Looks like there is no rabbit for the poor in Minnesota.

----- Original Message -----
From: <rep.kate.knuth@house.mn>
To: "Announcements from Represenative Kate Knuth" <rep_kate_knuth_list@ww3.house.leg.state.mn.us>
Sent: Sunday, May 17, 2009 9:43 PM
Subject: State Representative Kate Knuth - Capital Update - May 17, 2009


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> ---
> I’m sending this update from the House floor, as we close in on the
> final hours of the 2009 Legislative Session.
>
> Thursday, Governor Pawlenty announced that he intends to unilaterally
> cut $ 3 billion from the state budget. Rather than continuing to engage
> in constructive negotiations with the Legislature to responsibly deal
> with the state’s unprecedented $6.4 billion budget shortfall, the
> Governor will use broad executive authority to line-item veto and
> unallot funding from the state budget.
>
> A few hours later, the Governor started making deep cuts to health
> care, cutting $381 million with a line item veto of the General
> Assistance Medical Care (GAMC) program. This is money used to treat
> veterans, senior citizens, the mentally ill and the poorest people in
> the state. It will devastate over 30,000 Minnesotans and the hospitals
> that care for them.
>
> Earlier today, the House attempted to override this line-item veto to
> protect the poorest of the poor, the sickest of the sick and the
> hospitals that are first responders in times of crisis; however that
> attempt was unsuccessful when not a single Republican member cast a
> green vote.
>
> Currently, we are debating an override of Governor Pawlenty’s veto of
> House File 885, a bill that would protect Minnesota schools, hospitals,
> nursing homes and jobs with responsible and modest on-going revenue.
> Without sustained new revenue, more than 20,000 jobs may be lost;
> schools will face certain budget reductions at the local level; several
> hospital and community clinics may close and more than 1/3 of all of the
> nursing homes statewide are at risk of closure
>
> These budget cuts are much more than words on a page – they will
> significantly impact the lives of Minnesotans in nearly every walk of
> life. The Legislature has already made significant compromise with the
> Governor, cutting the budget more than he does and introducing
> reasonable revenue that would impact fewer than 2 percent of
> Minnesotans. The Legislature’s proposal would impact the state’s
> highest income earners – couples with $300,000 adjusted gross income -
> at a rate of only $109 per year, or less than $9 per month, or less
> than 30 cents per day - for just the next four years. That seems a small
> price to pay to keep our schools, hospitals and nursing homes intact.
>
> This is the most serious budget crisis in Minnesota’s history, and
> the next hours will shape our future for a generation. I’ll continue
> working to find a responsible compromise that protects schools,
> hospitals, nursing homes and jobs in the way that Minnesotans deserve.
>
> Sincerely,
> Kate
>
> Rep. Kate Knuth
> Minnesota State House, District 50B
> Arden Hills, Fridley, New Brighton, Shoreview
> 507 State Office Building
> 651-296-0141
> rep.kate.knuth@house.mn
>

but I don't care. they are busy trying to get things done.

Shameful, shameful, shameful on the Republican representatives. Guess they can't think or vote for themselves.


We all know Gov Pawlenty is a tool for the neo-cons.

cut funding to St. Gabe's Hospital in Little Falls, many many people will die because it takes 40 minutes to get to either Brainerd or St. Cloud.
Wonder if he is angry because of Coleman and Franken. He is stiffing the middle class and the poor because he knows he is "out". and this will keep power of the richer Republicans in place. Doing this bodes poorly for his running as President. He has to be doing this out of total anger.

T-Paw is "going to hell". I am sure of it. If one believes in "hell".

with heavy emphasis on the "con".

Everything he has done is like what we went through in CA.

Many will die but he doesn't care.

"No raising taxes" keeps coming up of course when the fact is the tax hike is focused primarily upon the wealthy who can afford it and is long overdue.

:puke:

He knows that if he raises taxes he will commit the same "sin" that GHWB did, and that ruins your ambitions. At the higher party levels, ideological purity is pretty much mandatory. At lower levels you can vary a bit but not if you want to run through the GOP Primary for President. Pawlenty will actually attempt to run on his moves during this time to show he is ideological pure and upheld the MN Taxpayers' League pledge so he is "fiscally conservative" enough to get enough votes to run against Obama in 2012.

That makes this even worse, say hypothetically these actions allow him to be the GOP Presidential Nominee in 2012, the old time policies of the Republicans will easily mean another Obama term as moderation, not ideological purity are the words the country wants to hear nowadays. Also, if Pawlenty handles economic crises like this, it does not bode well if he were say in the White House trying to make them on a national scale :scared: Thankfully I don't see that happening.

he took that pledge and backed himself into a corner. Like a stubborn 2 year old he cannot bring himself to change the path hes taken.

:puke:

This is what the MN Taxpayers League, MN Family Council and other similar "conservative" institutions want. Basically they are gutting education (apparently one of the MN Family Council's priorities) and balancing it on the government workers backs.

http://www.minnesotabudgetsolutions.com/documents/RealStateBudgetReform.pdf

What a disgusting joke. :puke:

Anti-Public-Education is where Michelle Bachman cut her teeth. You better believe they want to gut it.

including Pawlenty.

As he protected the wealthiest Minnesotans from tax increases by taking health care away from the poorest I wonder if he gave any thoughts to Christ's words about "What you do to the least of my brethren you do to me." I'm thinking if Jesus came back today Timmy and his pals would be at the top of the list for being tossed out of the temple.

"conservatives believe that from the standpoint of the federal government, life begins at conception and ends at birth."

Same feeling at the state level with Pawlenty and his bunch.