2018 Tax Day Rally Talk A speech by George Beck, Chair, Minnesota Citizens for Clean Elections I have a question today. My question is for the legislators who meet in our beautiful Capitol. My question is: “Whatever happened to “We the People?” Why do you fail to...

I have a question today. My question is for the legislators who meet in our beautiful Capitol. My question is: “Whatever happened to “We the People?” Why do you fail to represent your constituents when it comes to money in politics?

We know that over 80% of Americans and Minnesotans, Republicans and Democrats alike, believe that the Citizens United decision abolishing contribution limits should be reversed.

This movie about the dire effects for democracy of Citizens United as illustrated by events in the microcosm of Montana politics, was shown as part of the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival on April 22 and 23, 2018. For once, audience applause in a movie...

What if we could reduce the influence of big contributors, encourage more people to run for office, encourage candidates to look to the full electorate, increase the number of voters, encourage the media to follow all candidates, and give everyday people a bigger voice in Minneapolis elections. In short, create a more participatory and more representative democracy in our city.

You can help overcome the undue influence of special interests, Big Money, Dark Money, and corporate contributions on Minnesota elections by asking your City Council to adopt a resolution supporting a Constitutional Amendment to overturn the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United. For a model resolution, you can use the following text…

Clean Elections MN meets monthly on the second Thursday. Our current meeting place is the church office at St. Joan of Arc Church, 4537 3rd Ave. S. Minneapolis, MN. at 1:00 p.m. An agenda is sent before the meeting to all on our e-mail list. Please join us! You may...

Several years ago a prominent DFL legislator with acknowledged tax expertise retired early, returning almost immediately to the capitol as a registered lobbyist for private interests. Earlier that year, a Republican representative left the MN House and was back within three weeks to lobby former colleagues. Such rapid exit and re-entry, with obvious potential for conflict of interest, is known in political parlance as the revolving door.

Every ten years, after the census, the Minnesota legislature is responsible for drawing new legislative and congressional districts in our state. While redistricting might sound like a ministerial duty, it is anything but. As it stands, drawing new lines produces a partisan political battle as legislators seek to preserve their seats and help their political party dominate the legislature.

Iowa’s redistricting plan (Iowa Code §§ 42.1 – 42.6) was first adopted in 1980 and has been successful in having a proposed plan adopted quickly by the legislature and in avoiding judicial review. The plan has firm deadlines for actions by all participants. The plan is similar to H.F. 246 submitted in 2017 in Minnesota in having an independent commission appointed by the legislative leadership, but it is different in a significant respect.