Paulsen Out of Touch with Third District

01/28/2008

With Extremely Conservative Record, Paulsen Represents More of the Same Republican Failures



St. Paul, MN (January 27, 2008) As State Representative Erik Paulsen today announced his candidacy for Congress in the Third District, the DFL Party said that Paulsen has stood in the way of getting things done for Minnesotans and is dramatically out of step with the voters of Minnesota’s Third Congressional District.

“On virtually every issue of major importance to Minnesotans — be it health care, tax equity or transportation — Erik Paulsen has time and time again stood in the way of getting things done to improve people’s daily lives,” said Minnesota DFL Chair Brian Melendez. “He hasn’t just been part of the Republican politics of obstruction that has dragged Minnesota into mediocrity; he’s been a leader of it.

“Now that he’s running for Congress, Representative Paulsen has spoken only in generalities, while DFLers have offered detailed prescriptions for real change to move Minnesota and America forward. But everything in Paulsen’s record tells us that in Washington, he will be part and parcel of the borrow-and-spend, stay-the-course Bush politics that have left America in recession and quagmire.

“People in the Third District want change in Washington, not more of the same — but with Paulsen, the same-old-same-old is all they will get,” Melendez concluded.

Paulsen Out of Touch with the Third District:

As House Majority Leader, Led 2003 Charge to Cut Healthcare, Pass Costs onto Minnesotans. In May 2003, Paulsen supported the 2003 Omnibus Health and Human Services Finance Bill. The bill eliminated health coverage for 68,000 Minnesotans and reduced funding for child-care assistance by $87 million. The bill passed 74-59. Paulsen also voted for the conference version of the bill, which eliminated health coverage for 38,000 Minnesotans. [HF 437, 83rd Session, House Journal p.3321, 5/01/03; SS HF 6, 2003 Special Session, House Special Session Journal p. 771, 5/29/03; AP, 5/3/03]

Pioneer Press: “Deepest Cuts … in State History.” According to the Pioneer Press, the 2003 health and human services (HHS) omnibus bill contained the deepest cuts in state history to HHS programs. “It contains the deepest cuts to health and human services in state history and will substantially affect thousands of Minnesotans from the womb to the grave.” [Pioneer Press, 5/29/03]

In 2005, Paulsen Voted Again to Raid MinnesotaCare. In April 2005, Paulsen voted in favor of House passage of the 2005 Omnibus Health Finance Bill, which included provisions eliminating health coverage for at least 24,000 working Minnesotans. [HF 1422, 84th Session, House Journal p. 3384, 4/29/05; MPR Vote Tracker]

Paulsen Voted Against Bipartisan 2007 Plan to Solve Transportation-Funding Crisis. In May 2007, Paulsen voted against the conference version of the 2007 Omnibus Transportation Finance Bill, which contained a gas tax increase of ten cents, implemented in five-cent increments. The gas tax was the centerpiece of a bill that would have raised $534 million for roads over the next two years. The bill passed 90-43, but Governor Pawlenty vetoed it. Paulsen also voted against overriding Pawlenty’s veto of the bill. The veto-override attempt failed 83-50; 90 votes were required. [SF 946, 85th Session, House Journal p. 6640, 5/14/07; MPR Vote Tracker; Veto override, SF 946, 85th Session, House Journal p. 7571, 5/21/07]

MnDOT Is Chronically Underfunded to the Tune of $1 Billion Per Year. According to a report by KARE-TV, MnDOT “is already reporting that current funding projections show they will be a $23 billion shy of what they need to hit performance goals in Minnesota over the next 23 years.” [KARE 11, 11/27/07]

Voted Against Permanent Middle-Class Property-Tax Relief in 2007; Protected Extremely Wealthy from Paying Fair Share. In April 2007, Paulsen voted against the 2007 Omnibus Tax Bill, which House Tax Committee Chair Ann Lenczewski said would ease the property-tax burden on 90 percent of Minnesota homeowners. The bill funded the property-tax relief with a new nine-percent income-tax bracket for joint filers earning more than $400,000 dollars a year and for single filers making more than $226,000 a year. The bill passed 74-59, but did not make it out of conference committee. The bill above (HF 2268) became the vehicle for the omnibus tax bill instead. [HF 2362, 85th Session, House Journal p. 4841, 4/27/07; Minnesota Public Radio, MPR Vote Tracker; 4/27/07]