Early in this session I had the chance to chat with one of Minnesota\’s legislators about just how the legislature was going to resolve the budget deficit that Minnesota had. He commented that really he had no idea because the deficit was so large that one of the \”untouchable\” funds, education and/or health care, was going to have to get slashed. Nothing else represented enough of the budget to be able to cover the gap.
While not exactly giddy, he was also a bit amused at the situation the DFL had themselves in. Ever DFLer gets elected to spend money. It\’s what they live for, it\’s what they dream of. Spending other peoples money is what they confuse for compassion. Now the DFL was going to be forced to slash something. So what do you cut?? You\’re gonna have to pick your poison and just deal with it.
Instead on Monday the DFL choose the entire top shelf. Instead of making the top decisions they apparently decided to just piss everyone off this session. Slash education, slash health care AND raise taxes…not only raising taxes, but raises taxes a LOT, including creating some new ones. While I applaud at least the spirit of everyone suffering together, this has to be one of the most boneheaded moves ever. Rather than just cut costs and insist that in this economic climate everyone has to tighten their belt, they will double the pain by also imposing more taxes on us as well.
What\’s more is that Pawlenty has already promised to veto this POS and the DFL doesn\’t have the votes to override. So not only are they pissing off everyone, they are doing it knowing it\’s not even going to go anywhere.
If you want to lose seats in the 2010 elections, I can\’t think of a better way to do it.