Republicans in Minnesota Legislature could use some acting lessons
To the editor:
After the Thursday morning meeting (May 24) with Sen. Gary Dahms and Rep. Chris Swedzinski at the MERIT Center, and after Minnesota Republican leaders Daudt and Gezelka spoke following the last legislative session, all blaming Governor Mark Dayton for the inaction by the Minnesota legislature this recent session, they made it clear to me: the Republicans need to do their job of legislating real law that benefits the people of Minnesota. If this is too difficult, as Dahms and Swedzinski seemed to say as they kvetched all through the meeting, they should leave those legislative posts.
When one man at the meeting had asked about legislation supporting child-care issues he was told that “no action there” was also Dayton’s fault since he vetoed the Omnibus Bill, and child care was in the Omnibus bill. The mind-reading legislator said that basically it would have been useless to offer the bill stand-alone because Dayton would have vetoed it stand-alone. But the Republicans did not even allow it to come to a vote as a stand-alone bill.
The Republican leadership wishes to blame inaction by the legislature on the Democratic governor as part of their 2018 election tactics. But the Republicans could all use some acting lessons, because it is very obvious that they are disingenuous about helping Minnesotans when they won’t even bring to a vote bills that all sides support. Their leadership should have put up for a vote single topic bills that most agree on, such as those that focused on distracted driving, opioids, child care, and elder care protections.
There is an existing Minnesota law that mandates that bills should be single topic to prevent cluster messes like the omnibus bills of the recent sessions. Saddling huge bills with divisive, destructive, sideshows, pro-pollution laws and “save the wealthy” additions ensures their failure. It also hides legislators’ intentions and allows them to be unaccountable to their constituents.
As we go into the 2018 election we should remember it was Dayton, a Democratic governor who got the state out of former Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty’s historically huge deficit. It was the Democrat who led work to repair the education funny money business, supported healthcare and infrastructure, piloted cleaning up our waters, and focused on keeping the best of Minnesota great.
We need legislators to stop blaming Dayton. and to design laws that support hardworking Minnesotans and our proud legacy of a clean, green, educated and vibrant Minnesota.
Patricia McLoone
Marshall
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