Capitol Catchall: Minnesota Dems rally for dairy farmers

(WDCpix)

The plight of Minnesota’s dairy farmers occupied the time of Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Reps. Tim Walz, Collin Peterson and James Oberstar, who worked this week to find relief for farmers hard hit by economic and natural disaster. That and other highlights from Minnesota’s congressional delegation:

Rep. Tim Walz participated in an online health care discussion with the Mankato Free Press on Tuesday. “Southern Minnesotans that I’ve talked to know that something had to be done and soon, but they want to make sure that we’re getting it right,” he wrote. Walz echoed similar sentiments in a commentary at the Rochester Post-Bulletin.

Walz is a co-chair of the newly reformed Congressional Dairy Farmer Caucus, which was formed in 2006 but lapsed in January. Rep. James Oberstar is also mentioned as a caucus member.

Rep. John Kline says he will continue to fight a move to federalize student lending. “I have resisted and will continue to resist erasing private capital and the private sector from the student lending business,” said Kline. But he does acknowledge that the measure is likely to pass the House.

The Minnesota Daily had harsh words for Kline. “Kline and his colleagues are defending systemic cruelty toward college students, propped up by corporate subsidies for an industry which, not too long ago, was found to be in part a veritable criminal enterprise.”

Rep. Betty McCollum announced that she secured $1 million in federal money as part of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act to improve the Twin Lakes area in Roseville. The money will go to create a pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use site with links to Minneapolis and St. Paul.

“I am pleased to be able to secure federal funding for important infrastructure improvements at Twin Lakes and to partner with the city of Roseville,” she said in a statement.

Rep. Keith Ellison attended a meeting with Muslim leaders in Minneapolis last Saturday to discuss some of the successes and challenges the Muslim community faces in Minneapolis.

Ellison announced Monday that he had secured $500,000 to finish the Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway, a project that has been a century in the making. The appropriation was passed as part of the House transportation, housing and urban development appropriations bill and will connect connect St. Anthony Parkway to East River Parkway in Northeast Minneapolis.

Rep. Michele Bachmann succeeded in getting a resolution passed by the House on Wednesday. “Recognizing September as National Hydrocephalus Awareness Month will bring this disease to the public’s attention and encourage the discussions necessary to more effectively address the devastating effects of this disease and provide support to families who live with it each day,” she said in a statement.

Rep. Collin Peterson, along with Rep. Barney Frank unveiled their plan to regulate the derivatives market which is seen as a large part of the cause for the current recession. “I think we have come up with a responsible approach that bridges the differences between those members who want to completely eliminate the over-the-counter market and those who think that just greater transparency is all that is needed,” said Peterson in a statement on Friday. “Neither of those approaches is a real solution; what we are putting forth is.”

Rep. James Oberstar praised the House passage of $7 billion in highway funds. “Enactment of this legislation will ensure full funding of the highway investment levels authorized by current law, and prevent devastating slowdowns or cuts in each state’s federal highway funds,” he said on the House floor.

Oberstar continues to work end to end anti-trust immunity for airlines and sent a letter Monday to Lawrence Summers, director of the National Economic Council, that expressed “deep concern over the decline of airline competition in international markets.” Oberstar says that three airlines dominate U.S.-European travel.

Oberstar and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, both of Slovenian descent, met with Foreign Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Samuel Žbogar, on Tuesday.

Klobuchar announced on Friday that she helped secure relief for dairy farmers. “Across Minnesota, dairy farmers have been stung by rising production costs and falling product prices,” she said in a statement. “Today’s announcement of immediate relief for dairy farmers will help them during this crisis by providing targeted support to help stabilize prices. Along with Agriculture Chairman Collin Peterson I will continue to advocate for Minnesota’s dairy farmers during these difficult times.”

Sen. Al Franken will address progressive activists in Duluth on Saturday for the Commonweal Institute’s 2009 Progressive Roundtable.

Franken introduced a bill with Klobuchar on Thursday. The Medicare Payment Fairness Act of 2009 aims to fix regional difference in Medicare payments, a system under which Minnesota loses money.

“As Congress considers national health care reform, they have a lot to learn from how we do things in Minnesota,” Franken said in a statement. “We understand that health care quality ought to be rewarded, and that patient-centered health care is better for Minnesotans than a profit-centered system. Implementing a Value Index is not just a critical step in reforming our national health care costs, it’s also a step towards ensuring that Minnesota doctors aren’t penalized for being ahead of the curve.”