mike dean

When Gov. Tim Pawlenty unilaterally settled the state’s $2.7 billion budget the consensus was that his authority to do so would be challenged in court. But two months later no lawsuits have been filed.

Minnesota has the highest level of participation by small political donors in the country, according to a new study by the Campaign Finance Institute. But that status is threatened by Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s elimination of the state’s Political Contribution Refund program, which the report calls “a big success” and “a much healthier system” that the rest of the country can learn from.

If vetoes are like slapshot goals in hockey, then Gov. Tim Pawlenty scored an election-reform hat trick last week, vetoing first two smaller bills then an omnibus bill, meaning the state enacted no legislative response to flaws revealed by the Coleman-Franken fracas.