June 12-13, 2015

Jun 12 09:40 Special Session observations
Jun 12 12:24 The heart of the DFL
Jun 12 16:12 Special Session musings
Jun 12 23:12 Hillary gets personal

Jun 13 00:22 Bakk, DFL break promise
Jun 13 09:58 Special Session winners
Jun 13 10:30 MN Special Session's losers
Jun 13 19:22 Goodbye to the Citizens Board

Prior Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr May

Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Special Session observations

This morning at 10:00 am, Minnesota's most recent special session will start. This special session will be a disaster for the DFL on multiple fronts. Harold Hamilton's explanation makes total sense with me:




To say the least, the special session period (the timeframe starting when the regular session adjourned) has been an utter and absolute disaster for Governor Dayton and the DFL. Even if the special session manages to conclude today, lasting damage has been done to the DFL that will carry over into the 2016 election cycle. In the collective memory of the Watchdog staff, it's hard to recall more DFL dysfunction and backbiting than what we've witnessed over the past three weeks.


That's the overview. Here's more of the particulars on why it's been a disaster for the DFL:






The governor failed to appreciate that these spending bills had bi-partisan support, negating the often convenient narrative that the GOP majority had overreached and the governor was merely acting as the voice of reason in the process. It's also apparent that governor lacked a convincing, decisive and well-defined reason for those vetoes, which made it difficult for him to lay out for legislators and the public both a reason for a special session and special session legislative objectives around which he could rally both the DFL base and the public at large.



Instead, Dayton looked petty and weak as he vetoed the bills and then flailed about, changing his objectives for a negotiated budget deal. It was a classic case of moving the goal posts, which sowed nothing but doubt, confusion, and some bewilderment in the legislature, the media, and the public at large. First, it was all about universal pre-K education. When it failed to get any traction, especially among educators and education experts, Dayton dropped the proposal.

Next, it got really bizarre when he made a small change in the Office of the State Auditor the centerpiece of his special session strategy. Most Minnesotans can't name the State Auditor, don't know the office exists, and really don't care about it.

Holding up the state budget and threatening a partial government shutdown over obscure language impacting an obscure office will never rally the public or move votes. While Dayton normally leads a parade of one, he led a parade of two on this issue. Himself and the Rebecca Otto, the State Auditor. It also didn't help that Dayton decided to plant his flag on an issue that he signed into law just days before.


I've been preaching these things since the end of the regular session. Initially, Gov. Dayton and ABM tried vilifying Republicans for the special session. The fact that Speaker Daudt negotiated a bipartisan agreement with Sen. Bakk shut that attack down virtually immediately. That line of attack didn't have a chance of working. The minute that people heard that a bipartisan agreement had been negotiated, they quietly cheered, albeit momentarily, that government had done its job.



Then Gov. Dayton entered the equation. Immediately, Minnesotans' happy thoughts that government was finally functional disappeared.

Gov. Dayton caved on issue after issue because he was on the wrong side of each of those issues. He fought for unpopular things that cost hundreds of millions of dollars, starting with universal pre-K. Though the sticker price on that was $173,000,000, the real price was that plus $2,200,000,000 for infrastructure plus tens of millions of dollars for transportation, teachers and heating the classrooms.

As for the State Auditor, nobody cares. It's like an offensive lineman in football. You don't hear much about them unless they make a mistake. Most citizens don't pay attention to the office. When Gov. Dayton fought that fight, he essentially said that that was the hill he was willing to fight for and die for.

As for Sen. Bakk, he's been caught betwixt and between all session long. He ambushed Gov. Dayton on the commissioners' pay raises. Next, he negotiated a budget agreement with Speaker Daudt that Gov. Dayton and many DFL legislators objected to. Especially noteworthy was the fact that the budget bills didn't get any DFL votes in the House, compared with Bakk's senators putting up lots of votes on the agriculture/environment bill that Gov. Dayton vetoed.

At the end of the day, Gov. Dayton and the DFL have frequently looked foolish this session.


Posted Friday, June 12, 2015 9:40 AM

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The heart of the DFL

If ever there was a tweet that captured the spirit of the DFL, this is it:



Because the DFL isn't metrocentric and uncompromising enough?

Posted Friday, June 12, 2015 12:24 PM

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Special Session musings

This special session wouldn't play out true to form if there wasn't a major fight on the Ag/Environment bill. This session hasn't run smoothly since Sen. Bakk ambushed Gov. Dayton on the commissioners' pay raise. Since then, the signs of a slow-motion DFL meltdown have been quite visible. Don't expect that to change.

First, the Metrocrats defeated the Ag/Environment bill. There was much rejoicing amongst the Metrocrats. Now they're getting worried because the arm-twisting has started to get one of the 32 senators who voted against the bill to a) call for reconsideration of the bill and b) to switch his/her vote against the bill initially to being for the bill this time.

This tweet says it all:



Apparently, DFL legislators and special interests don't like having to deal with people who don't agree with them. They think that opposition needs to be squashed immediately and permanently. This is their way of saying that it isn't fun when they don't get their way because uppity peasants (that's us) highlight the foolishness of their policies.

Time after time this session, the DFL fought for policies that the people rejected. First, a plethora of organizations fought against Gov. Dayton's universal pre-K initiative because it was expensive, filled with unfunded mandate and was unsustainable. Other than that, people liked it. Next, it was Gov. Dayton fighting to repeal a bill he'd already signed. That's becoming a trend with him. (See repealing B2B sales taxes, though this time, he called for it sooner. LOL)

This year's biggest difference is that the fighting has been DFL vs. DFL for the most part. Rural DFL is getting more and more upset with Metrocrats by the day. This Ag/Environment bill is just the highest profile example of this fight.

Whatever the outcome today, things won't end up well for the DFL in November, 2016.

Posted Friday, June 12, 2015 4:12 PM

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Hillary gets personal

When Hillary relaunches her campaign this weekend, she'll go personal :




At Clinton's first official campaign rally this Saturday in New York City, aides say the Democratic presidential candidate will make her most extensive pitch yet on why she should be president. And her late mother, Dorothy Rodham, will play a central role. "No one had a bigger influence on my life or did more to shape the person I became," Clinton wrote of her mother in her most recent memoir, "Hard Choices." According to ABC's LIZ KREUTZ, at Clinton's rally this weekend, where Bill and Chelsea Clinton are expected to make their first official campaign appearances, Clinton will explain how her mother's story has motivated her to run for president. http://abcn.ws/1Iy11oL


This is a feeble attempt to humanize Hillary. It's destined to fail because she isn't likeable. Putting lipstick on a pig might add color to the pig's snout but the pig is still a pig.



The Clinton administration tried doing the same thing with Hillary's 'Pretty in Pink' interview. Six months later, Hillary's likability ratings had returned to where they were the day before her Pretty in Pink interview. It's important to note that people were still forming their opinion about Hillary. They gave her the benefit of the doubt back then. Everyone knows her now. They won't give her the benefit of the doubt this time.




"She is a well-known figure but when you're asking the American people to support you as president, even if it is for the second time, there is no skipping of steps," Clinton campaign communications director Jennifer Palmieri said in a statement. "If you want to understand Hillary Clinton, and what has motivated her career of fighting for kids and families, her mother is a big part of the story. The example she learned from her mother's story is critical to knowing what motivated Hillary Clinton to first get involved in public service, and why people can count on her to fight for them and their families now."


Hillary is a million miles removed from her late mother's story. Remember her "I suppose I could've stayed at home" quote? She said it with the tone of being a mother was beneath her. Now she wants us to forget that? I don't think that'll work.

Posted Friday, June 12, 2015 11:12 PM

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Bakk, DFL break promise

Prior to the start of Friday's special session, Speaker Daudt, Rep. Thissen, Sen. Hann and Sen. Bakk signed an agreement with Gov. Dayton to pass the bills that they agreed to. Part of that agreement was that neither body would amend the bills that were pre-written and posted on the legislative website.

When Sen. Bakk couldn't deliver enough votes to pass the Ag/Environment bill, the environmental activists pushed him to amend the bill to strip out 2 important reforms from the bill. The biggest reform was eliminating the Citizens Board, which can overturn decisions that the MPCA has made. When Sen. Bakk caved to the environmental activists demands, the bill went to the Senate floor, where it passed without Republican votes.

What happened next was that the House amended the amended Ag/Environment bill, putting the agreed-upon language back into the bill. The MacNamara Amendment passed by a 73-52 vote:








After the amendment passed, the House passed the bill by a 78-47 margin. Shortly thereafter, Speaker Daudt issued this statement :



"This is a responsible bill that meets the needs of our state agencies such as the Department of Natural Resources and the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources," said State Representative Denny McNamara (R-Hastings), who chairs the Minnesota House Environment and Natural Resources Policy and Finance Committee. "The bill also includes a number of policy reforms and initiatives that have bipartisan support."

After the Senate changed the agreed-upon language of the legislation, the House moved to restore the original language. 'By passing this legislation, we are honoring the commitment we made to Minnesotans with the four legislative leaders and the governor. Now the Senate has the opportunity to do the right thing and send this bill to the governor,' said House Speaker Kurt Daudt (R-Crown).

"When this bill becomes law, Minnesota will be able to continue to protect and preserve its food supply, make needed investments in research, and have the funds necessary to respond to the avian flu outbreak." said State Representative Rod Hamilton (R-Mountain Lake), chair of the Minnesota House Agriculture Finance Committee.

The legislation funds state agencies such as the Department of Agriculture, the Agriculture Utilization Research Institute, the Board of Animal Health, Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), Minnesota Zoo, Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Metropolitan Council - Regional Parks, Minnesota Conservation Corps, Board of Soil and Water Resources (BWSR), and the Science Museum of Minnesota for the 2016-17 budget cycle.

Highlights of the omnibus agriculture, environment and natural resources finance bill include:






  1. Providing nearly $23 million to state agencies in order to better prevent and respond to the avian influenza outbreak that has devastated Minnesota turkey flocks


  2. Creating a new grant program for cities with a population of less than 45,000 in Greater Minnesota to incentivize single stream and other recycling programs.


  3. Increasing funding for Soil and Water Conservation districts to fund more "on the ground" projects.


  4. Providing much-needed reforms to the Wetland Conservation Act, which were developed over the past year and are a consensus of interested parties (such as groups representing farmers and environmentalists).


  5. Approving an initiative that builds on the successful example of counties and landowners that have used a voluntary and locally based process to install buffers to enhance water and soil protection.


  6. Repealing the current 'Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Trailer Sticker/Decal' law, and replacing it with a requirement that the boat owner sign an affirmation stating they will abide by AIS laws.




This has been a 'session from hell' for Sen. Bakk. In February, he ambushed Gov. Dayton over the commissioners pay raise bill that he voted for. That caused Gov. Dayton to accuse him of stabbing Gov. Dayton in the back, which is an accurate accusation. After that outburst (by Dayton), Kurt Daudt became the only man who Sen. Bakk and Gov. Dayton trusted.

Thanks to this Ag/Environment bill, the DFL special interest groups have put Sen. Bakk at the top of their hit list. They're even calling for Sen. Bakk's ouster as Senate Majority Leader. If this thing isn't wrapped up soon, Bakk won't have a friend left in St. Paul.

UPDATE: The Ag/Environment bill finally passed as originally drafted. After it passed the House 78-47, it went to the Senate. Sen. Marty made a motion not to concur with the House bill. That motion failed on a 39-28 vote. Sen. Tomassoni made a motion to concur with the House bill as amended. Sen. Tomassoni's motion to concur passed 40-26. On final passage, the bill passed 38-29. The bill now heads to Gov. Dayton's desk for his signature.

All of the bills that fund government have now passed. They await Gov. Dayton's signature.

UPDATE II: This is what put it over the top:











Posted Saturday, June 13, 2015 9:31 AM

Comment 1 by walter hanson at 13-Jun-15 08:31 AM
Gary:

I find myself in rare agreement with those liberal democrats. Baak should be replaced as Senate majority leader in 2017. Mind you a Republican should be the Senate majority leader along with 33 other plus Republicans. Will those radical liberal groups help us elect a bunch of Republicans to replace those democrats?

Walter Hanson

Minneapolis, MN

Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 13-Jun-15 08:44 AM
Walter, check out my posts on the special session's winners and losers and my posts on the session's winners and losers. They'll be posted later today.

Special Session winners

Now that the Special Session is history, it's time to reflect on what happened. The best way I know how to do that is by identifying the Sessions winners and losers. This post will deal with the winners.




  1. Kurt Daudt -- He was simply masterful throughout. He proved to be a master negotiator, which nobody predicted going against Sen. Bakk. Late in last night's special session, after the Senate had stripped out the House Republicans' reforms and the DFL passed the amended bill, the decision was made in Caucus to restore the original bill, pass it and send it back to the Senate. House Environment Chairman Denny MacNamara offered an amendment to essentially restore the bill. After that, the outcome of the session was virtually sealed. Speaker Daudt gets credit for having the spine to insist on the bill's original language.


  2. David Hann -- Sen. Hann played a key role in getting the Ag/Environment bill passed. After the bill was originally defeated, Sen. Hann spoke with Sen. Bakk about winning some GOP votes this session by promising to pass tax relief. That was the right elixir. The first time the Senate voted on the Ag/Environment Bill, it failed by a 33-32 margin. When it returned from the House, several procedural votes happened first. Sen. Marty made a motion to not concur with the bill. Had that passed, the bill would've gone into conference committee. It was defeated 38-29. Next, Sen. Tomassoni, a DFL senator from the Range, made a motion to concur. That passed 40-26. That passed with 7 more votes than it got the first time. Sen. Hann got those extra votes by negotiating a tax relief bill for the 2016 session. After that, it was all over except the special interests' whining. The vote on final passage was 38-29. The whining went into full whine at that point.


  3. Denny MacNamara -- his amendment on the Ag/Environment Bill was the straw that broke the environmental activists' back. I was following the session through Twitter. The minute the bill got to the Senate, environmental activist organizations like the Minnesota Environmental Partnership and the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, aka MEP and MCEA respectively, started whining. The bloggers at MNPact started whining, too.


  4. Jennifer Loon -- She shepherded the K-12 bill throughout and brought it home without a hitch.




The entire GOP Caucus, both in the House and Senate, deserve an honorable mention. They didn't back down. They fought for reforms that took power out of the hands of special interests and won. They even won on education spending and policy. When's the last time that could be said?


Posted Saturday, June 13, 2015 9:58 AM

Comment 1 by walter hanson at 13-Jun-15 02:45 PM
Gary:

This might be a bit premature, #5. The 2018 Republican nominee for governor. They will be able to point out as governor you have to read the bills, you have to honor deals, and you have to be willing to listen to the differences the other side has with you. There has to be thousands of voters who this can help with in 2018 that didn't vote for Johnson in 2014.

Walter Hanson

Minneapolis, MN

Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 13-Jun-15 03:15 PM
It's a teeny bit premature but that's allowed at LFR. A lot can and will change over the next 3 years. Still, the DFL swagger has to have disappeared.

They should've had the upper hand this session. Speaker Daudt did a masterful job holding things together. Sen. Hann contributed some big things, too, especially with the tax relief he got from Sen. Bakk earlier this am.

More importantly, Republicans should be well-positioned for 2016, especially in the Senate.

MN Special Session's losers

When the final curtain fell on this year's special session, the politicians and activists who lost the most were easy to identify. By the way, I'm applying a liberal definition to the term Special Session. In this instance alone, I'm talking anything after the end of the regular session. Let's get started:

  1. Tom Bakk -- The day started with environmental activists pretty much hating him. Things didn't get better for him. After that, he lost credibility when he broke the agreement he signed before the session. Nobody trusts him now. Progressive bloggers started a petition calling for his resignation as Majority Leader...before the session. By the end of the Special Session, that petition had 584 signatures on it.
  2. Gov. Dayton -- Prior to the session, he fought for removing the Citizen Board language from the Ag/Environment bill. He lost on that. He fought for universal pre-K. He lost on that. He fought for restoring the State Auditor's responsibilities. He lost there, too.
  3. John Marty -- After they defeated the Ag/Environment bill, he was gloating. When the House restored the bill's original language and returned it to the Senate, the gloating was over.
  4. Environmental activists -- see description from Sen. Marty.
  5. Tina Smith -- Her negotiations yielded nothing. Whether she has a prominent role going forward or not, she took a hit this session. Whether she recovers remains to be seen.
  6. Senate DFL -- Though they were the majority, they didn't deliver on many of their priorities. They certainly lost on raising the gas tax in the regular session. Then they couldn't hold onto the one victory they won yesterday.
I'd recommend Sen. Bakk hire a food taster for the summer. Saying that he isn't popular with the base is understatement. Couple that with the fact that Rangers aren't popular with the Metrocrats and you've got a recipe for a relationship on the rocks.

Finally, I'd note that "Dayton unbound" was an unmitigated disaster for the DFL. He poisoned the relationship with the Senate just as much as Sen. Bakk burned the bridge between the Senate and Gov. Dayton. He lost his likability by being unbound. Then he lost credibility when he kept moving the goalposts. The shifting goalposts, it should be noted, were at least partially caused by Lt. Gov. Smith.

Posted Saturday, June 13, 2015 6:15 PM

Comment 1 by Terry Stone at 13-Jun-15 12:19 PM
An important take-home message from this session and special session is the extreme difficulty of making even the most obvious and sensible changes to state government.

Comment 2 by Gary Gross at 13-Jun-15 02:11 PM
All courtesy of an "unbound" Gov. Dayton.

Comment 3 by walter hanson at 13-Jun-15 02:42 PM
Gary:

Isn't the Senate DFL's loss even worse since every DFL Senator has to face the voters so being linked to a bunch of no votes for stuff voters might want and the yes vote for the DFL (especially in districts where a DFL freshman senator beat a republican) likely make things worse for their reelection bid.

Walter Hanson

Minneapolis, MN

Comment 4 by Gary Gross at 13-Jun-15 03:16 PM
I've got to think that they're feeling a bit nervous this afternoon.

Goodbye to the Citizens Board

I've written quite a few things about the Agriculture/Environment Bill today. Specifically, I've written quite a bit about the MPCA's Citizens Board. Since I didn't do this before, let's start with a little background on the Citizens Board . First, there's this:




One member of the Citizens Board must be a representative of organized labor."


That's from the MPCA's website. This isn't speculation. If this is an oversight board, what does a union representative bring to the equation? That sounds more like a political payoff than anything else. Kathryn Draeger is the 'agriculture representative' while Dennis Jensen is the GM of the Duluth Transit Authority. Other than that, they don't look like they bring any expertise to the situation. I'd bet a dollar on doughnuts that most of the rest of the board are environmental activists that lack the expertise required to handle complex environmental issues.



I certainly don't want unskilled activists overruling the professionals at the MPCA. I don't trust the MPCA but I definitely don't trust amateur activists.

Getting rid of these activists means that environmental organizations can't change the MPCA's rulings. It's just wrong that an agency that deals with complex issues can be overridden by anyone, much less by a panel of amateur activists.

Any opportunity that we have to streamline government and eliminate the opportunity for progressive obstructionists to cause trouble, it's worth jumping on. Last night, Republicans made the most of their opportunity. They should be congratulated for this accomplishment.

Posted Saturday, June 13, 2015 7:22 PM

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