First things first. Stop reading the mainstream media when it comes to budgets and tax policy in Minnesota. They want you to believe that Republicans and Democrats are worlds apart. Unfortunately, neither Governor Walz, the DFL House or the Senate Republicans have set forth a vision of smaller government.

Let's start with the least terrible plan: the Senate Republicans. Tax Chairman Sen. Roger Chamberlain (R - White Bear Lake) stood next to Majority Leader Sen. Paul Gazelka and proudly boasted on Wednesday that the Republican tax plan would reduce some taxes and have "no net impact on the Minnesota budget".

No net impact? Republicans who constantly talk about a vision of smaller government and less taxes should be aiming for a net reduction of the budgetspurred from massive tax cuts like ending the tax on social security, eliminating the estate tax and getting rid of the 2013 DFL tax hikes. Instead, they target a modest drop in the marginal tax rate of 7.05% (down to 6.80%). And shield some of the income of social security from taxation.

It appears the Senate Republicans are satisfied with keeping the status quo of Minnesota being the least tax friendly state in the nation. In totality, the amount of money removed from government coffers via their plan is only $800 Million, which means they used the rest of the $4 Billion surplus for new government spending. What a scheme they are running. Say you believe in smaller government at election time, then grow government during the legislative session.

Prediction: You'll be guilted into voting Republican in 2020 because they aren't as bad as the Democrats. We suggest you remember that the lesser of two evils is still evil. You should not put up with this awful performance by Republicans.

Now onto the Democrat tax vision. Both Gov Walz and the DFL House appear hell-bent on taking more of our money. One would likely believe their focus would be on the uber wealthy, but a recent article by the Star Tribune perfectly explains who is harmed: lower income folks.

According to an analysis by the Minnesota Dept of Revenue, lower income Minnesotans would see a 10% increase in taxation. This should surprise no one since Walz' proud policy initiative is to increase the state gasoline tax by 70%. That tax is regressive and could easily add up to $300 per household annually.

On top of that, the Democrats want to keep the expiring 2% health provider tax which is tax on the sick. Walz and the DFL House also want to tax multinational corporations doing business in Minnesota more through a repatriation tax. This move would bring $361 Million more dollars into greedy bureaucratic hands. And they also want a 12.85% tax on capital gains over $500k and freeze the estate tax threshold at $2.7 Million according to the Tax Foundation's analysis.

The Democrat tax plan would raise taxes by $1.4 Billion in the next two years which helps fund their massive $50 Billion budget. We can think of no better scheme perpetrated on the taxpayers of Minnesota than a bunch of politicians who start a legislative session facing a budget surplus, then end up taxing us even more.

This is the tale of the two tax schemes at the Capitol. The mainstream Minnesota media will continue perpetuating this lie that the two parties are worlds apart. But truth be known, you taxpayers are guaranteed to face high taxes for another two years under the power of the current tenants occupying our Capitol building.

Action 4 Liberty's mission is to build a freedom team at the Capitol who fight tooth and nail to expand individual freedoms and reduce government control. We want Minnesota to be a top 10 state for business which means our fighters will work to radically reduce the taxes you pay, while decreasing the size and scope of government.

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