Deliberate timing

I've talked to dozens of conservatives over the last few weeks about this intentional misconception that the Photo ID amendment would prevent MN servicemembers from voting while overseas.  What was intentional innuendo from the Secretary of State's office this summer became a spoken falsehood when an anti Photo ID group cut an ad with an Iraq veteran who states in no uncertain terms that 'to them (the legislature) military ID's aren't valid ID's". 

Protect My Vote responded yesterday by filing a complaint with the Campaign Finance Board, citing as evidence the current state law that recognizes a military ID as valid for voting, and the fact that the amendment cannot change that law.  But there is little chance that the complaint will be heard and ruled upon before the election, so the damage is done and the lie has been dutifully repeated by the media.  Welcome to the new style of DFL campaigning.

As we saw in 2010, the DFL camp made a conscious effort to outsource political campaigning from the DFL party itself to smaller mostly anonymous groups.  For all their complaining about PAC's and Citizens United, the liberal leaders in Minnesota were two steps ahead of the era of non party dominance in Minnesota.  Independent groups can pop up, receive hundreds of thousands of dollars from established progressive groups both in MN and nationally, say whatever they want, and worry about getting sued after the election.  It's the Seagull Theory of Politics-fly in just before the election, crap all over everything, and then fly out, leaving others to clean up the mess.

Consider this-Our Vote Our Future is connected to America Votes for Minnesota's Future, a national anti-photo ID group.  How are they connected?  They originally registered in Minnesota as 'America Votes for Minnesota's Future, AKA Our Vote Our Future'.  This group is a direct subsidiary of 'America Votes', a national Super PAC dedicated to anti Photo ID.  America Votes donated to Our Vote Our Future by way of two full time staffers that they have paid over $30,000 to since April.  Major donors for America Votes?  The Teamsters and AFSCME.

Back to the local group, Our Vote Our Future. Their latest campaign report shows $355k in cash donations, and over $490k of in-kind donations.  Where is the cash coming from? 

-$50k from the Communication Workers of Minnesota
-$10k from Education Minnesota
-$75k from Alida Messinger, the woman who brazenly bragged that she would buy her ex-husband a DFL legislature
-$10k from SEIU
-$50k from the Take Action PAC
-$50k from Twin Cities Schools Telecommunications Group, a non-profit corporation

Unions, corporations and Super PACs, along with Alida Messinger, are funding a group using an Iraq veteran to lie to voters about servicemembers being prevented from voting.

And the in-kind donations?

-$4500 Alliance for A Better Minnesota (more of Alida's money)
-$27k Coalition for Development and Revitalization (another non profit corporation)
-$1347 League of Women Voters (the supposedly non partisan group)
-$335k AFL-CIO
-$8537 Minnesota Council of Non Profits
-$14k SEIU national office
-$51k Take Action PAC

Again, unions, non profit corporations and Super PACs, along with a dash of Alida.

The only way that conservatives can push back against this onslaught is by word of mouth-tell your friends and neighbors the truth.  There is no way that the single pro Photo ID group can compete with the union, corporation and PAC money being funneled into the opposition.  In fact, Protect My Vote has 1/3 less in donations and NO in kind donations.  So conservatives are being outspent 3-1 on voter ID.

Spread the word about the lies-military voters will still cast a ballot under Photo ID- and spread the word about where the funding for the opposition is coming from.