Rally's for Tax Cuts

This weekend there will be a gathering of some friends of mine at the State Capitol in Saint Paul.

We have been meeting for many years now. I started having these little regular get togethers after the first billion dollar bonding bill well over a decade ago.

It was just a small group of us then. Myself, Colin my brother and Charles Test; then Chair of the Libertarian Party of Minnesota.

I reserved the steps at the Capitol, built the "lug-a-lectern" and the "port-a-podium".
We hauled them up the stairs, set up the works (with a sound system provided by C. Test), weighed it down with sandbags and cranked up the tunes.

I did the M.C. work for most of them.

Over time others who were there include then State Representative Phil Krinkie, Tom Workman, Todd Van Dellum, Kevin Knight, and State Senator Linda Runbeck and Carol Molnau, just to name a few.

There were lots of people you never heard of. Many helped in many little ways. Some fed me, some bought me gasoline or lunch. Ken Iverson gave me an old car of his when mine died.

These get togethers came to be called rallys.

Some were titled such as the "Give it Back", "Give it all Back" and "Tax cuts Now!" rallys.
Eric Escola of CBS came to refer to us as the "Give It All Back" crowd on "Almanac" and elsewhere.

Jesse Ventura spoke at one of our "Give it Back" rallys prior to his election as Governor. The pictures are funny in that I built the podium to fit me, at five feet seven inches. Needless to say Jesse Ventura is quite taller than that.

At least a year before that, house Speaker Steve Sviggum spoke. He had a great prop I helped him display, a very large pink porciline pig.

The crowd loved it and the photos are great.

Now these rallys are known as the annual "Jason Lewis" tax cut rallys.
You saw me lead the Pledge of Allegeance at last years "Tax Cut Rally".

(I and some others had a complaint sustained by the MN News Council from last years coverage by WCCO. Read my complaint here at; "Complaint to MN News Council")

I delivered the Pledge of Allegiance at the "Tea Party" on the 15th of April.

I am very happy with the momentum and support gained over these many years.

What started with three is now easily thirteen thousand strong, and growing.

I may not get the opportunity to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance this year, but I don't mind at all.

It is nice to watch and not have to worry about making cues, setting lecturns and all the other incidentals I have done for all these years.

It is good to sit down and look back with satisfaction at the movements growth.

Hopefully we shall see our efforts bear fruit.