Governor Messinger Dayton: “The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves!”

Governor Messinger Dayton famously appeared at the Chamber of Commerce yesterday.

And boy, did he give ’em what-for!

Gov. Dayton told a stunned luncheon audience that Minnesota is among the best places for business in the country, contrary to the Chamber’s message.

He said government spending is right in the middle, and that the state’s tax rank is dropping.

Dayton said he never heard the same criticism when Republican Tim Pawlenty was governor for eight years, and he asked his staff to investigate.

“And we could not find a single instance of the chamber calling for spending reforms during those eight years,” Dayton said. “Evidently, in your view, spending reform is needed only when a Democrat is governor.”

Messinger Dayton also said he was sticking firm to his promise to hike taxes on “the rich” (meaning “successful entrepreneurs and professionals who didn’t have the foresight or the fiscal and legal clout to move their money to dynasty trusts in South Dakota”, as opposed to, say, him).

A couple of observations:

Gov. Dayton told a stunned luncheon audience that Minnesota is among the best places for business in the country, contrary to the Chamber’s message.

He said government spending is right in the middle, and that the state’s tax rank is dropping.

Dayton said he never heard the same criticism when Republican Tim Pawlenty was governor for eight years, and he asked his staff to investigate.

“And we could not find a single instance of the chamber calling for spending reforms during those eight years,” Dayton said. “Evidently, in your view, spending reform is needed only when a Democrat is governor.”

A few observations:

Governor Whinypants:  Business never complained about spending on Pawlenty’s watch?   Huh?

During the first term, business complained about things like “health impact fees” – stealth taxes framed as compromises with the DFL in a legislature he didn’t completely control.  Just ask Sue Jeffers.   On the other hand, he generally held the line on taxes, pursuant to his pledge to the Taxpayers League.

During the second?  Pawlenty was faced with a wastrel DFL legislature; business rightly figured he was the last line of defense against the sort of pillaging the Messinger Dayton Administration and the Legislature have in mind.

And they were right then, and they’re right now.

Profiles In Leadership:  This is leadership?  “If you don’t see things my way you’re a poopyhead?”

Reverting To Stereotype: Conservatives pillory liberals for being innumerate, having  stunted knowledge of economics outside of Paul Krugman’s ravings – the type who think raising the minimum wage cures poverty.

It’s on stories like this that you realize; the stereotype exists for a reason. .

Dave Mindeman at mnpACT put it a little differently, by way of cheering Governor Messinger Dayton on in a piece titled “To the Chamber of Commerce: SHOVE IT” in a flight of Oscar Wilde-like whimsy..:

So Dayton dropped the sales tax proposal with the caveat that his increased income tax on higher income earners would go forward.

But they object to that as well.

“Hey, we left your top line alone, more or less; you can’t complain if we attack your bottom line, now, can you?”

They continue to promote the addage that this tax will affect small business…and yes, here we go, the “job creators”. They continue this argument even though the Department of Revenue has shown that only 6% of small business would be affected. And again, we are only talking about the highest portions of their income. If they are making substantially more than $250,000, why the huge objection to paying some back to a state that has benefitted you greatly?

I can see Messinger’s Dayton’s disconnect; she he has never worked, and has no concept of what business is about.  Not sure where Mindeman comes at it from, and I’m not sure that it matters.

Messinger Dayton is daring business to pick up and leave.

She He doesn’t think they will.

I imagine we’ll find out sooner than later.

4 thoughts on “Governor Messinger Dayton: “The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves!”

  1. “…paying some back to a state that has benefitted you greatly?”

    Seems like I’ve heard that somewhere else..hmmm, oh yeah

    “You didn’t build that”

    The cartoon bubble I get when reading descriptions of Gov JimBeam’s meltdown features the trembling chin, you know how he does? I’m sure his cocktail hour back at the Manse included lots of tears being squirted into his tumbler.

    What a pathetic excuse of a man.

  2. OK, let’s assume that MN is in the middle of states, tax-wise. OK, now let’s ask a question; given the clear correlation between economic growth and being towards the bottom in terms of tax burden, why move the wrong way?

  3. It so so goofy…..that Democrat view that businesses exist to fund Democrat handout programs. That if you want to keep you money, you are greedy. And this comes from a guy whose ancestors made millions and millions by paying people slightly above minimum wage to sell products made in sweat shops (go to Shorpy and look for photos of clothing manufacturers in the early 20th century). Then he inherited millions by just being an accident of birth.

  4. And how did the RedStar Tribune headline its coverage of the very same speech?

    “Gov. Dayton gets standing ovation from business group”

    You can’t make it up. Or, maybe you can.

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