The “PCR” as it is known has become a flashpoint among the various Republican candidates and pre-candidates for Governor in the upcoming 2010 election as some have urged their supporters to give and collect their refund from the state before it expires on July 1. (Under the current budgetary crisis, Governor Pawlenty used “unallotment” to recapture those funds for other priorities.) Other candidates have told their supporters not to rush to donate refunded money because it undermines that re-prioritization to get more taxpayer money for political campaigns.
Back in March, 2009, Minnesota Free Market Institute Senior Policy Fellow Craig Westover had this to say:
[Tim] Utz was the 2008 GOP candidate for state representative in district 50A, Columbia Heights, a seat that was won by DFLer Carolyn Laine. Utz, however, has reason to run again.
“So many elected officials at the Minnesota state level, Democrats and Republicans alike, continue spending our taxes, restricting our personal liberties and creating ever greater heavy hand of government,” writes Utz on his campaign site.”The result is an endless gorging of Minnesota tax payer’s dollars and intrusion in our lives. Party affiliation fails to draw any real distinction when considering electing leadership in Saint Paul. Year after year the state government continues expanding to the point where few if any elected officials today understand the proper or legal function of State government.”
If the GOP is going to revitalize the brand of being the “Party of Principle,” accepting that it has been part of the problem is the first step to becoming part of the solution. Standing on principle means accepting the consequences of where principle leads. Consider the Political Campaign Refund law, which rebates $50 to individuals and $100 to couples for campaigns to political parties. The GOP platform calls for abolishing the Political Campaign Refund. The PCR reform was at one time one of 1,704 measures we could not live without. Utz, however, thinks we can, at least he can. He was one of only four GOP candidates that did not solicit PCR money to fund a campaign.
