ABM “Swedin” Radio Ad Fact Check
Audio Supporting Facts
We all agree that Minnesota
legislators should stand up for
middle class families.
But would politician Vern Swedin
stand up for us?
Swedin was on the board of a
company that sent American jobs
overseas.
Swedin Was a Board Member for ARCUS, LLC, a
Company That Outsources Jobs
Swedin’s LinkedIn profile listed himself as:
Advisory board member
ARCUS, LLC
Privately Held; 51-200 employees;
Outsourcing/Offshoring industry
2010 – November 2011 (1 year)
[Linkedin.com, accessed 09/25/12]
On February 8, 2011, the ARCUS website said:
Arcus offers solutions to the United
States and Latin America with the
support of its near shore contact
center located in Costa Rice.
[Arcus.net, accessed through
web.archive.org, 09/26/12]
ARCUS Posted Tips On Outsourcing.
On its blog, ARCUS CEO Doug Firestone posted
a “Top 10 Outsourcing Tips”
[arcustalent.blogspot.com, accessed
09/25/12]
And he ran five companies that
went out of business, leaving a
string of unpaid debts.
Swedin Founded or Was a Top Executive for at
Least Five Different Companies That Have
Gone Out of Business.
1. Rudder Capital Corporation: Swedin is
listed as a member of the Board of
Directors and Chief Executive Officer
on Rudder Capital Secretary of State
filings. In a 2007 filing with the
Minnesota Public Utilities Commission,
Swedin is listed as Board Chair.
[Minnesota Secretary of State Records;
PUC Document ]
2. Rudder Communications Corp: Swedin is
listed under historical contacts as
the CEO in Rudder Communications
corporate filings between 2007 and
2008. [LexisNexis]
3. Rudder Digital Inc.: Swedin is listed
under historical contacts as the CEO
in Rudder Digital Inc. corporate
filings between 2007 and 2008.
[LexisNexis]
4. URON: Swedin was the co-founder and
Chief Executive Officer. The website
no longer works and the company no
longer exists. [PUC Document ]
5. Lone Palm Properties Inc.: The
executive officer is listed as
Swedin’s current business (Swedin
Corp) address. Swedin is listed as the
CEO. The business status is inactive
and the company was dissolved in 2009.
[Minnesota Secretary of State Records]
Swedin and his companies have
hundreds of thousands of dollars in
federal liens for unpaid taxes.
Swedin Left Behind Hundreds of Thousands of
Dollars in Federal Liens.
Federal tax liens files against Rudder
Digital Inc. total $390,903.39. [Records
obtained from the Dakota County Recorders’
Office]
And nearly a million dollars in
lawsuits from unpaid lenders.
Swedin Left Behind Nearly One Million
Dollars from Unpaid Lenders.
Rudder civil judgments and liens during
Swedin’s known tenure amount to nearly a
million dollars. [Leonard, Street and
Deinard Professional Association (Plaintiff)
v. Rudder Capital Corporation and FTTH
Communications, LLC (Defendants), Complaint
Section III., State of Minnesota, County of
Dakota, District Court, First Judicial
District, Case Type: Contract, 10/01/08;
Mlaskoch Utility Construction Inc.
(Plaintiff) v. FTTH Communications, LLC and
Rudder Capital Corporation (Defendants),
Notice of Docketing of Judgment, State of
Minnesota, County of Ramsey, District Court,
Second Judicial District, Case Type:
Contract, Court File Number: 62-CV-07-3085,
1/25/08; Eagan Business Commons II, LLC
(Plaintiff) v. Rudder Capital Corporation
and Ronald E. Noden (Defendants), Notice of
Entry and Statement of Judgment, State of
Minnesota, County of Dakota, District Court,
First Judicial District, Court File Number:
19HA-CV-10-3469, 5/28/10; HLB Tautges
Redpath, Ltd. (Plaintiff) v. FTTH
Communications, LLC and Rudder Capital
Corporation (Defendants), Notice of Entry
and Docketing of Judgment, State of
Minnesota, County of Ramsey, District Court,
Second Judicial District, Case Type:
Contract, Court File Number: 62-CV-08-9748,
11/24/08]
And Swedin and his wife even filed
for personal bankruptcy.
Swedin Filed for Personal Bankruptcy.
On June 2, 1997, Darcie and Vern Swedin
filed for bankruptcy with a LeCenter address
and multiple debtors. His companies listed
are Central Construction, Genesis
Industrial, Movie Time and Grass So Green.
[Lexis-Nexis public records]
Now Swedin wants to join a
Republican Senate that mismanaged
the state budget and shut down our
government.
Republicans Used Short-Term Gimmicks to
Balance the State Budget.
On July 20, 2011, the Star Tribune wrote:
[The state budget] called for
withholding $700 million in payments to
K-12 schools, pushing the amount owed
schools to a record $2.1 billion and
selling nearly $700 million in bonds
backed by revenue from the state’s
tobacco settlement for the rest. [Star
Tribune, 07/20/11]
Minnesota Faces $1 Billion Budget Deficit.
On February 29, 2012, MN Budget Project
wrote:
…the forecast still shows a $1.1
billion deficit in FY 2014-15. If the
impact of inflation is included, the
deficit is closer to $2.2 billion. And
paying back the rest of the school
shifts would add another $2.4 billion.
[MN Budget Project, 02/29/12]
Republicans Shut Down State Government.
Governor Dayton proposed seven budget
compromises to avoid a government shutdown.
[MPR, 02/28/11; MPR, 05/16/11; MPR,
07/01/11; MPR, 07/06/11; Star Tribune,
07/12/11; MPR, 07/14/11]
On July 1, 2011, the Star Tribune wrote:
Talks imploded Thursday between DFL
Gov. Mark Dayton and Republican
legislative leaders in the final hours
before a midnight deadline and
Minnesota began a historic government
shutdown. [Star Tribune, 07/01/11]
All to give a tax break to big
corporations
Republicans Rejected a Budget Offer That
Closed Corporate Tax Loopholes.
Governor Dayton’s June 30, 2011 budget
offer, which Republicans rejected, would
have closed corporate tax loopholes to save
$303 million. [Office of the Governor,
07/01/11]
Swedin couldn’t be trusted with
American jobs or his own business
finances, so why should we trust
him with our state budget?
Vern Swedin is wrong for
Minnesota.
Paid advertisement. Independently
prepared and paid for by the
Alliance for a Better Minnesota
Action Fund.