Thursday, June 29, 2017

Zellow beautiful.

How can you - anyone - say that this Zillow webpage does not capture the true lasting beauty of a home the way the beauty and symmetry of the Taj Mahal is shown in photos? Zillow is so special that way - other ways:


And such is yours, for two mil, in friendly nice Minnesota. Isn't Zillow special?

FAIR USE. SO THERE. Can you imagine seventeen inches of snow, the -17 F the following day, standing there on the then snow-covered lawn; with a roof rake? Thinking, "Ice dam." Those follow-up week to ten days of 27-31 F sunny days; 17-20 overnight, they just shout out, "Ice dam. Make my day." Fun city ya betcha. Three cheers for Zillow. Ditto, their cease-and-desist lawyers. Simple roofs for simple needs - I think that's an old saying.

__________UPDATE__________
Ars Technica, here, linking to this EFF "get real" pdf letter. To fully appreciate the EFF smackdown of stupidity and bad PR Zillow displayed; thinking stomp the little blogger; Ars here, linking to the Zillow intimidation letter. The EFF is a worthwhile operation, seeking to resist stupidity in its speech intimidation ways.

It is good to see someone in things is presidential. The vision thing.

This link.

Early paragraphs:

“President Obama tried to move us forward with health-care coverage by using a conservative model that came from one of the conservative think tanks that had been advanced by a Republican governor in Massachusetts,” she told The Wall Street Journal. ”Now it’s time for the next step. And the next step is single payer.”

Polling has shown government-provided health care to be a very popular notion among Americans. Depending on whether it’s described as a public option, Medicare for all, or federally funded universal health care, proposals are supported by 57 to 61 percent of Americans, compared with only 19 to 24 percent opposed.

Those rich bastards do not want to pay a fair share of taxes and McConnell and Ryan are about nothing else but that. Keelhauling on a barnacled keel is what each of that pair deserve. Add a Pence.

Power to the people (without interruptions and sabotoge plese).

Who's next?

An independent, wholly so, who's next?

Choice haters are more than a nuisance, being a menace instead to all of the rest of us who want them to shut up and go away. "There will be people—like Republican Sen. Dan Foreman, an Idaho lawmaker who recently proposed a bill that would try women who have abortions for first degree murder—who will reply, “why don’t they just give the baby up for adoption instead?” I suspect if someone turned up and asked to live in Dan’s house for nine months he would decline, and that’s infinitely less invasive than something taking up residence in your body."

Thinking of Dan Quayle, Dan must be too frequently a sentence to a lifetime of stupidity. (Apology to Dan Burns, an exception proving a rule.)

That's because the Danno idiot in the headline quote fits into this story of shameful bigotry toward reproductive freedom and liberty; the quote being from that item.

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Tools of Mammon and bigotry unite. Darkness at mid-day.

Tools of tools, met with Pence tool.
Charles Koch and his chief lieutenants met privately with Vice President Mike Pence for nearly an hour Friday. Pence, a longtime Koch ally, was in Colorado Springs to address a gathering of religious conservatives.

AP report, source of image and quote. If you do not recognize the photo tools, well, who does? Besides Charles and David and fellow traveler Pence? Just know evil is as evil does. They want people to die so they'll have more and the populace will be intimidated and meek. They want to inherit the earth, or more to the truth, to have it now and pass it to like minded tools. Not waiting to inherit, seizing initiative, standing against norms of fairness and decency toward the health worries and needs of others. Tools of backwardness and meanness.

Friday, June 23, 2017

It is not news. It is opinion. Were Bernie Sanders to share his email list with Tom Perez or the DNC it would be like Jesus giving Pilate nails.

List links (mythology?): Here, here, here, here, here and here.

Likely there is much more online, things more recent. A video. Another. The second, editorial in nature.

Debbie may share her list with Tom Perez, and vice versa, while moving Onward Together. With what's her name.

________________UPDATE_______________
The Observer, April 17, 2017; this link, this opening screen capture:


The list mentioned at the end of that screencaptured text must be the one Ossoff used.

Bernie could not, despite personal effort, boost Rob Quist over the hump in strongly-Republican Montana. DNC trainloads of money, ditto, Ossoff in Georgia's CD6.

Something has to happen, and it will not be the disenfranchised Bern-feelers giving in. They've nothing and have been scorned by the corporatists who presently own the Democratic Party and thus have something actual to give the have-nots. Will they be intransigent; rather losing elections than ruffling feathers in the corporatist donor pool by thinking of moving, however little, toward fairness?

And would a little movement be enough movement, or will substantial compromise need to be negotiated, as Schumer seems to understand? (In principle at least.)

Stay tuned. Expect more of the same. Ossoff + money = back to the drawing board. Trying to stone and demonize Trump with nothing really different being offered is an approach. You decide - A sound approach or a destined-to-fail-again one?

2018 will be an interesting situation - who will blink first? Will corporatist Dems out of spite hand the Trumpster a second term? Will too little be offered progressives, as with, "Well, you can, under supervision, write part of the platform while we keep the keys to the Lexus and own the driving seat." That approach had its day, its dismal day prior to Nov. 2016.

Thursday, June 22, 2017

The Napa Valley Register is geographically far from Trump Tower and from 666 Fifth Avenue.

Items here and here.

Are we waiting for a dog named Checkers to show up? Ivanka's lovable pup?

UPDATED: Summer, 2013, this.

A name in present "news," be it real or fake, the news, not the name.

Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Besides more obvious things to say to beltway Dems and donors, eschew ballons. Do separate candidates from balloons. Beyond that, is it Bernie's way or the highway? Ask Ellison, not Ossoff, not the billionaires.

Not even a Clintonian convention balloon drop in scale and tackiness, there is this:

balloon man - and is somebody giving an owl hand sign?

Image is from NYT coverage, this link, this quote:

Democrats Seethe After Georgia Loss: ‘Our Brand Is Worse Than Trump’

By ALEXANDER BURNS and JONATHAN MARTIN -- JUNE 21, 2017


Among Democrats in Washington, the setback in Georgia revived or deepened a host of existing grievances about the party, accentuating tensions between moderate lawmakers and liberal activists and prompting some Democrats to question the leadership and political strategy of Nancy Pelosi, the House minority leader.

But the overarching theme among Democrats was a sense of sharp urgency about crafting a positive agenda around kitchen-table issues. Congressional Democrats have already been meeting in private to shape a core list of economic policies, but their work did not reach any conclusive point during a long season of special elections.

“The Democratic caucus is united in our view that our message, heading into 2018, should be aggressively focused on job creation and economic growth,” Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, a member of the Democratic leadership team, said on Wednesday morning.

Representative Seth Moulton, Democrat of Massachusetts, said the defeat was “frustrating” and urged a shake-up at the top of the party.

“Our leadership owes us an explanation,” said Mr. Moulton, who voted against Ms. Pelosi in the last leadership election. “Personally, I think it’s time for new leadership in the party.”

That is merely the beginning of the NY Times item, so go there to read the complete analysis (and for links).

It is worse than an image worse than Donald Trump. It is an image worse than Tom Price, the least common denominator.

Was Ossoff a lovable candidate? Certainily not a progressive by anyone's measure. Money can't buy you love.

Blame Bubba Bill and spouse, for too hard a right turn. Something that can be undone. Easily, actually. Tom Perez should have the decency at this point to step aside, clearing the way for progress. Don't wait, however. It may not happen until late 2018, when too much of unavoidable error will have happened. Hard heads need hard proof.

Throwing the multimillionaire Pelosi under the bus is not the answer, but aside from that, why not for the fun of it? It would not be as if an asset were to be lost. A multimillionaire career politician, Pelosi has not held any private sector job or responsibilities, so that she and spouse might be money-wise to buy bus manufacturer stocks. A big enough bus would have room for Tom Perez too. They, under the bus, could go Onward Together.

______________UPDATE______________
Opinions differ.In addition, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here. Without any basis for independent verification or disproof of those numbers, by inverse values Bernie and Biden are the most trustworthy.

CBC carries AP June 20, 2017, feed, "Republican Handel wins Georgia congressional election, thanks Trump. [subhead] Battle over Georgia's 6th Congressional District was most expensive House race in U.S. history"

This link; this quote:

Republicans immediately crowed over winning a seat that Democrats spent $30 million trying to flip. "Democrats from coast to coast threw everything they had at this race, and Karen would not be defeated," House Speaker Paul Ryan said in a statement.

If Bevis had any comment, none was reported. Is Tom Perez awake? He's not being quoted. One more quote:

Republican seat since 1979

Handel is the latest in a line of Republicans who have represented the district since 1979, beginning with Newt Gingrich, who would become House speaker. Most recently, Tom Price resigned in February to join Trump's administration. The president himself struggled here, though, edging Democrat Hillary Clinton but falling short of a majority among an affluent, well-educated electorate [...]

Deep south, hence, unrepresentative of a nation at large. Well-educated and low Trump margin is a juxtaposition, make of it what you will.

WWJS? What Would Jarad Say? (Publicly or to a Russian banker, either.)

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Testamentary smorgasbord. If it fits your taste, it can be a First story, a Second song.

This video. Mishmosh, in advancement of schlock, is a sign of the times.

Encore. Who picked those images? Who did that soundtrack?

Who are these people? With what agenda for the rest of us?

Ryan Winkler.

Earlier, Winkler announced a conditional intent to run for Attorney General of Minnesota:

Today, [Nov. 15, 2016,] former Representative Ryan Winkler registered a campaign committee to run for Minnesota Attorney General in 2018. He released the following statement:

Minnesotans need a strong advocate in the Attorney General’s office who will fight for justice, oppose special privilege, and expand opportunity for everyone. Attorney General Lori Swanson has been such an advocate, and as a result many Minnesotans are encouraging her to pursue higher office. I am filing this campaign committee not to challenge Attorney General Swanson, but only to be prepared to lead in the event she decides not to seek re-election.

In the months ahead, I will be transitioning back to living in Minnesota full time. Spending time away from my Minnesota friends, family and colleagues has strengthened my resolve to work for the values we share. [...]

As Attorney General, I want to help make Minnesota a community of justice: a place where everyone has opportunity, where a decent living is the reward for hard work, where success is earned fairly, and where the broad interests of the people are represented in their government. The powerful and privileged have all the resources they need in our justice system. As Attorney General I will be an advocate dedicated solely to the people of Minnesota.

Ryan Winkler was born and raised in Bemidji, Minnesota, and served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2007 to 2015. During his time in the legislature, he established the 35W bridge victims compensation fund; worked with a coalition of faith, labor and non-profit groups to raise Minnesota’s minimum wage; and led his party’s efforts to expose the undisclosed funding of Minnesota elections. Since 2004, Winkler has worked in business as in-house counsel for Minnesota technology companies, and he founded the Minnesota practice chapter of the American Constitution Society in 2002. He is a graduate of the Bemidji public schools, Harvard College, and the University of Minnesota Law School.

[italics added] As a public school educated child and youth, Winkler is expected to stand strongly for public education free of intrusion and decently funded and aimed; a stance others, in fairness, should hold. Perhaps it should be a litmus test; public money for public schools.

Contact:
Ryan Winkler
612-991-4498
info@ryanwinkler.com

______________UPDATE_____________
A record to run on.

"There's another special election happening Tuesday in South Carolina's 5th District to replace Trump's Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney, but GOP nominee Ralph Norman [is] expected to easily best Democratic nominee Archie Parnell in an area where support for the president remains overall strong." [UPDATED]

Test your prowess. The headline is a quote beginning, "There's another special election happening Tuesday ..." that being today. What "other" special election might be referenced there? HINT: The quote is from here.

Further test your prowess. Predict whose tons of money shall prevail to yield the best Rep. money can buy.

That is the unwholesome premise. Of both sides: Money makes political victory.

Two corporatist dominated political parties in a faceoff where money wins, the people lose, regardless.

Go Handlel go. Win Ossoff, win.

It is not a referendum on Trump. It is a referendum on money and the two-party stranglehold. One where each wins and persists. Regardless.

___________UPDATE___________
Congrats in advance, to whoever.

___________FURTHER UPDATE____________
Wednesday after voting; Handel 52%; Ossoff 48% - pay attention Perez et al., money can't buy you love. Quist would have been a more promising investment - but leaving progressives to hang out and dry is the beltway way to oblivion. Which so far they've chosen.

At least Quist enjoyed the ride. AND THIS IS IMPORTANT - Gianforte was a stronger candidate than Handel. ("Stronger" in the quality sense, not the body-slam sense. But GG topped out on both.)

So, standoff. Beltway spenders and hangers on, need the progressives or watch losing. Progressives, need the beltway set, or watch losing. That means one has to yield something to the other. Beltway Perez/Biden crowd wants to concede nothing. You cannot win that way, but is it about winning or about thinking progressives can be starved into submission? What's to lose by staying home. The beltway crowd wants the spoils, Trump has the spoils but is up 2020; it's not rocket science. Progressives have less to lose than the beltway bunch; and then there are the state houses where entrenched Dems have something to lose, un- or under-represented progressives have needs and wants which are being ignored; so what's the turnaround formula? Nothing complex in answering that.

Money can't buy you love.

Monday, June 19, 2017

Strib reports Anoka County's exceptionally high employee turnover rate. The problem is insufficient turnover on the County Board; a.k.a. ossification of officeholders not super smart at the start, with baggage-agendas.

The Board's page. Four of the headlined sort; here, here, here and here. In descending order. Perhaps some misjudgment, in the ordering, not the listing.

And I've only been able to consistently vote against one of them.

That's districting at work.

Strib's item, stating in part:

Anoka County logged the highest employee turnover rate in the seven-county metro last year. Officials say that’s partly because of a voluntary separation program as well as the typical struggles facing public-sector employers in a stronger economy: retiring baby boomers, ample private-sector jobs and fierce competition for a shrinking number of applicants.

In some counties, turnover has doubled since 2010, with officials citing trouble with recruiting and retaining employees.

“It’s a statewide issue,” said Julie Ring, executive director of the Association of Minnesota Counties. “It’s intensifying.”

Time spent hiring and training can make the churn costly, officials say. And in Anoka County, some current and former staff say pay in certain positions is largely to blame.

Department heads have made urgent pleas for salary boosts as workers are siphoned off to smaller counties and cities, where employees say they are often taking similar jobs for thousands more in pay.

[...] “It is hard to keep a highly motivated staff when they have one foot out the door or feel stupid for staying here,” [county transportation division manager, Doug] Fischer wrote.

Good quote. Notice that Board members stay. And -

“We are never going to be the county that pays the highest in the metro area, but we are looking at being within a particular range,” Chairwoman Rhonda Sivarajah said.

Rhonda stays.

Sunday, June 18, 2017

Niska and Wardlow are the two Republicans, so far, wanting to become Minnesota Attorney General. Niska is the better of the two, yet when looking at Wardlow and his single legislative term, that is very faint praise.

Wardlow is a "right to work" anus. And against healthcare reform.

One Minnesota House term and out.

Chief author.

Coat tail author. Signed onto bills/resolutions by: Kiffmeyer; Lohmer; Dettmer; Drazkowski; Cornish; others. Knowing little else, one can judge him by the company he keeps.

Ballotpedia.

What does highly slanted Republican propaganda say of Wardlow? This:

“As attorney general my only special interest will be for the people,” said Wardlow. “The current attorney general is the epitome of what an attorney general should not be.”

Wardlow has been involved in several constitutional cases in Minnesota, including an ongoing lawsuit in Virginia, Minnesota regarding transgender bathroom use, and a victorious suit in Belle Plaine, Minnesota concerning a cross in a veterans memorial being removed then reinstalled.

Someone should tell the demagogue that transgender people are people, and that "a cross" represents special interests. And that other special interests might object or want equal protection under law. Someone should tell him to go away, somewhere far away, and let Minnesota be nice instead of stupid. A websearch.

VoteSmart again proves the nurses association has good judgment. With VoteSmart showing that others find Wardlow easy to rate.

Defeated after a single term, by a promising, decent DFL candidate.

Video online of a stilted talking fence post turtle; two others, here and here.

Bottom line in an Uptake nutshell.


LAST: To disarm any misunderstanding. In saying Niska is a better GOP AG candidate than Wardlow; it is not by an inch but by a mile. Harry is smart. Harry is likable.

_____________UPDATE_____________
Bonus video test; see, with a stopwatch, how much you can take; here, here and/or here. Making it as far as 2 to 3 minutes into any one of the Wardlow videos will be human will overcoming good sense and best interests. Further into any Wardrow video, to the finish, makes you are a hound for punishment. Watching, is there any question why a one term wonder, in the Minnesota House? If our legislators have to listen to that kind of stuff, day in and day out, I respect their will and tolerance. I listen just a bit and want to stuff a sock in the guy's mouth.

Lori Swanson is experienced, capable, and diligent and has handled the AG office in an exemplary way for many years. The Republicans have strangled her budget. There is no cause to consider a change. But with that said, in case a Republican groundswell happens, better they have Niska as their candidate than a brick.

__________FURTHER UPDATE_____________
Has Niska ANY policy positions? Still waiting . . .

We know he does not like Ryan Winkler, progressiveism, but what does he like and believe in as policy for a state's government, and not as a religious inclination?

It is early, but no better time than the present to define oneself as a Koch stooge, or better.

Still waiting . . . BS does not cut it, sir, but yes that video is only of a campaign kickoff speech. But substance is absent, so far. Criticizing the DFL is not policy, it's outside looking in, not what you'd do, if put inside.

_________FURTHER UPDATE____________
I can talk to Zeus. So there. (Not that the precursor for that statement is roundly known.)

[some of this post's updates, were rewritten a day after first posting]

Friday, June 16, 2017

Looking again at Flaherty and Collins. All appearances is they succeeded in their Ramsey rental venture, have completed another Minnesota building, and are active in many places nationwide but concentrated away from the coasts.

Mainly links without commentary. In Ramsey the project by the Northstar Commuter Rail and BNSF tracks rented near full capacity quickly and appears to still be prosperous. Despite skepticism here, it seems to have worked out positively - at least short term.

First, two current online Strib items about housing sales, and apartments. Seemingly a seller's market, each. Demand higher than supply.

Starting with the Flaherty completed Twin Cities metro area second venture, 2700 University, in St. Paul, links here, here and here. FC portfolio page. FC news page. FC page re its Ramsey venture. While the Ramsey project was being planned and built a parallel and larger project was active in the Chicago burbs; this current FC page. Back during that project's beginnings there was local skepticism, but as with Ramsey, for the short-term FC came out on top, presumably meeting the firm's full expectations. Closing, a general FC news item. An example of a pending possible-to-likely project, this in Ohio, here.

http://www.landform.net/

Surprise?

Pence lawyers up. AP. Reuters.

Thursday, June 15, 2017

Paul Thissen to run for governor.

Strib reports a formal announcement will be made today, Thrusday, June 15, 2017.

In an ideal world Thissen as governor would be excellent. He and Becky Otto seem the best two in the field, so far, with it unlikely any candidate later announcing would be better. There most likely will not be an Our Revolution candidate emerging in Minnesota with a chance of winning at Governor. It's the electorate.

Strib reports:

Thissen will have to persuade the DFL activists who decide the endorsement at next year’s party convention to overlook recent political history. Under his leadership, House DFLers lost their majority in 2014 and even more seats in 2016. DFL activists are particularly worried about the 2018 election, with Republicans in position to seize full control of state government for the first time in nearly half a century.

A son of schoolteachers who went on to graduate from Harvard and the University of Chicago Law School, Thissen became speaker in 2013 after leading DFLers to a sweeping victory in House elections the previous November.

In the ensuing two years, with the DFL fully in control of state government, the Legislature and Gov. Mark Dayton raised income taxes on the wealthy, paid back money borrowed from school districts and increased their funding, froze public college tuition, legalized same-sex marriage and medical marijuana, raised the state minimum wage, paved the way for unionization of thousands of personal care attendants and took on other issues like school bullying and women’s economic equality.

There are idiots. With a never ending tedious mantra, nothing else to say, in their own behalf:

“It’s no wonder Thissen led the House DFL into the minority under his failed leadership — Minnesotans simply can’t afford his style of government,” said John Rouleau, executive director of the GOP-aligned Minnesota Jobs Coalition. He cited several other highlights of Thissen’s stint as speaker — the creation of Minnesota’s MNsure insurance exchange and approval of a $90 million in state funds for a state Senate office building that became a favorite target of Republicans.

The fact legislative majorities were lost while Thissen was speaker was not his fault, but will be said to be.

Thissen said he learned lessons from a series of DFL House race losses in 2014 that followed the party’s burst of activity at the Capitol. “We haven’t shown up in all the places we need to be,” he said, referring to areas of greater Minnesota where the DFL lost legislative seats that it had held for years. “And, we need to better about respecting everyone in the state.”

He first ran for governor in 2010, and finished a surprisingly strong third at the DFL convention; he took over as the leader of House Democrats in 2011 and relinquished the post at the end of last year. He said he has traveled around Minnesota as much as nearly any elected official in the past decade, having conversations with DFL activists and regular voters.

Bottom line current feelings. If voting in a primary, it would be Thissen or Otto getting my vote, of candidates emerging so far. With a tilt toward Otto because of a faith that she'd deal more properly with Tom Baak than any of the other DFL'ers. Who emerges as the GOP candidate is uncertain. They have no one with the promise of Thissen or Otto, or Walz for that matter. They are clowns, but too many who vote in Minnesota want clowns, particularly ones close to Jesus or saying so. Thinking back to Tom Pawlenty as governor, it is important that there be a DFL victory after Dayton's leadership period. If anything, the present Republican mood is substantially worse than Pawlenty. Speaking of faith and voting entirely as GOP leadership, in its "wisdom" decides, is not representing anyone but GOP leadership. Close to Lucero is not top notch, in the view of some but unfortunately not enough of our state's voters - in some districts. Peggy Scott also comes to mind.

_____________UPDATE_____________
Harvard undergrad and U.Chi law school are hurdles few could clear.

Kurt Daudt used to sell cars and carry his handgun in his Lexis when going west to buy yet another older Ford Bronco, apparently wanting not only one but more than one, for some never clarified reasons. Bless Kurt for his judgment and accomplishments. He at least has the admirable decency to not blame Jesus for any character faults he may have. He seems less the problem in the Minnesota GOP than others, as a more straightforward person than some, even while never being confused with Our Revolution or Justice Democrats quality. Better than some colleagues, guessing he was not the one that invented the standoff touched last in fit retaliation via line item veto. Fellow traveler to instigation of that mischief, yes, but original instigator, you tell me the twisted mind where that brain fart came from.

Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Two questions.

First, do Attorneys General prosecute violent crimes? Fiscal crimes, the kind Harry Niska would know about, there's the precedent of Elliot Spitzer shaking down Wall Street for settlement money before he got bimboed out of office. It seems that county prosecuting attorneys prosecute local state crimes such as rape, murder, mayhem, etc. where local judicial arrangements, juror pool familiarity, etc. govern. Then, while U.S. Attorneys each in his/her district does the same for federal crime; the U.S. Attorney General does not do such work (but each district U..S. Attorney reports to the Department of Justice centralized leadership). The federal arrangement is closer to what Niska's proposing, (https://harryniska.com/why/), but it's not a pattern in Minnesota criminal law enforcement to centralize and not be "local control" focused. Each county attorney is separately elected and does not report to and work as an employee at will of the Attorney General. Centralizing might have problems. An ancillary question, does Niska have any idea of the budget the Republicans have been saddling Swanson with, and has he detail of how he'd prioritize dollars and cents without wanting more money and hence higher taxes? Beyond spinning more-for-less gossamer?

Second, does Cory Booker yet have a multi-mil book deal? If not, what's holding him back? Does it take a village to raise a book deal?

____________UPDATE____________
Below is a screenshot of content from:  https://harryniska.com/why/

It is presented with highlighting two things where brevity should yield to detail. Click it, to enlarge and see highlighting.


First highlighting: "aggressively prosecute violent crime" is the basis for the opening first question (above first paragraph). A question of jurisdiction and duty; and of reach and budget as well as state-county balance.

Second highlighting: The promised focus upon what is "best for Minnesota, not my own ... ideology" begs the question of what's between the Niska ears on what's best for us, within his "ideology."

"What is best" in an absolute sense within Harry Niska's mind might differ from my equally subjective viewpoint.

----------------------------------

SPECIFICALLY, PUBLIC EDUCATION PROTECTION FROM VOUCHER SPECIAL-INTEREST ENCROACHMENT OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER IS THE FOCUS. I SUBJECTIVELY PRIZE THAT NOTION GREATLY, AS "BEST FOR MINNESOTA," HENCE; BEG THAT QUESTION AND YOU ARE BEING DISINGENUOUS. NOW, DISINGENUITY IS NOT WHAT I'VE SEEN FROM HARRY NISKA. I HAVE SEEN CIRCUMSPECTION HOWEVER, WHICH, FOR THE MOST PART, IS A CREDIT. MEANING THAT THIS IS A MENTIONED PRECAUTIONARY CONCERN OF MINE, BUT ONE REACHING TO SOMETHING FUNDAMENTAL TO TAXPAYING-VOTERS IN THE STATE AND WHAT'S BEST FOR THEM AND THEIR FAMILY WHEN PUBLIC EDUCATION IS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE, WHETHER THEY ARE A CHILDLESS FAMILY OR A FAMILY CHOOSING TO SCHOOL CHILDREN OUTSIDE OF AVAILABLE PUBLIC EDUCATION'S OPPORTUNITIES.

MONEY: Concerning the question, the Private School Review website notes for Legacy Christian Academy in Andover, MN:


Coming down to public fund usage, work those numbers out: 464 students at $7,900 a pop yields this non-profit a tidy $3,665,600 annual haul; and while opinions can differ, I'd shit a brick if seeing $3.7 million public dollars handed over to ideologically questionable privateers.

Wouldn't you?

Indoctrination of one's children in ways one chooses is arguably a parental right as long as they pay the cost to be the boss. Would the next slippery slope step be home schooling parents wanting voucher money to their own account? Give them back their paid taxes that way? Would that be fair to childless couples paying public schooling taxes? It is a thicket.

Bottom line: Even apart from the Niska AG candidacy, Minnesotans should in their next voting round be ready, given the unfortunate DeVos appointment by Trump, to face yet another voucher-premised attempted raid on the treasured public schooling fisc; while the Niska candidacy appears to present the question as possibly more real than hypothetical.

Under my radar for about a month; but all politics is local.

Harry Niska is bright. A bright lawyer. I got to know that while he was vice-chair of Ramsey's Charter Commission. If I were constructing some intricate business operation and/or had complex business litigation issues and could afford his fee, I'd be happy were he to represent me. If he's been practicing much other than business law, I could not say. The only Google Scholar online links I found are here and here. (A case that never should have happened through no fault of Niska.)

He's with Ross and Orenstein, LLC, in Minnesota:

http://www.rossbizlaw.com/

with this as the firm's Niska bio.

See:

http://www.rossbizlaw.com/bios/harry-niska/#collapse1

That litigation experience listing mentions more than Google Scholar returned by searching "Harry Niska," where representations under his full given name might have been missed via that search.

A business lawyer. Clearly so. With "bizlaw" embedded in the firm's website name.

After saying Niska is bright; Is He Ambitious? You decide:

source: CFB, here

source: CFB, here

Has he good political judgment, blowing a certain dog whistle via nominal campaign chair identity? You decide that too. Peggy Scott is like Abigale Whalen. (If you don't believe me, ask Whelan, she'd be happy to have the discussion.)

However, anybody who would not want himself and the chosen political party he's associated himself with making an endorsement of Tim Tingelstad and/or Dan Griffith, for whatever reasons he contested that, cannot be all bad. (Niska's lawyer in that case presently is registered with the CFB as Niska's campaign treasurer; i.e., of a feather and still flocking together.)

Now, is he right for the job? The answer to that, knowing nothing of Doug Wardlow as the other 2017 AG Republican wannabe, I'd trust Harry more than an unknown person, and given Swanson's incumbency strength on the DFL side if there ends up being a primary I'd consider crossing over to vote for Harry as devil [i.e., Republican] I know. Actually, if Swanson's Democratic Party opposition involves either an Our Revolution or a Justice Democrats endorsement, I'd stay in the Dem primary and vote then, if such endorsements arise, for change. Some things preempt others, and it's not saying Swanson's done a particularly good, nor particularly bad job. Just, voting one's conscience. But I digress.

Now my complaints - No. 1. A nothingburger of an "issue" page; lame beyond excuse:

https://harryniska.com/why/

It is lame to put on the web:

I’m running to enforce and uphold the law on behalf of all Minnesotans in every courtroom.

when the defining issue of the day, law-wise, is Daudt and confederates passing a poison pill to Dayton, and Dayton saying, "See you and raise you one." So, Harry, which side would you, as hypothetical present AG, "enforce?" One knows Harry would be intrigued by the situation, he has that kind of mind, and my belief is he'd say the legislature has Constitutional power to do what they did, and because the line item veto is Constitutional, Dayton too acted within his powers, and it is not a justiciable controversy because the judicial branch, in deference to its place, must allow a political question between the other two branches to either stall the government with all the mischief the Daudt first shot would entail; or there must be reasonableness given that the first poison pill did not poison the well and if good sense had prevailed it would never have been delivered. Within legislative powers, and making good sense often are incongruent. Daudt and confederates were horses asses in doing what they did, and Dayton was correct on calling them out so that Daudt et al. will be the ones bending to reason.

Dayton's had his two term elections and the Republican instigators will want to keep their paychecks; so they must cave in. If the court gets it right in any event.

But where's Harry? Big key issue and he's feeding issue-pablum via his website, as if we cannot see it as such and thus insulting.

Moreover, what content are we to read into, "enforce and uphold the law," when separation of church and state stands as the bedrock principle underlying a state and nation's public education being free of religious school voucherism? In that sense, the website's vacuous statement begs to be fleshed out in detail.

private church school tykes singing, "I Can Talk to God"

Complaint No. 2 -- AND THIS COULD BE BIG: This is based on a presumption that the Jen Niska who posted that YouTube is Harry's spouse, and that their children go to a private school WHERE at a young age they are brought to sing, "I can talk to god."

I gravely fear any chance whatsoever of an AG not dedicated one hundred percent to public education and only to that: for taxpayer money only going to public education, not vouchers, as that DeVos idiot advocates.

If a different Jen Niska posted that YouTube video, no problem. If it's from the Jen Niska of Harry and Jen in Ramsey, Minnesota - BIG TIME PROBLEM. Some taxpayers, not having children willingly pay public school taxes in order to have a body of educated generations taking over things as elders age and die. Taxation of the public, education-wise, is for public schooling and for nothing else, and if some want to send their children to a Legacy Christian Academy, then on their nickle, not somebody else's. I trust public education. I advocate spending more to make it better. It is the future of town, state, and nation being shaped.

VOUCHERS ARE ANTI-AMERICAN, AGAINST CONSTITUTIONAL SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE, AND MINNESOTA'S ATTORNEY GENERAL MUST BE 100% DEDICATED TO PUBLIC EDUCATION AND AGAINST ANY AND ALL FORMS OF VOUCHER ENCROACHMENT.

AN ATTORNEY GENERAL LESS THAN THAT WOULD BE A TRAINWRECK.

That said, I am not as good as a facial recognition program in NSA hands in determining whether the person in that video is the same Jen Niska pictured here, here and here. But I think it is.

_______________UPDATE______________
I was wrong. I cut more slack than to think knee-jerk party-line narrowness:


Apparently that nothingberger "issues" fluff thing had a purpose. Sauce for the goose, sauce for the gander is an older saying than some recognize.

Anyway, expecting more than that is subject to a "twit" - isn't that what you call a twitter post - by length limits, so that thought and analysis take a back seat. For those interested, here and here. It is not a facile thing. But those twits can make it seem so. At least this twit is reassuring that Harry would be protective of everyone's right to finance through taxes only inviolable public education free of shady special-interest voucher looting done as if the establishment clause had never been written:


Apart from Twitter and its twits - that is what they're called, yes/no? - an earlier post here.

___________FURTHER UPDATE_____________
It appears Niska did a Facebook post somewhere about the "See ya, raise ya," but I don't do Facebook, so if a reader would send me a screencapture of it, I will post it, in fairness to Harry since the implication is he fashioned a Constitutional argument, and again, he is bright so it must have been coherent in disposing of the political question - justiciability objection. The belief that handwaving can overcome the pure stupidity of legislative defunding the Department of Revenue would only resonate with a bunch of lawyers anyway. Real people would see, "Hey, you've killing the government that way, or making the threat to, and that's an Anarchist at work, doing that." Handing a Governor an anarchist document seems to suggest legislators suffering substance abuse, that or the Mark Twain "but I am repeating myself" quote:



More so, for the fish in a smaller pond than Congress. (Did Twain know some ancestor of Paul Ryan? Or of DWS?)

When will Jarad Kushner testify publicly before Congressional panels?

Is he making family business documents available as well as documents generated from his actions in the Executive branch?

Ossoff had better win.

AJC reports:

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has spent $4.3 million in the runoff phase, and other left-leaning groups have chipped in around $500,000. But his fundraising totals means he hasn’t needed as much additional firepower.

Contrast the flood of spending in Georgia with the other recent House special elections. Montana’s air wars cost about $10 million, though Democrats only reluctantly helped Rob Quist after weeks of attack ads from GOP groups. And less than $200,000 was spent by outside groups in the Kansas race.

Rob and Halladay ought to incorporate the Cabaret "Money Makes the World Go Round" song into their repertoire. Their world spun less than Ossoff's, ya betcha; DNC being penny wise, pound foolish with the body-slammer winning. Rob has a good heart. For trying, for singing, for music, for people. He'd make a good Senator.

Monday, June 12, 2017

Trump learned from Roy Cohn the tactic of dropping lawsuits hither and yon, and now . . .

. . . chickens come home to roost? In the WaPo item:

If a federal judge allows the case to proceed, Racine and Frosh say, one of the first steps will be to demand through the discovery process copies of Trump’s personal tax returns to gauge the extent of his foreign business dealings. That fight would most likely end up before the Supreme Court, the two said, with Trump’s attorneys having to defend why the returns should remain private.

“This case is, at its core, about the right of Marylanders, residents of the District of Columbia and all Americans to have honest government,” Frosh said. To fully know the extent of Trump’s constitutional violations “we’ll need to see his financial records, his taxes that he has refused to release.”

Racine said he felt obligated to sue Trump in part because the Republican-controlled Congress has not taken the president’s apparent conflicts seriously.

“We’re getting in here to be the check and balance that it appears Congress is unwilling to be,” he said.

(When suggesting discovery of Trump tax returns, "checks and balances" seems an apt term.) WaPo reports that more litigation is in the pipes:

The constitutional question D.C. and Maryland will put before a federal judge is whether Trump’s business ownership amount to violations of parts of the Constitution known as the foreign and domestic emoluments clauses.

[...] The lawsuit, to be filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, will be the latest and most significant legal challenge to Trump over the issue of emoluments. The first was filed in January by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a D.C.-based watchdog group. In March, a D.C. restaurant sued Trump, alleging the new Trump International Hotel in D.C. benefits from unfair advantages because of its close association with the president. And last week, a group of Democratic members of Congress said they plan to file suit soon. Each, however, has faced legal hurdles over standing to sue the president.

In the Trump administration’s most detailed response yet, the Department of Justice filed a 70-page legal brief on Friday arguing the CREW lawsuit should be dismissed. The administration said Trump’s businesses are legally permitted to accept payments from foreign governments while he is in office. [...] going all the way back to farm produce sold abroad by George Washington — to assert that market-rate payments for Trump’s real estate, hotel and golf companies do not constitute emoluments as defined by the Constitution.


Racine and Frosh, however, argue Trump’s violations are on scale never seen before and that both D.C. and Maryland are being adversely affected by the Trump hotel near the White House.

[...] Maryland argues that it has special standing to sue. As one of the original states that approved the Constitution, Maryland gave up a clause in its own state declaration that had required its governors not to take any gifts from foreign governments or other states.

[...] Strict adherence to the emoluments clauses, D.C. and Maryland argue, “ensure that Americans do not have to guess whether a President who orders their sons and daughters to die in foreign lands acts out of concern for his private business interests; they do not have to wonder if they lost their job due to trade negotiations in which the President has a personal stake; and they never have to question whether the President can sit across the bargaining table from foreign leaders and faithfully represent the world’s most powerful democracy, unencumbered by fear of harming his own companies.”

The suit seeks an injunction to force Trump to stop violating the Constitution, but leaves it up to the court to decide how that should be accomplished.

WaPo posts a link to the actual court filing; online here. Of interest, it appears the Justice Department is representing the billionaire, with him not having to pay his own litigation expenses? There was a Bubba Clinton Legal Defense Fund, back then, when, apparently, litigation costs were privatized.

Trump wants the public to carry his weight, hence, research might be needed on why Bubba's situation was apparently different. (Somebody interested enough should pursue that question.)

And I thought Republicans want stuff privatized. Perhaps there's some devilish detail at play?

UPDATE: It seems the same shoe fits Kushner. Why is he not being sued; he took some form of oath of office, didn't he?

FURTHER: The CREW suit, online here. Brookings paper, same topic, here. Reporting from January, 2017.

Nelson Rockefeller was VP back after Ford pardoned Nixon and Agnew was bypassed; and with his net worth, how did he skate? Aside from being one of the elite which is now suing Trump, is it a distinction without a difference? After Attica Rockefeller had, in the minds of some, more baggage than Trump ever will have.

FURTHER: Without pretending to have studied sources, the CREW v Trump suit has a Wikipedia page.

Second Amended Complaint, CREW v Trump, here.

Internet Archive materials, here; specifically having DOJ response items, Motion to Dismiss, and Memorandum in Support of Motion, i.e., the Trump (via DOJ) responsive papers.

The Archive items were found as linked to from here. There is much reporting online, without further linking, readers are encouraged to do their own research. Because of the recency of the motion/memorandum, June 9, 2017; the CREW response is unavailable until filed, with a future deadline.

For a hoot, here. Yep. Nothing there. Perhaps due to a lack of search term specificity: "CITIZENS FOR RESPONSIBILITY AND ETHICS IN WASHINGTON, Plaintiff, v. DONALD J. TRUMP, in his official capacity as President."

Surely not evasiveness by the Sessions' minions. Downplaying what's unwelcome? Not that. Not from JB.