Of Lemmings, Rats and Democrats

When a company has a loyal employee they have no intention of promoting, it is common practice for them to award a title in lieu of more pay. The same can be said of our Minnesota House and Senate Democrats.

According to the Republican Minority Leader, there is a one-third increase in the number of committees in the Minnesota Legislature this term. This shouldn’t be a surprise. It is axiomatic: larger government demands more committees. Consequently, underachieving Democrats are being rewarded with committee leaderships. Usually, the oldest fossil in Jurassic Park is given the leadership assignment. Their mission: grow government. Feed the beast. Create more lemmings and then push them toward the cliff.

That being said, Representative Marty Seifert, the House Minority Leader intimates that the Dems have been engaged in a Roman orgy of new taxation. The rats are in the pantry. The good news is the governor’s name is Pawlenty and not Hatch. Seifert says the governor is poised to veto most of their wishful thinking.

Seifert writes: “since most bills are likely going to be vetoed due to their high cost and/or tax increases and/or poison pill provision, I’d expect that the Majority will have to re-do them in late April or early May after the vetoes are sustained.”

What does this mean? It means that we are looking at the possibility of overtime – a special session and dare I say – shutdown!??

Will Pawlenty have the stones to engage the DFL in a blinking contest? Will Republicans demonstrate an actual spine when the Strib and the other media hordes start blaming Republicans for strangling, choking and starving old folks and babies? How will Republicans respond when the usual chorus of critics begin their Gregorian chant of death, doom and destruction?

If the past is any teacher, what we know is this: Minnesota Republicans have a tendency to avoid hardball politics. Their knees traditionally buckle the first time the Strib calls them mean-spirited, MPR calls their compassion into question, or Don Shelby refuses to acknowledge taxpayer discontent?

Which leads to the final point: Jason Lewis’ Tax Cut Coalition Rally is scheduled for the Capitol steps on Saturday, April 14 @ noon. This may be our only chance this session to speak with a unified voice. Kudos to Jason for using his platform to give us this chance. If you are rationalizing why you cannot attend the event – suck it up! This will be tough love – a rat intervention. Don’t rationalize. Those who preach Limited Government need to understand: this time around, silence is not optional. You don’t need to be there in spirit. You need to be there in body.

The tax rats have forced our hand.