And that’s just here, at MPP – - SallyJo at Bluestem Prairie has been all over this scandal, too.

And just this morning, I found two, and possibly three, Counties that STILL HAVEN’T BEEN PAID – Cass, Fillmore, and Grant. There may be more; after two “No” and a “Don’t think so; will get back to you” why keep going?

The funny thing is, despite Tony Sutton claiming way back in March that the MnGOP would pay it’s bills, it took someone else to to it!

Yes, Beltrami, Chisago, and Clearwater counties told me earlier today that Tom Emmer stepped up and did what Tony Sutton’s MnGOP wouldn’t – pay some bills.

Does it really surprise anyone that a party that would stiff counties for months and Months and MONTHS would drive a state to shutdown? Because that’s exactly what the MnGOP will do this Friday – shut this state down.

Oh – and can someone call Emmer, and tell him there’s still a few more counties out there, that Tony Sutton’s MnGOP has stiffed?

* * *
Previous MPP Posts:

“Deadbeat MnGOP Still Owes Omsted County” – 13 April 2011

“Deadbeat MnGOP Still Owes Martin, Nicollet, And Sibley Counties, or…” “…GOPers are always demanding “fiscal responsibility” – of OTHERS.” — 25 April 2011

“Today’s Example Of Why Reasonable People Cannot Reasonably Believe What GOPers Say: Recount” — 07 June 2011

(cross posted at MnProgressiveProject; comments welcome there)

So when you hear Minnesota’s Senate and House GOPers talk about “their” numbers that “they” arrived at, remember National GOPers that said (stuff) like:

“It is unimaginable that the United States would have to contribute hundreds of billions of dollars and highly unlikely that we would have to contribute even tens of billions of dollars.”
Kenneth Pollack — former director for Persian Gulf affairs, National Security Council — September 2002

“The costs of any intervention would be very small.”
Glenn Hubbard — White House economic adviser — October 4, 2002

“The United States is very committed to helping Iraq recover from the conflict, but Iraq will not require sustained aid.”
Mitchell Daniels — Director, White House Office of Management and Budget — April 21, 2003

And there’s plenty more quotes about the “affordability” of Iraq from Boy Blunder And The Plunderers; keep them in mind when local GOPers talk about the accuracy of their numbers. Based on the GOP’s track record, why anyone believes the numbers they come up with, let alone the result of what those numbers will do, is beyond me. GOPers simply make (stuff) up, and then make more (stuff) up when what the (stuff) they made up doesn’t happen. And this repeats over and Over and OVER.

Today’s example of just that?

‘They’re going to get paid, that’s going to happen.” This month? “Absolutely.” — MNGOP Chair Tony Sutton, March 4th, 2011 (RochesterPostBulletin)

Yep! Tony said that, over 3 months ago. Think that happened? Of course not. From an editorial on Sunday, June 5th in the Winona Daily News:

Our view: GOP, practice what you preach
By Daily News editorial board

Good grief. Where do we start? Let’s see … what about the party that preaches fiscal responsibility running up debt and not paying it off?

Or what about the irony of wanting to cut “bloated” and “irresponsible” government, only to realize that those same nameless government workers are the people who run elections and recounts?

Oh yeah, then there’s election reform. There’s pretty rich irony there.

But maybe the most galling part is the same group of political operatives who demanded nearly immediate attention of countless government officials are the same people who now refuse to pay for those same services.

The issue we’re talking about, of course, is the state Republican party’s inability to pay local counties for work they did on the party’s behalf in the gubernatorial race between now-Gov. Mark Dayton and GOP challenger Tom Emmer.
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This is the same party that has preached a doctrine of government responsibility and fiscal solvency.

State Republican lawmakers have urged the state to live within its means. That may be good advice, but it becomes cheapened — if not discredited — when the same party can’t live within its own means.

(more, here)

Back in 2009, then-Chair of the Republican National Committee Michael Steele said: “You have absolutely no reason – none – to trust our words or our actions at this point.”

Fast forward to today, and the current chair of the Republican Party of Minnesota clearly demonstrates today is no different.

And here’s but a few more examples of why reasonable people cannot reasonably believe what GOPers say:

Today’s Example Of Why Reasonable People Cannot Reasonably Believe What GOPers Say: Screenshots

“His Remark Was Not Intended To Be A Factual Statement”

Today’s Example Of Why Reasonable People Cannot Reasonably Believe What GOPers Say: Capitol Damage

Today’s Example Of Why Reasonable People Cannot Reasonably Believe What GOPers Say: Katy Kersten

Today’s Example Of Why Reasonable People Cannot Believe Anything A GOPer Says: Ben Golnik

Mitch Berg – The Poster Boy Of Why Reasonable People Cannot Reasonably Believe republiCons

You Couldn’t Trust The GOP Then, You Still Can’t Now, And Tomorrow Won’t Be Any Different

– hat-tip to Sally Jo at BluestemPrairie; she’s been doing a great job covering the Deadbeat MNGOP and their nonpayment of their recount bills.

(cross posted at MnProgressiveProject; comments welcome there)

Capitol damage cost claim based on 1 page of notebook paper
Handwritten page was all state had behind $7 million figure

By Jason Stein of the Journal Sentinel March 30, 2011

Madison — State officials’ controversial courtroom testimony that protesters did more than $7 million in damage to the Capitol was based on a single handwritten page.

An open records request by the Journal Sentinel on the damage estimate turned up only one page of notebook paper listing costs written before the courtroom testimony. Other e-mails from state officials listing areas to check for potential damage also were released, but there were no others with any dollar figures written before the court testimony.
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Department of Administration spokeswoman Carla Vigue said Wednesday that the single page written by state architect Dan Stephans and dated March 3 – the same day as the court statement – was the basis for the testimony. Stephans did not respond to a phone message left Wednesday.

“The only real document we had to give was the handwritten one,” Vigue said.

The day after the testimony, Walker administration officials sharply backpedaled from the damages figures amid widespread questions about their validity.

Incredible.

“An open records request by the Journal Sentinel on the damage estimate turned up only one page of notebook paper…”

Ladies and Gentlemen, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again and Again and AGAIN:

Reasonable People Cannot Reasonably Believe What GOPers Say.

Even the least dishonest of GOPers admitted that; remember what GOPer National Chair Michael Steele once said?

“You have absolutely no reason – none – to trust our words or our actions at this point.”

True then, true today, and it’ll be true tomorrow too.

Reasonable People Cannot Reasonably Believe What GOPers Say.

(cross posted at MnProgressiveProject.com; comments welcome there)

Was that “Vick’s VapoRub” that she applied under Glen Beck’s eyes??!? Let’s look!!!

And at the 2:17 mark: “Look Up To The Heavens, like you, you curse GOD!”

ROFLMAO!!!

Ya know what else is funny? Back in February, GOP National Chair Michael Steele told Glenn Beck, on Beck’s show:

“You have absolutely no reason – none – to trust our words or our actions at this point.”

You Couldn’t Trust The GOP Then, You Still Can’t Now, And Tomorrow Won’t Be Any Different

(cross-posted at MnProgressiveProject)

And that was BEFORE the crazy “birther” stuff, and a whole bunch of other bogus stuff slung by the GOPers nationally. Well, and locally too, by FEC Tony and MudSlingerMike. So, since some things never change, here that post is again – Michael Steele telling the world there is no reason – NONE – to trust what the GOP has to say.

Yep – that’s the RNC’s Michael Steele talking; talking to Glenn Beck. Beck was saying conservatives can’t trust today’s GreedOverPrinciples party; I submit NO ONE can trust today’s GreedOverPrinciples party. Let’s watch, and then – below the fold – I’ll elaborate:

**original YouTube pulled down; link here to watch**

OK, now, why can’t reasonable people (and conservatives, too) trust today’s GreedOverPrinciples party?

Let’s review just the past couple of weeks.

On CNN a while ago, some clown GOP Congressman was claiming that a Congressional Budget Office report concluded (in one variation of the various GOPer soundbites) that very little spending from the stimulus bill would occur in the first two fiscal years.

The only problem with that claim, that this and other various GOPers were making? There was no CBO report. HuffPo’s Ryan Grim fisked that one; I double checked, too.

The GOPer’s leadership simply made it up; the GOPer’s rank (and I mean “rank”) and file dutifully regurgitated it.

The Colorado Independent did a story about Trancredo’s clone replacement, GOPer Mike Coffman, who dutifully spewed that party line.

Locally, I’d be surprised if Kline, Paulsen, or Bachmann didn’t follow suit, but it’s a Sunday and I got stuff to do and I’m not going to take the time to check. So, I’ll go on to the next incident of Republicans You Simply Cannot Trust – and it’s on the same subject, The Stimulus Bill.

And this incident has to do with John Boehner, the Liar-In-Chief for the US House republiCons. I first saw this, over at Mercury Rising, so a hat tip is in order for Phoenix Woman. Here’s what she wrote:

Stupid And Evil, That’s Our Boehner!
Posted by Phoenix Woman on February 15, 2009

If anybody’s thinking of running against John Boehner next year, here’s some lovely oppo for ya!

Boehner recently uttered this slam against passenger rail spending in the stimulus package:

“Tell me how spending $8 billion in this bill to have a high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas is going to help the construction worker in my district.”

Turns out that 1) there is no line from LA to Vegas and 2) Ohio stands to benefit mightily from high-speed rail.

And, yes, Boehner actually said that – that there was $8 billion in the Stimulus Bill for a line between LA and Vegas, even though there isn’t. Boehner said it on the floor of the House; Boehner has it on his web page: “Tell me how spending $8 billion in this bill to have a high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas is going to help the construction worker in my district.”

I’m not going to talk about how Boehner is objecting that there’s no pork for his district, if there were a line between LA and Vegas; about how that would be an obvious example of hypocrisy typical in today’s GreedOverPrinciples party: objecting to pork ONLY WHEN THEY DON’T GET ANY – no, not me! I’m simply focusing on how reasonable people reasonably cannot trust republiCons like John Boehner to tell the truth – which is what new RNC Chair Michael Steele acknowledged, and you saw, in that YouTube above the fold. So, who’s next, you might ask?

Well, Minnesota’s own “Let’s Investigate Those Un-American Types In Congress” Michelle Bachmann!

Oh, wait – I just pointed out, just yesterday, how Michelle Bachmann made stuff up about how there’s $5 BILLION for ACORN in the stimulus bill. Well, and how Bachmann made the claim the good ol’ USofA is “running out of rich people”, despite the obvious results of the GreedOverPrinciples’ war on the middle class during these last 3 decades. And actually, there’s more outrageous stuff that Little Miss Hiding In The Weeds said; but again, it’s a Sunday….

So, let’s go back to that Boehner bit, for a second, and look at how a few GOPer Congressman are touting (yes, “touting” – according to McClatchey) the just passed Stimulus Bill:

GOP lawmakers tout projects in the stimulus bill they opposed
By David Lightman
McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON — Rep. John Mica was gushing after the House of Representatives voted Friday to pass the big stimulus plan.

“I applaud President Obama’s recognition that high-speed rail should be part of America’s future,” the Florida Republican beamed in a press release.

Yet Mica had just joined every other GOP House member in voting against the $787.2 billion economic recovery plan.

Republicans echoed their party line over and over during the debate: “This bill is loaded with wasteful deficit spending on the majority’s favorite government programs,” as Minority Whip Eric Cantor, R-Va., put it.

But Mica wasn’t alone in touting what he saw as the bill’s virtues. Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, also had nice things to say in a press release.

Young boasted that he “won a victory for the Alaska Native contracting program and other Alaska small business owners last night in H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.”

One provision would have made it harder for minority businesses to win contracts, and Young explained that he “worked with members on the other side of the aisle to make the case for these programs, and was able to get the provision pulled from the bill.”

Yet later in the day Young — who recently told McClatchy that he would’ve included earmarks, or local projects, in the bill if it had been permitted — issued another statement blasting the overall measure.

“This bill was not a stimulus bill. It was a vehicle for pet projects, and that’s wrong,” he protested.

That was more in line with the Republican message.

Young wouldn’t return a request for comment on the apparent contradiction of his press releases.
(more, here:Miami Herald)

Ladies and Gentlemen, these examples of republiCons making stuff up and dutifully repeating the made-up stuff are the obvious ones; they stick out without really looking.

But what is amazing, is the new RNC Chair, Michael Steele, saying about his party what reasonable people already knew:

“You have absolutely no reason – none – to trust our words or our actions at this point.”

It’s about time the GOP quit making stuff up, and I – for one – am glad the RNC Chair finally acknowledged that.

(crossposted from MnProgressiveProject)