Hope Floats, But We’re Still Up a Creek
Posted by Andy on November 29th, 2006
(I had a great post on this one, but it got eaten last night by a crappy WiFi connection. Here’s an attempt at resurrecting the rant.)
Pawlenty had a powwow at the mansion to talk with the GOP folks about the future legislative session. It is chalk full of ups and downs.
Joking that the Republican legislative minorities are now so small that “we can accommodate the entire caucus for meetings at the governor’s residence,” Gov. Tim Pawlenty nevertheless said Tuesday that he was confident that his GOP allies will remain unified enough to sustain any possible vetoes in the 2007 session.
Good, good, keep it going.
After meeting at the Summit Avenue residence in St. Paul with new Senate Minority Leader David Senjem, of Rochester, and House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, of Marshall, Pawlenty said they agreed on “common goals” of modest spending increases and opposition to tax increases.
Don’t like the first part, but the second part is good. Just no more fees please.
Without offering specifics, Pawlenty said there is consensus among the leaders that the budget surplus to be announced today will allow increased funding for education but also for “reform and accountability” requirements in schools.
No. No more money. They get enough. Until they figure out how to live with in the means, they shouldn’t get more. Carrot on a stick approach. Has anyone done a study to compare our massive Education spending to other states? I bet we are near the tops. $14 billion plus! 50% of the budget. Hello!
“We are unified, we stand with our governor,” Seifert said. “We don’t expect we need to ask for more money out of people’s pockets.”
This coming from a guy who got a 64 from the TaxPayer’s League. But he is promising to spend more, modestly. WE HAVE A SPENDING PROBLEM!!!!!!!!
Senjem, who is considered something of a moderate, said there was agreement “to move Minnesota forward.”
Oh dear god! And get ready for the big drop on this roller coaster. Its all down hill from here.
Pawlenty said that he hopes to “avoid veto situations” and that he will work on the “front end” to compromise with majority DFLers. Since his narrow reelection win as the DFL made sweeping DFL legislative gains, Pawlenty has sounded conciliatory notes and promised to address demands for increased health-care access, reduced college tuition, property tax relief and more.
And thus, all hope is lost for small government in Minnesota. The only way the government can increase health care access is if the government pays for it. Jiminy crickets, he’s going to take us down the universal road. We’ll be lucky to avoid it, but with him leading the charge, we’re screwed I fear. Mr. pawlenty, if you go down this road, you will have to increase taxes. You’re opening a billion dollar can of worms. Oh wait, you didn’t sign the no new taxes pledge, did you? Oh and college tuition? Maybe that $300 million for that ludicrous Gopher stadium could have gone to buy down tuition. Or maybe some of the other hundreds of million you handed to them to build more buildings. For crying out loud, you gave them the money to build all that crap, and surprise they raised tuition costs to pay for it all. And the students got screwed. As for property tax relief, what ever happened to local control? Pushing the cost of government to the most local control? Capping property taxes will kill that Republican value. More big government!
He acknowledged that on one front, a gasoline tax increase that he vetoed last year despite support from some Republicans, he may be in a “danger zone” for a possible veto override, which requires two-thirds majorities. But he said he still opposes the proposal and would veto it again.
Well that just warms the heart, doesn’t it? Well he is better than Hatch on that one. He knows it would pass and he’d be overridden, but he’d still veto it. Maybe.
DFLers expanded their Senate majority to 44-23 and regained control of the House after eight years of GOP majorities, now outnumbering Republicans 85-49. A veto override would need votes of all DFLers and one Republican in the Senate, and all DFLers and five Republicans in the House.
But hey, we held the Governor’s office! Woo hoo. You are great Chairman Carey. Oh wait, this guy is starting to adopt DFL goals, and is willing to work with them on others. Gee, I sure wish we hadn’t written the rest of the statewide and legislative offices off. Oh, I know, you did all you could. All those smear pieces that you sent out that the GOP candidates had to spend resources on to apologize for helped so much.
Had someone been spewing forth conservatism and why people should vote for Republicans, maybe, just maybe someone would have. Elections have consequences. We will be paying some very big prices this year for the mitigating of the defeat.
November 29th, 2006 at 9:59 am
Maybe? From 20-20 hindsight, I expect a lot better than “maybe.” But I don’t want to re-fight the last election. I want to know where we go from here, and I think Ron Carey has the right prescription. If it is as you say, that money was spent to re-elect Pawlenty at the expense of other candidates (I don’t know that, but I don’t know lots of things), then it is time for a little old-fashioned “party discipline.” The State Party needs to have some mechanism of receiving “payback” for its investments of volunteer time and money, such as some fealty to the principles of the Party. I certainly expect that to be understood, by all candidates, by the time the ‘08 cycle rolls around, and these Task Forces should be putting those policies and enforcement mechanisms into place. But I don’t know that it is too late now to exercise some restraint on our elected officials, to convince them to exercise some restraint with the taxpayer’s dollar. We all need to talk through how that can be done. Soon.
November 29th, 2006 at 11:51 am
Enough is Enough.
If I see one more of you self congratulatory post about how you will save the party or how badly the election was run or how Pawlenty is turning out to be a moderate I will puke.
People were trying to tell you for over two years this, but you were too busy either cheerleading for Pawlenty or calling them names.
And now that Pawlenty turn out to be who everyone told you he would be you are shocked and outraged.
The time to act was before the election.
Pawlenty is your man! Ron Carey was just doing what YOU asked and encouraged him to do.
Election have consequences and you have yet to accept your role in encouraging and defending the moderation of the party.
November 29th, 2006 at 12:39 pm
Listen you sideline arm chair quarterback. I busted my ass for a real conservative candidate coming down the stretch. All your bomb throwing and insults you’ve been tossing at me is exactly why you failed.
Unlike you who walks in demands the sky, then goes home and pouts when everyone laughs, I am trying to fix my party.
Oh and I never voted for Carey. I called it a bloody mutiny.
Oh and another thing Pawlenty is not a socialist likle someof you have been saying. Get a life, get involved, or just go home and shut up.
I can say I told you so for many things too. Right now I am trying to fix the damn party so that it can stand up for conservative values.
November 29th, 2006 at 1:17 pm
Some people need to learn to accept half a loaf rather than burning down the bakery.