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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Tea Party Grifters Now Remain on State Payroll

Tea Party Grifters Now Remain on State Payroll

by Kay|  October 11, 201012:56 pm| 32 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

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Governor Pawlenty decides to screw Minnesota and work full time on wooing the Tea Party, while remaining governor:

Frustrated by what they see as stonewalling by Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s office over preparations for federal health reform, three of Minnesota’s most influential medical groups took matters into their own hands Thursday.

After Pawlenty declined to send Washington a letter with several state agencies’ recommendations for a key piece of the reform package, the medical groups got hold of a copy and sent it themselves.

They had to file a public records request to get the letter.

At the least, it’s a sign of growing frustration within Minnesota’s medical community with Gov. Tim Pawlenty. At most, it’s an open declaration of war. A trio of groups representing doctors, hospitals and health insurers on Thursday took the highly unusual step of circumventing Pawlenty to send a letter to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius about how best to set up a state health insurance exchange under the federal health care overhaul.

What was so unusual about that? The letter was drafted by Pawlenty’s administration, but was never sent for reasons that aren’t clear but are the subject of speculation. Instead, the groups obtained it through a public data request.

He deliberately missed the deadline. Then neglected to tell them.

This summer, Pawlenty signed an executive order making Minnesota one of two states — Alaska was the other — to refuse money to study the cost of setting up the exchange. He has also forsworn other grants under the law, saying he was working to “keep Obamacare out of Minnesota.” The moves were widely seen as tinged with Pawlenty’s aspirations.

Palin actually quit her state job before becoming a full-time grifter.

Pawlenty has a better scam.

Remain governor, pick up the paycheck, retain the title, but simply refuse to do the job.

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Reader Interactions

32Comments

  1. 1.

    Gus

    October 11, 2010 at 12:59 pm

    Yeah, he’s been running for President on Minnesota’s taxpayers’ dime for months, if not years.

  2. 2.

    aimai

    October 11, 2010 at 1:01 pm

    Wow. Does anyone have standing to sue him over this? Or does the fact that HCR doesn’t come into effect for a couple more years make all the damage hypothetical?

    aimai

  3. 3.

    JGabriel

    October 11, 2010 at 1:05 pm

    Gus: And still most Americans only know T-Paw, if at all, as the governor who got caught with his bridges down.

    .

  4. 4.

    Zifnab

    October 11, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    @aimai:

    Or does the fact that HCR doesn’t come into effect for a couple more years make all the damage hypothetical?

    The exchanges can’t be set up overnight. They require a certain degree of time and planning. If Minnesota turns down even basic research into setting up the exchanges, the Republicans in the state could conceivably hamstring and undermine the setup process well past the ’14 deadline.

  5. 5.

    kay

    October 11, 2010 at 1:06 pm

    @aimai:

    I don’t know, but look at this:

    “We believed the State of Minnesota would submit comments on behalf of all residents and stakeholders in Minnesota,” the groups wrote. “Because the enclosed letter was not sent, we respectfully request that you review and consider the comments contained in this document even if you cannot accord it the deference of an official, timely, state-sponsored letter.”

    That’s the comment period you’re probably familiar with, where a federal agency takes comments on proposed rules.

    He blew that for them. I’d be pissed. I don’t think he has any right to run out the clock on the comment period.

  6. 6.

    Ross Hershberger

    October 11, 2010 at 1:19 pm

    WWJVD?

  7. 7.

    Martin

    October 11, 2010 at 1:21 pm

    @kay: Of course he has the right. The governor is not compelled in any way to submit comments.

    Also, who fucking cares if the insurance companies are pissed. We can’t on one hand complain about undue influence in government by corporations and on the other hand demand that they have more influence. What’s the reaction of the voters?

    Also, also, I thought the insurance companies were the villains in this story. Are people here now sympathetic to them just because it’s a douchebag in the governors mansion?

    But if the public cares about it, this is what recall elections are for.

  8. 8.

    Luthe

    October 11, 2010 at 1:26 pm

    @JGabriel:

    Where would you like your Internets delivered, good sir?

  9. 9.

    debit

    October 11, 2010 at 1:30 pm

    The day can’t come soon enough for that little rat fuck son of a bitch to step down.

  10. 10.

    Yutsano

    October 11, 2010 at 1:36 pm

    Ooh boy. This one is gonna have wifey ranting to no end. Like possibly enough to cross the river into St Paul and haul out the rusty pitchfork. Like for realz.

  11. 11.

    cmorenc

    October 11, 2010 at 1:36 pm

    Curious: were there any attempts by Republican governors of individual states back in the 1930s to sabotage New Deal initiatives, especially Social Security or the WPA? It’s well-known that the then-GOP appointment dominated US Supreme Court tried its best for a couple of years to hamstring the New Deal by a constitutional-law approach that Anton Scalia would reinstall quickly if he had five like-enough minded fellow justices, but you have to dig deeper into historical accounts than most of us have tried to dig out what various state Republican politicians tried to do to resist.

  12. 12.

    kay

    October 11, 2010 at 1:37 pm

    @Martin:

    Also, also, I thought the insurance companies were the villains in this story. Are people here now sympathetic to them just because it’s a douchebag in the governors mansion?

    Well, Martin, I don’t think I’ve ever presented it that simply. It’s not just insurance companies. It’s providers and state agencies. They have to integrate S-CHIP and Medicaid with the exchanges.

    My health care reform would have looked a little different.

    I think I would have put the whole wad towards quality, non-profit primary care, just fix that one crucial piece, to start. I’m sure everyone would also hate my plan.

    However, I think Pawlenty should do his job, whether he likes the law or not.

  13. 13.

    Keith G

    October 11, 2010 at 1:39 pm

    @Martin:

    Also, also, I thought the insurance companies were the villains in this story. Are people here now sympathetic to them just because it’s a douchebag in the governors mansion?

    Like it or not, such companies are a key part of our health care delivery system. To the extent that they are better able to get their act together in this emerging new delivery system, these corporations will be better able to provide service to the citizens of the Gopher state.

  14. 14.

    kay

    October 11, 2010 at 1:41 pm

    @cmorenc:

    There were lawsuits on social security, I read. Years after it was passed.
    I have to look them up. I bet they used the same language.

  15. 15.

    cmorenc

    October 11, 2010 at 1:41 pm

    To follow-up my earlier comment, it should be kept in mind that the objectives of GOP state politicians in attempting to do as much as possible to sabotage Health-Care reform have not one, but TWO main objectives. First, it’s political grandstanding to the dominant tea-party hard-right wing that’s the base of their party at the moment. But second, they’re placing a hopeful bet that the currently-constituted US Supreme Court is poised, by a narrow 5-4 majority, to choose a case very soon to immensely curtail the effective scope of the “Commerce” Clause and several other constitutional clauses, overturning many decades of deeply established constitutional law on this subject by previous Supreme Court rulings.

  16. 16.

    RalfW

    October 11, 2010 at 1:43 pm

    This total disaster of a man wants to be President. As someone who fled Texas while Bush was Gov for then-sane Minnesota, I can say without doubt that this man is the worst in politics.

    Slippery like Mitt, stupid like Palin, fake working-class appealing, and a glibertarian/winger/Christianist nightmare.

  17. 17.

    RalfW

    October 11, 2010 at 1:48 pm

    As for the policy-level stuff: his order is utter hogwash. Totally proves that the GOP opposes HCR because it’s Democratic and will prove to be a long-term winner.

    They talk about open competition and selling policies across state lines. This is exactly what the exchanges would do.

    But T-paw rejects a million bucks for study because it ‘endorses’ HCR.

    He’s also ordered every state agency that might get a dime in federal grants via HCR to funnel all grant apps thru his office. He says he’ll reject most of them unless there is a specific policy goal of his lame-duck admin that the grant would support.

    He doesn’t care about the health of his citizens, or that Minnesota, which is already a significant net exporter of federal tax revenue to other states, will get even fewer dollars back per taxpayer by rejecting 100s of millions in HCR money.

    l dare him to have his Transportation Dept reject all highway funding, if he’s such a flaming anti-DC a-hole now.

  18. 18.

    kay

    October 11, 2010 at 1:51 pm

    @cmorenc:

    In 2006, President Bush instituted a rule change that dramatically expanded Medical Support Orders, for children.

    States wrote enabling legislation, and brought it online in 2008.

    You never heard about it, because Democratic governors didn’t screw around kowtowing to lunatics, and pandering to their base. It had to be done, and they did it.

    But, they actually want to be governors, rather than cable tv personalities.

  19. 19.

    RalfW

    October 11, 2010 at 1:58 pm

    “They actually want to [govern], rather than [be] cable tv personalities.” – Kay

    That encapsulates the entire left-right American political scene right now. Oh, except for mentioning that the teevee personalities want to further obscenely enrich their bosses and thus themselves.

  20. 20.

    Basilisc

    October 11, 2010 at 2:08 pm

    Just like Chris Christie recently screwed over New Jersey.

    And like Sarah Palin screwed over Alaska.

    And Bobby Jindahl screwed over Louisiana.

    Anyone notice a pattern here? Like, you only get respect from the national crazies if you do to your state what they want to do to the whole country. It’s like a national hazing ritual or something. Weird.

  21. 21.

    Ash Can

    October 11, 2010 at 2:20 pm

    “Uncategorized?” Kay, you’re so polite. This post is crying out for an “Assholes” tag.

  22. 22.

    kay

    October 11, 2010 at 2:26 pm

    @Ash Can:

    The truth is, I screwed up, and forgot. I always forget something with these posts.
    I thought it would be slow here for Columbus Day but the phone keeps ringing. It’s like people are off work so they figure they’ll call me and ask me weird random questions. I get distracted.

  23. 23.

    asiangrrlMN

    October 11, 2010 at 3:09 pm

    Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Damn you, Ratface Pawlenty! It’s the double-fisted rusty pitchfork for you. I hate hate hate him with a white-hot intensity of a thousand suns.

    @Yutsano: You know me too well. I hate the mofo. And yet, I would vote from him over Emmer, the current Republican candidate who is just a disaster.

    @debit: You said it, sister. And, in response to your earlier comment, a MN BJ meetup would be awesome! We should post about it in an open thread and see how many locals we could gather.

  24. 24.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    October 11, 2010 at 3:21 pm

    @kay:

    He blew that for them me. I’d be am pissed.

    I’m one of people you want to leave with no insurance, you rat-faced mother fucker*. Yoiu’re trying to kill MinnesotaCare and the Minnesota Comprehensive Health Association, which is the only way someone with fibromyalgia, depression and insomnia can get insurance you flaming asshole. If I ever become suicidal again, I’ll make sure to come kill myself in your office.

    *Pawlenty, not kay

  25. 25.

    That's Master of Accountancy to You, Pal (JMN)

    October 11, 2010 at 3:22 pm

    @asiangrrlMN: Only if there is copious amounts of alcohol. I can’t take you people sober.

  26. 26.

    Norwegian Shooter

    October 11, 2010 at 3:38 pm

    T-Paw is lower than slime mold. He’s used a comparison between behavior at an open bar versus a cash bar at a wedding for a while now to show how bad social programs are. But this past week, he extended it to health care on a tour around half of his current jurisdiction, Iowa:

    He called “Obamacare one of the worst pieces of legislation in modern history.” Pawlenty said if more Americans had “skin in the game,” they would be more likely to want to scale back government. In one of the most unique examples I’ve heard a political candidate use — and which the country club attendees seemed to recognize too — Pawlenty said weddings prove that rule. “People behave differently at a cash bar than they do at an open bar,” Pawlenty said.

    This is doubly funny because another T-Paw trope is the GOP should be for “Sam’s Club” not the “country club.” Different venue – different T-Paw. Like a slime mold, he’s slippery.

  27. 27.

    gbear

    October 11, 2010 at 3:59 pm

    Remain governor, pick up the paycheck, retain the title, but simply refuse to do the job.

    Yes. That pretty much nails it. The only thing that you missed is that he’s been openly and loudly bragging to the teabag set that he’s not going to do his job. He’s announced all of these asshole moves long before he made them. He’s proud of it.

    Even in Jesse’s worst days as a governor, he never did the damage that Pawlenty has done. Most of the reason Jesse had such a rough time was because Pawlenty was the house majority leader at the time and was actively honing his asshole moves even then.

    What an asshole he is.

  28. 28.

    tony

    October 11, 2010 at 4:07 pm

    Palin actually quit her state job before becoming a full-time grifter.

    Pawlenty has a better scam.

    Remain governor, pick up the paycheck, retain the title, but simply refuse to do the job.

    Isn’t that what she did too?
    I don’t think there are any Alaskans that would think she did the job…

    He should do the same as Palin and resign “for the good of the state”.

  29. 29.

    fucen tarmal

    October 11, 2010 at 4:49 pm

    i don’t see the upside to this move. but hey, i am not a teabagger.

  30. 30.

    Origuy

    October 11, 2010 at 5:52 pm

    @asiangrrlMN:
    I propose instead of a pitchfork, the use of a Basque laia. Deeper penetration as well as more maneuverable. Pawlenty is a slippery devil.

  31. 31.

    BD of MN

    October 11, 2010 at 6:12 pm

    A recent MN poll had Mittens ahead of T-Paw, so even the homers are seeing through his scam…

    (have I posted enough to warrant an invite to a BJ-TC fiesta?)

  32. 32.

    icedfire

    October 11, 2010 at 7:44 pm

    I’d totally go to the MN BJ meetup. Just sayin’.

    Also, too, Pawlenty makes Chicklets look like a responsible leader. BRB, burning him in effigy.

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