| ... The governor rebuffed every single effort to work out collaborative and innovative solutions to our budget crisis. It is clear that he decided even before the legislature went into session that he wanted there to be no agreement. He refused to consider any and all attempts to reach out and all offers of compromise. His only participation came via demands and edicts. The governor cruelly eliminated health care for the poor through a targeted line item veto while at the same time protecting the wealthiest from paying less than $200 more per year. The tiny Republican minority in the House was sufficient to block efforts to override the governor's obstinacy. When given the opportunity to transcend partisanship and stand with Minnesotans, especially the poorest and the most vulnerable, they refused. If only three Republican legislators had stood up, this would not have happened.
The governor has announced that he will no longer consult with the legislature. Instead, he will use a power given to him by our state laws, reserved only for exceptional circumstances and emergencies, to slash the budget on the backs of the poorest and the sickest. This is a perversion of our democratic government and a gross abuse of power.
Since Tim Pawlenty has been governor our state has fewer people working, less university research and fewer innovations to create new industries, declining performance from public education and higher education, increasing shifts to higher property taxes, higher tuition, higher fees for basic services, a worsening credit rating, worsening public heath and fewer taxes paid by the most wealthy.
How did we get into this mess? Tax cuts for the most wealthy have taken away over $10 billion in recent years. At the same time, the sources we increasingly rely on are ever more volatile. We utterly lack an economic development strategy.
Our tax system continues to grow more unfair. The poor and the middle class pay more than the wealthiest. Ironically, while the rest of us pay for investments in infrastructure, education, health care, quality of life and workforce development - the very things that allow the wealthy and the corporations to succeed - the governor, at their behest, demands that they contribute less and less.
Public legislative hearings on the Pawlenty budget revealed that 30,000 of the poorest and most ill people in our state are going to lose health care, hospitals and clinics will be forced to close, thousands in the health care field will lose their jobs, nursing homes will lose 25 percent of their funds, people with disabilities will lose support services, schools will have to deal with dramatic payment delays forcing expensive short term borrowing, our public colleges and universities will fire hundreds of faculty and increase tuition 10 to 15 percent [today's news on tuition notwithstanding...that assumes the legislature's budget holds], cities and counties will have to slash basic public works and public safety services and raise property taxes at the same time.
There is a reason Tim Pawlenty has been named as a hero to the national right-wing, anti-tax, anti-government extremist movement in the last few days. Unfortunately the national status he enjoys comes at the expense of Minnesotans and Minnesota's future.
He announced last week that he will be setting his budget through "unallotments" on July 1st. There will be no public process of deliberation as is guaranteed through legislative procedure. Please call his office at 651-296-3391 or e-mail him at tim.pawlenty@state.mn.us to express your views.
The Governor's failure to deal responsibly with this budget means that the very same deficits will be in our laps for the next biennium, forcing even more slashing. (Now we know he won't be around to worry about that mess.)
The good news is that Minnesotans have soundly rejected Tim Pawlenty's politics of negativity and division resoundingly for the past two election cycles. Obviously our work must continue.
Thanks to everyone who has advocated for Minnesota to do better. I will continue to raise my voice. I welcome yours.
Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Mpls)
Legislative website
Campaign website |
