Solutions for Minnesota!

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It’s all about the Middle Class

August 12

I have been having so much fun running for the Minnesota House. Door knocking has surprisingly been the best part. I’ve seen old friends I’ve grown up with and classmates from St. Hubert’s, Guardian Angels, and Minnetonka High. I’ve also made many new friends and acquaintances.

My opening line when door knocking is “I’m working for the middle class because when the middle class does well we all do well”, kind of a “no brainer”. The problem is the middle class isn’t doing that well, and the people who answer the door know it because they are feeling it.

Nationally, families are working longer today to pay for a middle-class living than they had to 25 years ago. Today’s families are facing a combination of stagnant incomes and staggering cost increases for health care, education, housing, transportation and, especially now, gasoline and heating. For the first time on record, household incomes have failed to increase for five straight years—and that record includes the Great Depression.

We all know that health care, education, transportation and the environment are the foundation that supports the middle class and the middle class supports the economy.

Here are common sense solutions I am working for:

Move the tax burden off the backs of the middle class with real property tax relief, not a cheesy $100 check around election time.

We need to resist increasing the sales tax. It seems every time we want to build a new sports stadium, we add a percent onto the sales tax. I will fight any sales tax increase.

We have to fix health care in Minnesota. The federal government isn’t doing anything, and in many ways, making it worse. This big job will require courage from our elected officials. There is waste in our health care system and we must find it and use that money to give every Minnesotan basic health care. I’m not championing either a single payer or a market based solution, however, I believe in the end it will be a hybrid of the two.

By providing a basic level of health care to every Minnesotan, two things will happen. Everyone will be able to get treatment when their injury or sickness is more easily treatable and not have to wait until they have to go to the emergency room. Small business will enjoy relief from the double-digit health care premium increases. That will be better than any tax break we could give small business. Business could use the savings to hire more employees or pay their existing employees a little more. What a great idea that is!

In education, we need to work toward smaller class sizes in our schools. Support pre-school and voluntary all day kindergarten. Our kids have to be ready to learn at a college level when they graduate. Our university should be a world leader in important research of the day. Our colleges must provide every student a world-class education without burdening our children with a lifetime of debt.

Our transportation system needs an upgrade. We need to expand our highways and invest in public transportation, even in the southwest suburbs. Everyone who spends hours in stop-and-go traffic knows this. In addition, the cost of these projects shouldn’t be borrowed from the contractors.

Environmentally Minnesotans are waking up to the importance of alternative energy. Our efforts need to be alternative transportation & fuels. I will promote ethanol & bio diesel production and use. Provide a tax credit to people who live within 5 miles of their work, or use public transportation. Mandate that state & government vehicles use bio-fuel or hybrid vehicles.

With a little more money in our pockets, the middle class will pay off bills and purchase a few things and the wealthy can make their money the old-fashioned way.

Voters are hungry for change. They are not happy with the state government shut down last year or the argument that lead up to it. I’ve had several people tell me they are so tired of the polarization between the parties and I can’t agree more.

I hope I’ll meet you as I continue door knocking. Thank you for this opportunity.

July 26, 2006

I have been having so much fun running for the Minnesota House. Door knocking has surprisingly been the best part. I’ve seen old friends I’ve grown up with and classmates from St. Hubert’s, Guardian Angels, and Minnetonka High. I’ve also made many new friends and acquaintances.

My opening line when door knocking is “I’m working for the middle class because when the middle class does well we all do well”, kind of a “no brainer”. The problem is the middle class isn’t doing that well, and the people who answer the door know it because they are feeling it.

Nationally, families are working longer today to pay for a middle-class living than they had to 25 years ago. Today’s families are facing a combination of stagnant incomes and staggering cost increases for health care, education, housing, transportation and, especially now, gasoline and heating. For the first time on record, household incomes have failed to increase for five straight years—and that record includes the Great Depression.

We all know that health care, education, transportation and the environment are the foundation that supports the middle class and the middle class supports the economy.

Here are common sense solutions I am working for:

Move the tax burden off the backs of the middle class with real property tax relief, not a cheesy $100 check around election time.

We need to resist increasing the sales tax. It seems every time we want to build a new sports stadium, we add a percent onto the sales tax. I will fight any sales tax increase.

We have to fix health care in Minnesota. The federal government isn’t doing anything, and in many ways, making it worse. This big job will require courage from our elected officials. There is waste in our health care system and we must find it and use that money to give every Minnesotan basic health care. I’m not championing either a single payer or a market based solution, however, I believe in the end it will be a hybrid of the two.

By providing a basic level of health care to every Minnesotan, two things will happen. Everyone will be able to get treatment when their injury or sickness is more easily treatable and not have to wait until they have to go to the emergency room. Small business will enjoy relief from the double-digit health care premium increases. That will be better than any tax break we could give small business. Business could use the savings to hire more employees or pay their existing employees a little more. What a great idea that is!

In education, we need to work toward smaller class sizes in our schools. Support pre-school and voluntary all day kindergarten. Our kids have to be ready to learn at a college level when they graduate. Our university should be a world leader in important research of the day. Our colleges must provide every student a world-class education without burdening our children with a lifetime of debt.

Our transportation system needs an upgrade. We need to expand our highways and invest in public transportation, even in the southwest suburbs. Everyone who spends hours in stop-and-go traffic knows this. In addition, the cost of these projects shouldn’t be borrowed from the contractors.
Environmentally Minnesotans are waking up to the importance of alternative energy. Our efforts need to be alternative transportation & fuels. I will promote ethanol & bio diesel production and use. Provide a tax credit to people who live within 5 miles of their work, or use public transportation. Mandate that state & government vehicles use bio-fuels or hybrid vehicles.
With a little more money in our pockets, the middle class will pay off bills and purchase a few things and the wealthy can make their money the old-fashioned way.

Voters are hungry for change. They are not happy with the state government shut down last year or the argument that lead up to it. I’ve had several people tell me they are so tired of the polarization between the parties and I can’t agree more.

I hope I’ll meet you as I continue door knocking. Thank you for this opportunity.

Gary DeVaan

June 4, 2006

Last Friday Tim Pawlenty declared that A Democratic Governor would be a “nightmare.” Without reacting to the reckless hyperbole, let me take this opportunity to tell you why a democratic Governor would be the best thing for our state since the Minnesota Miracle.

First let me tell you that I’m so sick of the acidic name calling that the Governor, State House leader Sviggum, and our own local legislators engage in. I realize that the State Republican convention is where political leaders practice character assassination of “the enemy” but sometimes it just goes too far. I hope and expect we will see less of this type of smearing at the DFL convention.

A Democratic Governor will focus on 5 things, the economy, health care, education, transportation, and the environment.

The economy is supported by the middle class. The middle class is feeling the squeeze of higher property taxes, fees, health care and increased tuition. Not to mention rising housing costs, heating costs, gas price increases, all rising faster than wages. Over the past year, real hourly wages fell by 1.3 percent for the typical employee according to the Economic Policy Institute, 1/18/06. A DFL Governor will create permanent Property tax relief, move the tax and fee burden off of the middle class, and provide relief from growing health care costs.

A real solution to the health care crisis would be would be welcome news to Minnesota’s business community. Fixing the ongoing inflation of health insurance premiums would be better than any tax cut the legislature could dream of. We can find waste in the system. We can make it more efficient and more cost effective. For example we can pool all the services Minnesota buys each year and negotiate lower prices for drugs and services. A DFL Governor will do this.

Education is the most important obligation of this state. It deserves to be funded fully. A DFL governor will restore the cuts to education that the Republicans used to stave off the budget deficit of three years ago. Yes, your children paid for that. A DFL Governor will strive for smaller class sizes, all day kindergarten, pre-school, and a reduction of tuition at our public colleges.

Rural Minnesota needs improved roadways. The chamber of commerce has been asking for transportation improvements for the last 4 years. A DFL Governor will create more transportation options of everyone in the suburbs and the metro area and improve the rural roads and bridges out state, without borrowing huge sums that our children will have to pay.

The environment is our legacy to our children. If not protected, it will affect our economy and our health. New transportation options, greener fuels, wind and hydro power are investments in our environment, our economy, and our security. You can count on a DFL Governor to move forward on these technologies and protect our waters, our forests, and our parks for our children.

If we think of our state as a building, our education system, health care, transportation, and environment are the foundation that the middle class stands on to support the roof of our economy. A DFL Governor will have a laser beam focus on everything that affects the middle class. Strengthening the foundation and relieving the load of supporting our economy. A DFL Governor will move Minnesota forward and that is everyone’s dream come true.

May 27, 2006

There the website is now live. Please take the time to look at my solutions for Minnesota and volunteer for the campaign.

May 17, 2006

Enough!

We have seen the polling again, and it’s clear that Minnesotans do NOT want to build any new stadiums for the Twins, Vikings or the Gophers.

Minnesotans are smart. We understand that there is no new value for the state from building new stadiums for team owners who have the financial wherewithal to build them themselves. The Metrodome is a perfectly good stadium. There’s nothing wrong with it. The teams can play there for another 20 years without any real problems for any of them. The owners say they can’t make enough money to field competitive teams, but both are competitive.

What really gets under our skin are the threats of packing the teams up and moving them to other cities that may actually build them a stadium. We love our teams but it’s like an ungrateful wife who threatens to leave if we don’t buy her a bigger house. What we are all afraid of is that, if we build these stadiums, 20 years from now the latest owners of the Twins & Vikings will cry out again for new facilities because now they want a glass roof, or not enough bathrooms, or some other nonsense.

I say we beat them to the punch, out maneuver the billionaire owners of sports franchises. I suggest we take the $800 million dollars we’d have to collect to build new stadiums, and buy the teams instead. Then the Minnesota Vikings and the Minnesota Twins WILL BE Minnesota’s teams. We can make them play in the Metrodome until the roof blows off if we want, and they can’t threaten to leave us ever again. I think it would be a good investment because Minnesotans’ would be the ones profiting from the $5 hotdogs and the $4 beers. If we decided to sell, Minnesota would make money from the appreciation of the teams.

The Minnesota twins are valued at $215 Million. Not a bad investment for Carl Pohlad who bought the team 22 years ago for $44 million. The Vikings were just purchased by Ziggy Wilf for $600 million; Red McCombes more than doubled his money in just 8 years. So for roughly $800 million we could own both teams. Both teams want approximately $400 Million each for their Stadiums. So for about the same price we could buy both teams and never have to go through this again. We could watch out teams win and loose under the canvas for another 20 or 30 peaceful years.

May 16, 2006

Periodically during the campaign I plan on writing a few words on what's happening or how the campaign is going. Hopefully it will be a good journal.