The St. Cloud Times today offered readers several dueling letters over who is to blame for the failures of the recently ended legislative session. While I am of the belief that no side is without blame, it becomes very difficult to express that sentiment when the echo chambers of the local Republican Party refuse to acknowledge even the smallest level of fault.

Gary Gross, who represents the propaganda machine for the local conservative movement, provides ample spin and distortion with his humorously titled, DFL Leadership CLEARLY to Blame for the Poor Legislative Session.

3. Under Speaker Margaret Kelliher’s leadership, the House collected $181,120 in out-of-session, tax-free per diem. Under DFL Leader Larry Pogemiller’s leadership, senators collected $143,500 in out-of-session, tax-free per diem.

How convenient it is to try connect the names of the two DFL leaders in the legislature to per diem payments. It's not like any Republican members of the legislature took per diem payments, right? Certainly, the fiscally responsible likes of Steve Gottwalt gave back his 2008 per diem which amounted to $6689, right? One wonders how Mr. Gottwalt took in nearly $1200 more than Larry Haws in 2008. His must have been "legitimate" uses of per diem as opposed to those "illegitimate" uses made by the DFL.

2. Because the Legislature refused to trim more from their stamp allowance from 5,500 stamps per legislator per year to 3,500 per legislator per year, Minnesota’s taxpayers won’t save $350,000 for this and next year.

Really? The best that the Republican leadership could come up with in cutting the budget was a stamp allowance cut? Again, rather than play politics over a VOLUNTARY allowance, it would have been nice of the Republicans to unilaterally give up their stamp allowance. Did that happen? I suspect not.

1. While it’s technically true that the DFL-dominated Legislature sent Gov. Tim Pawlenty a balanced budget, it’s only because the DFL reconvened the conference committee on taxes at 10:30 on the last night. During that meeting, the DFL did a total rewrite, which was debated less than 15 minutes in the House and Senate combined.
Well here is some interesting spin. Given that this last minute tax bill was the SECOND to be sent to Governor Pawlenty, it appears as though Gary does not want to admit that "technically" the DFL-dominated Legislature balanced the budget TWICE!

Gross was coupled with the partisanship over people representative, Steve Gottwalt. The same Gottwalt who spent the remaining hours of the legislative session twittering about how this was all the fault of the DFL majorities. The crux of the letter being, it is all their fault so please do not blame us. Apparently, when a Republican denies all responsibility and blames the DFL it is called "accountability" but when the DFL returns charges of "accountability" it is little more than blame. At some point it would be nice to hear someone say that they share blame in this whole process. Perhaps if Mr. Gottwalt spent less time twittering on the House floor about how much this whole thing is the fault of the DFL to really work with them we might all appreciate the results.

No reform, misplaced priorities and tax increases. Even now, there is time to work out other solutions, and Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s invitation to the Democrats is open, as it was from the start of the session.

If the Democrats could interrupt their Tour of Blame long enough to really work with the governor, we might all appreciate the results. If they cannot or will not, rest assured, Pawlenty will balance the budget without more state spending and tax increases.

Again, let's be clear that the Governor offered what was essentially an ultimatum. If you don't do things my way then I will go it alone. Taxes will surely rise but rather than a shared sacrifice at all levels of the economic spectrum, the middle and lower income brackets will see a rise in their share of the tax bill through local property taxes.

The third letter, in this battle of the blame, was submitted by Senator Tarryl Clark. While I tend to agree with her assessment of unallotment, I do wish that she or someone on my side of the aisle or any side of the aisle would admit that there is a certain level of failure on all sides. With all due respect to Senator Clark, as soon as the Governor made this unilateral move to employ unallotment I would have camped outside his office and negotiated with him 24 hours a day for the remaining days. I don't imagine it would have worked given that he appeared unwilling to budge but it would have given that DFL far more authority to claim that they tried and that it was clearly the intransigence of this Governor that caused the breakdown.

In the budget-setting toolbox, unallotment is the sledgehammer. It just pounds dents in one part of the state’s budget. It does not give a governor the ability to enact policy or to make changes that might result in increased quality, efficiency or service to taxpayers. Using unallotment as a main budget setting tool is a bad idea, and little more than bad results can be expected.

The state’s budget desperately needs an overhaul, but the mechanic who took over the job is flailing a hammer. That will not bode well for Minnesota’s taxpayers.

Beyond the blame game, this legislative session is indicitive of what happens when one side decides that they will not compromise with the other. As I have always said, I am an unabashed liberal but also a firm pragmatist who believes that compromise is the key to good governance and creating a system in which the government can be a force for good for all people.
10:51 AM | Posted in , ,
With the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to sit on the United States Supreme Court, the conservative response has been nothing short of an apoplectic temper tantrum. Throwing out nearly every baseless and out of context attack they can think of, they are seeking to demonize Sotomayor but are at the same time, whether intentionally or unintentionally, demonizing every minority that could help them regain power in Washington. So much for that whole return to power thing...

President Obama used his weekly address to talk about the Sotomayor nomination:

The President discusses the breadth and depth of experience held by his nominee for the Supreme Court. In the course of a life that began in a housing project in the South Bronx and brought her to the pinnacle of her profession, Judge Sonia Sotomayor accumulated more experience on the federal bench than any incoming Supreme Court Justice in the past 100 years, touching nearly every aspect of our legal system.

A curious little piece in the Forest Lake Times caught my eye today. Michele Bachmann was at Birchwood Health Care Center in Forest Lake for what was labeled a "fact finding mission".

It was a fact-finding mission for Sixth District Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, R-Woodbury, on Thursday as she spent an hour at Birchwood Health Care Center in Forest Lake. Health care professionals from as far away as Waite Park were in Forest Lake to express their concerns to the congresswoman.

Let's forget for a moment the inherent contradiction in Bachmann and facts and focus on what this particular meeting signals for the 2010 election. There is a distinct possibility that Bachmann will face off against an individual with extensive experience in the health care industry.

Upon graduating from the University's Medical School, she practiced general internal medicine in the Twin Cities for more than two decades, became the president of Aspen Medical Group, and later served as vice-president and medical director of HealthPartners health plan. Because of her deep concern about health care costs, coverage and quality, she ran for lieutenant governor in 2006 for the Independence Party and subsequently participated on Gov. Pawlenty's Health Care Transformation Task Force.


Consider that when campaigning against Patty Wetterling, Bachmann went for the social issue and who is a better family person schtick. When campaigning against an accomplished transportation expert, Bachmann went after the energy/transportation issue. Her modus operandi appears to be choosing her opponents strongest issue and hammering away with her own pretended expertise. Is it so far fetched to imagine that Bachmann sees some writing on the wall and is preparing to out health care Maureen Reed?



During the Tinklenberg/Bachmann debate last year there was discussion of the health care issue but how will that dynamic change when going up against Reed? Perhaps Reed will ask Bachmann about her votes against children's health care...
3:48 PM | Posted in , ,
The Progressive Caucus met this past Thursday, led by Representative Keith Ellison, to discuss what it means to be progressive and highlight the history of progressivism in the United States.



I tend to shy away from the label of progressive as it seems too much like a ceding of the term liberal to those who have demonized it. However, my liberalism/progressivism is based upon a strong belief in social justice.

A social justice in our economic system that demands we create a basic safety net for those people who find themselves in any number of unfortunate circumstances. I have long held the belief that government in and of itself is NOT evil and can be used as a force for good if managed properly. Perhaps it is the naivety of relative youth but I refuse to be cynical (much like a certain individual who helped give me life) about our prospects for honest leadership that can utilize the power of government to do good things rather than utilize the power of government for selfish pursuits.

It is probably in the area of social issues which my progressivism/liberalism is strongest. My opinion has always been one of believe what you want to believe and love who you want to love. There is little reason for the government to be making those decisions.

So, what makes YOU progressive/liberal or for that matter, what makes you conservative?
9:47 PM | Posted in , ,
Steve Kelley (DFL) spoke to a gathering of Democrats at the monthly SD14 meeting in St. Joseph on Tuesday, May 12. He is currently seeking the DFL endorsement to run for Governor in 2010.



It is still far too early in the process for me to consider supporting anyone in this race or any race for that matter. However, I have always liked Steve Kelley...
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10:16 PM | Posted in , ,
In an interesting turn of events in the legislative session, Governor/King Pawlenty decided to fore go that whole legislature thing and those silly election things. He has taken it upon himself to elevate the nearly super minority Republican Party and his own plurality election victories to a position in which they, and only they, make decisions on how to solve the current budget crisis.

From the DFL Press Release:

“Good government requires artful negotiation and compromise among elected leaders with differing views. The Founders of the nation and of our state understood the need for checks and balances so that no individual could impose his or her views on everyone else except through the democratic process. Yet Governor Pawlenty, with support from a narrow minority in the Minnesota House, is willing to ignore the constitutional process and nullify the last election if the Legislature won’t cave in to his demands.

“Governor Pawlenty is not acting like a leader in a constitutional democracy. The DFL-led Legislature is delivering on their campaign promise of fiscal accountability, and has delivered a budget that makes tough but fair choices in tough times. Legislative leaders held listening sessions across Minnesota and took the people’s views into account in fashioning that budget. But Governor Pawlenty has walled himself away, barely deigning to meet even with the people’s elected representatives, let alone hear the people themselves. Governor Pawlenty is acting more like a monarch than an elected leader.



We need more in this state than political gamesmanship and trickery to subvert the established separation of powers.

We need your help to make sure that he receives a strong message in the coming days - he will not decide the future of this state by himself.

Instead of taking a balanced approach, Pawlenty borrows, shifts and cuts so deeply that it results in the loss of thousands of private-sector jobs, negatively affecting Minnesota's working families.

This weekend in neighborhoods throughout Minnesota, we'll be going door-to-door encouraging folks to call Governor Pawlenty. With so much at stake, we need as many Minnesotans as possible to call the governor and ask him to stop being so stubborn and come to the table.

We'll be handing out a flyer that encourages Minnesotans to call Governor Pawlenty to tell him that we want a balanced approach to a balanced budget. Click here to download a copy for yourself to distribute.

Here is a list of locations where DFLers will gather to talk to their neighbors to encourage them to call Governor Pawlenty. Please consider joining them at NOON on Sunday.

Rochester

Olmstead DFL Office
401 16th Ave NW
Rochester, MN 55901

Contact: Jaime Tincher
jtincher@dfl.org
651-251-6310

Eagan

Dunn Bros Coffee
1012 Diffley Road
Eagan, MN 55123

Contact: Kent Berg
kberg@dfl.org
651-315-4809

Minnetonka

Minnetonka Community Center
14600 Minnetonka Blvd.
Minnetonka, MN 55345

Contact: Kent Berg
kberg@dfl.org
651-315-4809

St. Paul

***This event is on Saturday, May 17 at 9:30 am***

A Fine Grind Coffee Shop
2038 Marshall Ave
St. Paul, MN 55104

Contact: Beth Commers
bethcommers@donjek.com
651-227-3922

Woodbury

Woodbury City Hall
8301 Valley Creek Road
Woodbury, MN 55125

Contact: Warren Claflin
wclaflin@dfl.org
651-894-3146

If you'd like to organize a group to walk in your area, please contact Jaime Tincher, (651) 251-6310 or jtincher@dfl.org.

Regardless of if you can make it Saturday or Sunday, please consider taking the very important step of calling the Governor right now.

By making just one phone call in the coming days, you can help save 10,000 private sector jobs, keep 110,000 Minnesotans from losing health insurance and cut wasteful government spending. Will you do that?

Call Governor Pawlenty right now at (651) 296-3391 or 1-800-657-3717.

Tell him you want a balanced approach to a balanced budget.

It is time to let our Governor know that subverting the legislative process is not acceptable!
10:08 PM | Posted in , ,
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Maureen Reed, the first DFL candidate to throw her hat in the ring for the 6th District endorsement, attended a meeting of party faithful in Senate District 14 to introduce herself and continue the process of garnering support for what will undoubtedly become a battle with former candidate Elwyn Tinklenberg.

While I am withholding judgement at this point about which candidate to actively endorse, there were some impressive signs as Reed displayed a passion for this race that I frankly did not see in Tinklenberg even in the thick of the '08 race.

Reed will be seeking both the DFL and Independence Party endorsements because in her words, "It is going to take a marriage of those two groups plus a marriage of moderate Republicans to assure a different kind of future for the 6th District."

She is a self proclaimed moderate whose primary focus appears to be on health care and due to her background in medicine will bring a powerful voice to that debate. Other issues include jobs and the economic outlook in the area. Rather than an ideological outlook in finding solutions, Reed appears to be willing to look at ALL solutions in order to fix the problems.

Check out her introductory remarks:



Just a couple of quibbles for Dr. Reed. First, I find it somewhat disappointing that she has launched this campaign with nary a web presence to be found. If she expects to compete with the web savvy Bachmann and even with the relatively web savvy Tinklenberg, then she will need to get that up and running as soon as possible. Second, and far more important, she needs to make sure that if she is going to be using Star Trek analogies that she has an understanding of the show. She makes the claim that her campaign is traveling at warp 5 when every good Trek fan knows that warp 5 is little more than cruising speed.
9:30 PM | Posted in ,
Representative Ellison spent some time on the floor of the House of Representatives yesterday to discuss predatory mortgages and to debunk the myths surrounding the Community Reinvestment Act.

Mr. Speaker, what else are these purveyors of confusion supposed to say?

They have had an opportunity to spread deregulation all over. They have declined the opportunity for many years to pass an antipredatory lending bill. They have promoted tax breaks for the wealthiest among us. And now that they have had the opportunity to have a House and a Senate in which their particular caucus was in the majority, they have had a full opportunity to manifest their economic ideas, and what those ideas have come to has been the largest foreclosure crisis since the Great Depression.


Part 1:


Part 2:


Part 3:
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8:29 PM | Posted in
I went to the Twitter page of Representative Marty Seifert to follow because I DESPERATELY wanted to hear more about the DFL members he is currently stalking. What I found was a bit of a FAIL...

Hooray, Marty Seiefert!
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7:26 PM | Posted in ,
Representative Ellison, speaking on the floor of the House of Representatives, voiced his support for The Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act of 2009.

The bill would, among other things, would provide certain minimum standards for consumer mortgage loans.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of long overdue legislation to crack down on predatory mortgage lending. This week the House will consider legislation to curb abusive and predatory lending, a major factor in the Nation's highest home foreclosure rate in 25 years and the precursor to the greatest economic downturn since the Great Depression.



Last week, Ellison spoke out several times in favor of the Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights Act of 2009 even using the time given to the Progressive Caucus.

These videos and more continue to be brought to you by a project known as MNMuseTube where you can find the floor speeches of Minnesota Democrat's in Congress.
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After Liberal in the Land of Conservative broke the news two days ago that Maureen Reed will enter the race to take on Michele Bachmann in the 6th District, the news has trickled across the internet. Reed made the news officially official with a press release today.
“We are living through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, with staggering numbers of people unemployed, health care out of the reach of many folks, and thousands of Minnesotans losing their businesses and homes,” said Dr. Reed. “While these problems are tough, I’m running for Congress because I know two things are true. First, Americans can solve tough problems. Second, a bright future is not accidental. We create a bright future when we put rhetoric aside, focus on the real problems, and work hard together. This is exactly what I’ve done all my life. The future I see is one of business expansion, job growth, home ownership and lower health care costs.”

Along with many of these stories has been a healthy dose of analysis on what it is the DFL, or the Independence Party for that matter, can win in the 6th District. Some of these "plans" are realistic while others border on the deceptive. With all due respect to Mr. Immelman, it is a virtual impossibility to organize enough people to cross over and defeat Bachmann in a Republican Primary. In addition to that, I refuse to participate in something which at its very core is deceptive. If we are reduced to interfering in the primaries of the other party rather than defeating them in a contest of ideas then we don't really deserve to win.

A couple of items caught my eye and really should be the driving force of our campaign to win the 6th Congressional District of Minnesota. The first comes from the comments of "Taxpaying Liberal":

1. The 1st thing the Dems have to do is quit blaming every loss on the Independent candidate. Bachmann‘s margin of victory was 3 points less than in 06 against a much better funded candidate in 06. Tink gained 2 plus points over the 2nd Wetterling race. Anderson gained 3 plus points over Binkowski. The only person who lost points to the IP candidate was Bachmann and trust me, most of those people will NEVER vote for a democrat. You would have to assume that 71% of the people who voted IP would have voted for Tink in order to be correct that the IP had something to do with the Bachman victory.

2. If you are going to ignore the central part of the district and settle for less than 40% of the vote in Wright, Sherburne and Benton counties then you are going to have to get Mpls type of numbers out of the rest of the district. You simply have to put more boots on the ground in these areas. If you are going to put offices in St. Cloud , Stillwater, Blaine then you also need headquarters in Buffalo, Big Lake, Ham Lake etc..

I am as guilty as the next person for trying to pin last year's loss on the spoiler candidate but the reality is that if 10% of voters were willing to vote for someone who did little more than file for a place on the ballot then that is a failure of the challenger to get their message out. Additionally, I would wager to bet that most of those IP voters would have held their nose and voted Bachmann if only given two options.

The other bit of advice that should be heeded by candidates comes from a post written today by Blue Man. The whole thing is a must read but one part stands out:

So here's an idea...perhaps even a bold one.

So instead of posting photo shopped pictures and edited You Tube videos putting orgy and government wads together, why don't we actually work in a grassroots effort to organize our communities.


Again, I have been known to put together edited youtube videos. However, this cannot be the crux of our strategy to defeat Bachmann!

Seriously, I'm I the only one who looked at the Bachmann tax day video and noticed that orgy/government wad portion of said video was spliced together like a 3 year old playing Operation?

Mocking Michele Bachmann gets us nowhere.

EXACTLY! I have been driven from some sectors of the anti-Bachmann world for not being willing to automatically call her a "nut, liar, bigot". It is entirely unhelpful to continue using this inflammatory language. If the entire basis of our argument is these three words, we lose.

Running an "anyone but Bachmann campaign" gets us nowhere.

Attacking the "soccer mom" gets us nowhere.

It only gets us 2 more years of Bachmann.

Bachmann will continue to do damage to herself in the mainstream media.

While we should ensure that her insane comments are disseminated, we have no need to doctor them to make them even more "juicy". She does that well enough.

We should talk about Bachmann's voting record and how her values are not congruent with her rhetoric.

Last but not least, leadership needs to get off its ass. I caught this wonderful quote earlier in the week.
The district is the most Republican in the state and will be an extremely difficult race for any Democrat. But Schumaker believes Tinklenberg would have won in 2008 if not for the presence of another (non-endorsed) IP candidate on the ballot, Bob Anderson, who garnered 10 percent of the vote. “For whatever reason the information was not put out there that El Tinklenberg was endorsed by both parties,” she says.
"For whatever reason..."

Really? WTF?

Tinklenberg was endorsed by the IP on June 22, 2009. You mean to tell me that neither Tinklenberg nor the 6th CD DFL took the time over the remaining 4 1/2 months from the IP endorsement to stress the endorsement.

"For whatever reason...?"

Maybe if...now this is a big maybe...they hadn't spent the waning weeks of the campaign still introducing Tinklenberg to voters, they would have known he was endorsed by BOTH the DFL and the IP.

Going back through the Blueman history of Tinklenberg campaign ads, none of the ads I found had any mention of Tinklenberg's cross endorsement of the DFL and IP.

So, stop blaming the IP for Tinklenberg losing in 2008.

We lost because we gambled and lost. We ran shitty campaigns in Wright and Sherburne Counties and could not capitalize on the cash cow caused by the pandemic known as the Bachmann 2008 virus.


I couldn't have said it any better myself. If we are going to win the 6th District, then we better start organizing in EVERY part of the district to show that OUR ideas are better...
7:00 AM | Posted in
I have been writing on and off for some time now to try to convince others that the Crown Hydro Project is a legitimate project worthy of moving forward in the process. Unfortunately, there are others out there tirelessly blocking it even at the expense of process and transparency.

Over at Minnesota Progressive Project, Two Putt has yet another example in the North Star Chapter of the Sierra Club. It seems as though "due diligence" and an open process have given way to opposing projects on the flimsiest of evidence.

That the North Star Chapter of The Sierra Club did not do fair, full, and open due diligence prior to publicly opposing Crown Hydro really isn't in dispute; State Director Margaret Levin admitted last Friday that although they now are officially opposing Crown Hydro, there was only one meeting with Crown Hydro and only one Club member attended - in November of 2007; 17 months ago (give or take a few days).

...

And how careful could the North Star Chapter be, about giving "careful consideration," if they only had one - ONE - person meet about the project, SEVENTEEN months ago, before stating their opposition to the project?

Nikki Carlson, who hasn't been Crown Hydro spokesperson for all that long, told me that she has repeatedly - starting before last year's elections - tried to schedule time with The Sierra Club to give a presentation of the project's merits, and answer any questions/concerns/objections the Club may have.

Sadly, The Sierra Club never accepted the offer, yet still finds the audacity to "oppose" the project, on the flimsiest of grounds: that a legal, valid, and binding lease isn't a "lease" - but a "sale"; and on the length of said lease, which - of course - is always negotiable between two parties acting in good faith.


Yet, the Sierra Club isn't alone in its war on process and due diligence. I found it very interesting to watch a meeting of the Minneapolis Park Board from December of '07. At that meeting, members voted to halt the process by which the mere study and negotiation of Crown Hydro would move forward. By the end of the discussion even Commissioner Carol Kummer was remarking at how transparency had received a "kicking" and was fearful that process would be given the same treatment. With all due respect to Ms. Kummer, I believe it is too late. This and the example highlighted by Two Putt clearly show that Crown Hydro may never receive the due diligence it deserves.


The death of transparency, process, & due diligence brought to you by the Minneapolis Park Board and the North Star Chapter of the Sierra Club...
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3:46 PM | Posted in ,
I have learned from a reliable source that former Lieutenant Governor candidate for the Independence Party, Maureen Reed will be speaking tonight at a DFL meeting in the 6th Congressional District. While this may not be the official announcement, I am told that Reed is set to announce soon that she will take on Michele Bachmann for the 6th District seat. Obviously, this puts her in direct competition with Elwyn Tinklenberg who is expected to announce by the end of the summer.

Reed chaired the University of Minnesota Board of Regents and served as the interim Executive Director on the Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota. For more information, check out the Lt. Governor debate from the '06 Governor's race.

I will have more information as it becomes available...

UPDATE: It has been confirmed by Noah Kunin from the Uptake that Reed was in fact at the CD6 meeting this evening. As I was writing this story I received word that it was an official announcement. Here is what this anonymous source had to say:

Yes she announced officially.

I talked to her quite a bit and she is really a good 'people person', listener and has a good handle on health care, job creation and the mortgage crisis.

She calls herself a 'blue dog' which turned some off, but I'm willing to give her a chance.

She understands the need to gain both the DFL and Indepence party endorsements and understands that other IP candidates need to be out of the mix. However knows legally she can't really do anything about it. But she has been a big part of the IP party so her influence may mean something.


On a side note, over at Minnesota Progressive Project, Populista has a post up examining just what it might take to defeat Bachmann. It's a good read...

If we want to Dump Bachmann Democrats, IP members, independents and sane Republicans are going to need to join together. Dr. Reed would be well positioned to do just that. It will be interesting to see how her campaign plays out.

I couldn't agree more. If there truly is a majority desire to defeat Bachmann, then it is going to take more than the DFL alone can muster. I said as much recently:

Given that Bachmann received less than 50% in the '08 election she is beatable. However, it can only happen when members of the DFL and Independence Parties work in unison. That means more than an empty cross endorsement. It means an all out diplomatic effort from the leadership in both parties to run a unity candidate. DFLers may need to realize that this unity candidate might mean stepping aside to allow this person to run as an Independence candidate. The reason I say this is because there remains a large enough group of people in this district who do not like Bachmann but will NEVER vote for a DFL candidate that it makes winning nearly impossible.

I will bring you more as information becomes available...
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6:43 PM | Posted in ,
This is a reposting of a story I wrote back in December of 2007. Given that this issue has resurfaced, I feel it necessary to share this story and urge people to tell Twila Brase and her organization to stop being irresponsible...

On December 14th, 2006, my life was blessed a third time with the arrival of my third child. As is the practice of hospitals around Minnesota, she was subjected to a toe poke in which drops of blood are extracted to test for a wide variety of conditions.

Within weeks we received a letter informing us that our precious new bundle had Biotinidase Deficiency. Our hearts dropped as we read an informational pamphlet describing what the deficiency is and what problems it can cause if untreated.

What is Biotinidase Deficiency?

A condition that causes the body to have trouble using biotin, an important vitamin the body needs. Biotin is found in many foods. However, a person with Biotinidase Deficiency needs more biotin than the amount eaten in the normal diet.

What problems can Biotinidase Deficiency cause?

Untreated Biotinidase Deficiency can cause seizures, low muscle tone, hearing loss, eye problems, hair loss, skin rashes, and possibly coma or death.

It was a toe poke which allowed us to quickly identify the problem and take action to treat it. Due to a simple toe poke I can report that this lovely little child is developing nicely with a simple daily dose of biotin. Without a simple toe poke we would most likely be making numerous trips to the doctor as our child exhibited these damaging signs which would have irreversible effects. It is for these reasons that I became so angry to read THIS story in the Star Tribune.

Apparently, this woman named Twila Base is fighting to discontinue the mandatory nature of the toe poke in Minnesota.

I take issue with this statement:

Brase said she's not against newborn testing, but thinks parents should choose whether to do it.

This places parents in a reactionary role in the health of their child rather than the proactive role that every parent should be in the health of their child. Had these proactive tests not been administered or had I refused to have them administered I would now be regretting that decision as I reacted to a variety of symptoms developing in my child. Any parent who would refuse to have a test done to proactively check for treatable conditions in my view is negligent.

Please, email or call Twila (e: info@cchconline.org p: 651.646.8935) and tell her to stop!

Also, please call or email your state legislators to keep this woman from gaining influence over our lawmakers!
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