To: Governor Dayton
From: Mitch Berg, Bears fan
Re: Just a suggestion
Governor,
Just a quick point of order; badgering…
“It’s time for leaders of the Legislature to show some leadership to get this project approved,” Dayton said at a Capitol news conference.
…is not “leadership”.
The Democratic governor said he was prepared to unveil his stadium plan Monday but postponed his proposal last week after Republican leaders told him they opposed a special legislative session to consider a stadium bill.
Sort of like all your budget plans?
I digress:
Two rank-and-file Republican lawmakers have been drafting stadium legislation, but House Speaker Kurt Zellers and Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch have not proposed any ideas for funding a stadium and don’t want a special session to address the stadium issue until someone else offers a plan for them to consider.
Dayton asked of the leaders, “What are you for? What are you willing to support?”
Not sure what you think they’re supposed to do, Governor. Drop everything to become the de-facto PR agent for a billionaire (or really a convention of billionaires) that’s trying to shake the citizens of this state down for another billion we don’t have and don’t want to spend?
Like you are?
Just saying.
That is all.
Not sure what you think they’re supposed to do, Governor.
They’re supposed to march into Dayton’s bayonet.
Special session for government shut-down? No.
Special session to force Minnesota to bankroll billionaire sports team owner? Yes.
It’s nice to see Governor Dayton has his priorities in order. Take care of your own, Mark.
It might be easier if Zellers didn’t flip-flop. Is he against a Special session period or is he only against a Special session if certain conditions aren’t met? He’s trying to play ardent stadium opponent on one hand while not being tagged as the guy who let the Vikings leave. Hey Kurt, just grow a pair and stand up for your principles (whatever they are today).
Dayton’s finding out that it sucks doing things alone. Now he knows what it felt like to be a GOP legislator last winter. The GOP proposed a budget. Sen. Bakk’s response? “I don’t know why we would” put a budget together. Sarah Anderson’s redistricting committee put a thoughtful set of redistricting maps together. Paul Thissen’s troops…collected paychecks, then did nothing.
It’s important to remember that the DFL did nothing, literally, to fulfill their constitutionally mandate responsibilities. On the stadium issue, they’re all over it like it’s the most important project that the state has ever considered.
Hey Ears, just grow a pair and admit that you can’t bring yourself to criticize Dayton, not to mention your Obamassiah…
K-Rod, if I were speaking instead of writing, I could do it slowly. Maybe you can have someone with comprehension skills help sort this out for you. From my 8:43 post, where would you ever get any idea on how I felt about Dayton or Obama? Mitch spent his column excoriating Dayton’s leadership. I simply pointed out the same lack of leadership in Zellers. I’m still trying to figure out why Koch and Zellers, if they truly are opposed to being “de-facto PR agent for a billionaire” (as Mitch claims) would then need to be “drafting stadium legislation”?
See K-Rod, it’s called “critical thinking”. Some of us question the intentions and motives of BOTH sides. I realize you’ve checked out and simply let a political ideology govern your every decision. Good for you. Saves a lot of what must be a fairly limited supply of mental energy in your possession.
Yes, but Zellers and Koch are Republicans (sudder). They are supposed to shill for billionaires. Dayton is a Man of the People. He’s for the little guy. And Organized Labor. That would be building a new stadium.
So if Koch & Zellers are supposed to shill for Millionaires, I’d expect them to be leading the charge for a Special Session, not opposing it. Really, with each post you guys are just proving how 2-faced the Republicans are on this issue. Again, to be clear, I’m not commenting in any way on the Dems. I’m simply rebutting Mitch’s point.
I for one welcome the new overseer of the SitD comment section, Earsall (sic) Mackbee. Now that previous overseer Angryclown has taken a lower profile (in light of recent relevations at Penn State?); and Doggone succumbed to the reality of her blog postings completely contradicting what she often wrote here as official representative from FactCheck(tm); Earsall Mackbee has taken the pseudonym of a late Viking great to put the wingnuts and mouth breathers who populate the comment section of this here blog in our place.
With all due respect to our new overseer (and his especially saucy language – ‘circle jerk’ yesterday and ‘grow a pair’ today – hmm, if Earsall is as black as his avatar and were to be conservative, I might feel sexually harrassed) the post was specifically regarding Governor JimBeam’s (sorry, Ears, you’re new here – that was the former frequent commenter “Swiftee’s” apt nickname for Gov Dayton) inability to show leadership and put forth his ideas. As was noted in the post, just as during the budget process, the Governor is content to stay in the Governors Mansion, with his appropriately regionally named dogs and hand out treats to the urchins of Summit Ave. rather than unveil his plans for a new football stadium without getting the Rethug’s to “show theirs first”. That’s often called leading from behind.
Stadiums don’t contribute positively to a regions economy (The “Buckeye Institute”, have become experts in this area of research). To disagree with the propretor of this blog, the reality is that stadiums built with tax money benefit the middle class more proportionately than the billionaires and millionaires – with construction and stadium jobs while keeping an icon of community pride in the community at a reasonable price for many.
A billionaire like Wilf could pick up and move as soon as his lease is done (ex: Colts, Browns, Cardinals, Rams) as he would able to run his business (an NFL franchise) somewhere other than MN. I’m not certain where the market is for this today, but not too long ago, the people of Indianapolis, Baltimore, St. Louis and Phoenix did in fact pony up to get an NFL franchise holder to move to their town. I agree with MBerg though, that the Gov does indeed need to show some leadership and put himself out there with the possibility of failure. It may require a trip back to Hazelden to deal with the outcome, but that is the leadership we expect of our governor.
Again, welcome Ears – please comment often and don’t sweat K-Rod (Kermit’s the one to watch out for-don’t go on his grass, he’s very sensitive about it).
Ears,
So if Koch & Zellers are supposed to shill for Millionaires,
DFL strawman. Rejected.
I’d expect them to be leading the charge for a Special Session, not opposing it
Expectation based on a incorrect-to-the-point-of-fraudulent “if”. Rejected.
Really, with each post you guys are just proving how 2-faced the Republicans are on this issue…
…when our views are fed through a strawman that reflects more about your prejudices and internal templates than any views we actually hold.
Again, to be clear, I’m not commenting in any way on the Dems. I’m simply rebutting Mitch’s point.
OK, I’ll humor you. When you peel out the strawman, where is the rebuttal?
Bring a real argument next time.
Mitch, I can understand your confusion. It started in your original post. “shilling for millionaires” is kermit’s scarecrow not mine. And Seflores, “growing a pair” was K-Rod’s colorful language, not mine.
Your Repubs are trying to not oppose a Special Session (so they’re not “the guys who lost the Vikings”) while opposing a Special Session (no new taxes for the benefit of millionaires). It’s really not hard to see once you remove the political ideology from the room. But I realize that means the end of reality for some of you.
Mitch made the argument against Dayton, which I don’t necessarily disagree with. But don’t pretend for a minute the Repubs have provided any better “leadership”.
You can go on my grass. Just make sure you have a lawn mower.
“kermit’s scarecrow” was sarcasm. I didn’t think I needed to be more blunt, but then sometimes my own subtlety eludes me.
Hopefully I don’t need a nom de plume to participate? If not, can I just ask if anybody has a solution? Certainly Dayton doesn’t, and it isn’t the job of Koch and Zellers to stand around twiddling their thumbs in special session while The Guv tries to buy a vowel with no money. And according to The Guv, unless this IS done in special session it will be too late. (which is another thing I don’t understand. Stadiums aren’t built in a fortnight; the Vikings would be playing at the Dome for years, even if somebody HAD an acceptable proposal, which they don’t.)
Come up with a solution that involves no new taxpayer money, as the taxpayers (and common sense) demand, and that involves lots of taxpayer money, as the Vikings and NFL demand, and we’ll all Kumbaya in the special session to get it done.
Aww, Earsall, I had such high hopes for you!!
“And Seflores, “growing a pair” was K-Rod’s colorful language, not mine. ”
Earsall Mackbee on November 9, 2011 at 8:43 am said:
“Hey Kurt, just grow a pair and stand up for your principles (whatever they are today).”
K-Rod on November 9, 2011 at 12:47 pm said:
“Hey Ears, just grow a pair and admit that you can’t bring yourself to criticize Dayton, not to mention your Obamassiah…”
I realize that this isn’t the DailyKOS or DU, SitD has some standards like getting your time line right.
But that’s minor. What did you want to lecture us Rethugs about again?
🙂
Selflores, relax. I mistakenly assumed your original comments were referring to personal attacks aimed at posters. I used the term about Zellers, but I wasn’t using the shot at K-Rod. But at least I feel better now. When you write, “SitD has some standards” I realize I’m not the only one capable of making a mistake.
Earsall – I’m plenty relaxed. Taking grief on a blog comment board doesn’t really give me stress. And hey, as you wrote above…
“But at least I feel better now.”
To most people under the age of say 5, the world revolves around the idea that one should feel better about oneself. In fact it explains the worldview of nearly 99% of the Democrats I know. Keep on rockin!
“I mistakenly assumed…”
More than once, Ears, more than once.
Any critical words toward Dayton or is your pusillanimous response of “…which I don’t necessarily disagree with.” all you got?
My Karma just ran over your Dogma.