CNSNews.com - Minnesota Governor Stops All ACORN Funding

CNSNews.com

Minnesota Governor Stops All ACORN Funding
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
By Pete Winn, Senior Writer/Editor

(CNSNews.com) - Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R.) sent a letter Wednesday afternoon to the director of the Minnesota Commission of Management and Budget ordering him to stop all state funding to ACORN (the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now).

“The letter cites recent reports of questionable behavior and potentially illegal activity by ACORN and states that they are of great concern to the governor and underscores the recent vote by the U.S. Senate to ban federal funding to ACORN, which also reflects those concerns,” Pawlenty spokesman Alex Carey told CNSNews.com.

In the letter, the governor directs Hanson to stop all state funding to ACORN, unless the state is legally obligated to continue funding. No precise dollar amount is available, Carey said.

"In addition, the letter directs" the commission "to conduct a thorough review of the state’s relationship with ACORN and to report back to the governor with his findings,” he said.

ACORN has been under fire since hidden-camera videos made in Baltimore, Washington, New York and San Bernardino, Calif., appeared to show ACORN officials advising a couple posing as a prostitute and pimp on how to disguise their business. The videos were produced by James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles, who posed as the pimp and prostitute, and were posted on Andrew Breitbart’s BigGovernment.com.

In addition to Pawlenty’s action, the Census Bureau has also broken ties with ACORN and the Senate voted overwhelmingly Monday to block the Housing and Urban Development Department from giving grants to ACORN.

[Editor's note: On Wednesday evening the Associated Press cited an ACORN official who said the organization had no contracts that would be affected by Gov. Pawlenty's move. "ACORN deputy political director Kevin Whelan says there are no present contracts that would be affected in Minnesota," the AP reported. "Whelan says Pawlenty's move 'seems like it's motivated by politics or publicity.'"]

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Peted (5 months ago)

This stuff about ACORN is stranger than fiction. It took two intrepid reporters posing as a pimp and a hooker to get the goods on several ACORN offices to finally expose these people. Where was the Congressional oversight all this time? Probably too busy with hookers and pimps?

southgeorgia912 (5 months ago)

Now let's see the Federal Government put an end to ACORN funding - but I've got news for you. It won't happen, not as long as you've got Obama, PUKElosi, and Reid running the show.

jsmithcsa (5 months ago)

Good for him! ACORN is nothing but a criminal organization. I'd like to see the whole mess dismantled.

Harrad Sar (5 months ago)

Perhaps in the near future we will have a congress with the testicular fortitude to thoroughly investigate ACORN, putrid vermin that they are, to expose them as the criminal organization that everyone now knows them to be. The Attorney Generals of every state should start investigations of their own of every chapter and their related organizations. It's becoming clearer every day that the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act would to apply to this group of thugs and that ACORN needs to be bought down immediately. But then again, I won't be holding my breath on this one. It might be wishful thinking on my part to hope that this will happen any time soon. Let's hope that our congress and the state AG's will prove me wrong. Funding a Marxist group with taxpayer money that is working feverishly to destroy the Republic. What the hell are we doing to ourselves?

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