Up to this point, I have not mentioned my opponents name anywhere on this website. I have been visiting with people in St. Cloud and have made a decision to let people get to know me and what I stand for, before I talk about my opponent.
I have made a promise to my family, friends, constituents and most importantly myself, that when I am campaigning, I will be truthful at all times. I am not a career politician, nor have I been employed by the Government in some way for most of my life. I am a hard working and honest; father, son, brother and most of all average person just like the people in District 15B. I may not know every answer to every question, but I believe I posses what is most important in a State Representative, common sense. If I don't know the answer I will find it.
Too often politicians have canned answers to questions. This is not what I feel people are looking for in their State Representative. That being said, if someone at anytime during this campaign asks me a question on a topic, I will give them my common sense and truthful answer. I will not tell the people something they want to hear just to get their vote. When this election is over I know that I can take office with the knowledge that I have told people exactly what I feel and what I will do about it.
As we approach the new year, I feel it is important for me to not only let people continue to get to know me, but for people to get to know the difference between my opponent and myself. That is why I have decided to start discussing with you things about my opponent starting with this post.
My opponent, Larry Haws has spent a large portion of his life working for the Government and receiving a paycheck from the taxpayers. I have not. Therefore, I may not always have a canned answer on political questions, but I will have the average person's answer. Why, because I am the average person. (I hope my wife would say above average, but that's another issue.)
When Minnesota's 2008 forecast came out recently and showed a deficit, I believe that I looked at it from the average person's point of view. Stop spending more than you bring in! I would love to have a great big new house, and a fancy convertible, but I don't bring in enough money to support that kind of spending. Minnesotans like myself don't have the option of requiring their bosses to give them more money simply because we want it. Why should the Government be any different.
The answer to a budget deficit isn't to raise taxes on hard working people, the answer is to stop spending at such a high rate. Larry Haws believes that "Everything is on the table." (St. Cloud Times, December 6, 2007). I don't believe everything is on the table. I believe that raising taxes on Minnesotans is not on the table. It's time for the Government to look at itself in the mirror and see where reductions in wasteful spending can be made. I'm not talking about Education, Health Care or benefits for Veterans, I'm talking about wasteful spending. Perhaps the DFL should not have increased the number of committees to the point that they have, and I guarantee they should not have raised the amount of spending in these committee's budgets. At a time when Minnesota faces a deficit, why are my opponent and his friends increasing the amount of money they spend on committees and not focusing on what can be done to help Minnesotans?
When I'm elected I will focus on things that matter. Each day it is more and more evident that we need someone at the Capital that will look out for your wallet and keep the average person's beliefs a priority.
http://www.joshuabehling.com/
P.S. Gary Gross at the blog Let Freedom Ring has more on this issue as does Larry Schumacher a the St. Cloud Times.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Example of Wasteful Government Spending
House Republican Leader Marty Seifert issued a press release today describing the expansion of government that my opponent and his party have created in St. Paul.
It is time to elect someone to the House that realizes that simply adding committees, and money to them, doesn't cut it. It's time for the Government to stop wasting tax payer's money. This is another case of more talk and less action.
The purpose of the Legislature is to get things done. We need everyday citizens such as myself representing Minnesotans that are tired of government spending money to just talk. It's time to make things happen. There are plenty of committees that were in place prior to last session. They were fully capable of getting things done. I am for a government that functions on less, therefore keeping hard earned money in the hands of families like yours.
The State Legislature was designed to be made up of people from all walks of life; Farmers, Teachers, Salesmen, Accountants, Delivery Drivers and Factory workers to name a few. The idea was to have everyday people go to St. Paul during session and represent you...the people. Instead, my opponent and his DFL friends have created a full-time position for career politicians.
It's time to give back the State House to the people.
Here is the press release from Rep. Marty Seifert:
SAINT PAUL - (November 7, 2007) - Citing the more than 80 committees,subcommittees, working groups, task forces and commissions in the Minnesota House of Representatives, House Republican Leader Marty Seifert today criticized Democrats for the expansive and expensive growth in government."
The explosive growth of government shows what happens when Democrats take over," said House Republican Leader Marty Seifert. "The complicated and bloated process is confusing to the public, time consuming and expensive. There is very little to show for the excessive amount of meetings taking place. When all is said and done, there will be a lot more said than done."
Seifert said it is nearly impossible to determine how many groups are working on legislation and how much this process is costing Minnesota taxpayers.
"There seems to be a lot of repetition without reason. We question the necessity of having so many subgroups working on legislation that a standing committee should be able to accomplish on its own and the great number of meetings being held at taxpayer expense to hear about the problems but not bring forward solutions," Seifert said. "The Democrats have turned a part-time citizen legislature into a full-time job."
Seifert said at a time when schools and nursing homes are struggling to make their budgets, House Democrats chose to almost double its operations budget from $324,000 to $646,000 during a House Rules Committee meeting in August.
"We gave schools a mere 3 percent increase for the biennium and nursing homes received even less than that but then gave gigantic increases to the Legislature," Seifert said. This is a matter of priorities. The Democrats ran on fiscal responsibility and leadership. They have failed to demonstrate either during their reign of confusion in the Minnesota House. When House Republicans are in charge, we will restore fiscal sanity by cutting the number of committees by more than 50 percent and returning costs to prior levels."
Seifert said he is most concerned about the upcoming legislative session.
"We have important issues we need to resolve and this process doesn't make me confident that we will achieve those results," Seifert said. "In the private sector, failing businesses are often over managed and under led. The more than 80 House Democrat committees are too busy mopping the floor to take time and turn off the faucet."
It is time to elect someone to the House that realizes that simply adding committees, and money to them, doesn't cut it. It's time for the Government to stop wasting tax payer's money. This is another case of more talk and less action.
The purpose of the Legislature is to get things done. We need everyday citizens such as myself representing Minnesotans that are tired of government spending money to just talk. It's time to make things happen. There are plenty of committees that were in place prior to last session. They were fully capable of getting things done. I am for a government that functions on less, therefore keeping hard earned money in the hands of families like yours.
The State Legislature was designed to be made up of people from all walks of life; Farmers, Teachers, Salesmen, Accountants, Delivery Drivers and Factory workers to name a few. The idea was to have everyday people go to St. Paul during session and represent you...the people. Instead, my opponent and his DFL friends have created a full-time position for career politicians.
It's time to give back the State House to the people.
Here is the press release from Rep. Marty Seifert:
SAINT PAUL - (November 7, 2007) - Citing the more than 80 committees,subcommittees, working groups, task forces and commissions in the Minnesota House of Representatives, House Republican Leader Marty Seifert today criticized Democrats for the expansive and expensive growth in government."
The explosive growth of government shows what happens when Democrats take over," said House Republican Leader Marty Seifert. "The complicated and bloated process is confusing to the public, time consuming and expensive. There is very little to show for the excessive amount of meetings taking place. When all is said and done, there will be a lot more said than done."
Seifert said it is nearly impossible to determine how many groups are working on legislation and how much this process is costing Minnesota taxpayers.
"There seems to be a lot of repetition without reason. We question the necessity of having so many subgroups working on legislation that a standing committee should be able to accomplish on its own and the great number of meetings being held at taxpayer expense to hear about the problems but not bring forward solutions," Seifert said. "The Democrats have turned a part-time citizen legislature into a full-time job."
Seifert said at a time when schools and nursing homes are struggling to make their budgets, House Democrats chose to almost double its operations budget from $324,000 to $646,000 during a House Rules Committee meeting in August.
"We gave schools a mere 3 percent increase for the biennium and nursing homes received even less than that but then gave gigantic increases to the Legislature," Seifert said. This is a matter of priorities. The Democrats ran on fiscal responsibility and leadership. They have failed to demonstrate either during their reign of confusion in the Minnesota House. When House Republicans are in charge, we will restore fiscal sanity by cutting the number of committees by more than 50 percent and returning costs to prior levels."
Seifert said he is most concerned about the upcoming legislative session.
"We have important issues we need to resolve and this process doesn't make me confident that we will achieve those results," Seifert said. "In the private sector, failing businesses are often over managed and under led. The more than 80 House Democrat committees are too busy mopping the floor to take time and turn off the faucet."
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Welcome to my blog
The blog portion of my campaign website, will be used as a way to update you on the most current happenings of the Joshua Behling for State Rep. campaign. I will also post stories and links to other bloggers that are writing about the election.
Please stay tuned for updates. If you have a story you would like me to link to, please email me at info@joshuabehling.com.
Thank you,
Joshua Behling
Please stay tuned for updates. If you have a story you would like me to link to, please email me at info@joshuabehling.com.
Thank you,
Joshua Behling
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