The positions of the DFL majority in the MN Senate and the Republican majority in the MN House are becoming clearer regarding current and future state spending. 

The Republicans want to hold the line on the state budget and split the surplus between infrastructure needs and tax reductions. 

The DFL wants to spend half of the surplus on several state government initiatives, offer some tax relief while primarily relying on a gas tax increase to fund infrastructure needs.

MID-APRIL POSITION ON THE 2016 SURPLUS

• Senate DFL:  allot 37% to transportation spending and tax reductions; 50% to other government spending; 13% TBD
• House Republicans:  allot 99.8% to transportation  spending and tax reduction; 0.2% to other government spending

MN Senate, Senate District 49 – Michael (Mike) Lehmann

Mike began by recognizing and thanking those attending.  He knows many of the participants from his previous run (in 2012) for the At-Large seat on Bloomington’s city council. He had to cover the entire city, so knows what door-knocking and listening to citizens’ concerns is all about. That experience is invaluable as he begins his campaign. 

Mike said that was born and raised in Minneapolis and has lived in Bloomington for 37 years.  He graduated from the University of Minnesota and has been married to his wife, Sue, for 46 years.  They have two grown sons and one grandson.  Mike has been involved with the start-up of 5 different businesses as well as working with the Board of the TwinWest chapter of Chamber of Commerce, having served as Chair and still an active Board member.  He is a strong business advocate.    He spent the last 23 years in facility development, and recently retired.

House 49A - Dario Anselmo

 website http://www.darioanselmo.com

Dario said he appreciated the support of those nominating him and his many friends in the audience. Dario grew up in the Twin Cities.  He mentioned that his parents include one Democrat and one Republican and that meant growing up was full of varied opinions, which is a little like the Twin Cities.  He and his family have live in Edina for 17 years and he has spent over 30 years in state of MN starting and running businesses.

House 49B – Maxwell (Max) Rymer

Website http://maxforhouse.com

Max started by saying, “This is a dream come true for my wife and me. “  He and his wife, Elsie, both went to the University of Northwestern – Saint Paul. He was recently elected to serve as a precinct chair for Edina 13.  When he interned as a Legislative Aide for Pam Myhra, District 40A, at the Capital he saw the waste and dysfunction of government.  He believes government’s role is to create a more prosperous District 49 B and that businesses need relief from the tax bite.

The SD 49 convention elected 121 Republicans as delegates and alternates to the Congressional District 3 (CD 3) convention, CD 5 convention, and the Minnesota State Republican convention.  A list of these delegates and alternates can be found by CLICKING HERE. 

-         Distinguished Convention Speakers

Over 210 participants also had the opportunity to hear from Congressman Erik Paulsen, Speaker of the MN House Kurt Daudt,

Strong volunteer efforts are the hallmark of our Senate District, and the stand-out volunteers were recognized during the convention. 

The Executive Committee unanimously picked Barbara Sutter for its Crystal Eagle award, in appreciation for her dedication and service as a former treasurer of the district, former co-chair of the district, candidate for Minnesota house, and the force behind several successful fund-raising events.  

Awards for 2015 Outstanding Volunteers went to

• Sara Amaden (Research and Writing)
• David Clynes (Tech Support)
• John Ward, Dar Gray, and Patti Brestrup (Volunteer Commitment)
• Carol Kerr (Phenomenal Fund-raising and Dinner Diva).

Sixty 60 volunteers worked together to make the convention a success.

On the 6th of April, our own Chris Rofidal, a member of Edina’s Ham & Eggs Club, introduced his guest — and featured speaker of the morning — the next Representative of House District 49 A, Dario Anselmo.

The following is taken (and edited) from the Ham & Eggs Club Newsletter:

In his presentation, Dario described how his parents provided leadership by example, through helping people. He indicated that leadership while listening to people is critical.

He’s proud of his recent involvement with the film society in Minnesota, suggesting that we’re not just a Vikings culture here…

With his typical, fast-paced delivery, Dario described his enthusiasm for what he calls the 3 E’s: Economy, Education and Environment.  

His goal: making Minnesota a state businesses would want to move to. As a long-time business owner himself, if elected, he would love to serve on the Tax Committee. He believes we need to learn to spend wisely in order to get the best return for our dollars.

Dario believes our public schools are good, but unfortunately, not great. Upon leaving the breakfast, he said he would be phoning the principal of his 12-year-old daughter’s school regarding the ‘long-term substitute teacher’s class agenda’. Dario stated again, our schools are not working as well as they could…

So how do you change things such as the so-called achievement gap?  He believes it’s not just about spending money... If Edina can’t get it right, how do we expect other parts of state to be able to, he asked.

Our own Doug Seaton — along with a few other activists within our Senate District — is hoping to become a Minnesota Delegate to the Republican National Convention in July.   Doug was recently featured in a MinnPost article, linked below.

To be clear about one point in the article that could be misunderstood, a candidate for national delegate is not required to be a delegate to any convention. One can register for the upcoming Congressional District Conventions (CD 3 on April 23rd, and CD 5 on April 30th), and run for a national delegate position without being a delegate to that particular convention.

There is an application process that’s required to be completed, and the deadlines for that are fast-approaching.  For more information, go to the “News” section of our website, sd49gop.com, and read Becoming a Delegate to the RNC. 

With that clarification in mind, in the following linked story from MinnPost,

Mandatory Paid Family Leave? Brought to your taxes by the DFL

The DFL is about to push increased employment taxes to cover mandatory paid family leave. 

Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, said he wants to pass a paid leave law this session, so it's time to learn what that could mean for us.

Our own Doug Seaton expresses his reservations -- and why -- as you'll read in this article published by the StarTribune.

http://m.startribune.com/paid-leave-fight-comes-to-minnesota-capitol/373636051/

A great part of political involvement is the opportunity to join with other people with similar interests and viewpoints.  The MN GOP has been proud to be associated with a number of “Affiliate Groups.” These groups, as Janet Beihoffer (National Committeewoman from Minnesota) pointed out, “bring together like–minded people.” While affiliates have no specific membership requirements, because of their identity focus, the membership tends to be self-selecting. 

Visiting a meeting or joining an affiliate group can be tremendously rewarding as you work on common goals, organize events, identify supporters and, ultimately, contribute to Republican victories on many levels. 

If you would like to join or visit an affiliate group