Three DFLers, one IP candidate at forum
Three DFL candidates for governor and one independent made campaign pitches today during a forum sponsored by the state chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.
Tom Horner, the Independence Party of Minnesota's endorsed candidate for governor, shared a stage at the University of Minnesota St. Paul campus with DFLers Mark Dayton, Matt Entenza and Margaret Anderson Kelliher, who are running in the Aug. 10 primary. Kelliher has the DFL endorsement. The four highlighted similar positions on several key issues, including taxes.
Kelliher said people earning over $250,000 a year need to pay their fair share.
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"I believe that we need a fair and progressive taxation system in the state of Minnesota again to accomplish the goals that we have," Kelliher said.
Horner said he wants to make the tax system fair, equitable and able to create private sector jobs.
"I will raise taxes," Horner said. "We do need more revenue. But we need it in the context of how are we going to decrease the taxes on job creating activities so Minnesota businesses can create jobs, can build those sector opportunities that we need in Minnesota."
With the state facing another massive budget deficit next year, Dayton said he's the only candidate willing to raise taxes by $5 billion.
"If you have a $6 billion deficit and you're only going to raise a billion in revenues, then you're going to have to find $5 billion in cuts or shifts," Dayton said. "If you're going to raise $5 billion in revenues, as I've proposed, then you still have to find a billion in cuts and shifts, and that's hard enough. So, let's get real here folks."
Entenza and the other candidates also spent time pointing out the absence of of their main Republican rival, Tom Emmer.
"I'm sorry that Tom Emmer isn't here," Entenza said. "He talks about eliminating all public provision of health care and having some charity care. I remember what charity care was like. That's not the kind of state I want."
Emmer spent the day at the Little Falls Dairy & Beef Celebration. During a radio interview with KLTF-AM, Emmer focused his standard stump speech. He said most Minnesotans are concerned with the direction of the state and he stressed the need to "redesign government." He didn't mention specifics on how he would reduce government and said he would prefer not to "talk about the services end, I would prefer to say how do we make government more efficient."
Despite his lack of specifics on solving the state's projected budget deficit, Emmer does want the Legislature to act faster to put their budget plan together. He said he wants to give the next governor the authority to "declare a fiscal emergency" and require the Legislature to submit a budget plan within 45 days from when the governor proposes his/her plan.
"Imagine a world in Minnesota where the governor has to have a balanced budget out by late January or early February and the Legislature has to put a balanced budget out by early February," Emmer said on the radio show. "Everybody would have their cards on the table. You would know where we would agree, apples to apples."
Here's audio of the forum, beginning with opening statements:
(MPR's Tom Scheck contributed to this story)