Maybe GOP and DFL legislators can agree on ‘Mom’s Amendment’

Minnesota Senate Minority Leader Tom Bakk introduced a bill today that would move up this year's fishing opener by one weekend, from Mother's Day weekend, to May 5 and 6.

Apart from the general sentiment that this proposal promotes domestic tranquility across the North Star state, the thing that actually makes this workable is that the unusually warm winter has created earlier ice-outs, opening lakes to boat traffic, and an earlier walleye spawn.

Vatican calls off stem cell conference

The Vatican announced late last week that the Third International Congress on Responsible Stem Cell Research has been cancelled. The conference, being organized by the Pontifical Academy for Life and scheduled for April 25-28, was to focus on clinical applications of adult and reprogrammed stem cells.

One of the conference organizers cited "logistical, organizational and financial factors" that forced the cancellation. Inside sources suggest that the conference was scrubbed because of an ongoing concern within the Academy that the prominence of advocates for human embryonic stem cell research may lead to scandal regarding the Church’s teaching.

Some of the invited speakers, including Alan Trounson, president of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine in San Francisco, and keynote speaker George Daley, a stem cell scientist at Children's Hospital Boston in Massachusetts, while experts in the use of adult stem cells, are also involved in research using human embryonic stem cells. The previous two congresses had also included scientists who worked on such cells, without generating much controversy.

A formal explanation of the cancellation for the attendees is pending.

Here‘s your guide to today’s Supreme Court arguments over Obamacare

A Q&A look at how arguments will unfold in front of the Supreme Court over the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as "Obamacare.

Standing up for religious freedom

From The Catholic Spirit:

Minnesota Senate approves voter photo ID amendment

After five hours of debate, the state senate followed the house and approved the voter photo ID amendment. The measure will now be put to the voters on the November ballot.

US attempts to push contraception agenda through UN women’s commission

In the face of backlash from the HHS mandate that is resulting in nationwide rallies today (Friday), the Obama administration continues pressing the contraception agenda internationally.

From Catholic World News:

The United Nations' Commission on the Status of Women has been the scene of recent attempts by the United States delegation to incorporate its views on "safe, effective, affordable and acceptable modern methods of contraception" and "age-appropriate sex education" into a maternal-mortality resolution.

The Obama administration's refusal to compromise on the contraception language gained support from Norway and opposition from Chile, Iran, Malta, the Holy See, and African nations led by Zimbabwe. "In a dramatic showdown, delegations scuttled a final document rather than accept the US proposal," the Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute reported.

Ryan releases framework for FY13 budget

House Budget Committee Chairman, Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, released this week a budget resolution for fiscal year 2013, The Path to Prosperity: A Blueprint for American Renewal. As the Heritage Foundation notes, it cuts spending sharply and quickly, begins decisive entitlement reform, avoids any tax hikes, ensures a strong national defense, contains pro-growth tax reforms, and moves swiftly and surely to a balanced budget--all of which guarantees a torpedoing from the left and a plus-one to the streak of years without Harry Reid and the Democrat-led senate passing a budget.

Minnesota House passes photo ID constitutional amendment

A constitutional amendment requiring a valid photo ID be presented to vote passed the Republican-led Minnesota House of Representative in the early morning hours of Wednesday, March 21. The 72-62 vote was along party lines. If the measure passes the state senate, which also carries a Republican majority, then it will be placed on the November ballot for ratification.

One step against fraud and the disenfranchisement of law-abiding voters.

McCain to GOP: Avoid contraception issue

The senior senator from Arizona (aka Sen. Smeagol) thinks "there is a perception out there because of the way this whole contraception issue played out – we need to get off of that issue in my view. I think we ought to respect the right of women to make choices in their lives and make that clear -- and get back onto what the American people really care about: jobs and the economy."

Because, of course, the "contraception issue" is really about religious freedom a "war on women."

Do wavering Obama voters think the man they voted for is naïve?

Rather than just evil, or stupid? It appears that may be the case according to recent focus groups; Jim Geraghty notes it's a long and growing list of concerns coming from swing states, beginning with the usual suspects:

• Grandiose promises on the stimulus fail to materialize 
• Obamacare touted as the answer to all their health care needs and turn out to be nothing of the sort 
• Pledges of amazing imminent advances in alternative energy

But wait, there's more:

• He seemed to think that reaching out to the Iranians would lead to a change in the regime’s behavior and attitudes 
• He was surprised to learn that shovel-ready projects were not, in fact, shovel-ready 
• He was surprised to learn that large-scale investment in infrastructure and clean energy projects wouldn’t great enormous numbers of new jobs 
• He’s surprised that his past housing policies haven’t helped struggling homeowners like he promised 
• He’s surprised that his signature health care policy has become as controversial as it has 
• The “recession turned out to be a lot deeper than any of us realized” 
• When a woman says her semiconductor engineer husband can’t find a job, Obama says he’s surprised to hear it, because “he often hears business leaders in that field talk of a scarcity of skilled workers” 

The poor guy. He’s always getting blindsided.