Liberal in the Land of Conservative: Andy Aplikowski

Showing posts with label Andy Aplikowski. Show all posts

Pawlenty Solution To Republican Woes: Become A Democrat...

4:00 PM | Posted in Andy Aplikowski, Minnesota, Republican, Tarryl Clark, Tim Pawlenty

As the Republican Party here in Minnesota and across the country tries to regroup and redefine itself in the hope that it can regain relevance, Governor Tim Pawlenty appears to have the solution.

That solution? Well become a Democrat, OBVIOUSLY!

Republicans need to be farsighted on such issues as energy, health care and education, and broaden their appeal to working-class families and small-business owners, he said.

While that is a bit of an exaggeration, there is a grain of truth as Pawlenty appears to be embracing issues that are certain to send the base of his party into a crazed frenzy. None get base conservatives quite so worked up as the anthropogenic climate change debate and the concepts of green jobs and renewable energy.

This past Monday, Pawlenty threw the base under the bus by embracing green jobs and openly advocated for initiatives to bring those jobs here to the state. While differing on the details, Governor Pawlenty is distancing himself from the deniers that make up his base and is looking to take as his own issues that Democrats have been calling for all along. Last February, Tarryl Clark (DFL) called for similar investments in green jobs:

According to an analysis by the Blue-Green Alliance and the Renewable Energy Policy Project, Minnesota could develop about 18,400 new “green” jobs in manufacturing, construction, management, maintenance and financing of wind, biomass, geothermal and solar power projects. According to the analysis, Stearns County’s share of this growth could be around 1,200 jobs.
The analysis points out that Minnesota already has 450 firms that “are currently active in the industrial sectors that could provide the component parts” to reduce emissions by 15 percent worldwide.

Here in Minnesota, we’re ahead of much of the country when it comes to developing the kind of energy standard that can create these new jobs. Last year’s approval of a standard that will require utility companies to have 25 percent of their energy mix come from renewable sources by 2020 was a triumph of bipartisanship.
The Legislature also ordered the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to develop a strategy to maximize the economic benefit to citizens from the renewable-energy standard. Since then, DEED has produced promotional materials and traveled to trade shows to educate potential manufacturers and investors in renewable energy.
Greater energy independence, more jobs, a cleaner environment and bipartisan support—it’s hard to argue with benefits like that. Maybe renewable energy won’t solve all of our state’s economic troubles, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction.

The response from the base to being thrown under the bus? Well, Andy Aplikowski, who is interested in taking over the Republican Party of Minnesota is none too pleased (not that he ever is). He is officially throwing Pawlenty out of the party:

As I said, anyone who drinks the green kool aid does not deserve to lead the conservative movement or the Republican party.

I crown both Newt Gingrich and Tim Pawlenty Lunacrats!
Where as, they believe in lunatic the policies of Al Gore that not only have science and common sense debunked, but any one with a functioning brainstem whose career doesn’t rely on public ignorance, can spot how the Earth has seen cooler temperatures this year and is forecast for 30 years of cooler temperatures. Be it resolved that neither of them ascend to any official leadership position of the free market oriented Republican party or conservative movement.

So, with Aplikowski throwing everyone out of the party except for himself, would it really be unrealistic to assume that Pawlenty will soon be joining the Democratic Party? Not likely, but if he continues to tack to the left in response to recent election results it should make 2010 a whole lot easier for the DFL as Republicans will have fractured beyond repair.

For less snark and more substance about what Pawlenty actually wants to implement with his green jobs initiative, I encourage you to check out Jeff Rosenberg at Twin Cities Daily Liberal or Holly Cairns at MNBlue.

Category: Andy Aplikowski, Minnesota, Republican, Tarryl Clark, Tim Pawlenty

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Where Is My George Soros Money?

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5:27 PM | Posted in Andy Aplikowski, Humor, Michele Bachmann

Andy Aplikowski has a post urging conservatives to give Michele Bachmann money:

Calling All Conservatives

Posted by Andy on March 13th, 2008

Have you donated to Rep. Michele Bachmann’s campaign? She is going to face a very tough reelection and as usual the list of stalkerazzi and biased media coverage is endless. She needs your help so she can fend off the liberal attacks from the deep pockets of George Soros.

Even if you can donate just $10 or $25 to her campaign, it will help make sure that we have great conservatives in the US House protecting freedom, liberty, America, and our hard earned money.

Given that the only groups doing any comprehensive monitoring of Bachmann are Dump Bachmann, Blue Man, and I it makes me wonder where my George Soros money is. Has someone at Dump Bachmann been hoarding the Soros paycheck? Is Blue Man secretly siphoning off my cut of the Soros money? I DEMAND MY SOROS PAYMENT IMMEDIATELY!

You gotta love the snippy comment though:

bmetzler Says:
March 13th, 2008 at 7:56 am
No, I think all pass. After all, Rep Bachmann will either run as a conservative, or she won’t. If she runs as a conservative, she *can’t* lose, according to Mitch and others, so why spend the money? If she doesn’t run as a conservative, you don’t want her to win anyways, so why donate money?

Cross Posted on Dump Bachmann

Category: Andy Aplikowski, Humor, Michele Bachmann

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The Art Of Compromise OR Damned If You Do...

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6:57 PM | Posted in Andy Aplikowski, Gary Gross, Republican, Safe Roads and Bridges Improvement Act

Last week I posted about the Safe Roads and Bridges Act introduced in the legislature. That bill has caused quite the uproar in the right wing blogosphere with its gas tax and provision tying such a tax to inflation.

The biggest source of fear and concern is coming from Residual Forces author, Andy Aplikowski. He has been furiously reporting (here, here, here, here, & here) about the possibility that a number of Republicans will vote to override a suspected Pawlenty veto on the Transportation Bill. Obviously, I take this news as a sign that there are Republicans in the state legislature who understand the art of compromise but Andy is trying desperately to beat them back into submission.

Gary Gross, on the other hand, takes a far more cautious tone with respect to the news that Aplikowski is putting out there. Unfortunately, in doing so, Gross lambasts Democrats for taking out the indexed piece of the legislation. Apparently Democrats are damned if they do compromise and damned if they don't. While most would take this news as a sign that Democrats are willing to work with the minority to find the most broad appeal but Gross and other Republicans are having nothing to do with it. It couldn't be more clear to the public that while Democrats are willing to cede some ground in the interest of passing a bill, Republicans like Andy and Gary are going to sink the ship before they ever allow true compromise to take place.

As I asked Gary in his comments section:

Given that the Democrats have compromised on a provision by taking index to inflation out of the bill, what items are the Republican minority willing to compromise upon?

It seems like a fairly honest way to negotiate in order to finally get something accomplished but only time will tell. Perhaps these Republicans have never learned the art of compromise or the concept of negotiation.

In related news, the State Auditor released a report today on State Highways and Bridges. Some of their concerns are as follows:

Between 2002 and 2007, spending on road preservation decreased, with the amount being spent on new construction projects increasing to over half of the construction budget. Previously, new construction spending was about 25% of the construction budget.

The Auditor attributes this shift to the increased use of trunk highway bonding, which has been championed by the Pawlenty Administration, to fund transportation. As a result, road upkeep has suffered and they aren’t as safe.

The OLA says Mn/DOT’s spending is not aligned with its “preservation first” policy.

The Legislative Auditor found that Mn/DOT needs additional resources for fracture-critical bridge inspections.

When construction projects come in over budget, the overruns are taken out of preservation dollars, which means less-safe roads and bridges. In the FY 2002-03 biennium, $36 million was diverted from maintenance to construction.

Mn/DOT estimates that by 2012, it will take all of its forecasted resources (about $672 million/year) just to keep up with preservation. This is $350 million/year more than Mn/DOT is currently planning to spend.

The pavement conditions of our trunk highways are in worse condition than they were five years ago, and they will continue to decline. If we continue current funding levels, the number of roads rated “poor” will double by 2011.

In 2002, 72% of the state’s roads had pavement in good condition. Today, only 66% of our roads have this rating.

We must renew our focus on preserving our state’s existing roads and bridges. If we let them deteriorate beyond repair, replacement costs will only continue to skyrocket.

This administration’s reliance on transportation bonding is not only fiscally irresponsible, but jeopardizes the safety of our infrastructure and citizens.

Mn/DOT needs stable, dedicated resources to ensure that they can properly preserve and maintain our state’s roads and bridges.

We must move forward with an investment in transportation that will keep our roads and bridges safe.