As he issued an executive order preventing the state from applying for any of the grants available in the new health care law, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty signaled that he would accept $263 million in federal dollars to bolster the state’s Medicaid program — funds he previously described as a “bailout” of the states. “The federal government should not deficit spend to bail out states and special interest groups,” Pawlenty said earlier this month after the House reconvened for an emergency vote and passed a $26.1 billion bill providing aid to state governments. “Minnesota balanced its budget without raising taxes and without relying on more federal money. The federal government’s reckless spending spree must come to an end.”
Putting aside the fact that the $26.1 billion measure was fully paid for (and even reduced the deficit by $1.4 billion), Pawlenty searched for another explanation as to why he’s willing to accept a transfer of federal funds into the state Medicaid program but would not apply for grant dollars authorized by the health care law. The enhanced Medicaid payments are “not Obamacare” and won’t “further some stupid policy agenda,” he concluded:
“We’ll likely take that money,” Pawlenty said in an interview at the State Fair Tuesday. “It’s not Obamacare, it is something that we were going to be doing anyhow…”We’re going to take the money for those things that we were going to do anyhow and for the Medicaid (money), we were going to do that anyhow,” Pawlenty said. [...]
Further, the governor said, Minnesota is a net donor to the federal government — sending in more money than it gets back — so “where it’s appropriate and where it’s wise and doesn’t further some stupid policy agenda or otherwise concerns us or sign us up for something that is unsustainable or otherwise cause us a problem, we’re going to apply for those other pots of money.”
Earlier this year, Pawlenty rejected federal funds from the health care law to expand the state’s Medicaid program, a point he highlighted in yesterday’s executive order.
The Huffington Post notes that Pawlenty is requesting federal grants for abstinence-only education that are funded by the Affordable Care Act. Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) said yesterday that “members of the Pawlenty administration thank me” for voting in favor of health care reform.
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Ofcourse he’ll take the money…then blame Obama.
AIO
September 1st, 2010 at 1:03 pmJesus Christ! I am tired of this flip-flop bullsh*t! He is accepting the Medicade because he knows his constituents will toss him out on his ass. I don’t know who I am more angry with. The stupidity of the American public or the lying cheating Repugs.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:03 pm#1 Dido as each Republican Governor said the same thing but then accepted the money as his idea. Obama is blamed for the Recessioin and two Wars as now Bush is given credit for ending the War in Iraq.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:06 pmCaption:
“I have charisma: Don’t I?”
September 1st, 2010 at 1:10 pmAs someone pointed out yesterday, he just wants his photo-op holding the giant check.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:10 pmtypical repiggie hypocrite…
September 1st, 2010 at 1:10 pmPawlenty To Accept Medicaid Match Because It ‘Doesn’t Further Some Stupid Policy Agenda’
– - I lost my Pawlenty-to-English/English-to-Pawlenty Dictionary. Translation, anyone….anyone….?
September 1st, 2010 at 1:10 pmlinz@4, Yeah. There they are, screaming about the stimulus and yet, they love to hand out those big-ass checks. It’s times like this I want to vomit. That’s why I am so friggin mad. Do their constituents think this money grows on trees? So, either they are hypocrites or they are down-right stupid.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:12 pmPawlenty does indeed meet all the criteria required for membership in the Republican Party.
He’s stupid, and he’s a two-faced liar.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:12 pmHe’s another repiggie suit, Pawlenty Of Nothing.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:14 pmbut it does further T-Paw’s stupid policy agenda.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:15 pmIt sure didn’t take Little Timmah long to blink!
September 1st, 2010 at 1:17 pmLiars always blink a lot.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:21 pmThis guy’s convictions are as sturdy as wet angel hair pasta.
Timmeh=FAIL
September 1st, 2010 at 1:21 pmthey always ignore deficit spending when R’s do it.
why can’t R voters ever comprehend that??
September 1st, 2010 at 1:22 pmAnother photo caption:
When asked how he made the decision to accept the Medicaid funding, Pawlenty wet his finger, stuck it up in the air and said “I used the usual republican methodology”.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:24 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
NOT APPROVED…
Now go away and rust in a corner.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:27 pmIf you’ve got to use that much Play-doh to fashion a false narrative to serve as a false equivalency, you’re not gonna have enough for your Play-doh spaghetti factory.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:28 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
so will paw-plenty impeach himself for abrogating the very executive order he created?
September 1st, 2010 at 1:30 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
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When you’re handed a lemon, you don’t want the lemon, you never wanted the lemon, and yet dare to make lemonade from it, doing so means you’re a “flip-flopper” in la-la-land. -=rhn=-
nice pretzel!
but how does paw-plentys action restore honor by becoming a hypocrite?
is someone hands a lactose intolerant person a milkshake, that doesnt want a milkshake, and yet dares to let it melt before drinking it, doing so doesnt make one lactose tolerant in ha ha land.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:33 pmyou must be a liberal, sport.
’cause you’re sure as hell no conservative.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:34 pmIf I objected to Pawlenty’s philosophy, and I didn’t have a leg to stand on, I’d probably invent an accusation too.
the thing is no one had to invent an accusation pawlenty did by creating an executive order so no laws could be passed to accept such funds.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:35 pmif someone doesnt want a lemon, didnt ask for the lemon, then dig a hole and bury the seeds so others that might want a lemon can have them.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:37 pmTypical conservative…. “I strongly support limited federal government involvement in state matters. Except when they have money to for me or to help in time of emergency and for roads, and medicare and assisting the poor and all the military bases and airports and maybe a few other things, but that’s all!”
September 1st, 2010 at 1:40 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
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i call bs on the study above.
Under various state laws, they are barred from voting because they have felony records. This includes not just prison inmates (48 states), parolees (33 states) and probationers (29 states) but also a large number of people — one third of the disenfranchised in all — who are off parole and “free.”
September 1st, 2010 at 1:43 pmQuestion to those in Minn: does this stuff get covered in the local media? How do they report it? Do the people of Minn., who are among the brightest, realize or care about his continued hypocrisy? My guess is that many are wired like him and don’t care what he does. Crazy Shelly too!
September 1st, 2010 at 1:44 pmonce you serve your time for the crime you are not a felon. you are a free person and feee to vote the way you please.
I thougt you were for individual freedoms rhn?
September 1st, 2010 at 1:45 pmWe do know of at least one felon who voted in that election.
Problem is, he voted for Norm Coleman.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:45 pmits not an accusation whent the FACT is pawlenty did in FACT create and sign an executive order to BAN federal stimulus.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:46 pmIF scenario. lets say rhn was convicted of a felony and served his prison sentence of two years. was released from prison. became a free man again. and rhn was then told he could not vote because he was not a free man but a ex-felon.
isnt that like making you pay for your crime twice rhn?
September 1st, 2010 at 1:48 pmStrange crust around lips,
September 1st, 2010 at 1:48 pmFeeling squirmy and ashamed,
Troll Stockholm syndrome
You know what’s funny? Regressives still can’t accept that Al Franken beat norm Coleman for the Senate seat.
A full year after the conclusion of one of the most rigorous election recount processes this nation has ever seen (far more rigorous than the one allowed by SCOTUS in Bush v Gore) they are still grasping at straws.
Meanwhile, Sen. Franken (D-MN) is proving himself daily to be one of the most courageous and impressive members of that august body.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:49 pmThis is a false eqivalency by a stupid person. Enuff said!
September 1st, 2010 at 1:49 pmequivalency
September 1st, 2010 at 1:51 pmRHN now blames President Obama for continuing a war which he enthusiastically supported when his Bushgod was squatting in the Oval Office. Obviously, he cannot see the irony of posting such bullshit in a thread about Republican hypocrisy.
September 1st, 2010 at 1:57 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
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Apparently RoboSlobber/longredherring/Restor thinks that Obama should have removed all combat troops by February 1, 2009 or else he’s a hypocrite.
in fact, Obama campaigned on a platform of responsbily ending the Iraq War and of returning focus to Afghanistan where it should have been all along.
This is exactly what President Obama has done.
I’m not sure if this kind of disingenuous false narrative is the reason RoboSlobber/longredherrings/Restor has had to cycle through at least five (maybe more) identities here in the last few months, but it sure couldn’t have helped his cause.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:10 pmObama campaigned on a platform of responsbily ending the Iraq War and of returning focus to Afghanistan where it should have been all along. This is exactly what President Obama has done.
Absolutely agree with that, ralph. I would add that Obama has been more honorable and responsible in the manner that he is going about ending our involvement in Iraq than GDumbya was in initiating it.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:17 pmi have disappointments in, and criticisms of, the obama administration to date,
but,
as someone who listened in detail to what he campaigned on, and the qualifications and caveats he regularly issued,
i know for myself that no rose gardens were promised, nor any quick-and-easy fixes.
that’s the difference between an honest, sincere, responsible, conservative politician and a republican.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:32 pmOld Red Herrings never die.
They just keep on smellin’ like the did.
Don’t they, robo.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:34 pmI ran into Pawlenty’s supposed successor, Tom Emmer at the MN State Fair Monday.
I asked him why we should vote for a man who apparently supports Pawlenty…the guy who got our State into a $7B deficit.
Emmer wants to apply draconian cuts to services to the poor, sick & disabled, while firmly opposing any increased revenue option.
Mr. Emmer began ranting about big government, costly programs, etc.
I responded, ’see what I mean?’, & walked away.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:43 pmWhat cause is that, do you suppose?
To make conservatism synonymous with obnoxiousness? To demonstrate that the right wing will lie and smear repeatedly?
Every troll post is a backfire. If they realized how poor a job they were doing, perhaps they’d make adjustments, but it really seems to be more about fulfilling a deep-seated emotional need for them than about political action. Beyond that, it really doesn’t make much sense.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:48 pmPawlenty is only doing this because he is seeking the Republican nomination. Too bad the people of Minnesota get to suffer for his political ambitions, which by the way he has no chance of getting the GOP nomination.
September 1st, 2010 at 3:08 pmYet again, a wingnut shows up in the middle of sohbet odaları a Soros-controlled TP thread to complain that TP isn’t çilingir a comprehensive news site covering all stories that anybody might consider worthy sohbet of merit.
Protip: TP, aşk şiirleri as the blog for the Center for çilingir American Progress, only inlcludes pieces that demonstrate that Republicans are evil or stupid.
September 1st, 2010 at 3:13 pmAccording to Recovery.org, Minnesota received slightly over $3.5B including 3863 grants which produced over 11,000 jobs. Wonder when Pawlenty will mention that salient fact when he is chest-thumping about what he will accept.
September 1st, 2010 at 3:41 pmWiz @ 55 has it exactly right.
Pretty much anyone except die hard repubs think Timmy is selling the State out to further his weak chance at the repub presidential nomination. It’s pathetic. He doesn’t appear to realize he doesn’t have a chance.
I like to think of Timmy as Sarah Palin, but with out the gonads.
September 1st, 2010 at 4:40 pmpawlenty’s bridge Fall Down … and people died cuzz
September 1st, 2010 at 6:04 pmThis F~ing Greedy Old Pervert would rather line the pockets
of the filthy F~ing rich on the hides of workin folk !
Further more he’s a F~ing WEENIE !
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It’s always entertaining to hear something silly from Never-To-Be-President Pawlenty once in a while. Thank goodness in a few more months, this guy will be well on his way to the dustbin of history. Good riddance.
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