I’ve been writing for years about how Lori Sturdevant seems to be stuck in the 1970’s, a time when the Minnesota DFL stood for paying for whatever they believed was needed, and the Minnesota GOP pretty much went along to get along.

Lori Sturdevant has always seemed – like our current governor – to be stuck in that era.

Speed Gibson explored a manifestation of that dozey nostalgia yesterday.  By way of giving a synopsis of 40  years of Minnesota Senate History, Sturdevant…

…profiles incoming Taxes Committee Chair Julianne Ortman, generally positive but clearly disappointed that Ortman just isn’t interested in raising taxes or even tax reform.  Doesn’t she understand the need?  Doesn’t she understand her role is to stabilize?  Of course, words like reform and stablize really just mean raise taxes.  For example, she notes:

The lightly taxed services sector now accounts for 80 percent of gross state product. The production and sale of goods, taxed more heavily in Minnesota than in many other states, is down to a 20 percent share.

Taxing the services sector relatively more to allow for taxing goods relatively less has much to recommend it — not least, I noted, the opportunity to shore up state revenues to help erase a big deficit.

Uh, Ms. Sturdevant, there’s a fundamental truth lurking in these numbers: the sectors doing well are the least taxed.  Maybe if we lightened up the taxes on the sectors not doing so well, they also would improve.  Plus, if you go after services, many of which are quite mobile or available from outside Minnesota, we could easily see a net decrease in jobs, especially if the tax cuts you promise never materialize as so often happens.

Not to worry, Sen. Ortman and the GOP will first, correctly, “put government on a diet.”  But this is not the language of “statesfolk” (sic), just politicians in LoriWorld.

I’m finally feeling confident that our Legislature will back Speed up on that.