Just like Speaker Daudt predicted, the Met Council has announced that they’ll “come up with the final piece of the state and local funding” for the SWLRT project. That’s the mini-bombshell about the SWLRT project.
The major bombshell this week happened “when House Speaker Kurt Daudt revealed the existence of an email from Met Council Chairman Adam Duininck to Governor Dayton stating that the federal government has no plans to execute a funding agreement until sometime in 2017 because of ongoing litigation regarding the project. He’s (Dayton) hid that from the public and from the Legislature and from the press since January of this year. We know the federal government is not going to fund it for a year and a half. There is no deadline. There is no reason that we have to take action now on Southwest light rail,” said Daudt.”
It’s connect-the-dots time. First, the Senate DFL bonding bill that was defeated was the biggest bonding bill proposed in state history by orders of magnitude. It was for $1,800,000,000. Next, every DFL senator voted for that bill. Third, that $1,800,000,000 bonding bill didn’t contain a penny of funding for SWLRT. The state’s share would have been $135,000,000. In a pork-filled bill of almost $2,000,000,000, the DFL didn’t include $135,000,000 on a project that they insist today is Minnesota’s highest bonding priority? What idiot DFL senator omitted that funding from a monster bill like that?
Fourth, Gov. Dayton vetoed a major tax relief bill, then insisted that he wouldn’t call a special session unless Republicans added funding for a project that the DFL refused to fund in a $2,000,000,000 bonding bill.
Connecting these dots tells this indisputable story: Hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans won’t receive tax relief because the DFL refused to fund SWLRT initially, then insisted on funding it as a condition of holding a special session.
It’s time to throw these DFL legislators out of office. It can’t happen soon enough. What type of person would omit funding for a project, then deny farmers, veterans, students with student loan debt and small businesses tax relief? The DFL’s position is that it’ll fight for funding a light rail project but it won’t fight for tax relief for students, veterans and farmers.
Minnesota, you’ll have a choice this November. Will you vote for politicians that won’t fight for students, parents, farmers, veterans and small businesses? Shouldn’t you vote for the party that’s fought the good fight for students, farmers and veterans? The choice is clear. The DFL needs to get run out of St. Paul ASAP.
They deserve it because they’ve fought for the special interests, not the people. That’s grounds for immediate dismissal.
But … but … but … their television ads say Minnesota Democrats are fighting really hard for good jobs, Gary!
There’s a simple explanation for that. Like Paul Thissen, the DFL isn’t particularly invested in telling the truth.
Well, now that SWLRT funding is being “taken care of” by the Met Council (the fact it is illegal and unconstitutional notwithstanding) it is blindingly obvious that tax relief and roads and bridges were being “held hostage” by DFLer Dayton. The DFL should suffer greatly at the polls for this perfidy, unless the Governor calls a new special session immediately to “release the hostages.”
Jerry, check back to LFR Monday on the SWLRT. It’s miles from the finish line. HINT: This won’t end well for Gov. Dayton or the DFL. You’ll want to read what I’ve already written about the details that the Dayton administration isn’t talking about & what the MSM isn’t writing about. It’s explosive stuff.