The big lie: “Michele Bachmann is a “no-new-taxes” Republican.”

It’s simply not true. During the time she’s represented Stillwater in the State Senate, local property taxes in Bachmann’s Washington County-based district have soared.1 And these doesn’t include an unprecedented new tax levy that has now become necessary to run schools in her hometown of Stillwater. If this levy is passed, it will cost Stillwater residents an average of $372—in addition to property tax hikes they’ve seen over the past five years. 2

Contrary to what she’d have you believe, Bachmann is one of the politicians who’s been working to increase your family’s tax burden. She receives a 92% per cent rating from the Taxpayer’s League 3, a wealthy lobby dedicated to decreasing the taxes of the richest Minnesotans—thus passing on the burden to you and your family in local property taxes, school levies and fee hikes.

In the past four years, property taxes paid by working families and senior citizens living on fixed incomes have shot up by $2.1 billion dollars.4 Bachmann has spent her time in the legislature transferring the tax obligations from the richest Minnesotans to middle class and working families. Because of Republican cuts in state aid to local government, you’ve probably seen your own local property taxes and fees rise regularly—and you’ve certainly seen borrowing by the state that you will have to paid back with your future taxes.

Bachmann talks endlessly about holding the line on taxes. But she’s done a lousy job representing the families and schools in her district on tax issues. As their property taxes and fees continued to rise, services in her district—including school bus transportation 5 and school crossing guards at busy intersections 6—were cut in 2005.

Bachmann’s tax policy made cuts like that necessary in the first place. And the facts about property tax increases in her current district prove that her “no-new-taxes” rhetoric is nothing but a lie. Bachmann’s says her priorities are families and schools, but her real constituency is “millionaires and the Taxpayer’s League.”

If you vote to send her to Washington D.C. as your Congressional representative, you’re voting for more lies—and more taxes.

1 Source: Washington County; County Board Workshops on Taxes Payable, 2003-2006.

2 http://www.stillwatergazette.com/articles/2006/06/09/news/news130.txt

3 http://dumpbachmann.blogspot.com/2006/03/david-strom-of-taxpayers-league-calls.html

4 Minnesota Department of Finance Price of Government Report, February 2006

5 http://www.stillwatergazette.com/articles/2005/12/29/news/news01.txt

6 http://www.stillwatergazette.com/articles/2005/09/23/news/news02.txt