Making the case against the Shutdown Party
New DFL chair Brian Melendez tears into the state's Republican leadership.
The DFL-led Senate did its job yesterday by passing a `lights on' bill that would have kept the government open while negotiations continued toward a permanent budget. Every DFLer in the Senate, and every DFLer in the House, voted for this bill, which was clearly necessary and should have been uncontroversial.
But with one exception, every Republican in both the House and the Senate voted in favor of shutting down the government.
For weeks, the Senate DFLers have been offering proposal after proposal, in the hope of negotiating a compromise that would have kept the state government open. But Governor Pawlenty wouldn't even come to the table until this week. And when the Governor's tactics had finally driven the government to the brink of shutdown, the Senate DFLers passed the only bill under consideration that would have kept the government open. But the Republicans instead voted in favor of a shutdown.
Every single DFL legislator voted to make sure that the state's workers weren't hung out to dry when government shut down. Almost every House and Senate Republican voted to shut down government. The Republicans are holding Minnesota hostage because they aren't willing to compromise. By voting against the "lights on" bill and in favor of a shutdown, the Governor and the House Republicans sent a message that they won't support the over 9,000 state employees and the millions of Minnesotans they represent by keeping the government open. The DFL Party is determined to fix this terrible situation, to stop using people's lives as bargaining chips, and to get the work of the people done.
Steve Sviggum and his ilk aren't going to pin this on the DFL without a fight.
posted by Luke Francl @ 2:11 PM |
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14 Comments:
I wonder,
Aside from the fact the GOP is spinning the "DFL walked out early" story (which is also true) - how this shutdown is going to play out.
Most DFL'rs I know are very upset by this, and see the tremendous harm being done as self-evident. Most GOP'rs I know see this as a minor inconvience (if even that.)
So tell me, how has the shutdown affected your life? Anyone?
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I know that the Dems are working, I know that the goalposts are being constantly moved, I know that the Republicans are holding up the process by insisting that things that have nothing to do with the budget be enacted (initiative, teacher stirkes, unicameral), I know that the health care budget is being looted because last year's (and the year's before) accounting gimmicks are coming home to roost, but the damn DFL is doing a piss-poor job of telling us all of this.
We have some family in from out of town that experienced the shutdown by way of closed rest stops. They're conservative, but fed up with both parties. We've decided to join the centrist "Smart People's Party."
While, I did expect a bigger response than "some one I know from out of town had to hold it a while" I'm pretty much in agreement with you Chuck.
I don't like obstructionist behavior in the Senate regarding confirmations, and I don't like it in the MN Senate either. However, the "lights on" bills the DFL introduced were everybit as hokey as the GOP budget compromises. There's plenty of blame to go around.
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Mitch, this is how your side of the table always misrepresents things. A neutral has decide what's "essential" and what is not (interesting how the Gov thought that health care for poor people was "nonessential" but that's just one more window into his soul). But because most peole can go about their lives with only minor inconvenience, we're stuck hearing for the rest of our natural lives listening to short-sighted fools insist that they didn't notice any difference when the gummint shut down so they must all be libbberuls who serve no purpose 'cept to take my tax money for no reason whatsover.
Screw it. Close the prisons. Shut down the schools. Lay off the troopers. Close the roads, the parks, and the guys who fix the signs and those people who figure out whether the exotic fish are killing the walleye. Lay off the epidemiologists and the people who test the water. Cut off the grants to the people who serve lunches to the homeless. Let grandma's nursing home staff walk off. Let's even lay off those guys who drive around wagons screaming "Send out your dead" during the epidemics.
Let it all collapse. Then maybe we can finally shut up those people who think that gummint is the problem rather than the solution.
"Mitch, this is how your side of the table always misrepresents things. A neutral has decide what's "essential" and what is not (interesting how the Gov thought that health care for poor people was "nonessential" but that's just one more window into his soul). But because most peole can go about their lives with only minor inconvenience, we're stuck hearing for the rest of our natural lives listening to short-sighted fools insist that they didn't notice any difference when the gummint shut down so they must all be libbberuls who serve no purpose 'cept to take my tax money for no reason whatsover."
And we're stuck forever listening to shorter-sighted fools saying they're happy to bend over for the budget - er, excuse me, who are Happy to Pay for a Better Minnesota!
"Screw it. Close the prisons."
Strawman. Has never been suggested.
" Shut down the schools."
Strawman. Has never...er, wait, I advocated abolishing elementary school, but that was less for tax reasons than that there is no empirical evidence that kids learn better in school than out. Clearly, compulsory education teaches nothing about logical argument.
" Lay off the troopers."
Strawman. Nobody's suggested it.
" Close the roads, the parks, and the guys who fix the signs and those people who figure out whether the exotic fish are killing the walleye."
Three and a half strawmen. Three are clearly essential purposes of state government, and one most likely earns its keep.
" Lay off the epidemiologists"
Strawman - clearly necessary.
" and the people who test the water."
Which people, what water?
" Cut off the grants to the people who serve lunches to the homeless. "
Hm. Well, as a general ideal, subsidizing poverty is no more desirable than, say, corporate welfare.
"Let grandma's nursing home staff walk off."
Strawman. Nobody's suggested it.
" Let's even lay off those guys who drive around wagons screaming "Send out your dead" during the epidemics."
They're the National Guard, and, in yet another strawman, nobody's suggested closing them.
"Let it all collapse."
Yet another strawman, one that rather sophomorically dodges the point, which is that a fifth of state government could be cashiered tomorrow with no effect whatsoever on the state at large.
" Then maybe we can finally shut up those people who think that gummint is the problem rather than the solution."
Or maybe it'll shut up the people who think spelling "libberuls" and "gummint" is a cutting satire of their opponents.
So, I'm still waiting.
Other than Chuck's buddy who had to hold it a while (although, I'm thinking there's lots of trees along most roads in MN.)
How has the shutdown affected your life?
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I blame every one them. The governor, all members of the house and senate. Democrats and Republicans alike.
To them its one big game and strategy for next election. Who can make the other look bad?
Most people would get fired for not doing their jobs and failing to meet deadlines. Not receive a raise as they all gave themselves before the shutdown.
I hope people don't forget this quickly and vote to remove each and every one of them come election time.
Jeremy is 100% correct. I think we need to start with Sviggum, johnson, Pawlenty, and Entenza.
So again, how is your life affected... anyone... anyone...
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I agree with Jeremy. I did not appreciate the Dems leaving before the clock had run out anymore than I appreciated the gop's cutting folks off the healthcare rolls and ponzi scheming gambling to balance the budget.
Crispy
On the contray, its the folks using statements like "hung out to dry" and "The Republicans are holding Minnesota hostage" that are being disingenuous.
I'm pointing out that the shutdown is not all that its been made out to be.
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Cripsy,
But the quote said, "State workers" without the qulification you added.
The only mention of the nonessential personnel was "they won't support the over 9,000 state employees and the millions of Minnesotans they represent"
Can we agree there is a difference between 9,000 and 2,009,000?
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Crispy wrote,
But your "has the shutdown affected your life?" question is also disingenuous, since it implies that if you're not hurt by whatever services are now missing, they must not be that important, and are just another example of Big Government. (Correct me if I'm reading too much into it.)
There's nothing disingenuous about the question. And essentially that was the point I was making.
Disingenuous means devious or dishonest while pretending to be innocent. All along my position has been that the shutdown is not a big deal. That is what I've written and I've been consistent, I have accused the doomsayers of being disingenuous, but I don't think I've done it myself.
Earlier you called my arguement specious meaning superficially correct, but not so in reality.
So somewhere along the way I went from being wrong to acting without integrity, from being mistaken to being misleading. I can't help but feel that's an inappropriate characterization.
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