What’s sexier: deficits or Paris Hilton? Arne says deficits!

Gov. Arne Carlson spoke Wednesday at a progressive Republicans gathering in St. Paul about the need to get beyond partisanship to tackle the deficit, global warming and the U.S. foreign policy crisis. (Photo: Growth & Justice)

In a week when some of theRepublican Party’s most conservative leaders are declaring a re-energized basebecause ofthe nomination ofAlaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a social conservative, as John McCain’s runningmate,MinnesotaprogressiveRepublicans held a rally oftheir own Wednesday.

A symposium sponsored by St. Paul-based Growth& Justice, a nonpartisan progressive economic think tank, turned spirited as former Republican governors Al Quie andArne Carlson joined U.S. Rep. Jim Ramstad in calling for a return to the center. And to talking real issues.

Citing Minnesota’s century-long history of a progressive Republicanism that concerned itself with health care and poverty as well as economic responsibliity, Ramstad said it’s time to stop litmus tests on social issues and start working together to tacklethe huge issues facing our state and nation.

"Our country faces huge challenges," said the retiring congressman, quoting columnist George Will, who said we’re living in the most perilous time since World War II. "We need to work in a bipartisan way … we must convince our friends on both extremes that we must govern from the center."

Ramstad, who’s been in Congress since 1991 and was in the Minnesota Senate from 1981 to 1990, offered as an example of progressive Republicanism and bipartisan cooperation the Mental Health Parity Bill, which he championed along with the late U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone of Minnesota. The bill is expected to pass this month.

"It’s not only the cost-effective thing to do — it’s the right thing to do," Ramstad said, to applause. "This legislation really mirrors Minnesota’s tradition of accountable investments in human capital."

Ramstad echoed Quie and Carlson in lamenting how their party has turned narrow and stopped asking the critical questions,instead becoming obsessed with no tax hikes and social-issue litmus tests that miss the big picture.

"What happened [in Minnesota's Republican history] is that people developed principles that were more important than politics," said Quie, who was electedgovernor in 1979 as a tax cutter but ended up a key proponent of special education funding.

Today, "institutions have become more important than people … that’s what’s wrong with the Republican Party."

More than 100 people, including some of Minnesota’s wealthiest and most influential moderate Republicans and a few Democrats, gathered at the St. Paul College Club on Summit Avenue Wednesday morning for the event, called Minnesota’s Progressive Republican Tradition.

Carlson was more fiery –exasperated, one might say — in his 25-minute talk.The former governor offered a detailedplan of actiontobegin fixingproblems thatneither partyof late hasaddressed. The nation’s $9.5 trillion deficit — whichCarlsonclaims would be $50 million if the nation applied the same rigid accounting standards to itself that it does to corporations, through Sarbanes-Oxley — is one unaddressed topic, he said.

"Neither political convention is discussing anything of any value — they are not mentioning the deficits or the consequences of global warming … what they are talking about is how bad the other guy is, and we’re not as bad,"Carlson said.

"How do you [candidates] intend to handle the deficit?"

Carlson took shots across the board: at partisan politics,at amedia industry weakened by cost-cutting and a herd mentality that’s fueled by society’s aversion to dissent and critical thinking, as well as the masses and their "escapism" through — you guessed it — Paris Hilton.

"Below all the cheerleading [of the conventions and campaigns], there is a very anxious, very fearful and very worried American society," Carlson said, adding that this fretful society "has entered a period of escapism where we’re more concerned about Paris Hilton than we are with deficits."

His solution?Bipartisanship in the tradition he practiced — remember, his own party wouldn’t endorse him, andsupporters sometimesattribute that tohis support of gay and lesbian rights at a time when virtually no Republicans daredto do the same? — and private-sectorthink tanksand other brain collaborations. Create acommittee anchored by Al Gore to address innovative solutions, including major tax changes, to combat global warming now –don’t establish reductions a decade or three into the future.

Bring together brilliant leaderslike George Mitchell,Warren Rudman, Mario Cuomo, Lee Iaccoca and Minnesota’s own former Medtronic CEO Bill George to create solutions to thedeficit problem. And don’t forget America’s foreign policy — an international relations fiasco which also needsto be addressed head-on,Carlsonadded.

Finally, put the U.S.government on an accrualsystem of accounting– the same kind that companies use — and stopallowing inclusionof "off budget" items. Carlson related how the U.S. comptroller himself has warned of disaster and won’t even sign off onsome financial documents because of the government’s heavy deficit.

"Imagine what would happen to a corporation if the CFO wouldn’t sign off on the financial documents?" Carlson said. "And yet that is what’s happening [with the U.S. government] … and it’s not even a news story."

Carlson got several strong rounds of applause, especially when he said that the ingredient that’s been missing from the public dialogue — and political playbooks — "is courage."

Doing the right thing may require saying and doing things that are not popular — and won’t get a politician re-elected.

But "that’s what being a public servant is about," he said.

One Response to “What’s sexier: deficits or Paris Hilton? Arne says deficits!”

1. Charlie Quimby Says:
   September 6th, 2008 at 10:22 am

   This is the best account of the event I’ve read. I picked it up for my blog, where an alert reader noticed that Carlson’s $50 million number for the deficit under Sarbanes-Oxley rules should probably be $50 trillion.