Movement Building Won’t Work Against an Obstinate Executive

It’s Time for ‘Governor Veto’ to Put Away His Supertogs

On these pages Joe Bodell suggested recently that “Progressive Organizations Need Some Work.” He laments that “movement building [is taking] a back seat to single-issue advocacy.”

I’m afraid that no matter how much “movement building” these organizations could have done, there is little hope when they are up against an obstinate governor at the beginning of a four-year term.

The Tim Pawlenty of 2006, seeing the mood of the people before the last election, made a great effort to reverse the popular perception of the Tim Pawlenty of 2000-05 by campaigning as a moderate. His approach worked. He squeaked by an error-prone Mike Hatch thanks to third party candidate Peter Hutchinson. But now that it’s 2007 and the election is over, this year’s Tim Pawlenty is back to his old ways.

Doesn’t this strike anyone as a bit disingenuous?

more insideIt is clear that the House and Senate have crafted a number of bills that have received support not only from its DFL majority but from Republicans as well. Yet now those Republicans are facing a dilemma. Will they vote their consciences and override what’s proving to be an avalanche of vetoes? Or will they be forced to put party above policy and support the governor?

DFLers in the Legislature are, of course, frustrated. But moderate Republicans have to be frustrated as well. They are the ones who are being put between the proverbial rock and hard place by the governor’s intransigence.

When it’s clear that the voters clearly supported the DFL agenda in the last election, it’s a slap to their faces that the governor refuses to negotiate with their representatives in the Legislature.

While the veto power of the executive has been a tradition in this country as a means to curtail legislative excess, the Minnesota House and Senate have hardly been proposing excessive programs as judged by their widespread public approval. Instead, it is the governor who is out of step with the wishes of the people.

The Legislature has done its job by acting on a long list of issues. Now the governor needs to take a positive leadership role, meet with legislative leaders and seek common ground.

It is neither fair nor respectful to the people of Minnesota to hold them hostage against the Legislature’s constitutional May 21 deadline. The next gubernatorial election is almost four years away