In my last op-ed, I exposed how the Democratic Socialists of America have managed to hijack the levers of power within the previously moderate Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party and transform it into a New DFL that is fundamentally at odds with American values.
In typical socialist fashion, those in charge of the New DFL have wasted no time in spending your tax money on (you guessed it) themselves. Rather than attending to the affordability and infrastructure needs of Minnesotans, they committed taxpayers to approximately $730 million in total costs, including projected interest, to construct a political palace: the Minnesota State Office Building in Saint Paul, from which they wish to rule on high.
Furthermore, knowing this spending blowout would never pass a floor vote in the Republican-led Senate, they abused a legal loophole within our state finance laws that allowed a 16-member House committee to move forward with the project, despite Republican protest. In doing so, the New DFL bypassed Minnesota’s democratic institutions and demonstrated their contempt for the will of the public.
Repairs were needed; a palace was not
Nobody disputes that the old State Office Building was in need of repair. The building, which contained the legislative offices of our state representatives and Minnesota House staff, was plagued with mold, electrical issues, and leaks, which created an unhealthy work environment for employees and an unpleasant experience for visitors.
A 2020 request from the Department of Administration (DOA) estimated that it would cost $255 million to complete the above infrastructure repairs and restore the building to a functional condition. Even after accounting for additional security screening measures, which would have added several million dollars to the DOA estimate, this should have been a straightforward restoration project. That is not what transpired. Rather than simply fixing the building’s issues, the New DFL chose to build a palace roughly $475 million more expensive than the DOA’s earlier repair estimate, complete with luxury finishes.
Including financing costs, taxpayers are now committed to a staggering $730 million price tag. This sum is far greater than the estimated combined market value of all eight skyscrapers in Saint Paul, which our House staff valued at approximately $360 million using sales and Ramsey County assessment records.
You read that correctly. For what the New DFL spent on one building, they could have bought the Saint Paul skyline!
New DFL palace economics: We buy now, you pay later (with interest)
Upon completion, the renovated and expanded State Office Building will feature a total footprint of roughly 456,000 square feet. Adorned with natural granite exterior panels, custom cast decorative aluminum ornaments, restored terrazzo flooring, historic marble details, and a massive glass atrium layout, the redesign adds 166,000 square feet to the original 1932 building footprint. When the pre-interest construction cost of $500 million is divided by the square footage, the New DFL managed to spend an astounding $1,100 per square foot on their palace. For comparison, the pre-interest private-sector cost to build a Class A office building in the Twin Cities typically falls in the neighborhood of $400–600 per square foot, depending on building height, design, and specifications. (Note: Class A is generally considered the highest-quality office space in a commercial market.)
To make matters worse, the interest on the loan that the New DFL took out for the expansion is projected to reach as high as $275 million.
This means the amount of palace interest alone that Minnesota taxpayers will ultimately be forced to pay is greater than the entire 2020 building repair estimate of $255 million.
The New DFL does not want your input
Just as they did when they changed the state flag without our permission, the New DFL used a committee loophole to steamroll the will of the public and pass this waste of taxpayer resources without ever holding a vote on the floor of the Minnesota House or Senate.
How is this possible? The New DFL abused a provision within the 2021 State Government Finance and Policy bill that effectively bypassed the traditional legislative bonding process. This non-democratic maneuver gave the House Rules and Legislative Administration Committee authority over the project and allowed the committee to spend taxpayer dollars without the traditional requirement of holding a vote in both chambers.
When they forced the palace spending through in December 2022, our state government was split. Republicans held a 34–31 majority in the Minnesota Senate, while the New DFL held a 69–65 majority in the Minnesota House. This House majority gave the New DFL more seats than Republicans on the House Rules and Legislative Administration Committee, where they decided to move forward with the project without a single Republican voting in favor. Had the process reflected the will of the people at that time, Senate Republicans would have had the opportunity to put an end to this affront to taxpayers.
The takeaway: New DFL champagne socialists are fiscally and morally inept
It is my hope that the palace spending blowout serves as another wake-up call to Minnesotans that the New DFL is not the party that our grandparents may have voted for. Their values no longer even reflect what the party espoused just 10 years ago, when they at least pretended to be interested in responsibly managing public funds.
While you were experiencing the highest inflation in decades, the champagne socialists in the New DFL bought opulence without your input. If that is what “progressive” means, I want nothing to do with it.
With these facts in mind, I encourage you to visit the palace after it is complete. After all, you paid for it. While you are there, take notice of all the potholes on the surrounding roads. Those are for us peasants to deal with.
Tom Murphy is a Republican state representative who represents District 9B in the Minnesota House.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not represent an official position of Alpha News.
Tom Murphy
Tom Murphy is a Republican state representative who represents District 9B in the Minnesota House.
