The reality of the Trump economy

While the plethora of reasoning from fact therein won't have the slightest effect on those in MAGA fantasyland, or on Trump's boosters in corporate (especially financial) "news" media, this one's worth keeping on hand. It's by Joseph Stiglitz.

It is becoming conventional wisdom that US President Donald Trump will be tough to beat in November, because, whatever reservations about him voters may have, he has been good for the American economy. Nothing could be further from the truth. - Project Syndicate

Sydney Jordan wins 60A special primary

It happened yesterday. This is the seat that was held by the late Diane Loeffler. The general election is Feb. 4. Here is Ms. Jordan’s website.

No Republican bothered to run. The other name on the general election ballot will be that of Marty Super of the Legal Marijuana Now party.

It should be noted that the DFL plans on legalizing it in 2021, if there are big enough majorities in the legislative bodies. That will be especially important in the Senate, because Sen. Tom Bakk (DFL-Cook) and similarly-minded types will likely demand much in return for supporting legalization, if they can. Namely, a “go” for any and all sulfide mining.

MN-04: Rep. McCollum is serious about protecting the BWCA

Among other things, both of Minnesota’s U.S. Senators have been trying to negotiate the safest possible political path on sulfide mining. Hopefully, maybe, this will get far enough to put them in a tough spot.

Minnesota Congresswoman Betty McCollum introduced legislation Wednesday to permanently ban copper, nickel and precious metals mining across more than 200,000 acres of the Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota.

The bill would forbid new mining operations within the watershed of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, including a project proposed by Twin Metals Minnesota, which last month submitted plans to state and federal regulators to open an underground copper-nickel mine outside Ely, and just a couple miles from the southern edge of the BWCA. - MPR

Here is a most excellent learning tool regarding the Twin Metals/Antofagasta proposal.

Trump's SNAP cuts are not only cruel; they're stupid as well

Here in Minnesota the current estimate is that about 8,000 people will face hunger because of this despicable shit.

The cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that the Trump administration is implementing are going to be immediately devastating to communities of color and rural communities in particular. In the long term, though, they could have just as devastating effects on the health and well-being of millions of people, and ultimately on the nation’s economy.

Numerous studies have shown that access to healthy and adequate food improves health and saves money, as Austin Frakt and Elsa Pearson argue in a New York Times article on the recent work requirement rule for SNAP. While the administration says that it will save almost $8 billion in the next ten years, the authors point out that it is "not clear how much money would actually be saved, research suggests, given the costs that might come from a decline in the health and well-being of many of the country’s 14.3 million 'food-insecure' households." - Daily Kos

Veterans hate war and think it's a waste

This is actually from the middle of last year, but all things considered I’m noting it at this time.

The “Long War” that began on September 11, 2001, added to veterans’ already-outsize role in the American narrative. Worship of military service has become an indispensable cog in every politician’s and corporation’s endearment strategy. But on the actual subject of war, almost no one in mainstream politics is actually listening to “the troops.”

That’s the main takeaway from the Pew Research Center’s latest rolling poll of U.S. veterans, published (July 2019), in which solid majorities of former troops said the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria were not worth fighting. The gaps between approval and disapproval were not even close to the poll’s 3.9 percent margin of error; barely a third of veterans considered any of those conflicts worthwhile: - The New Republic

The sacrifices wartime veterans (and their families) made, especially those who suffered long-term (physical and/or psychological) injury, and/or knew people who were killed, are beyond anything I can really understand. To expect all of them to accept that the wars weren’t worth it is not realistic, and I for one never get in anyone’s face about it.

MN House: Chad Hobot in 30A special

The special election for the seat vacated by Nick Zerwas is Feb. 4. 30A is out on the northwest edge of the metro. From Hobot's website:

I believe in a Minnesota where every child has the opportunity to succeed and hope for the future.  This means public schools in Elk River, Big Lake, and Otsego should have equal access to resources in K-12 funding.

For communities like ours, experiencing rapid residential new construction, there is a gap in resources.   As a result, we have a strain on education funding resources.

On the Party of Trump side it appears that there will be a primary on Jan. 14. Both candidates are what you’d expect (here and here).

It must be acknowledged that this district ain’t real DFL-friendly. But ever since Trump took office, things have changed, nationwide, in that regard. You can help Chad out here.

Rural Minnesota counties are spurning Trump's refugee ban

It’s a small sample size, so far. But it’s not working out as Trump, or Party of Trump true believers in Minnesota, undoubtedly took for granted that it would.

Blue Earth and Nicollet Counties followed suit a few weeks later. As Blue Earth Commissioner Colleen Landkamer told the Mankato Free Press: “We’ve always accepted refugees. This is nothing new.”

Meanwhile, the St. Louis County Board told the Duluth News Tribune it plans to tackle the issue in early January, but so far, all five commissioners who have registered opinions on the subject were in favor of voting “yes.” Commissioner Beth Olson even tried to get the vote over with in 2019. - City Pages