Recent letters in the Albert Lea Tribune both do what my recent letter emphasized — you can have your own opinion, but you can’t have your own facts.

Wayne Thorson takes issue that I pointed out that selective use of a ranking to prop up your position isn’t always honest, especially when a politician uses it to make a point. Mr. Thorson wrote, “Minnesota is ranked third in the nation for job growth. Wisconsin is dead last.” True? A recent publication by Illinois Policy shows that Minnesota is dead last in the first seven months of 2014 in the number of private sector jobs created. Wisconsin had 10 times the number of private jobs created.

These are Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers, not mine. He also fails to mention that our labor participation rate at 70.1 percent is the lowest since World War II.

Terri Douglas’ letter repeats the lie the DFL has been selling that taxes were only raised on the rich, that education cuts were all Republican, and that the last two years were productive. I have one question: Define productive? Sure the DFL raised taxes by well over $2 billion per biennium and spent even more but at what cost?  Douglas says this was all done to the rich. Was it?

The Minnesota Department of Revenue tax incidence analysis of the DFL tax increases showed the bottom 20 percent of taxpayers — those making $19,316 or less — actually will pay more in new taxes as a percentage of their income than those making more than $146,401 per year. That same tax analysis study showed there is not one income tax bracket where hard-working Minnesotans will pay less or break even once the DFL tax increases went into effect.  I guess as long as we keep saying all the DFL was tax the rich — it must be true right?

Same with education cuts rhetoric. Education cuts in 2012 were in fact a payment shift and actually preferred than to actual cuts. Don’t believe me? Look at conference committee report on Chapter 154 from 2012 — there was no cut to funding of K-12 education that some, including the letter writer, keep repeating. Gov. Mark Dayton actually proposed a bigger payment shift (delay) than was agreed upon (because he wanted to spend more money), and it was rejected by the Republicans in the Legislature. Douglas fails to point that out. The Republicans also wanted to repay education shift sooner but Gov. Dayton vetoed that legislation.

Like I said, you can have your opinion, but you can’t have your own facts! Do you want to send the same folks back that want you to be an ATM for more taxes, more spending and more government? Taxpayers, families, small businesses deserve better! The tax and spend, tax and spend — the state Rep. Shannon Savick and Gov. Dayton way — is not a solution. It is the problem!

 

David Anderson

Lonsdale