The state’s 12 budget bills made their way through the Legislature Tuesday night as Gov. Mark Dayton waited to sign them, ending the 20-day-old state government shutdown. But the central question remained: When will the state reopen?
Reports that presidential hopeful Michele Bachmann suffers from migraine headaches blazed across the internet like wildfire Tuesday, with everyone from bloggers to mainstream media pundits weighing in on whether the affliction could hinder the Minnesota Republican’s ability to perform if elected. One conservative heavy-hitter says it could be a “gamechanger,” while some on the left posit that the news — put out in a piece by Tucker Carlson’s site The Daily Caller that relies primarily on anonymous sources — is part of a smear campaign by another GOP candidate. And a reporter for ABC was shoved by Bachmann’s handlers when he pressed her for answers on Tuesday afternoon.
Gov. Mark Dayton called a special session to break the nearly 3-week old state government shutdown in an announcement and proclamation on Tuesday morning. Dayton and legislative leaders agreed to the session on the condition that the only votes that would be taken would be on budget bills negotiated between the parties and no amendments would be offered. Legislators would have time to debate, however.
On Monday, Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, the state’s largest anti-abortion lobby, stepped up its efforts to get a bans on abortion and funding for certain types of stem cell research included in budget negotiations aimed at ending the state shutdown. In an email alert to supporters, the group claimed that taxpayers “will be forced to pay for cloning” and urged members to contact legislators.
As Gov. Mark Dayton orders the Capitol to open to provide “public access and transparency” while a budget deal is hashed out, four new bills have been posted on legislative websites, addressing public safety/judiciary, transportation, environment and legacy budgets.
For the first time in almost three weeks, the Minnesota State Capitol will be open to the public Tuesday at 9 a.m.
The policy wing of the Roman Catholic Church in Minnesota is asking its members to urge Gov. Mark Dayton and Republican leaders to include a ban on somatic cell nuclear transfer — which it inaccurately calls “human cloning” — in the budget deal that could end the ongoing government shutdown. No state-funded entities in Minnesota have conducted the research.
A budget agreement being hammered out by Gov. Mark Dayton and Republicans in the Minnesota Legislature aimed at ending a state government shutdown came under fire from the state’s largest anti-abortion group over the weekend. Dayton and Republicans made an agreement late last week to resolve Minnesota’s budget impasse, in part by avoiding controversial social issues such as abortion and focusing on fiscal matters. A representative for Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life told reporters that he now questions the pro-life credentials of GOP leaders and told Republican legislators to vote no on any budget agreement that does not ban abortion.
The Service Employees International Union’s Healthcare Minnesota and Minnesota State Council came out against the budget deal Gov. Mark Dayton and GOP legislative leaders reached Thursday.
Gov. Mark Dayton and Republican legislative leaders emerged from more than three hours of negotiations Thursday with the “framework” of a budget deal that would end the state’s 14-day-old government shutdown.
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