Archive for the ‘Jason Lewis’ Category

The DFL has kept saying that Angie Craig is a top-tier candidate. For the sake of this article, let’s stipulate that that’s true. Let’s further stipulate that, for being a top-tier candidate, she isn’t too bright. In 2016, Ms. Craig told KSTP’s Tom Hauser that, if elected, she’d “fight” to expand Obamacare. From that point forward, Ms. Craig’s support dropped like a lead balloon.

In 2018, Ms. Craig has shown that she still hasn’t learned her lesson. The Washington Free Beacon is reporting that “Minnesota Democrat Angie Craig bragged during a weekend candidate forum that she has been working on a way to move healthcare forward with Rep. Keith Ellison (D., Minn.), who last month took the reins of single-payer healthcare legislation in the House.”

Why would a supposed top-tier candidate in a supposedly swing district essentially admit that she’s working with the most radical progressive in the Minnesota delegation on single-payer health care? That isn’t just foolish. That’s downright stupid:

“We are going to have to figure out how we move our healthcare system forward,” Craig said. “I’ve talked to a lot of members of Congress who have a lot of bills—I’ve talked to Keith Ellison who’s got a particular bill he just took over.”
“I just left Keith a little bit ago and I told him, ‘Let’s figure out how we move forward with healthcare.’ ‘And he said to me, ‘I want you at the table when we’re figuring this out.'”

Don’t be surprised if the NRCC highlights this in an ad this October. Ms. Craig can prepare her spin now but it won’t matter. That’s one of those things that you just can’t spin.

The latest Cook Report rated this race as a toss-up. That might be right but Jason Lewis is perfectly positioned to win. I wouldn’t want to be Angie Craig’s campaign manager.

Technorati: Angie Craig, Keith Ellison, Single-Payer Health Care, Battleground District, Cook Political Report, Obamacare, DFL, Jason Lewis, NRCC, Election 2018

A liberal front group specializing in gun control bought a full page ad in the Star Tribune. Then the Strib published this article to make sure the organization got extra mileage for their ad buy.

In the article, the Strib wrote “A mysterious group operating under the name ‘Listen to the Children’ called out four members of Minnesota’s congressional delegation Monday on their positions on gun control measures and donations from the National Rifle Association. In a full-page ad in the Star Tribune a week ago, the group asked the entire Washington delegation if they would introduce, cosponsor or vote for legislation to ban the manufacture and sale of high-capacity magazines for firearms, and if they would return any donation from the NRA and its affiliates and refuse to accept future NRA donations.”

Later, Listen to the Children “the nonprofit placed another full-page ad, saying it received ‘yes’ responses from Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Sen. Tina Smith, Rep. Tim Walz, Rep. Betty McCollum and Rep. Keith Ellison, all Democrats. The ad said that Rep. Erik Paulsen, a Republican, was the only one to respond ‘no’ to both of the group’s questions, but a spokesman for Paulsen’s office said their organization never responded to the ad. Rep. Jason Lewis and Rep. Tom Emmer, both Republicans, and Rep. Collin Peterson, a Democrat, also didn’t respond to the group, which stated in the ad that it considered a lack of response as “no” answers.”

Tim Walz and Tina Smith both essentially said that they don’t think that people should have the right to defend themselves. They also said that they’d reject any contributions from the NRA. With a significant portion of NRA members being blue collar people living in rural areas, Walz and Smith are essentially turning their backs on rural blue collar voters.

I hope rural blue collar voters remember that this November.

The DFL’s condescension for people came gushing through this week thanks to Vice President Pence’s visit to Minnesota. In advance of Vice President Pence’s visit, DFL State Party Chair Ken Martin issue this statement. In part, it said “While corporations will see their taxes cut by 40 percent, the plan increases taxes on hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans. And thanks to the bill, more than 700,000 Minnesotans are now limited in their ability to use the state and local tax deductions. Minnesotans know a scam when they see one, and the Republican tax bill is a bad deal for our state.”

First, saying that the Trump/GOP tax cuts raises taxes “on hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans” is an extreme exaggeration. Everyone’s marginal tax rates dropped. The standard deduction increased dramatically. The per-child tax credit increased significantly.

It’s impossible for those things to be verifiably true at the same time Chairman Martin’s statement is true. Martin isn’t the only ‘extreme exaggerator’ in the DFL. This morning, Ember Reichgott-Junge said that Republicans were caught flat=footed with their messaging and that they’re now playing catch-up. Reichgott-Junge then said that all the chaos in the administration is getting in the way of people knowing that they got a tax cut.

This is typical DFL thinking. The DFL insists that people can’t recognize their bigger paychecks if the government doesn’t tell them that their checks are bigger. This is typical DFL condescension. What’s also typical of the DFL is voting against middle class tax cuts. DFL state legislators voted against state tax cuts before Tim Walz, Betty McCollum, Keith Ellison, Collin Peterson, Rick Nolan, Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken voted against the Trump/GOP tax cuts.

Chairman Martin said that “Mike Pence should return to Washington and join Democrats in fighting for a tax plan that puts everyday families first.” I’ve got a better idea. Chairman Martin should tell DFL legislators in DC and St. Paul to start voting for tax cuts rather than hoarding it for questionable DFL spending priorities and a multi-billion dollar rainy day fund. Chairman Martin should be honest for once and admit that the Trump/GOP tax cuts have triggered billions of dollars in bonuses, higher wages and better benefits for literally millions of people across the nation.

In this post, I asked this question:

How long will this list get?

Since I asked that question, the list has gotten significantly longer.

While DFL activists think they’ve got the upper hand in the tax fight, the truth is that they’re playing catch-up and don’t know it. That’s because they’re willing to believe their press clippings.

Technorati: Mike Pence, Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Jason Lewis, Erik Paulsen, Republicans, Ken Martin, Tina Smith, Tim Walz, DFL, Election 2018

According to the Cook Political Report, MN-3 is a toss-up race. People are free to believe what they want but I won’t join in with that opinion. I won’t buy that BS because Congressman Paulsen defeated State Sen. Terri Bonoff by almost 14 points. Congressman Paulsen garnered 57% of the vote while Ms. Bonoff only mustered 43%. At the time, the ‘experts’ were touting as fact what a top-tier candidate Bonoff was. I actually thought that she was a decent candidate, though I stopped short of calling her a top-tier candidate.

This time, Congressman Paulsen will likely be paired against Dean Phillips. Phillips’ grandmother through adoption was Abigail van Buren, aka Dear Abby. Other than that, Phillips is a nondescript cookie-cutter Democrat. For instance, one of his issues is Campaign Finance Reform. Phillips wrote “No matter what issue is most important to you, I believe the corrupting influence of money in politics is at the very core of congressional dysfunction. It is beyond time to reform our campaign finance system and take steps to repair our government. And while we ultimately may need a constitutional amendment to completely undo the damage done by the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, there are steps we can take now that have broad support from the public and would make a meaningful difference.”

Isn’t it interesting that Phillips’ fix for political corruption is taking law-abiding citizens’ constitutional rights away? Would Phillips use the same approach to gun safety? Apparently:

I will do everything possible to reduce gun violence, ensure safe streets and address international threats? through a well-resourced State Department, which would? ensure that? diplomacy is our first line of defense.

In other words, being an international wimp is Phillips’ path to international peace and being a gun grabber is the Phillips path to domestic tranquility. Ask the 14 students and 3 teachers from Parkland how well that approach works.

Of course, the DFL regurgitated the same chanting points:

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Chairman Ken Martin called the GOP’s tax bill “Robin Hood in reverse. It takes from hardworking Minnesotans to give massive tax breaks to the wealthy,” he said in a statement. “Minnesotans know a scam when they see one, and the Republican tax bill is a bad deal for our state. Mike Pence should return to Washington and join Democrats in fighting for a tax plan that puts everyday families first.”

The DFL isn’t in touch with families. If they were, they’d admit that millions of employees have gotten billions of dollars in bonuses, higher wages, better benefits or all of the above since the Trump/GOP tax cuts were enacted.

The DFL would do well to actually start listening to the people, something they don’t do currently. The DFL should listen more to the blue collar workers. They’re the ones that delivered the White House to President Trump. The DFL should ignore environmental activists more, too. They’re part of the reason why the DFL lost the Minnesota State Senate.

I’ll state this emphatically. Erik Paulsen and Jason Lewis will win re-election. It’s likely, IMHO, that the MNGOP will flip MN-1, too. The MNGOP is competitive in MN-8, too. In fact, there’s a strong chance that Minnesota Republicans will have a strong night this November.

Technorati: Mike Pence, Erik Paulsen, Jason Lewis, Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, MNGOP, Terri Bonoff, Dean Phillips, Dear Abby, Ken Martin, DFL, Election 2018

The media bias that Jason Lewis is running against is stifling. For instance, this MinnPost article said “Yet Lewis was on the floor of the House on March 24, they day of the scheduled vote, railing against Obamacare and urging his colleagues to do the “right thing” by dismantling it, something he’d been saying for weeks. Ultimately, Lewis was one of the last speakers to take to the House podium that day: he spoke minutes before Speaker Paul Ryan decided to pull the bill because it didn’t have enough votes to pass. That episode is emblematic of the approach that Lewis, a former pundit on right-wing talk radio, has taken to Congress in his first year on the job. Instead of tacking to the center on key issues or keeping a low profile, as some vulnerable lawmakers faced with a difficult election might, Lewis has been an outspoken advocate for conservative policy priorities like gutting the ACA, slashing taxes and undoing scores of federal regulations.”

It’s appalling that the media would think that voting against repealing the ACA is “tacking to the center.” The ACA still isn’t that popular, though some low-profile GOP improvements have made the ACA less onerous on families. As for “slashing taxes and undoing scores of federal regulations”, the US economy is doing better than at any time during the Obama administration.

It’s interesting to see the left’s explanation for how purple MN-02 is. This is a good example:

On the congressional level, former Rep. John Kline, a Republican, represented CD2 for seven terms. But the plurality of CD2 voters chose to send former Sen. Al Franken to Congress in 2014, and a 30-point majority voted to grant Sen. Amy Klobuchar a second term in 2012.

It isn’t surprising that then-Sen. Franken garnered a plurality of the votes in 2014. His opponent wasn’t a top-tier candidate. As for Sen. Klobuchar’s victory, that’s typical. Most people ignore the substance of her votes and vote for the personality.

Lewis’ belief is that being clear and unambiguous about his policy stances will position him well for the election, and that voters will reward his authenticity even if they disagree. “Sincerity goes a long way,” he said. “It’s the difference between those members that are constantly dictated by the polls, and people who just say, I came here to do something, I’m going to do it. I just think having convictions is a real asset in politics.”

The reason why American institutions have terrible favorability ratings is because people don’t trust their institutions. People that find a politician who actually believes something are thrilled. People want to find a politician who believes something and can explain why they believe that.

That’s Jason Lewis. That isn’t Angie Craig. Look at how significantly she’s changed on health care. This is from Ms. Craig’s campaign website:

We must work to repair our healthcare system, starting with immediate fixes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and work toward universal health coverage. It’s time to stop playing politics with people’s lives. Many families, particularly those who are self-employed as small business owners and family farmers, cannot afford the healthcare available in the individual marketplace, but Washington has done nothing to help. Congress needs to work across the aisle immediately to stabilize healthcare costs for these families.

We can do this without giving up the good things that have come from the ACA. Current law has eliminated the penalty for pre-existing conditions, ended lifetime limits, allowed young adults to remain on their parent’s insurance, and given tens of millions of Americans access to healthcare who didn’t have it before.

I wrote this post to highlight this NRCC ad:

That NRCC ad cost her the election in 2016. Just 2 years later, bold Angie Craig has morphed into timid, calculating Angie Craig. A year from now, who knows how she’ll portray herself? This is what a calculating career politician that’ll sell their soul does. This isn’t about “tacking to the center.” It’s about selling out.

This is another thing that career politicians do:

Third, we need to stop suspected terrorists on the no-fly list from purchasing firearms and reinstate a rule recently repealed by Congress that stopped some people with mental illnesses from purchasing guns.

Banning people on no-fly lists from buying guns sounds sensible — until people find out that those no-fly lists included Stephen F. Hayes, the Editor-in-Chief of the Weekly Standard, and the late Sen. Ted Kennedy. Had Ms. Craig gotten her way, law-abiding citizens would’ve had their civil rights violated because the federal government was incompetent. As for “people with mental illnesses” purchasing firearms, it’s more likely that the federal, state and local governments will miss warning signs. That’s what happened in Parkland.

Assuming that the federal or state government will promptly update their data bases is like assuming that career politicians will keep each of their campaign promises.

That’s why sincerity, honesty and consistency are cherished by voters. That’s why Jason Lewis stands a good shot at getting re-elected.

Republican friends in SD-54, today’s the day we can elect Denny McNamara. Today’s the day Republicans can solidify their Senate majority. In fact, a McNamara victory gives Republicans a chance to hand Gov. Dayton and the DFL a major defeat.

First, McNamara is excellent on environmental issues. He isn’t a squish on these issues. He’d bring lots of grit to those issues, which is a big deal considering how many jobs-related issues are tied by the DFL to the issue. In Minnesota, the biggest jobs fights are tied directly to the environment. Electing McNamara will give Republicans a better chance of winning those fights.

Next, Jason Lewis supports McNamara. Jason even campaigned with him:

Tomorrow is the special election in SD54 and I am proud to support Denny McNamara! Be sure to get out and vote on Monday, Feb 12th! #mn02 pic.twitter.com/mLtN4hT2OP

— Jason Lewis (@Jason2CD) February 11, 2018

Sen. Dan Hall wants Denny McNamara as a colleague:

I agree with Jason Lewis. Denny McNamara will make a great Senator. https://t.co/AS5EYueofL

— Senator Dan Hall (@SenatorDanHall) February 12, 2018

Finally, a McNamara victory gives Republicans at least 34 senators regardless of the outcome of the Fischbach fiasco. Think about this possibility: The court rules that Sen. Fischbach can’t keep her Senate seat. Gov. Dayton sets the date for the Fischbach special election. Fischbach resigns as Lt. Gov. With McNamara in place, Republicans elect a DFL senator from a swing district, perhaps from David Hann’s or Dave Thompson’s former districts. That gives Republicans a great shot at recapturing another seat in the Senate. After Fischbach wins her special election, combined with a McNamara victory and another victory from Hann’s or Thompson’s district, Republicans would have a 36-31 majority instead of the 34-33 majority they had last year.

That’s a long way of saying it’s important (imperative?) to get out and vote for Denny McNamara today.

Technorati: Denny McNamara, Michelle Fischbach, Jason Lewis, Republicans, Special Elections

Thus far, it’s seemed like big multi-national corporations have been the only companies that have spread the wealth gained through the Trump/GOP tax cuts. Apparently, that’s coming to an end. According to this article, Minnesota companies are getting into the action.

According to the article, “Data Sales Co. said it will benefit from a cut in the corporate tax rate from 35 to 21 percent. The rate cut is part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed by Republican majorities in Congress and signed in December by President Trump. ‘With the majority of our 80-plus-strong workforce here in Burnsville, I’m pleased that the benefits of tax reform will be felt at home,’ Data Sales CEO and Burnsville resident Paul Breckner said in a news release.”

Breckner praised Rep. Jason Lewis, praising him “for his consistent advocacy of tax reform and seeing it through to becoming law.” Lewis replied, saying “Critics said the business cuts ‘wouldn’t help the hardworking middle-class families that work for these businesses,’ Lewis said in a Jan. 22 message to constituents. ‘Thankfully, it’s actually the case that making American businesses more competitive is very good for our families. Across the country, employers have responded to tax reform by giving a combined total of over $1 billion in bonuses to their employees over the past month. That’s over 1 million Americans with approximately $1,000 more in their pocket today!'”

The American Action Network put together this ad thanking Congressman Lewis for voting for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act:

Congressman Lewis is a rising star in the Republican Party. He’s principled, articulate and conservative. Congressman Lewis’s intellectual heft is impressive, too. I’d love to see him debate nonentities like Betty McCollum or Rick Nolan. Frankly, it’d be a mismatch.

The rematch between Congressman Lewis and Angie Craig, if it happens, would also be a mismatch. Lewis is already hitting her:

“It seems the Erdmann campaign is feeling the Craig hypocrisy we saw regularly last cycle as the same Democrats who claim to be working to get money out of politics seem more interested in someone who can raise money than someone to represent their values,” his campaign manager, Becky Alery, said in a statement. She added: “In 2016, the country made it clear they didn’t want Hillary and this year Minnesota will (once again) make it clear they don’t want Angie Craig.”

Angie Craig would be a good fit in Minnesota’s 4th or 5th districts because she’s exceptionally liberal. She’s a terrible fit for Minnesota’s 2nd District because she’s too liberal for the district. Lewis didn’t vote for the Schumer Shutdown. Angie Craig would’ve voted for the Schumer Shutdown.

All you need to know about the rematch between Angie Craig vs. Jason Lewis is that Ms. Craig still isn’t about fighting for all of our civil liberties. According to Ms. Craig’s issues page, Ms. Craig still thinks that the First Amendment shouldn’t apply to everyone. Specifically, Ms. Craig’s issue page said “The Supreme Court in its 2010 decision in Citizens United completely changed elections in the United States, by allowing unlimited and dark money spending. Money in politics was always a problem but now it is worse than ever before. Now special interest groups can spend unlimited amounts of untraceable money to elect people who will tip the rules in their favor once in office. The voices of the people are lost in favor of the voices of the few and the powerful. It is a big part of what is wrong in Washington. I am committed to pass laws to end Citizens United and get big money out of politics. Corporations and special interests are not people and their oversized influence on the way our government works needs to end now.”

The oath of office that members of congress take states “I, AB, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.”

How can Ms. Craig support and defend the Constitution of the United States when she doesn’t understand the Constitution or its Bill of Rights? You can’t right laws that negate parts of the Constitution or the Bill of Rights. The only thing you can do is amend the Constitution, which require two-thirds of the House of Representatives to vote in favor of the constitutional amendment, then have two-thirds of the Senate vote in favor of the constitutional amendment, then have three-fourths of the states’ legislatures ratify the Amendment.

Last year, Craig had a major fundraising advantage. That isn’t the case this year:

2nd District: GOP incumbent Jason Lewis raised $235,000 and had about $583,000 in available cash. Lewis’s 2016 DFL challenger, business executive Angie Craig didn’t report any fundraising after announcing a new run in July and has $200,000 remaining on a personal loan from her last run.

Last time, Rep. Lewis trailed Ms. Craig in fundraising. Now he’s leading. That’s a sign that Lewis’ base has solidified and that he’ll be running from a position of strength this time.

That doesn’t mean the Twin Cities media won’t attack Rep. Lewis like they did in this video:

That being said, the attacking Twin Cities media better be prepared because Rep. Lewis knows how to fight back.

Yesterday, amidst the heartbreak from Las Vegas, 2 candidates for Congress made their candidacies official. In CD-2, Angie Craig officially announced her rematch with Rep. Jason Lewis. Jason Lewis will defeat Ms. Craig again because he has a real economic plan that will benefit Minnesotans.

For instance, Ms. Craig’s issue page talks about infrastructure. It says “Congress must invest in infrastructure revitalization by rebuilding our roads, highways, and bridges and increasing access to high-speed internet – especially in rural areas. Not only will this create good-paying construction jobs in the short-term, experience has shown that public infrastructure investment stimulates private sector jobs growth.”

Notice that it doesn’t mention pipelines. That’s odd considering the fact that Flint Hills Resources is one of the district’s bigger employers. If she’s going to represent the entire district, shouldn’t she represent the major employers in the district?

Rather than making the announcement in person, Craig’s announcement came in the form of a statement. The statement said “I’m proud to launch my campaign today with the voices and support of so many great Minnesota leaders. I’m running for Congress to build a Minnesota for all of us. I want to work so that every member of every family is rewarded for their hard work with an outstanding education, the training or re-training for a good job, and a fair shot at a better life. Washington needs leaders that work for all of us here in Minnesota and with the broad support we’ve already built, I know I can be that leader for the Second District.”

Again, how can you build a Minnesota for all of us if you’re ignoring a major employer’s needs?

Lewis for Congress spokesman Stephen Bradford spoke about his accomplishments:

Rep. Lewis was proud to receive the endorsement that counted in 2016, the endorsement of the voters, and is grateful for continued support from families, businesses, and unions across the 2nd District. He’ll keep working hard on issues that matter to people at home, like reforming health care, lowering taxes, and his successful amendments to improve career and technical education.

There’s no question about whether Rep. Lewis is representing his district. Education is a big issue in CD-2 because Lewis’s predecessor, John Kline, was the chairman of the House education committee. Last time around, Lewis had to defend some things he said as a radio talk show host. That’s been litigated already so that’s ancient history. This time, Rep. Lewis gets to defend his policies and accomplishments.

Expect this seat to stay in Republicans’ hands. In southern Minnesota, Carla Nelson announced her bid to replace Tim Walz in an unusual way:

State Senator Carla Nelson issued the following statement regarding the announcement of her candidacy for Minnesota’s 1st District congressional election.

While I have decided to run for Congress, today is not a day for campaigning. This is a solemn day for our nation, a time when we need to come together and pray for the victims of Las Vegas, their families and all who have been affected by this tragedy. I look forward to the days and weeks to come as my campaign gears up, but for now I hope everyone will continue to keep the victims, their families, and the first responders in their thoughts and prayers.

Expect the Republicans to flip this district from blue to red.

As certain as death and taxes, Democrats have started attacking Jason Lewis a year before he’s re-elected. In her LTE, Rachel Garaghty of Cottage Grove said “Lewis also consistently votes against our values. He voted to strip health care from 28,500 people in Washington and Dakota counties. He voted to loosen restrictions on banks that gamble with our savings and investments. He voted to let pollution clog our lakes and rivers. Lewis is voting against the very things that keep us healthy, wealthy and happy.”

It isn’t surprising that Democrats’ criticisms of Lewis are dishonest. That isn’t just what Democrats do. It’s who they are. Saying that any Republican has “voted to let pollution clog our lakes and rivers” is over the top in the extreme.

Later in her LTE, Garaghty said “The people who were brave enough to stand up to Lewis through their peaceful protest were just local moms and dads, grandparents and young people who are rightly concerned about Lewis’ undemocratic tendencies.” That’s utterly dishonest. Jason Lewis’s neighbors called the police. They obviously felt threatened:

But my neighbors saw 20, 25 people, nobody knows the real count, outside. Their daughters were home alone, got scared, called their dad. He called the police, which, by the way, in the suburb I live in, it’s a violation of a city ordinance to what, not to mention trespassing.

Jason Lewis isn’t afraid of debating people. It’s a strength of his. Lewis said he won’t waste his time, though, providing DFL activists the opportunity to create a “spectacle.”

TakeAction Minnesota activists aren’t civic-minded people who want to start a dialogue. They’re hard-core activists who want to create a spectacle. As we’ve seen in the past, if they have to frighten people and trespass to make their point, they won’t hesitate in doing that.