Whoa! What’s this? A GOP-backed tax increase?

MORNING EDITION

Wait a minute … this is a tax increase! The AP is reporting: “Two Republicans state senators on Thursday proposed that so-called ‘little cigars’ should be taxed at the higher rate applied to cigarettes in Minnesota. Little cigars along with normal-sized cigars are defined as ‘tobacco products’ under state law and taxed at a lower rate than cigarettes. Various state taxes on cigarettes add up to almost two dollars a pack, and the Department of Revenue estimated that taxing little cigars like cigarettes would raise about $6 million in the 2012-13 budget cycle. Normal-sized cigars would not be affected. That’s not much compared to the $5 billion state budget shortfall, but it’s a case of legislative Republicans actually backing an uptick in a state tax — rare so far in the current legislative session.” No kidding. Where’s that dang pledge, anyway?

The gridlocked “debate” in D.C. over the current budget, with repeated continuing resolutions and nibbling cuts, has yet to affect Minnesota all that much, according to an MPR story by Brett Neely. “Republican Rep. Chip Cravaack said he was sure that there were projects in his northeast Minnesota district that would be affected by budget cuts. ‘I mean you can’t have $14.1 trillion in debt and start doing the cutting [and] savings that we’re trying to do and not have something affected,’ Cravaack said. Rep. Collin Peterson, a longtime Minnesota Democrat and a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog coalition, said these past two rounds of cuts were easy. ‘Most of these cuts are things that Obama has proposed or agreed to, and I can’t see that they’re going to have much impact on the state or agriculture for that matter.’ “

With Rochester now Minnesota’s third largest city, surpassing Duluth by almost 20 percent, KARE’s Boyd Huppert looks at the city’s prospects for even more growth: “The Mayo Clinic deserves much of the credit. The internationally acclaimed health care facility is responsible for many of the 9,000 health care jobs added in Rochester the past ten years. ‘When a shoe manufacturer adds 300 jobs, they don’t get a whole lot of visitors,’ explained Wheeler. ‘When the clinic adds 9,000 jobs, that entails mostly people coming here.’ “

Well, we’ve talked about it for months. Now flood season is here. Bill McAuliffe of the Strib writes: “The Minnesota River and the Red River of the North are at the top of the list of U.S. flood risks. In a press conference Thursday, flood forecasters said both places are likely to see major or even record flooding within the next two weeks. … The melt of a thick blanket of snow across the Northern Plains could set the stage for summer flooding along the Mississippi. It also could have an impact on the barge-shipping season and delay crop planting. This winter’s snow cover across the north-central U.S. contains a water content ranked among the highest of the past 60 years, according to NOAA.”

An AP story says noted chimp researcher Jane Goodall’s archive is moving from the University of Minnesota to Duke: “Duke spokesman Karl Bates said Thursday the archives on chimpanzees that Goodall gathered during decades of work in Tanzania is being moved to the Durham campus from the University of Minnesota. The collection will be under the direction of Anne E. Pusey, chairwoman of the university’s Department of Evolutionary Anthropology. Pusey had collaborated with Goodall in Tanzania and previously managed the archives from her post at Minnesota. She was hired by Duke about a year ago.”

Our Derek Wallbank pretty much has the Minnesota angle on the House GOP’s vote to defund NPR to himself. After noting the straight line 4-4 split, Wallbank says: “It should be noted that at least a partial reason for the vote is that many Republicans think NPR is biased in favor of liberals in general and Democrats in particular, and have cited the recent firing of conservative commentator Juan Williams, as well as comments made by a senior NPR fundraiser (no longer with NPR) in a highly-edited covert sting video, to support that belief. ‘NPR is widely recognized as a partisan media outlet that has long served as a platform for decidedly left-leaning programming and commentary,’ [Texas Rep. Jeb] Hensarling said. ‘This is a highly objectionable trait for an organization that is funded by American taxpayers. Thanks to today’s House vote, we are one step closer to ensuring that will no longer be the case.’ Massachusetts Democrat Jim McGovern, in a bit of pique, introduced a retaliatory amendment to ban federal funding for advertisements on Fox News.”

GOP state Rep. Mark Buesgens has violated his probation for DUI. Rachel Stassen-Berger blogs on the Strib’s “Hot Dish Politics”: “Buesgens was stopped by a Scott County Sheriff’s deputy Wednesday night after a caller saw his car and reported that he or she believed the driver was drunk. Kevin Studnicka, the Scott County Sheriff, said the report did not include what the driver, who turned out to be Buesgens, did that made the caller suspect a violation. Studnicka said a deputy tracked down Buesgens car, witnessed a turn-signal violation and stopped the representative. When stopped, Buesgens initially said he had nothing to drink, then said he had two mixed drinks during dinner, the sheriff said. Buesgens said he had just one mixed drink. … Buesgens also faces financial trouble. Late last year, the bank that holds his mortgage moved to foreclose upon his Jordan home. The foreclosure was delayed but Buesgens said Thursday that he may lose his home.” That guy may need a better-paying night job than state legislator.

Dick Day’s day is nigh. The colorful ex-senator, now the head of Minnesota’s racino effort, is promising a bill … very soon. Baird Helgeson of the Strib writes: “The proposal will run up against powerful anti-gambling forces at the Capitol, including groups opposed for moral reasons and tribes that don’t want to lose their monopoly on gambling in the state. Both sides have powerful legislative allies in an issue that doesn’t split down party lines. But the state’s $5 billion projected deficit could convince legislators to give the proposal a serious look. The state could receive about $250 million every two years, money that could go for education, Capitol renovation or other cash-strapped causes.” I’d love to be there for the backroom deals with the tribes on this one.

If you know who Frank Luntz is, you know you don’t meet with him in your Wisconsin Capitol governor’s office to discuss “job creation.” Jason Stein of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports: “Democrats have filed a complaint over Walker’s meeting last month with a prominent Republican pollster. In a complaint with the state Government Accountability Board, state Democratic Party executive director Maggie Brick questioned whether Walker had derived a benefit from a free meeting with political consultant Frank Luntz on Feb. 23. State officials are not supposed to use their positions to seek anything of value. Walker spokesman Cullen Werwie has said the purpose of the meeting was to advance Wisconsin businesses, not Walker’s political career. Werwie said Thursday that the complaint was meant to be a distraction from Walker’s effort to create jobs in the state.” Now really, is anyone supposed to actually believe that?