Please click links for Complete Stories....

Please click links for Complete Stories....

Kline reports more than $1 million in the bank (Politics in Minnesota)

Congress Pushing Defense Secretary on Paid Time Off for Soldiers (KSTP-TV)

AMVETS honors Kline with ‘Silver Helmet’ award (Norwood Young America Times)

John Kline: Increasing our energy independence (Faribault Daily News)

Education secretary defends Obama administration’s use of school waivers; Kline disagrees (CNN):

MN GOP UPDATE 03/31/2012

TOPICS IN THIS EDITION:

(CLICK FOR FULL STORIES)

* Squawk over hungry cormorants heard in Washington

* Rick Nolan Says Single Payer Health Care Would Cut Costs in Half, but at What Cost to the American People?

* US Congress Passes Budget to Reduce the Deficit and Restore Economic Growth. Where are Minnesota Democrats?

* CNN Says ObamaCare US Supreme Court Hearings Were a "Train Wreck for the Obama Administration." What do Klobuchar, Walz & Peterson Have to Say?

Mar 30, 2012

Secretary of State Mark Ritchie Uses Taxpayer Funded State Website to Lobby on Photo ID

St. Paul – Secretary of State Mark Ritchie is now using his taxpayer funded state website to lobby in the partisan photo ID debate. Ritchie’s SOS website has a new link titled “OSS Estimates of Registered Voters Lacking Valid or Current ID,” which opens a spreadsheet estimating the number of voters who lack a “valid or current ID.” Ritchie estimates the total number of people who lack a photo ID is 215,389, the same number that DFL legislators use when debating photo ID legislation. Ritchie also fails to properly cite this information, giving no explanation of where this data came from or who did the research.

Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Pat Shortridge issued the following statement regarding SOS Mark Ritchie’s usage of his state website:

“Secretary of State Mark Ritchie was elected by Minnesotans and charged with overseeing a fair and open election process. He should not be using his state website paid for by hardworking Minnesotans, 80% of whom support photo ID legislation, to lobby on behalf of a position those taxpayers overwhelmingly disagree with. If Ritchie is claiming to educate the public about this issue, then having clearly cited facts from an outside, non-partisan group would be preferential to just regurgitating the same information as the DFL legislators. Mark Ritchie needs to remember that he works for all Minnesotans and his job is to ensure that elections are carried out fairly and transparently,” said MNGOP Chairman Pat Shortridge.

MN GOP UPDATE 03/24/2012

TOPICS IN THIS EDITION:

(CLICK FOR FULL STORIES)

* Obama`s HHS Secretary Sebelius` Meeting in Minnesota Today Hosted by President of the Minnesota Nurses Union

* Klobuchar, Peterson & Walz Skip the ObamaCare Birthday Party

* GOP-led Minnesota House Passes Photo ID Constitutional Amendment

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Mar 9, 2012 Republican-led Legislature Puts Minnesota Kids First with Repayment of 2011 Education Shift

St. Paul – Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Pat Shortridge issued the following statement regarding the GOP plan to pay back the education shift that was passed as part of the budget agreement with Governor Dayton last summer.

“The Republican-led Legislature took the first step this week to putting our kids first and repaying the education shift from last session. The question remains now whether Governor Gridlock will sign this important legislation to fund our children and their schools. We should pay back the schools now, lest Governor Dayton and the DFL feel the urge to spend the surplus elsewhere,” said MNGOP Chairman Pat Shortridge.

The state surplus enables us to fully pay back the remaining $400 million education shift from last session. Unfortunately, we are not yet in a position to pay back the whole of the DFL’s school shift from 2010 totaling $2 billion.

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Mar 8, 2012 Sen. Amy Klobuchar Continues to Stand in the Way of the Keystone XL Pipeline, Lower Energy Prices and Jobs

St. Paul –Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Pat Shortridge issued the following statement in response to Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s vote against the plan to approve construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline today. The Keystone XL Pipeline project and its 120,000 jobs have been delayed since 2008.

“With gas prices sky high, it's disappointing that Senator Klobuchar once again voted with extreme elements of the environmental movement instead of with Minnesota families and businesses. We need lower energy costs, less dependence on oil from foreign dictatorships, and the jobs that would be created by the pipeline from Canada. This is a another important issue where Senator Klobuchar is clearly not acting like the common sense moderate Minnesotans thought they were sending to Washington to work on their behalf, especially when eleven Senate Democrats voted in support of the Keystone XL Pipeline today,” said MNGOP Chairman Pat Shortridge.

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Mar 6, 2012 Governor Gridlock Vetoes Bipartisan Self-Defense Bill

St. Paul - Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Pat Shortridge issued the following statement regarding Governor Dayton's veto of the Defense of Dwelling and Persons Act (HF 1467) last night. The bill passed both houses in a bipartisan vote.

"Another day, another veto from Governor Dayton. If this unfortunate pattern continues, he's going to be known as Governor Gridlock, the one person single-handedly preventing Minnesota from moving forward. On top of his vetoes of common sense legal reforms to stop the kind of abusive lawsuits that destroy jobs, last night Governor Dayton vetoed a personal protection bill that would have given law abiding Minnesotans a greater ability to defend themselves and their families. He's also holding a veto threat over bipartisan legislation to help keep good teachers in the classroom by ending a system that puts the time you've been there ahead of teaching excellence," said MNGOP Chairman Pat Shortridge.

"It's time for Governor Dayton to put Minnesota ahead of DFL interest group politics. He should start signing these bipartisan bills and then put forward a job creation plan that doesn't involve more government spending. Now is the time for leadership from the Governor. He needs to join with the Republican legislature. The campaign can wait," added Shortridge.