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" Live from the Aspen ideas festival right but I got your life through this morning got today. From a breakfast session and ask them. -- A whole bunch of devoted idea mongers here -- audience. Willing to get up very early here in the mountain time zone and have some eggs and coffee with a side of ideas I am impressed. You people are all here and we again thank -- Aspen institute for making these programs possible with a generous support. So Al Franken is going to Washington as senator from Minnesota he will be sworn in after the Senate's fourth of July recess. The election was finalized by the Minnesota Supreme Court this week and then certified by governor -- Poland to our first guest this morning. Our New York audience may not be so familiar with him polity but he was probably most pundits first -- Four who John McCain would choose as his running mate last year. And just this week the conservative website new majority called -- the Republican party's version of President Obama. Young charismatic articulate and talks of the future of the Republican Party with great hope unquote so lets me. Temple acting governor thanks very much for coming to us and thank you for having any kind -- The election Franken could certify the election any reservations about whether he really should have been declared the winner by the court."

" No in Minnesota we had a very long and heated campaign we had a long and heated at the litigation process that Minnesota Supreme Court certified the result. And so that's Al Franken was entitled to the election certificate and that the process was fair it's not the result I would have preferred that the process was fair and -- now we need to move --"

" He had basically this time election. And recount battle in the court that lasted from. November 2 the end of June 8 months incredibly. To the people of Minnesota come out of this process bitter and divided like people worry after bush versus gore there's a lot of for a."

" Station yes on both sides. But we had to balance the need to have a full congressional delegation which is very important with the need to make sure that our election process had integrity. And was accurate and was credible and took some time but I think we can now say after all of that review. Those two things were improper bills for people were frustrated took too long. -- Minnesota learn any lessons from bush versus gore in Florida in dealing with this recount fight and the most productive possible. But the main problem in our election was the absentee ballots just two years ago there were 12000. Absentee ballots cast in Minnesota. This election cycle that -- nearly 300000. Nearly all of the ballots that -- where people showed up at the polls and put him through the counting machines. Were accurate almost a 100% accurate all of the problems were with the respect absentee ballot is -- because of the trend toward early voting. I think it's also a trend towards interest groups using the absentee ballot process in lieu of vote by mail and it's supposed to be used if you're out of town if you're sick if you're hospitalized. And it's become used for convenience. Which isn't a bad thing that the process really wasn't intended for -- the rules aren't modernized in that regard serve what rules do you think need to change or do you think that this tendency nationally toward early voting in presidential elections should be reversed. Well I think that rather than having people lie about the reasons why they mean these absentee ballot in other words same out of town when they're really -- out of town. We be better served amongst other things looking at some sort of limited early voting because we know when people show up they log in and they run their -- through the machine it's highly accurate process. Governor temple and few of us on WNYC. From Minnesota and you're considered a likely front runner for the next Republican presidential nomination. House President Obama doing so far in European. Well first of all. He inherited a tough situation and so we need to acknowledge that and six months into the presidency it's not fair to assess somebody because presidencies are. Evaluated more fairly over four years or even over the course of history. In my opinion. You know coming from somebody who's a Republican. We have a situation where the spending issue at the federal levels out of control they don't even try to balance the budget anymore he's taken a tough deficit and debt situation and tripled it and I think that is gonna come back in very serious and profound ways in the intermediate. Future and haunt us that you cannot continue to defy the financial laws of gravity. As we learned in the mortgage crisis and not have that come back in a very problematic way and I think that's what's gonna happen. But wasn't the -- one of the lessons of the Great Depression that we do need to spend and spend vigorously and not stop spending too early. In order to help -- our way out of there. Look I think one of the things we need to learn is if you're gonna have a stimulus bill I think many Republicans including me he does support some sort of stimulus we would have liked it to be on bread and -- things like roads and bridges or things that would put money into people's pockets right away like. Reducing the payroll tax. But the general accounting office recently and this is the federal government nonpartisan entity set of the 800 billion dollar stimulus package. They believe that only 169. Million of course it was actually stimulative. And the rest was largely wasted as it relates to stimulating the economy so I'm gonna ask you the Mark Sanford question not that Mark Sanford question how I'm gonna ask you the mark Stanford Stanford stimulus question because he was the governor who actually. Refused to take some of the money because he thought it was not being well spent. Did you consider doing something like that is governor of Minnesota. Well I did but in the end that we took the money for this reason Minnesota for every dollar we send to Washington we get 73 cents back on that measure. We are the fifth lowest recipient of federal money and the fifth highest subsidize -- of the rest of the country in terms of money into the federal government and money out so. We pay more than our share of the bill in Minnesota it's that we don't feel bad about getting as some of that money. Is there -- best thing we just say there's the best thing the President Obama has done so far. I think President Obama is a very gifted communicators. Obviously somebody who is comfortable with people he's gets along with people. He's likable than in that regard so I think he's got a tremendous gift he's going to be able to use that hopefully and ways to. And race issues up for example and we had Arnie Duncan on the show the other day and four. -- Democrat to be able to potentially take on some of the education establishment that's a very powerful things I hope that they'll do that and I'm."

" And ask you about money Duncan's radical proposal that we heard on the show yesterday and our listeners know what that is. Coming up in a minute. But are you a different kind of Republican. From President Bush or Vice President Cheney I know there's so much talk within the party now about what the party is and how it needs to change or not. Would you characterize yourself as different kind of Republican from the last."

" Administration leaders from. Other if if -- sports. Team manager or coach I'd be sitting here saying Republican parties in a rebuilding year. We're gonna need to have some stretch a draft choices we're gonna need to make some -- clearly the party's gonna need to modernize. It's going to need to reach out to vote voter groups that it doesn't get good support from. But it's lot of times commentators and pundits. Asked the question in a way to say what to modernize should judges be more like the Democrats. I think the opportunity and challenge for Republicans is to take their values are values and principles. And try to apply them to the emerging issues of our time anywhere else can you -- real specific policy example of that yet for example the energy issue. You know we were asleep at the switch is a country for decades on this issue instead of Republicans being on the defensive about that I think they should have been on the -- health care would be another -- you believe global warming is real. Well I believe there's enough evidence to say that we should do some things to address it without wrecking the economy how you do that the details of that matter I think we should all before trying to limit or reduce pollution. And nations how you do that is important. For example. On my friends on the other side of the aisle don't generally support nuclear power. Nuclear powers emission free. For the most part we do have the radioactive waste issue that France and Japan can be working on re processing that waste liking and we. That it's not a new idea. It's not a new idea but it but it it is -- in the context of fighting. Emissions and climate change issues so if if the proposition is what's the most effective way. To deal with that -- climate change one of the best ways to do that is to reduce emissions from base load power it's one of the biggest and hitters in the country. And the best way to do that in the near term -- since we don't have clean coal. In our renewables are -- that the magnitude yet they can pick up those Balkan the load is nuclear power. Did a reflexive. Republican resistance to regulation. Contribute to the banking crisis. Well there's a lot of things that contributed the banking crisis starting agreed pinkish behavior by individuals -- number one. Number two we have regulations that are outdated they -- in vision and drafted for financial markets and instruments of forty years ago they didn't squarely applied to the transactions of today. And we also had regulators were asleep at the switch. And so all of those things combined created in part the situation in the crisis but -- reflexive Republican resistance to regulation. Contribute somewhat to the banking crisis I would say yes but I would also add to that that the co equal partners of the problem were people in congress including Democrats who said hey let's continue to fuel Fannie let's -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Let's continue to take their political contributions let's continue let them run wild on. Whether we're gonna have. Measurements around down payments -- have affordability measurements that are reasonable and responsible so to say it was only. You know reflexive Republicans view of regulation I think it's incomplete and unfair."

" Minnesota governor Tim -- in my guest on WNYC at the Aspen ideas festival. Most governors as you well know dealing with budget problems right now California is in the news today for being so extreme that they sent out 30000 IOUs to their creditors yesterday. Rather than actual payment for -- billions of dollars worth of IOUs. Use this week issued what Minnesota calls. On allotments if you as governor if I understand this correctly or unilaterally. Rescinding expenditures. That's the legislature approved and you sign is that correct yes. And I don't know Minnesota law or politics really that I gather that the legislature thinks you don't have the legal right. Is the legislative legislative branch gonna take the executive. Branch to court in Minnesota."

" Well this I don't think they are this has been around since 1939 other governors have used it they said they're not gonna sit there may be some lobby groups -- interest groups who's who's who but I think we're on solid legal ground in that regard the prime -- cause of this is states. And the federal government has spent more than they've taken it. And so you cannot continue to live beyond your means and expect that -- to come back to -- like we said earlier. The federal government the united states of America's government is essentially insolvent they don't have enough money to pay their bills. But for the fact that the Chinese and others around the world are buying our debt. We wouldn't be able to pay the bills today. Now that is faced scary and frightening thing and if the president of the United States goes on a show and says we don't have any more money -- out of money. Maybe then we should suggest the federal government stop spending the money. We cannot continue on this path that is unsustainable. It is irresponsible. And it is gonna implode."

" With the analogy be if a Republican congress -- of the democratic legislature I -- that I guess they do if a Republican congress. Pass the budget and President Obama signed it. And then months later Obama came back and say well -- unilaterally taking out this line in this line in this line would that be okay with you."

" Well we do -- called the line item veto every state in the nation -- and and keep in mind I didn't sign their whole budget Suisse agreed on most things but not all things so they sent spending bills that didn't have the ability to pay for its list of things have to be reconciled. States unlike the federal government actually have to balance the budget. It's difficult it's challenging but it's important to do. -- governor have you been following the New York State government dysfunction sort -- yeah I've arms like but I read the news accounts of it and you know it's. No different than California or some other places it's worse in many respects. But this is the future if we don't get control of the spending what's happening in New York what's happening in California. Even if the economy recovers. We have entitlement programs that we cannot pay for in the future even if revenues recover. And then those that cannot continue Minnesota has a reputation as pretty good government state. Anything New York can learn from Minnesota how. Well in Minnesota the -- been in existence since 1858. 150 years the budget has never gone down to your budget cycle to do you budget cycle until now. The average annual spending increase and our budget since 1962. Presence telling became governor was 19%. Average for two year period you cannot spend 19% for budget cycle in the economies drawn out at all or in reverse all right here's -- Duncan question."

" And I know you're here at the ideas festival. Primarily for session on innovations and education. We had secretary Duncan on the show yesterday. And he called for national standardized tests. -- to international standardized tests he said most state and local standardized tests are a lot and he used that word. Because they show higher results than the national test known as nick. Would you sign Minnesota up for a national standardized test."

" I want a refinement I think secretary Duncan said and and except -- Tillman -- a number of meetings with him and others about this. What I think he's encouraging is not a federal top down effort in that regard he's encouraging is a voluntary efforts were states. Voluntarily would join together in state by state compact. Potentially create a national standard -- national assessments on when Clara that those are two different things. And it depends on what the standards are for example Deval Patrick and I who was governor of Massachusetts and the government's underwear on opposite sides of the political fence but we're very concerned that if you have a national standard. Is it going to be so watered down in Minnesota and Massachusetts at least -- the United States are high performing states. So it is it gonna be watered down to the point where it's worse or less rigorous than our current standards. And that's a real concerns that we can't answer that your question until we see the standards and we also don't want the federal government running it. If it's a state voluntary compact that's something at least consider that if it's a federal deal. I don't like the federalization of K twelve education."

" So his concern that leads him to propose this is exactly that the state tests are now so watered down so that the local school officials look like they're doing their jobs. That this you know they don't really measure anything meaningful compared to the -- the national assessment of progress in education which is considered a real standard."

" So and I agree I agree with the -- being a real longitudinal. -- rigorous standard. And the fact as you'll see many states not all where they're showing their state based tests in great improvement. And they're -- scores are flat so we see this great inflation we see state based results being inflated. And it shows plunged to Italy that need scores haven't really improves -- you know there's some. Disconnect occurring exactly so would you sign Minnesota up voluntarily for the national test you dot -- I'm working with like chair achieve I'm with the National Governors Association groups who -- working on this project and what I said is we're willing to help the effort. But I'm not gonna sign up for -- until -- see what they are."

" It's something changing politically here because historically Republicans resisted the idea of national standards because it seemed like. The government from Washington and you wanted to preserve education as a local function we've. Really reiterated the old joke with secretary Duncan yesterday. Republicans don't like national standards as the national Democrats don't like national standards because the standards. How that but from the Republican side is that an idea whose time has now gone. That you don't like national. Standards because you don't want the federal government involved."

" I think you know I think it's still a legitimate concern I think most Republicans and most conservatives would say we should not have federal national standards and I agree with that sentiment if as a voluntary matter there's a group of states who want to pursue that we would consider that. And I think in fairness to secretary Duncan at least you must he said something different here than he's been talking about in many meetings I've heard him talk. He is very careful to say this is not a federal thing and does so."

" When we actually have that underscored fit enough and governor of Minnesota temple -- the thank you very much for joining us that the thank you very much appreciate. Right WM -- coming up with a minute being human in the digital world we will meet the creator of -- and The -- Will -- among other guests stay with us."

" Thanks for listening to WNYC on demand please check out our other program to wnyc.org. Or on iTunes. This free service has made possible by our listeners become a member OW NYC today."