The following article by Mike Mullen was posted on the City Pages website August 9, 2017:
Erik Paulsen says the “community” is “united” after the Bloomington mosque bombing. Maybe he read about it in the paper?Facebook/Erik Paulsen
Erik Paulsen just cannot get Facebook to work.
He’s able to publish posts, sure, and can get all the words and photos to show up online. It’s what happens after that, when everyone jumps in to say he’s full of shit, that’s giving him so much trouble.
The following article by Simone Pathé was posted on the Roll Call website July 31, 2017:
Some House GOP lawmakers trusted Senate to improve legislation
When Florida Rep. Carlos Curbelo voted for the Republican health care bill this spring, he did so believing the Senate would make it better.
“I received strong assurances that major improvements would be made in the Senate,” the two-term congressman wrote in a May Miami Herald op-edexplaining his vote.
But after weeks of unfruitful negotiations, the Senate failed to pass their own version of a health care repeal Thursday night. That leaves those House Republicans who justified their politically risky “yes” votes last May by saying the Senate would improve the legislation without much cover.
House members who voted for their own version of repeal were upset about the Senate vote Friday morning, but few expressed concern about their own political fates. Mostly, they denied that they’re thinking about politics at all.
When it comes to “bad news, good news,” it’s hard to find good news in the article regarding the arrival of a super PAC in the Third Congressional District. The only good news I see is that we are already a quarter of the way through the run-up to the midterm election. The bad news is out-of-state special interests continue pouring in dark money to support Paulsen. We could ask who is donating the money and what strings are attached, but … .
What we do know, according to Paulsen’s Federal Election Commission filings, is that he raised $1,061,000 in the first half of 2017. A review of his filings shows that: 23 percent of donations came from only 166 individuals living in the district, 16 percent from individuals living out of the district or state, and 60 percent from out-of-state PACs. As the 2018 campaigning kicks into high gear, the disparity between individual constituent contributions and out-of-state special interests will increase significantly. Dark money will exceed reason. And this is the problem with Congress. Continue reading “Paulsen Support from Super PAC”
“Super PAC sets up shop” (July 28) is a chilling precursor to the 2018 election. According to the article, the Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF) will be working to encourage U.S. Rep. Erik Paulsen to “take tough votes on issues like health care.” It reports that “when Iowa Rep. David Young announced he would vote against the replacement House bill, CLF closed its office in his district.”
So despite the shiny young people working for CLF, where does this leave Paulsen’s constituents, who may have diametrically opposite views? Will Paulsen hold in-person town hall meetings in order to discover the wishes of those he represents, or will he vote with the CLF and all the money it promises for his votes?
Arthur and Jane Price, Coon Rapids Minneapolis Star Tribune, July 29, 2017
Thank you to reporter Patty Dexter for the June 22 edition by providing Congressman Erik Paulsen’s reaction to the attempted murder of congressmen in Washington, D.C. This terrible assault on our democracy is a local issue because it was an attack on all Americans.
The also also demonstrated access community news organizations have to our elected representatives. This is important because Congressman Paulsen ignores rank-and-file constituents.
Lakeshore Weekly News is well-positioned to promote political discourse due to its access to Paulsen — access that has not been afforded, or is affordable, to district residents. Lakeshore Weekly can raise the bar in reporting on Paulsen by asking him rigorous questions on his positions that affect our district and demand complete and truthful answers. Continue reading “Citizens have questions for Rep. Paulsen”
The following article by Joe Davidson was posted on the Washington Post website July 21, 2017:
House Budget Committee Chairwoman Diane Black (R-Tenn.) listens as budget committee lawmakers deliver statements on the American Health Care Act during a meeting in March. (Shawn Thew/EPA)
House Republicans greeted current and future federal employees with two controversial body blows in recent days — one amounts to a pay cut and the other would allow new feds to be fired for “no cause at all.”
The House Budget Committee approved a spending plan that would save the government $163.5 billion over 10 years by taking that amount from federal employees. They would pay that in the form of “greater contributions to their own defined benefit retirement plans,” according to the panel’s budget document.
Republicans call their plan “Building a Better America.” But the Americans now working to build a better country through their federal jobs would be called on to sacrifice again, as they have repeatedly over the years.
While excited parade-goers lined the 50th Street in Edina, back in the staging area, Section 16 was curiously empty. That was the spot Rep. Erik Paulsen had reserved, and it was the position in which the parade information materials listed he would be marching.
But as a large group gathered nearby in Section 17, where Rep Keith Ellison and his supporters would march, still not one supporter or staffer for Rep. Paulsen appeared. Let alone the representative himself. And so the parade went on without him.
NOTE: If you have questions about this situation, please contact Rep. Erik Paulsen’s offices to ask them. You can reach them here: 202.225.2871 (DC) or 952.405.8510 (MN).
The following article by Karoun Demirjian and Mike DeBonis was posted on the Washington Post website July 10, 2017:
House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) has said he is in favor of the Russia sanctions bill. The measure is mired in a partisan dispute in the House — with Democrats saying a recent change weakens the legislation. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)
Popular legislation that would limit President Trump’s ability to lift financial sanctions on Russia is mired in a partisan dispute in the House, with Democrats charging that a recent change would weaken the bill.
The surprising roadblock emerged in recent days as Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the Group of 20 summit in Germany and floated the possibility of joining forces with Russia on a cybersecurity initiative, to objections from both parties.
My mom is 97 years old and has severe dementia. She has been in a memory care unit for three years. My mom loved reading, loved book, but now can’t recognize even one written word. She can’t hold a conversation or count past one.
And mom has outlived her live savings.
The skilled nursing care she is receiving is being paid for by Medicaid. So if the present GOP health care bill becomes law, Medicaid will be cut. Continue reading “What will happen to my mom?”
The following article by Noam N. Levey was posted on the Los Angeles Times website July 6, 2017:
Communities like this aging West Virginia coal town along the Kanawha River were key to President Trump’s victory last year; more than two-thirds of voters in surrounding Fayette County backed the Republican nominee.
