Is Erik Paulsen really a moderate? I say no. His votes, actions and inactions in the Trump era have proven exactly the opposite – that as the Republican Party has become more and more extreme, so has Erik Paulsen.
Recently, Paulsen said he supports Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. It is one thing to secretly toe the party line by voting with Trump’s positions nearly every time, but to approve a jurist as radically conservative as Brett Kavanaugh completely dispels the myth that Paulsen has a moderate agenda. Continue reading “Is Paulsen really a moderate?”
www.erikpaulsen.org reveals what the special interests are getting for their money
Excelsior, MN – A new online resource, “Congressman for Sale,” was launched today to help voters in Minnesota’s 3rd District understand the influence that powerful special interests have over Rep. Erik Paulsen – now the 6th largest recipient of special interest money among all 435 members of Congress.
The site exposes Paulsen’s $8,269,936 in special interest contributions by industry, showing what each received for their money through Congressman Paulsen’s votes. It provides voters with a report card from nationally-known advocacy groups, showing how out of touch Congressman Paulsen’s voting record is as a result of special interest influence, and a survey for those interested in learning more. The site also links to End Citizens United’s “Erik the PAC Man” game, where players can try to raise more money than Erik Paulsen while avoiding the constituents he all but ignores. Continue reading “Congressman For Sale: Erik Paulsen is Bought and Sold”
The following article by Sam Pizzigati was posted on the Inequality.org website July 12, 2018:
America’s elected leaders haven’t ignored inequality since 2000. They’ve made it spectacularly worse.
Mitch McConnel, Paul Ryan, Donald Trump and Mike Pence celebrating GOP tax cut for the rich bill. Credit: Official White House Photo
The United States ended the 20th century on a roll — for the rich. Between 1973 and 2000, the nation’s most prosperous 1 percent tripled their incomes, after taking inflation into account.
The even more prosperous top tenth of that 1 percent did quite a bit better. Their incomes more than quintupledbetween 1973 and 2000, rising an amazing 414.6 percent.
Imagine you’re in a group of 30 people. You need to get a majority of them to agree on where you’ll go for lunch. Pretty easy, right? But wait, some friends say: “We don’t like 13 of them – so don’t negotiate with those ones. Just get the other 17 to agree.”
But of those 17, five of them won’t compromise. They only want to go to that terrible sandwich shop down the road, where everything’s too greasy and tastes like cardboard. You beg and plead, but they don’t budge. So you end up not getting lunch at all.
The following article by Hannah Jones was posted on the CityPages website July 13, 2018:
Though Erik Paulsen’s environmental record borders on cartoon villainy, his new campaign ad presents him as the hero the Boundary Waters needs. Credit: YouTube Screen Capture
Eden Prairie Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen’s new campaign commercial opens with soulful piano music and a zoom in on a family photo album. Then comes Paulsen, in voiceover form:
“My parents taught me to love the outdoors,” he says. “I camp and canoe with my family in Minnesota’s Yellowstone: the Boundary Waters.”
Trump and the Republican Party sold Americans out. This is Trump’s scheme – to keep America great for the rich and powerful, while making it harder for everyone else to succeed.
Trump fuels corporate greed and will always empower wealthy special interests. Trump’s most consistent policy is to help CEOs and rich corporations while hurting workers and families. Look at all he’s done so far:
TRUMP TAX: Trump and Republicans passed a tax bill that gives massive new tax breaks to big corporations and more than 80% of the benefits to the top 1% by the end of the decade. CEOs have used these massive giveaways to further enrich themselves, but not to benefit their workers.
HEALTH CARE: Trump and Republicans continue to sabotage the ACA. Their assault has increased health care costs for millions and made it less accessible. Continue reading “The Trump Economy”
Yesterday, Congressman Erik Paulsen voted along with all of his Republican colleagues on the House Ways and Means Committee against a measure to protect individuals with pre-existing conditions from discrimination. In Minnesota’s 3rd Congressional District, there are 310,200 people with pre-existing conditions. DCCC spokesperson Rachel Irwin released the following statement:
“Congressman Erik Paulsen has once again sided with party bosses and special interests in Washington over his constituents, voting to allow insurance companies to deny coverage to the hundreds of thousands of people in his district with asthma, diabetes, and other pre-existing conditions. Minnesotans will remember this betrayal in November as healthcare is top of mind for voters.”
This vote comes just a few weeks after Rep. Paulsen’s spokesperson, said in a statement to the Star Tribune that, “Rep. [Erik] Paulsen has long supported protections for individuals with pre-existing conditions, and he continues to do so.”
Here are the facts: Paulsen has taken more than $1.2 million from the insurance industry and voted dozens of times to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which would’ve eliminated protections for those with pre-existing conditions. In 2017, he voted for the AHCA, which the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office and Politifact confirmed would gut protections for those with pre-existing conditions, including making health insurance unaffordable for older Americans and jack up premiums. Paulsen has also failed to stand up to Trump’s administration ongoing efforts to dismantle pre-existing conditions protections.
NOTE: Rep. Paulsen voted FOR this bill, which was supported by Pres. Trump.
The following article by Caitlin Dewey and Erica Werner was posted on the Washington Post website June 21, 2018:
A deeply polarizing farm bill narrowly passed the House on Thursday, a month after the legislation went down to stunning defeat after getting ensnared in the toxic politics of immigration.
“Erik Paulsen has taken more special interest money than nearly any other member of Congress, and that buys him nice TV ads. Unfortunately, this is just another misrepresentation of truth from Rep. Paulsen – who has consistently voted against environmental protections during his 30 year political career. To understand why, you just have to follow the money. I believe voters will see through this election year posturing and vote this November for someone who is not beholden to special interests or party leadership.”
Congressman Erik Paulsen says that to get something done for DACA recipients, we can’t “let an activist base that hates the president stand in the way.”
Really? Does the Congressman need to be reminded that President Donald Trump is the one who ended DACA? Or that the Republican Party has been holding DREAMers hostage to achieve their policy goals?
If Erik Paulsen truly cared about giving DREAMers a path to citizenship, he would have insisted on a solution long ago, one independent of any other legislation. Instead he caters to the extremes of his party, only acting on DACA in conjunction with new, far-right border security policies.
Don’t blame this on the Democrats, Erik. It’s your party and your president that created this crisis
Sarah Eigenmann, Plymouth Plymouth Sun-Sailor, July 10, 2018
Excelsior, MN – A new online resource, “
Trump and the Republican Party sold Americans out. This is Trump’s scheme – to keep America great for the rich and powerful, while making it harder for everyone else to succeed.