Rich Broderick's post reminds us why we should not be lulled by a more centrist-appearing Gov. Pawlenty.
[H]e likes to plant poison-pill stipulations in what he pretends are simple policy initiatives, seeking to place opponents in the position of appearing to "obstruct" the very progress the public is clamoring for. It's a tactic right out of Karl Rove's playbook.
Take, as the most recent example, his proposal to increase Minnesota's state aid to cities — one of the principal victims of recent budget cuts — while tying the increase to two utterly unacceptable conditions: a.) the increase could only be used to fund public safety; and b.) cities receiving the aid would be forbidden to raise taxes.
As Broderick points out, public safety isn't a big shortcoming in most communities. Second, local governments are responsible to their voters, not the governor, for how they raise and spend money. This is just a back door way of usurping local authority to determine what constituents need — similar to his 70% spending in the classroom education "accountability" proposal.
