Posts by Paul Schmelzer
Franken notes ‘absurdity’ of Rand Paul stance on funding senior hunger act
Senators discussed the “human toll and budget consequences” of senior hunger at subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging Tuesday. Arguing for increased funding for the Older Americans Act of 1965, Sen. Al Franken and committee chair Bernie Sanders said that the Older Americans Act saves money. “It allows seniors to stay in their homes, who wouldn’t otherwise be able to stay in their homes,” Franken said. Sen. Rand Paul countered that “only in Washington, D.C., can you spend two billion dollars and claim that you’re saving money.” His solution: Letting charities deal with senior citizens.
Teachers, doctors urged to renew licenses in anticipation of shutdown
In anticipation of a possible government shutdown on July 1, many in fields licensed by the state find themselves scrambling to renew their licenses in order to keep working. Minneapolis Public Schools Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson wrote a letter to staff encouraging them to renew expiring licenses quickly, while a physicians group has struck a deal with the state so doctors whose licenses will expire this summer can file early.
Progressive group: Klobuchar’s felony streaming bill could ‘stifle innovation, jail ordinary citizens’
As Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s bill to amend U.S. copyright law to make it a felony to stream copyrighted material online heads for a vote on the Senate floor, more attention is being paid. The nonprofit government transparency group MapLight notes that backers of the measure — which includes the Recording Industry Association of America, the Motion Picture Association of America, NBC and CBS, among others — have given more than $85 million to sitting senators in the last six years. And the progressive group Demand Progress is challenging Klobuchar’s assertion that the bill will only target “criminals” hoping to make big money from copyright infringement.
Klobuchar bill would make it a felony to unlawfully stream copyrighted ‘performances’ online
A bill introduced last month by Sen. Amy Klobuchar could make it a felony criminal act to stream copyrighted “performances” online without permission. The bill — “To amend the criminal penalty provision for criminal infringement of a copyright, and for other purposes,” or S. 978 — assigns a maximum 5-year prison term for those convicted of streaming “10 or more public performances by electronic means, during any 180-day period.” Critics call the measure “horrible” and say it could stifle innovation online.
Conservative, progressive conferences hit Minneapolis
This morning marked the opening of Netroots Nation, the national progressive organizing and media conference, at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Formerly called YearlyKos, the four-day summit this year features a keynote tonight by former Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and addresses by Sen.Al Franken, Rep. Keith Ellison, former Obama green jobs adviser Van Jones and White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer, among others. Netroots gets a jump on RightOnline, a conservative conference held a few blocks away at the Minneapolis Hilton Friday and Saturday.
Video: MnIndy’s Andy Birkey discusses Pawlenty’s Morgan Stanley ties with Free Speech TV
Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s ties to Morgan Stanley and some of its top executives was the topic of a Thursday Free Speech TV conversation featuring Minnesota Independent senior reporter Andy Birkey.
Minnesota Independent wins three Society of Professional Journalists awards
At Tuesday night’s annual Society of Professional Journalists awards banquet, the Minnesota Independent was honored with three Page One Awards, including first place prize for “Best Independent News Blog.”
Ellison, McCollum express concern about expansion of Keystone pipeline
Minnesota Reps. Keith Ellison and Betty McCollum are among 34 Democrats expressing concern over an expansion to the Keystone pipeline, a 1,700-mile pipeline that’d carry some 700,000 barrels of oil extracted from Canadian tar sands from Alberta to Texas each day. In a letter to Environmental Protection Agency head Lisa Jackson and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the legislators asked for a meeting with State Department officials over concerns with the environmental impact of the line.
Video: Pawlenty woos Iowans
In a new campaign video, former Gov. Tim Pawlenty continues to woo voters in Iowa, site of America’s first presidential caucuses. He made his announcement last week in the Hawkeye State, and the video rounds up scenes and speeches — including one by his wife, Mary Pawlenty — from that event.
Pawlenty: If president, I’d sign Ryan Medicare overhaul into law
Rep. Paul Ryan’s plan to overhaul Medicare, voted down by the Senate last night, may carry electoral risk for those who back it, as recent state and national survey data suggests, yet presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty is now backing the plan.
