cards

By MIKE KASZUBA, Star Tribune
Last update: August 7, 2008 - 12:24 PM

Welfare recipients in Minnesota used state-issued benefit cards to make more than $10 million in purchases in other states last year, including places as far away as Hawaii, House Republicans charged today.

While acknowledging the purchases were not illegal, House Minority Leader Marty Seifert said the disclosure was "a red flag for the taxpayers." Seifert said Republicans, who are trying to recapture a majority in the House this fall, had asked the legislative auditor to investigate the findings and called for legislative hearings.

A chart and map distributed at a mid-morning news conference showed that the most transactions last year came in bordering states, such as Wisconsin and North Dakota. In Illinois, statistics provided by Republicans showed there were 48,821 transactions last year totaling $1.3 million. In Iowa, there were 14,037 transactions totaling $498,129.

Seifert acknowledged that some of the transactions in bordering states could simply be recipients in Minnesota crossing the state line to make purchases. He also said the $10.2 million in out-of-state purchases last year represented just a fraction of the $496.3 million in total transactions.

"Some people might say it's only $10 million," he said. "To me, $10 million is $10 million."

How Obama's Oil Plan would work!!

Source: 620WTMK

Let's return to our core values!!

Pawlenty says Republicans need fresh ideas

Source: StarTribune

Our Governor is right that the Republican Party needs to refresh and update its image. The last election and our tenuous political situation right now is certainly no secret. We fell behind on explaining the important issues facing our country in the 21st Century and paid the price at the ballot box in 2006.

On current issues like energy independence, renewable fuels, and clean technology a good case can be made for working on goals that are realistic and market driven without the scare tactics.

Rural America agrees becoming less dependent on unstable parts of the world for our energy while creating true free market solutions here at home makes sense.

However, I still want to be convinced our party leaders are returning to some of our core issues. The issues that have made us the dominant party since Ronald Reagan. Fresh Ideas are fine if they are good and based in core principles.

Our core principles should be the foundation of these new great ideas.

The newly coined "Sams Club" voter does not shop there because it is the trendiest spot. They come back time and again because it consistently provides the goods and services at the lowest cost creating true value.

Sams also spends a lot of time and effort letting people know (time and again....repeatedly) why we should all spend our vote there with our dollars. Republicans need to get beyond the catchy phrase and look at the business model employed.

How is your Minnesota school doing?

Minnesota Non-Metro School Rankings

I just thought I would post this. The school system in Clarissa & Eagle Bend did meet the No Child Left Behind criteria for 2008. (Click the StarTribune link above)

Other school systems in the area including: Browerville, Long Prairie, and Bertha-Hewitt apparently missed the cut this year and all received grades that did not pass.

I am still out on an opinion regarding No Child Left Behind. I do think it is important to test and see how we are doing. Obviously a quality education for our children is important. However, I have spoken with some teachers who think there are better ways to go about doing this. If there are teachers out there who could post comments with their thoughts on No Child Left Behind it would be appreciated.

Congrats to Eagle Valley teachers and staff on being the only school to pass, and for the great education they are giving students.

America's Small City Mayor: Breaking NEWS!!

I am happy to announce that America's Small City Mayor has received press passes to live blog the 2008 National Republican Convention.

We will be there September 1st - 4th to bring you all of behind the scenes buzz, interviews, and news. Again we will make all of our posts relevant to the issues that are important rural America.

I would like to express my sincere appreciation for all of the dedicated readers. My blog four years ago started as a personal log of events here in Clarissa but has grown in ways that really continue to amaze.

The screening process the GOP uses is based on readership and unique content among other criteria. The America's Small City Mayor blog continues to grow with readership in Minnesota and around the United States increasing on a monthly basis.

Thanks and stay tuned for further UPDATES!!

On the lighter side: The US mortgage problem

2008 GOP Convention Program Schedule

America's Small City Mayor will have an BIG announcement regarding the GOP Convention in September. Please stay tuned for a number of important website changes, interviews, and announcements.

SAINT PAUL, Minn. - Maria Cino, Chief Executive Officer and President for the 2008 Republican National Convention, today announced the program block schedule for the upcoming Republican National Convention. The program blocks are as follows:

Monday, September 1: 2:30 - 10:00 p.m. CDT*
Tuesday, September 2: 6:20 - 10:05 p.m. CDT
Wednesday, September 3: 6:20 - 11:20 p.m. CDT
Thursday, September 4: 6:20 - 10:15 p.m. CDT
*Note: there will be a 30-minute break at 6:30 p.m. CDT

"We are pleased to announce the official block schedule for the 2008 Republican National Convention and are confident this year’s compelling program will be one of the most exciting in GOP convention history," said Cino. "The convention will showcase Sen. John McCain and his vision for America to the 45,000 convention participants joining us from around the country and the millions more participating from home."

About the Republican National Convention

The 2008 Republican National Convention will be held at Saint Paul's Xcel Energy Center from Sept. 1-4, 2008. Approximately 45,000 delegates, alternate delegates, volunteers, members of the media and other guests are expected to attend the convention. Minneapolis-Saint Paul is expected to receive an estimated $150-$160 million positive economic boost from the four-day event. For more information about the 2008 Republican National Convention, please visit our website at http://www.gopconvention2008.com/.

The Great Fire Hydrant Debate of 2008!!

Ask any small city reporter about covering local politics and they will tell you it can get funny fast. They actually cannot report everything because some of it is so strange you would not believe it if you read it. Having ran many meetings I can corroborate this claim.

The local politicians have no "people" to craft messages or engage in spin. Instead, you get people at their very BEST........... and at times WORST.

In the coming weeks I will be creating/dedicating an entire portion of my blog to collecting these Gems of the Public Arena. If you find any please send them my way, because it is true that: "truth is better than fiction".

For you reporters I will allow you to make it generic and remain anonymous.

Here in Clarissa we are no different. The past few weeks had me deal with a political fire storm. I call it "The Great Fire Hydrant Debate of 2008!"

It started with my request to have fire hydrants painted and inspected around the city to ensure they are looking good and operating properly. I had assumed all red fire hydrants would be red, but after half a dozen phone calls I was reminded of the saying: "Never assume anything."

The city crew had inspected and painted the fire hydrants various colors to match the buildings along our main street. I thought they looked GREAT when I went to look, and was impressed at the thought that went into each of them.

However after the dozenth phone call, the angry mobs at city hall, and the impassioned rebuke from a council person to one of our hard working city staff; I decided we have to pick our battles, and this was not a battle worth fighting. We painted them RED!

It was a few days after that we had our council meeting and a few citizens were attending. They asked why the hydrants had been repainted because they loved them, and had so many people comment on how different they were.

The city employees and I all smiled. I think we were reading each other's mind that you cannot win some days. Either that or they were angry at me for making them paint again, but I prefer to see my glasses half full!!

I have learned from this and other situations it is possible to be on the losing end of a WIN/WIN situation. The Great Fire Hydrant Debate of 2008 is proof!!

Minnesota 2020 article on Minnesota Cities

Minnesota Ghost Towns Haunt 500 Endangered Small Cities

Part 1 in a 5-part series.
By Lee Egerstrom
Minnesota 2020 Fellow

I found this to be an interesting read. I hope the other "parts" show some of the progress made, and the positive future that can be attained. I do agree rural Minnesota leaders need to capitalize on their strengths and limit their weaknesses.

Technology, industry trends, and changing demographics will continue to benefit rural Minnesota in the coming decades. I think we need to educate our leaders so that they understand the past does not necessarily apply to the future.

I can tell you many leaders, including myself, are very optimistic about the future of rural Minnesota. The areas that plan and work towards a better future have a chance at achieving it more than ever before.

Technology is allowing individuals to live in areas they choose. It is an example of one possibility that could revolutionize small city life and bring true economic opportunity. I am a living example of this.

The coming Baby Boom transition shows that there will be a demographic shift to areas highlighted in this article. All of this will bring opportunity unseen in past decades.

The time to prepare and plan is NOW!!

Kudlow's Money Politics: Media is missing the Housing Bottom

Media reports painted a pessimistic picture of today’s release on existing home sales, which fell 15 percent from a year ago and recorded higher inventories. But inside the report was an awful lot of very good new news, which appear to be pointing to a bottom in the housing problem; in fact, maybe the tiniest beginnings of a recovery.

For example, the median existing home price has increased four consecutive months and is up 10 percent since February. Yes, it’s down 6 percent over the past year. But the monthly numbers show a gradual rebound. Actually, this median home price is $215,000 in June, compared to $196,000 last winter.

And there’s more. One of the hardest hit regions is the West, including California, Arizona, and Nevada. The other two bad states are Florida and Michigan. However, existing home sales in the western region are up four straight months, and are 17 percent above the low in October. At the same time, prices in the West have increased three straight months.

Meanwhile, overall national existing home sales are basically stabilizing at just under five million. And in the first and second quarters of 2008, these sales dropped slightly by 3 percent in each case, which is a whole lot better than the roughly 30 percent sales drops of the prior three quarters.

It’s a pity the mainstream media keeps searching for more and more pessimism. The reality is a possible upturn in the housing trend, and at the very least we are getting a bottom. Stocks sold off 165 points largely on media reports of terrible home sales and prices. But I am hoping the market comes to its senses and realizes the data are a whole lot better.

And on top of all that, just as housing may be on the mend, Congress is about to ratify a huge FHA-based bailout that could total $42 billion. Congressional solons are putting up $300 billion to refinance and insure distressed loans through the Federal Housing Administration. But this dubious government agency, with a whole history of bad portfolio management, may wind up taking in the very worst loans on the books.

Of course, taxpayers are on the hook. More government semi-socialism.

posted by Money Politic$ at 2:05 PM

The Mayor will Vacation at his Lake Compound!!

America's Small City Mayor

The Vacation

I want to make my readers aware that Clarissa's First Family will be retreating to their vacation compound the last week of July. It is a remote location in Northern Minnesota that has no utilities except for a boat.

I have been working on some good original material that will be released throughout the week. I hope you enjoy it, and it is published as I intended it to look. (Note: Publishing can be interesting some days when you leave it to the system.)

Lastly the blog will be getting a major face lift in the coming weeks. It will have special sections for commentary, humor, and for those who are serious about working to make rural areas a better place to live.

We will see all of you again soon. Keep those comments and articles coming!!

Commissioner Joe sends us an article from Times Online!!

He ventured forth to bring light to the world

By Gerard Baker: July 25th 2008

The anointed one's pilgrimage to the Holy Land is a miracle in action - and a blessing to all his faithful followers

And it came to pass, in the eighth year of the reign of the evil Bush the Younger (The Ignorant), when the whole land from the Arabian desert to the shores of the Great Lakes had been laid barren, that a Child appeared in the wilderness.

The Child was blessed in looks and intellect. Scion of a simple family, offspring of a miraculous union, grandson of a typical white person and an African peasant. And yea, as he grew, the Child walked in the path of righteousness, with only the occasional detour into the odd weed and a little blow.

When he was twelve years old, they found him in the temple in the City of Chicago, arguing the finer points of community organisation with the Prophet Jeremiah and the Elders. And the Elders were astonished at what they heard and said among themselves: “Verily, who is this Child that he opens our hearts and minds to the audacity of hope?”

In the great Battles of Caucus and Primary he smote the conniving Hillary, wife of the deposed King Bill the Priapic and their barbarian hordes of Working Class Whites.

And so it was, in the fullness of time, before the harvest month of the appointed year, the Child ventured forth - for the first time - to bring the light unto all the world.

He travelled fleet of foot and light of camel, with a small retinue that consisted only of his loyal disciples from the tribe of the Media. He ventured first to the land of the Hindu Kush, where the

Taleban had harboured the viper of al-Qaeda in their bosom, raining terror on all the world.

And the Child spake and the tribes of Nato immediately loosed the Caveats that had previously bound them. And in the great battle that ensued the forces of the light were triumphant. For as long as the Child stood with his arms raised aloft, the enemy suffered great blows and the threat of terror was no more.

From there he went forth to Mesopotamia where he was received by the great ruler al-Maliki, and al-Maliki spake unto him and blessed his Sixteen Month Troop Withdrawal Plan even as the imperial warrior Petraeus tried to destroy it.

And lo, in Mesopotamia, a miracle occurred. Even though the Great Surge of Armour that the evil Bush had ordered had been a terrible mistake, a waste of vital military resources and doomed to end in disaster, the Child's very presence suddenly brought forth a great victory for the forces of the light.

And the Persians, who saw all this and were greatly fearful, longed to speak with the Child and saw that the Child was the bringer of peace. At the mention of his name they quickly laid aside their intrigues and beat their uranium swords into civil nuclear energy ploughshares.

From there the Child went up to the city of Jerusalem, and entered through the gate seated on an ass. The crowds of network anchors who had followed him from afar cheered “Hosanna” and waved great palm fronds and strewed them at his feet.

In Jerusalem and in surrounding Palestine, the Child spake to the Hebrews and the Arabs, as the Scripture had foretold. And in an instant, the lion lay down with the lamb, and the Israelites and Ishmaelites ended their long enmity and lived for ever after in peace.

As word spread throughout the land about the Child's wondrous works, peoples from all over flocked to hear him; Hittites and Abbasids; Obamacons and McCainiacs; Cameroonians and Blairites.

And they told of strange and wondrous things that greeted the news of the Child's journey. Around the world, global temperatures began to decline, and the ocean levels fell and the great warming was over.

The Great Prophet Algore of Nobel and Oscar, who many had believed was the anointed one, smiled and told his followers that the Child was the one generations had been waiting for.

And there were other wonderful signs. In the city of the Street at the Wall, spreads on interbank interest rates dropped like manna from Heaven and rates on credit default swaps fell to the ground as dead birds from the almond tree, and the people who had lived in foreclosure were able to borrow again.

Black gold gushed from the ground at prices well below $140 per barrel. In hospitals across the land the sick were cured even though they were uninsured. And all because the Child had pronounced it.

And this is the testimony of one who speaks the truth and bears witness to the truth so that you might believe. And he knows it is the truth for he saw it all on CNN and the BBC and in the pages of The New York Times.

Then the Child ventured forth from Israel and Palestine and stepped onto the shores of the Old Continent. In the land of Queen Angela of Merkel, vast multitudes gathered to hear his voice, and he preached to them at length.

But when he had finished speaking his disciples told him the crowd was hungry, for they had had nothing to eat all the hours they had waited for him.

And so the Child told his disciples to fetch some food but all they had was five loaves and a couple of frankfurters. So he took the bread and the frankfurters and blessed them and told his disciples to feed the multitudes. And when all had eaten their fill, the scraps filled twelve baskets.

Thence he travelled west to Mount Sarkozy. Even the beauteous Princess Carla of the tribe of the Bruni was struck by awe and she was great in love with the Child, but he was tempted not.

On the Seventh Day he walked across the Channel of the Angles to the ancient land of the hooligans. There he was welcomed with open arms by the once great prophet Blair and his successor, Gordon the Leper, and his successor, David the Golden One.

And suddenly, with the men appeared the archangel Gabriel and the whole host of the heavenly choir, ranks of cherubim and seraphim, all praising God and singing: “Yes, We Can.”

Have a questions for Norm Coleman & Al Franken?

Here is your chance!!

Telco won't install fiber network, sues to prevent city from

A small town in Minnesota wants to build its own fiber to the home network. The local telco didn't want to do it, but it doesn't want the city competing with it, either. That means one thing: lawsuit.

read more | digg story

Beware the Utopians!!

I do not enjoy the prices we are paying for gas. I cringe as I watch the food prices ring up on the big screen at Jon's Family Foods grocery store. The increases for bread, milk, and virtually any food with three boys soon to hit their teenage (prime eating) years makes me wish for the perfect world...... dare I say the Utopian world.

However, I thought this quote from the Wall Street Journal was appropriate. We live in a world of laws and principles. They are not what we would always like, but they can only be ignored at one's peril. The energy mess we find ourselves in is because of the Utopian world we like to think we live in.

We have elected to many Utopians in St. Paul and Washington D.C. They have a cure for every problem, and create a problem with their every cure. We need a candidate reform bill that administers a quiz to anyone running for office from this day forward. If they are a Utopian, be they Democrat or Republican, they can run for office but must have a VOTER BEWARE disclaimer on their campaign material.

Politicians want lower gas and oil prices but don't want more production to increase supply. They want oil "independence" but they've declared off limits most of the big sources of domestic oil that could replace foreign imports. They want Americans to use less oil to reduce greenhouse gases but they protest higher oil prices that reduce demand. They want more oil company investment but they want to confiscate the profits from that investment. And these folks want to be President?~"Windfall Profits for Dummies" in today's WSJ

Source: CARPE DIEM

Ladies Logic: Minnesota polling for Coleman & Franken

Piling It On

A good post (click it above) on how the Franken Campaign continues to stumble by being behind in polls. I think another aspect is how Franken is more importantly behind in cash-on-hand.

I think we will see National & Statewide Democrats pull the plug on the Franken Campaign soon. It will be interesting to see the next reports on contributions to see how soon his campaign may have died.

Maybe my call of Coleman by 7% was to pessimistic? However, I will stick with it.

The headline today if it was President Obama!!

Existing home sales fall 2.6 percent in June

Thursday July 24, 10:37 am ET By Martin Crutsinger, AP Economics Writer

Just thought I would write the flip side of this AP Article.

Inventories at all time highs and prices down 2.6 percent equal a great time for families and first time home buyers!!

(APe) Washington -- The news for buyers keeps getting better with prices declining yet again in June. The National Association of Realtors reported sales dropped by 2.6%. To a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.86 million units. The median price of a home is at $215,100.

The consensus among economists is that now is the time to purchase a home because it is a buyers market. The governments action in ending the credit crisis by saving Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae means buyers can purchase their home with confidence.

Interest rates remain at all time lows increasing purchasing power of individuals unlike any other time in the past two decades. These facts combined our economy remaining at full employment and oil prices coming down substantially means a bright future ahead for the American Economy.....................

On the lighter side (not really)..... Obama's policy in Iraq

The First Lady and I were watching the news last night regarding Obama's trip overseas. She pointed out she would be furious if a Republican candidate went over during a war and appeared to negotiate with a foreign government and apparently disregarded the role of our current Commander in Chief.

Then on a recent post reporters apparently had to remind an Obama advisor he was not the Commander in Chief, but the election is still coming up in November.

I thought Obama's trip to Iraq crossed the line. If you want to go on a fact finding mission that is fine. However, do not insert yourself into the Presidents position during critical negotiations.

This cartoon is a good illustration of what Mr. Obama would have visited this weekend had we followed his great judgement.

Two great SCSUScholars articles!!

Two excellent posts that everyone should read. I found it amazing that for all the gloom and doom presented by Mr. Stinson our state government continues to bring in more revenue than anticipated.

I have said for many years now, as Small City Mayor, our representatives and officials in St. Paul need to start to update their view of the world. Minnesota has changed, and there are many items that need to be revamped, scraped, or modified so that everyone is looking at the whole picture.

Tunnel vision seems to come from residing in the Capital or State Government to long. Also a great post on the Federal Reserve. A great topic for everyone to read up on should be Moral Hazard in Federal and State Governments.

Making New Numbers

Dual-plus-one mandate

Today: Jesse Ventura marks the end of the Franken for Senate Campaign!!

There is an event later this evening that marks the end of the Al Franken Campaign. The event does not have to end with a "yes" or a "no". It only has to begin and then end when the time is up.

I am sure you know that Jesse Ventura will go on Larry King Live tonight and say a number of wacky things. He might even say he will run for the US Senate in Minnesota. To be honest......no one really cares here in Minnesota other than the news media and blogger's. To voters out here it is just good coffee topics for tomorrow morning.....nothing else. Really!!

The interview will probably have Ventura reaffirm his off the wall 9/11 conspiracy theories that have been highlighted on this and other websites before. He will then start calling the other candidates names and rewrite history when he was the Best Governor Minnesota EVER HAD.

All of this will be great television and food for blogs. However, I think we should mark today as the END OF THE FRANKEN CAMPAIGN.

Ventura will remind Minnesotans what it was like to have a "C" actor serving their state. The ego, the wild statements, the lack of respect and loyalty to voters who put them in office.

It was just to soon for Al Franken to consider such a run, and today will mark the cementing of polls with him losing by a minimum of seven points to Senator Norm Coleman.

The lack of enthusiasm among conservative Democrats is starting to become amazing out here in rural Minnesota. We will even see if Franken bothers to show for the Farmers Union Picnic in Clarissa, which has been a staple of Conservative Democratic politics for longer than I have been alive.

Banking Crisis almost over.

Paulson Seeks Authority to Shore Up Fannie, Freddie

The report by Bloomberg.com shows the final steps in ending the banking and credit crisis. The solution to the problem will certainly come with increased government regulation in this sector.

More on this subject coming soon.

Senator Klobuchar: Profiles in Leadership or Politics?

Minnesota's Junior Senator, again, fails the courage and political savvy test on another important issue!

The FISA vote occurred a few days ago with President Bush and common sense winning a stunning victory considering Democrats run the House and Senate. This was one of the BIG issues Democrats ran on in their land slide victories a few years ago.

A few weeks ago Senator Klobuchar basically voted for the FISA bill's passage in total.

In true Klobuchar fashion we see another profile in Leadership with a last minute switch trying to ride the fence keeping everyone happy. The result is Senator Klobuchar is the loser with all sides of the political spectrum calling her out when
reading Democrat or Republican blogs and editorials.

Senator Klobuchar voted two days ago with the "Liberal Left" (reversing her votes of two weeks ago) by trying to strip the bill of the immunity provision for telecoms and the eventual cloture vote. The end vote was 69-28 with the bill passing.

The one thing we know after the past few weeks is we effectively do not know, yet again, where the Senator stands on an important National Security issue because she can say: "She voted for it before she voted against it". Amazing!!

CARPE DIEM: FT Portfolios: Real GDP To Grow at 3% in QII

According to the BEA's report today, the U.S. trade deficit in goods and services declined to $59.8 billion in May from $60.5 billion in April. Highlights include:• Exports increased $1.4 billion in May and are up 17.8% versus last year. The gain in exports in May was led by fuel oil, chemical fertilizers, and other petroleum products.

• Imports increased $0.6 billion in May, a small rise after a large upward spike in April. Imports are up 12.5% versus a year ago. Imports were held down in May by a decline in autos and energy (petroleum products and natural gas).

• Adjusted for inflation, the trade deficit in goods is $11.6 billion smaller than last May and the smallest since 2002. Without adjusting for inflation, the trade deficit is $0.4 billion larger than last year.

Implications: The export boom continued in May and is adding substantially to real GDP growth. We now estimate the trade sector will add about two percentage points to real GDP growth in Q2, which leads us to boost our estimate of the overall real GDP growth rate in Q2 to 3% (previously 2.5%).

Source: First Trust Portfolios

A great post on race relations that needs no further explanation!!

SciGuy
A science blog with Eric Berger

July 09, 2008

Is "black hole" a racially insensitive term?

Apparently to some. From the City Hall Blog at the Dallas Morning News:

A special meeting about Dallas County traffic tickets turned tense and bizarre this afternoon.

County commissioners were discussing problems with the central collections office that is used to process traffic ticket payments and handle other paperwork normally done by the JP Courts.

Commissioner Kenneth Mayfield, who is white, said it seemed that central collections "has become a black hole" because paperwork reportedly has become lost in the office.

Commissioner John Wiley Price, who is black, interrupted him with a loud "Excuse me!" He then corrected his colleague, saying the office has become a "white hole." That prompted Judge Thomas Jones, who is black, to demand an apology from Mayfield for his racially insensitive analogy.

Mayfield shot back that it was a figure of speech and a science term.

Judge Jones should be very glad that the central collections office has not become a white hole, a theoretical object that ejects matter from beyond its event horizon, rather than sucking it in. It wouldn't be fun for Dallas to find itself so near a quasar.

Anyone wanting to know a good deal about black holes should read the excellent new book, The Black Hole War, by Leonard Susskind, which has just been released. I'm in the middle of it, and the book's a fascinating tour of modern physics written for the layman. It's just been marvelous so far.

Thanks to Matt B. for the link.

Colbert Report: With Minnesota smoking danger gone..... a new sense of danger needs to be restored.

Stephen Colbert offers a solution to this emerging crisis!!

Minnesota should eliminate the Corporate Tax Rate!!

A must read interview (below) between Larry Kudlow & former Senator Phil Gramm!! Mr. Gramm is senior advisor to Senator John McCain and a great Conservative.

Want to bring back a strong economy? Let's start by creating a competitive economic environment here in Minnesota starting with our Corporate Tax Structure!! How about getting control of our Unemployment Insurance Tax Rates and putting small business owners in a position where they can hire people without added government taxes and regulations. (See next link below!!)

We always look at the revenue loss when talking about such an idea. However, we never look at the projected increases in investment and increased tax revenue as a result of an expanding economic base. Minnesota as a State ranks 3rd from last in the world as the highest taxed place for corporate business. YIKES!!!

Government needs to look at long-term analysis like our developing world competitors/countries around the world. We are dead last as a Nation in Corporate Tax rates when you include individual states. Just a fact!!

My Interview with Top McCain Economic Advisor Phil Gramm

Minnesota Tax Rankings: (Business environment we are in the bottom 10!!)

On the lighter side...... Obama is a man of Change!!

NRO on Tim Pawlenty

Time for Tim
McCain’s ticket to Minnesota.

By Scott W. Johnson

When Bill Kristol reported in May that the McCain team was talking up Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal as their possible vice-presidential selection, it struck me that the talk must be a cover for Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty. Twice elected governor of a blue state that President Bush almost carried twice, Pawlenty is between Mitt Romney and Bobby Jindal in age (47), experience, and intangible factors. Since Kristol’s column appeared Romney has emerged as a front runner, but Pawlenty remains a worthy dark horse.

True, it’s unlikely he’ll help McCain carry Minnesota; though Pawlenty remains a popular governor, McCain isn’t even close in the state. Minnesota is prime, antiwar Obama country. If our formidable Republican senator Norm Coleman were facing a generic Democrat this November, even he would be in serious trouble. (As it is, the Democrats have done him the favor of nominating the comedian who hasn’t been funny since the expiration of the Al Franken Decade in 1990 to oppose him. Senator Coleman may survive.)

In any event, the focus on geography is a bit misleading. When was the last time electoral geography played a serious role in the Republican nominee’s selection of a running mate? Perhaps when Arizona’s Barry Goldwater reached out to New York’s Bill Miller in 1964, but the precedent is not exactly auspicious. On the Democratic side, one has to go back even farther, to Kennedy’s selection of Johnson in 1960, to find a good example of electoral geography exerting an obvious influence.

If not his state’s electoral votes, what does Pawlenty stand to offer McCain? In the current issue of National Review, John Miller rightly credits Pawlenty (along with former congressman Rob Portman of Ohio) with a possible ability to help McCain “tip the scales in swing states.” Pawlenty’s relatively conservative credentials come with a genuine blue-collar background that gives him a tremendous personal appeal. He grew up with four siblings in South St. Paul, where his father supported the family as a truck driver. Pawlenty’s mother died of cancer when he was 16. Pawlenty fulfilled her wish that he would be the first in the family to attend college (he put himself through the University of Minnesota for undergraduate and law school).

Pawlenty’s people skills come across in person and on television. He is unflappable and remarkably good-humored. He recently made news with comments that may strike a chord among those alienated by Barack Obama’s sermon to the San Francisco Democrats. After spending a weekend enjoying the state’s fishing opener with his lovely wife Mary, he commented to one of the big Twin Cities radio stations: “I have a wife who genuinely loves to fish. She loves football, she’ll go to hockey games, and I jokingly say, ‘Now, if I could only get her to have sex with me.’”

Serving in the Minnesota legislature from a suburban Twin Cities district, Pawlenty’s Republican colleagues elected him the state house majority leader in 1999 at age 38. He held together the Republican caucus with a margin of one vote, doing battle with Independent governor Jesse Ventura and the Democratic state senate. In 2002 he cruised to the governorship in a competitive three-way race. In 2006, he narrowly survived the Democratic tide that decimated the state’s Republican ranks. (I wrote about the race for NRO.)

Pawlenty has had a long, friendly relationship with McCain. Indeed, McCain campaigned with Pawlenty in northern Minnesota in 2006, and Pawlenty signed up as co-chair of the McCain campaign at its inception. When his role in the McCain campaign was announced last year, I interviewed him; Pawlenty told me what he told Sarah Baxter of the London Times for an article last month: “If you look at the way Senator McCain has lived his life, it’s an incredible expression of commitment, duty, valour and patriotism.” Pawlenty admires Senator McCain personally and appreciates his appeal to voters beyond the Republican base.

Pawlenty has been prescient in worrying about the Republican party’s shrinking appeal. In a 2007 profile for The Weekly Standard, Matthew Continetti documented Pawlenty’s efforts to reformulate and extend the Republican brand with an appeal to “Sam’s Club Republicans.” It is an appeal that John McCain might find he could put to good use in November with Pawlenty on his ticket.

— Scott W. Johnson is a Minneapolis attorney and contributor to Power Line.

The Mayor agree's: High oil equals strong headwinds for US Economy!!

Paulson, Darling Warn on Economy
By LAURENCE NORMAN
July 3, 2008 9:00 a.m.

LONDON -- U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson ended a four-day European trip Thursday, joining with U.K. Finance Minister Alistair Darling to warn that the near-term economic outlook remains difficult and the global inflation threat is serious.

Days ahead of the Group of Eight leaders meeting in Japan, Mr. Paulson said high oil prices represent a "strong headwind" for the U.S. economy and are likely to prolong its slowdown. His comments came as oil hit a new record, breaching $145 a barrel.

Mr. Paulson said the U.S. economy is facing a "tough" period, with the credit crunch and the housing market's woes also weighing. The U.S. economy grew 0.6% in the first quarter and economists say there is a risk of recession. The economic problems have spread out from the U.S., with the U.K. and euro-zone economies also showing increasing signs of strain.

On Thursday, the European Central Bank raised its key interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.25% to tame rising inflation, even as growth across the 15-nation euro-zone shows continuing signs of slowing significantly. Markit Economics said the euro-zone services purchasing managers index contracted in June for the first time in five years.

The U.K. services PMI also dropped for the second straight month while data earlier this week showed house prices have fallen sharply on the year and consumer confidence continued to evaporate.

Mr. Darling insisted the U.K. will avoid a recession, although he acknowledged that "the rate of growth will be slower" this year. He also warned that "it's of the utmost importance that we do not allow inflation to become entrenched in the U.K. again." The consumer price index rose 3.3% in May from a year earlier, the biggest increase since 1992.

Mr. Paulson said in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corp. earlier Thursday that while core inflation remained contained in the U.S., inflation had become a "huge problem" globally, especially in emerging economies like Russia and China.

--Adam Bradbery in London and Tom Barkley contributed to this article.

Write to Laurence Norman at laurence.norman@dowjones.com

A Minnesota City is Born.

Minnesota has a new city—Nowthen
Published: July 2, 2008

Burns Township took another step toward becoming the city of Nowthen on Monday, when residents elected a mayor and four city council members.

Bill Schultz is mayor-elect. Orval Leistico and Laurie Olmon were elected to two-year City Council seats, while Jeffrey Pilon and Harlan Meyer won four-year seats. The elected officials will be sworn in at the first council meeting on July 8, making the incorporation official.
Located in Anoka County, the city has a population of approximately 4,367.

The decision to pursue incorporation as a city was made at the Burns Township annual meeting in March 2007. Its petition for incorporation was then approved by the administrative law judge on May 1, 2008. The city is planning an incorporation celebration in September.

Memo to Pawlenty: Attack Dog Persona does not Fit!!

A Vice-President is generally the person who goes out to do the President's public "dirty" work. I just watched Governor Pawlenty this weekend and realized there is a problem with his desire to be Vice-President.

Pawlenty's affable state wide public persona, "Minnesota Nice", does not play well on television when trying to be an attack dog for McCain. Pawlenty looked uncomfortable and awkward in this position, though I thought his points about Obama were right on.

Maybe it was just me being from Minnesota. However, I think others might sound a similar note in the coming days that the attack dog persona will need some work if he is going to fit into that role.

Norm Coleman Press Release

Dear Friend,

With only a few hours remaining before the close of the 2nd Quarter deadline we wanted to be sure you knew that while recent polls have given us good news the fact remains that we face an uphill battle against Al Franken and his liberal allies. We are currently being outspent nearly 2 to 1 on television and it's only June!

As you know, Norm's record, motives and goals couldn't be more different than Al Franken and his allies. Norm has spent his entire career working to bring people together to get things done in Minnesota; Al Franken has spent his entire career dividing folks, demeaning them, and mocking them.

If we are going to sustain the onslaught of negative attacks and outright distortions from Al Franken and his supporters, we need your help and we need it before the day ends.

We hope you'll take a moment to help us match what Al Franken raises dollar for dollar by clicking here now.

Your contribution -- $5, $10, $25, $50, $100 or whatever amount is right for you -- will ensure we have a successful fundraising report. More importantly, it will help ensure that Norm can continue talking about his record of bringing people together and getting things done.

So before midnight tonight: make your best contribution - or even a modest one - to Norm's re-election campaign. You'll be glad you did!

Sincerely,
Team Coleman

Canadian Health Care We So Envy Lies In Ruins, Its Architect Admits

By DAVID GRATZER Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2008 4:30 PM PT

As this presidential campaign continues, the candidates' comments about health care will continue to include stories of their own experiences and anecdotes of people across the country: the uninsured woman in Ohio, the diabetic in Detroit, the overworked doctor in Orlando, to name a few.

But no one will mention Claude Castonguay — perhaps not surprising because this statesman isn't an American and hasn't held office in over three decades.

Castonguay's evolving view of Canadian health care, however, should weigh heavily on how the candidates think about the issue in this country.

Back in the 1960s, Castonguay chaired a Canadian government committee studying health reform and recommended that his home province of Quebec — then the largest and most affluent in the country — adopt government-administered health care, covering all citizens through tax levies.

The government followed his advice, leading to his modern-day moniker: "the father of Quebec medicare." Even this title seems modest; Castonguay's work triggered a domino effect across the country, until eventually his ideas were implemented from coast to coast.

Four decades later, as the chairman of a government committee reviewing Quebec health care this year, Castonguay concluded that the system is in "crisis."

"We thought we could resolve the system's problems by rationing services or injecting massive amounts of new money into it," says Castonguay. But now he prescribes a radical overhaul: "We are proposing to give a greater role to the private sector so that people can exercise freedom of choice."

Castonguay advocates contracting out services to the private sector, going so far as suggesting that public hospitals rent space during off-hours to entrepreneurial doctors. He supports co-pays for patients who want to see physicians. Castonguay, the man who championed public health insurance in Canada, now urges for the legalization of private health insurance.

In America, these ideas may not sound shocking. But in Canada, where the private sector has been shunned for decades, these are extraordinary views, especially coming from Castonguay. It's as if John Maynard Keynes, resting on his British death bed in 1946, had declared that his faith in government interventionism was misplaced.

What would drive a man like Castonguay to reconsider his long-held beliefs? Try a health care system so overburdened that hundreds of thousands in need of medical attention wait for care, any care; a system where people in towns like Norwalk, Ontario, participate in lotteries to win appointments with the local family doctor.

Years ago, Canadians touted their health care system as the best in the world; today, Canadian health care stands in ruinous shape.

Sick with ovarian cancer, Sylvia de Vires, an Ontario woman afflicted with a 13-inch, fluid-filled tumor weighing 40 pounds, was unable to get timely care in Canada. She crossed the American border to Pontiac, Mich., where a surgeon removed the tumor, estimating she could not have lived longer than a few weeks more.

The Canadian government pays for U.S. medical care in some circumstances, but it declined to do so in de Vires' case for a bureaucratically perfect, but inhumane, reason: She hadn't properly filled out a form. At death's door, de Vires should have done her paperwork better.

De Vires is far from unusual in seeking medical treatment in the U.S. Even Canadian government officials send patients across the border, increasingly looking to American medicine to deal with their overload of patients and chronic shortage of care.

Since the spring of 2006, Ontario's government has sent at least 164 patients to New York and Michigan for neurosurgery emergencies — defined by the Globe and Mail newspaper as "broken necks, burst aneurysms and other types of bleeding in or around the brain." Other provinces have followed Ontario's example.

Canada isn't the only country facing a government health care crisis. Britain's system, once the postwar inspiration for many Western countries, is similarly plagued. Both countries trail the U.S. in five-year cancer survival rates, transplantation outcomes and other measures.

The problem is that government bureaucrats simply can't centrally plan their way to better health care.

A typical example: The Ministry of Health declared that British patients should get ER care within four hours. The result? At some hospitals, seriously ill patients are kept in ambulances for hours so as not to run afoul of the regulation; at other hospitals, patients are admitted to inappropriate wards.

Declarations can't solve staffing shortages and the other rationing of care that occurs in government-run systems.

Polls show Americans are desperately unhappy with their system and a government solution grows in popularity. Neither Sen. Obama nor Sen. McCain is explicitly pushing for single-payer health care, as the Canadian system is known in America.

"I happen to be a proponent of a single-payer health care program," Obama said back in the 1990s. Last year, Obama told the New Yorker that "if you're starting from scratch, then a single-payer system probably makes sense."

As for the Republicans, simply criticizing Democratic health care proposals will not suffice — it's not 1994 anymore. And, while McCain's health care proposals hold promise of putting families in charge of their health care and perhaps even taming costs, McCain, at least so far, doesn't seem terribly interested in discussing health care on the campaign trail.

However the candidates choose to proceed, Americans should know that one of the founding fathers of Canada's government-run health care system has turned against his own creation. If Claude Castonguay is abandoning ship, why should Americans bother climbing on board?

Gratzer is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a physician licensed in both the U.S. and Canada, where he received his medical training. His newest book, "The Cure: How Capitalism Can Save American Health Care," is now available in paperback.

Source: True North & IBDeditorials

Franken Campaign continues to skid and stumble

Minnesota

Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Union
Franken 41% 4% 76% 35% 37% 45% 40% 47%
Coleman 51% 92% 17% 55% 57% 45% 52% 47%

Source: Quinnipiac

This is quite a devastating poll for the Franken Campaign, but it is not surprising. There is so much skepticism here among the socially conservative Democrats that even they are content with Senator Coleman. Franken is tied with Union Households, Women, and even dose worse among Democrats than Norm Coleman does with Republicans.

Hands down it is going to be a Coleman victory in November. Franken may be able to turn the ship on a few of these numbers but it will not be enough to win.

Beginning Farmer & Rancher Development

Matched Savings Program Lacks Dedicated Funding
Submitted by Elisha Smith on Tue, 06/24/2008 - 13:24.

The 2008 Farm Bill includes the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Individual Development Account Program. This program uses special matched saving accounts to promote a new generation of farmers and ranchers by assisting those of modest means to establish a pattern of savings. The account proceeds may be used toward capital expenditures for a farm or ranch operation, including expenses associated with the purchases of land, buildings, equipment, infrastructure, livestock, or toward training. For numerous aspiring farmers and ranchers, the actuality of starting their own operation is out of reach. One of the biggest obstacles to new farmers is financing the land and the farm operation. This program can bolster their opportunities by helping them save money on a down payment for example. It will also prepare them for success as a farmer or rancher by requiring the participants to acquire appropriate training that focuses on business planning, banking, conservation planning, market development and more.

The program will be tested in at least 15 states before national implementation. However, the farm bill did not provide any dedicated funding, even for the pilot program. The opportunity to make a difference for the next generation of family farmers and ranchers is now. But we must convince the members of the Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee to seize the opportunity and provide the funds needed to get this program off the ground.

For more information visit: http://www.cfra.org/

Quote of the Day........

"As a rule we disbelieve all the facts and theories for which we have no use. "

William JamesUS Pragmatist philosopher & psychologist (1842 - 1910)

Comment: This was up on my Google Homepage today. I know he probably was not referring to the energy and perilous economic situation we find ourselves in today, but I thought this would be a good forward to all of the politicians in St. Paul and Washington D.C.

~~ The Mayor

WWVD: What Would Volcker Do?

The Federal Reserve meets tomorrow with the big announcement slated for mid-afternoon on Wednesday. The debate is on what bird emerges from that meeting. By that I mean: does the Inflation Hawk take to the skies, or does the FED remain "dove-ish".

I do not pretend to know, but I have been reading a lot about former Federal Reserve Chairman Volcker. I got to thinking about what Volcker might do if he were still at the Federal Reserve. I think expectations would be much different.

I believe Volcker would shock the world by moving that rate tomorrow. In fact, I wish Bernanke would increase a quarter point right away because it would rally the dollar and bring about an environment for energy and commodity prices to back down even if it was minimally in the beginning.

I think a lot of economists feel the last winter rate cuts were unneeded, and the market basically said that too when you look at the credit spreads. Anyways it will be interesting to see where we go from here with the US Economy after the FED speaks!!

TimesOnline: Governor Pawlenty VP Prospects!!

June 22, 2008

Governor with 'prole chic' tipped as John McCain's sidekick

A young, obscure governor with blue-collar appeal is in line to be the Republican’s running mate

ONE name has risen to the top of John McCain’s shortlist for vice-presidential running mate. Tim Pawlenty, the governor of Minnesota, a trucker’s son and advocate of Republicanism for the masses, is the favourite to join his ticket, according to sources close to the McCain camp.

They believe that Pawlenty, 47, has the youth, working-class credentials and executive experience to attract independent voters and disaffected Democrats who find Barack Obama, 46, the Democratic party nominee, too exotic and untested and McCain, 71, too old and too focused on national security.

It is a case of “Tim Who?” outside his home state for now, but Pawlenty is the thinking man’s blue-collar conservative, a political moderate and environmentalist who possesses “proletarian chic”, according to The New Republic, a centre-left magazine.

In a clue to his possible intentions, McCain said on a visit to Minnesota last week that Pawlenty “has a place in the future of this country as well as our Republican party”.

Pawlenty has already pioneered the concept of “Sam’s Club conservatism”, named after the popular discount stores founded by Sam Walton of the giant Wal-Mart retail chain, which holds out the promise of good value, small government catering to working people.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, Pawlenty said he was “honoured to have his name mentioned” as a possible vice-president, while adding that he was delighted with his “day job”. It is bad form to lobby openly for a place on the ticket - “I’m going to be very demure about it,” he said - but a combination of geography, temperament and ideology has lifted him to the top tier of candidates.

“I believe the Republican brand needs refreshment,” he said. “Our principles haven’t changed but the country is changing in terms of demographics, culture and technology and we need to make sure the Republican messenger has a modern message.”

It is no accident that the Republicans have picked Pawlenty’s state for their national convention in September. Minnesota, which narrowly voted Democrat in 2004, is one of many upper Midwestern swing states that they hope to carry.

The governor, who will host the convention, could help McCain to win farming and industrial heartlands from Iowa to Ohio. Recent polls show Obama leading McCain in Minnesota by 50% to 41%.

One confidant of the governor put his chance of being selected vice-president at 50-50; but some Republican insiders place them higher. Pawlenty has been co-chairman of McCain’s presidential campaign since its inception and stuck by the Arizona senator when his White House bid imploded last summer.

For McCain, scarred by his imprisonment as a naval pilot in Vietnam, fidelity in adversity is highly prized. Pawlenty, an evangelical Christian who backed George W Bush in 2000, said his loyalty to McCain was never in doubt. “I endorsed him early because he has the character traits, values and ideas to be president, commander-in-chief and leader of the free world,” he said.

Pawlenty is a firm believer in the heroic age of Republicanism, but his role models are presidents who brought their party into the modern era. “I consider myself a common sense, main-stream conservative in the tradition of Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln,” he said.

In one off-colour moment last month, he joked that his wife Mary, a former judge, shared all his passions - except one. “I have a wife who genuinely loves to fish,” he told a local radio station. “She loves football, she’ll go to hockey games and, I jokingly say, ‘Now, if I could only get her to have sex with me’.”

However, Pawlenty has sound relations with the conservative wing of the Republican party without being a perfect fit. He admires Ronald Reagan more for his flexibility than his ideological certitude. “He had an independent, pragmatic streak and I believe I have some of those characteristics as well,” he said.

McCain joked last week that the job of the vice-president was “to inquire daily as to the health of the president”. Pawlenty has little national security experience but fills the gaps in McCain’s domestic qualifications.

“He would be a very good, safe choice,” said Todd Harris, a former spokesman for McCain. “He’s been an extremely effective governor and he’s able to articulate conservative principles in a way that is not scary to moderates and independents.”

Pawlenty’s working-class background helps: “My father was a truck driver, my mother was a home maker, one brother worked in a grocery store, another in an oil refinery, my sister is a special education aide and my other sister has been a secretary for her whole career.”

The young Pawlenty had bigger ambitions. His mother died of cancer when he was 16 and it was her wish that he should go to university. “She was very education-oriented and she was hoping somebody would go to college and Tim was her last hope - because it wasn’t going to happen with us,” said Rosie Atkinson, his sister.

He dreamt of becoming a dentist so he could have a Buick Riviera car like one in his home town: “I went to college thinking it would be a wonderful career but I developed a strong interest in history and public service was a way of pursuing it.”

He put himself through university and law school. “I worked my tail off,” he said. “I have kind of this attitude that if you are able-bodied and able-minded, you should get some fair shakes in life.”

During his campaign for governor in 2001, Pawlenty coined the phrase “Sam’s Club conservatism”, urging conservatives to resist “the stereotype of the Republican party . . . that we’re all a bunch of wealthy snobs” and to appeal to members of “Sam’s Club, not just the country club”.

The idea was taken up by conservative intellectuals in The Weekly Standard magazine, who argued that it could rescue a tired and discredited party “from the wreckage of Bush-style, big government conservatism”.

“Sam’s Club is a metaphor for hard-working, middle-class people who want government to be effective and to deliver value,” Pawlenty said. He is nearly a quarter of a century younger than McCain, but cites the Republican nominee’s popularity in an MTV poll as proof that he can attract young voters.

“He has boundless energy,” Pawlenty said. “I’ve travelled to Iraq with him and he has tremendous leadership skills and is a forward thinker. He has proposed the most daring, cutting-edge initiatives coming from the Republicans.”

Obama will enjoy a huge financial advantage over the cash-strapped McCain, potentially outspending him by five to one. The Arizona senator, who is accepting public financing, will be able to spend $84m in the two months between the Republican convention and election day on November 4, while Obama will have up to $500m at his disposal by remaining outside the system.

Pawlenty believes McCain has “many advantages” over Obama: If you look at the way Senator McCain has lived his life, it’s an incredible expression of commitment, duty, valour and patriotism. He’s forged compromises and achieved great accomplishments in a way that Senator Obama has only talked about.”

If Pawlenty sounds star-struck, it is no bad thing for a running mate whose job is to make the presidential candidate look better than he is.

On the lighter side: Obama's gas crisis solution?

A great article about the recent FARM Bill!!

A great post from over at Boomtown USA. I could not agree more!!

Farming Bill--Law of Unintended Consequences

The Law of Unintended Consequences continues to amaze me. Governments pass laws thinking that they are doing something to help those most in need and often exactly the opposite occurs. I’ve seen it happen over and over and think that there should be a committee set up at every governmental body to study what happens in the long term with governmental action.

This past month the U. S. Congress passed a new farm bill. In most of the Congressional press releases on the bill I read that the bill would help to “keep the family farmer going and provide a boost to young farmers.” Of course if you’d read those same press releases 20 or 30 years ago they would have said the same thing. How have we done over the past 30 years?

Every five years Iowa State University does a survey of Iowa Farmland Ownership which looks at who owns that state’s farmland. They just came out with their new study and to me the results are alarming.

Twenty five years ago, in 1982, about 11% of Iowa farmland was owned by those under 35 years of age. Today it is only 2%. During the same time, those over the age of 65 have grown their ownership from 27% to 55%!

Ownership by someone living out of state has grown from 6% to over 20%!

As alarmingly, the percentage of farmland that crop shared, meaning that the owner of the land shares in the cropping costs and risks, has fallen from 50% to only 21% today.

The farm bills of the past, and this new farm bill are not any different--all have attempted to take the natural economic swings out of farming, providing a safety floor to landowners and farmers. The end result of these policies is that they have driven up the price of land which makes it virtually impossible for a new farmer to enter the profession, focused production into a handful of crops, hurt small towns by diminishing farming diversification, pushed farm ownership into the hands of non-farmers and, in my opinion, seriously hurt rural America.

Congress has caused some major disruptions in rural America by incentivizing farmers in the wrong ways. Our small towns all across the country have suffered as a result. It is too bad that they don’t learn from their past mistakes and the Law of Unintended Consequences, leaving the market to sort out the winners and losers. America and especially rural America would be much better, if they did.

KG gets his with the Celtics!!

The Mayor is not an avid follower of basketball. However a Celtic/Laker Final is something I have enjoyed watching since the days of Magic & Bird. The Celtics were amazing!!

I was pulling for the Celtic's because KG deserved a championship and has always been a class act from his days with the MN Timber wolves. It was good to see KG get his...........it is well deserved!!

Does it make sense to trade in the SUV??? Probably Not!!

Should You Sell Your Gas Guzzler?
By Aleksandra Todorova and Nicole Ridgway Published: June 13, 2008

WATCHING HELPLESSLY AS the price at the gas pump ticks into the triple digits is enough to make any SUV owner want to ditch their fuel-hungry behemoth for something a lot less wasteful. But before putting the "For Sale" sign in the windshield consider this: You could actually lose money by trading in your gas guzzler for a more fuel-efficient car.

"While it may be tempting to trade in your big SUV after spending $100 to fill its gas tank, it is important you take everything into consideration before you decide to change vehicles or you may end up spending thousands of dollars to save hundreds," says Jack Nerad, the executive market analyst for Kelley Blue Book, a provider of used and new vehicle information.

At first glance, a 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid, which averages 32 miles a gallon, looks much more attractive than the 2006 Toyota 4Runner, which gets 17. Some quick math reveals that driving the Escape 1,000 miles at a current $4 a gallon would cost you just $125 in gas; the 4Runner, on the other hand, would need $235 worth — a $110 difference. Sure, it's significant gas savings, but a few things are missing from the equation.

"It seems people are very focused on the immediate pain at the pump, but it's important to think about how much it's going to cost you all year and, if you make the change, how much will it save you," explains Jeff Bartlett, the online deputy editor of autos for Consumer Reports.

To determine whether trading in your SUV for a more fuel-efficient car makes sense use our calculator, which takes into consideration such things as your driving habits, the trade-in value of your existing car and how much you still owe on it. Needless to say, many other factors come into play, including how long you've owned your car and additional ownership costs like insurance and sales tax. Here's what SUV owners need to consider before they unload their gas guzzlers.

Length of ownership

As a rule of thumb, selling your car within the first three years of buying it is a mistake. "[In the first three years] depreciation is greatest, you've just paid tax, insurance is high, most people are still making payments on a loan... you don't have much equity in your car because you're paying more interest in those months," says Consumer Reports' Bartlett.

Sell your car when it's only two or three years old and you'll get just 50% to 60% of the original price, says Karl Brauer, editor-in-chief of Edmunds.com, an auto information web site. Hold off for another couple of years, however, and it will sell for 40% to 50% of its original price. "You'd get twice the use out of it and its only dropping that value a little bit more."

Depreciation

Don't rely on your SUV's resale value to help offset the cost of a new car — it won't be worth anywhere near the amount you'd typically expect.

In a May report entitled "Don't Sell Your SUV," Kelley Blue Book said that the value of the average SUV has depreciated by as much as $5,000 dollars, or roughly 8%, over the past six months. Ordinarily, that type of depreciation occurs over a 12- to 18-month period, says Nerad. Essentially, SUVs are losing value at more than double the regular rate, mainly because of skyrocketing gasoline prices.

Underwater loans

As values plunge, many SUV owners are discovering that they owe far more for their car than it's actually worth. In these cases, the loans are considered "underwater" or "upside down."

"If you're trying to get rid of a car that you can only get $13,000 for and you still owe $20,000 on it, you have a $7,000 deficit before you even buy a new vehicle," explains Brauer.

Car owners in this situation often refinance their existing loans into the new ones. Their monthly payments not only include what they're paying for the new car, but what they still owe on the old car as well — plus interest, says Nerad. (This is the assumption in our calculator).

Thanks to the credit crunch, many upside-down borrowers won't qualify for a new car loan at all. "The banks have tightened up, [they are] not willing to loan the money to get people to buy all of these cars," says Marvin Hedrick, director of finance at a Chrysler dealership in Spring Hill, Fla. "Negative equity complicates it much, much more."

Market conditions

SUV owners who are looking to sell will need plenty of patience. A survey by CNW Marketing Research found that, in April, the average SUV took more than 66 days to sell and, when it did, it sold for 20% less than its Kelley Blue Book value.

Some dealerships aren't even taking SUVs and trucks right now, says Brauer. "It's an extreme example, but that's certainly the mindset. [SUVs] are public enemy No. 1," he says.

There is a silver lining for those willing to wait. Kelley's Nerad predicts that prices for SUVs will bottom out soon, and demand will pick up as drivers face the oncoming winter. In the meantime, Lisa Featherngill, the director of financial and estate planning for Winston-Salem, N.C.-based wealth management firm Calibre, suggests that SUV owners hang onto their gas guzzler and buy an inexpensive fuel-efficient car they can use for their daily commute. Then, when it comes time to go to Costco or take the family on a road trip, they can fire up the SUV.

Transaction costs

Don't forget to consider all the extra charges that come along with buying a new car. Sales tax, for example, can run as high as 5% in some states, says Featherngill. Buy a $20,000 car and the sales tax could easily cost you another $1,000.

You'll also have to register the car with the DMV — for a fee. And depending on the car, you might have to pay more for insurance, too.