Sine Die

To nobody's surprise, DFL Governor Mark Dayton has, however inelegantly, vetoed the entire budget passed by the GOP-led Legislature.  Now it's a game of chicken, to see who blinks first.  In the past, that's always been the Republicans, as in Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich in 1995 and Governor Tim Pawlenty in 2005.  Bob Davis at KTLK-FM is betting we Conservatives will again give in.

It will be difficult not to.  The government-media complex will again pretend not to understand the limited government philosophy of the RIght.  It will again ask few if any tough questions regarding the socialist philosophy of the Left.  They will focus on the conflicts of personality, not the conflict of visions.  Many factual errors will be made, almost all them favorable to the Democrats.

But I think it's different this time.  November was different this time, with Senate falling unexpectedly and convincingly to the Republicans.  And these Republicans know that next November will be their own Waterloo if they raise taxes now.  They're in enough trouble with some of us who think $ 34 billion is too high.  And Dayton is no Clinton in swaying public opinion.

So I'm hopeful that Amy Koch, Kurt Zellers and Co. will hang tough, always ready to take the Governor's calls but resolute in not harming Minnesota further with another round of unsustainable soak the rich liberalism.

And if Dayton calls a Special Session with nothing special to act upon, strike the gavel, establish a quorum, and adjourn sine die.

And if July 1 arrives without a resolution, here's your sign:

State Government closed temporarily for long overdue restructuring.
Use the Private Sector until further notice.

Comments

[J. Ewing]

I've been suggesting, along with others, that the GOP strategy should be either:

Option 1: Call the special session to order, eliminate funding for the Governor's gardener, pass and send the "new" budget to the governor, and adjourn within 20 minutes.

Option 2: Call the session to order, and "find" $50 million in ADDITIONAL "cuts" or reforms every day of the special session, until the Governor agrees to sign. Or, on any day of special session, agree to compromise on only half the reductions below the vetoed budget.

[The Big Stink]

Media always assumes their audience will have a high-school-level comprehension, which means they will be slightly smarter than a fifth grader. Media doesn't distort, Speed - they genuinely don't have a clue. That would require a depth of understanding - knowledge. Mostly, they're toadies and lackies who enjoy the notoriety of having their names in public. Truth, for them, is a moving target. They report whatever their editors tell them is THE NEWS. That's why alternative media is worthy of their blanket condemnation.

[Hiram]

The legislature can't call itself into session. Special sessions are called by the governor. And of course, nothing passed by the legislature is of any significance at all unless it is enacted by law, either with the governor's signature or over the governor's veto. Political posturing by either side is never more than that and is of no legal effect.

[The Big Stink]

Gridlock. Love it. Furlough all the "non-essential" state staff and see how long it takes for the public to notice.